Missing information?
Do you have any additional information you would like to share about a soldier?
Submit- Full
name
GIBBONS, John Joseph - Date of
birth
6 June 1921 -
Age
22 - Place of
birth
Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania -
Hometown
Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-747157 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
Navigator -
Unit
349th Bombardment Squadron,
100th Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
10 October 1943 - Place of
death
Amelsbüren, Germany
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| G | 16 | 6 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Jeffrey Gibbons (father)
Anna Marie (Fossett) Gibbons (mother)
George E. Gibbons (brother)
Harry Gibbons (brother)
Plane data
- Serial
number
42-30023 -
Data
Type: B-17G
Nickname: Horny aka Forever Yours II
Destination: Münster, Germany
Mission: Bombing of the railway
MACR: 1022
More information
2nd Lt John J. Gibbons graduated from Northeast Catholic High School in 1939. He attended college and was a doorman.He joined the Air Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve at Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania on 4 November 1942.
The aircraft was destroyed by flak, killing 2nd Lt Gibbons and Sgt Palmer. They were initially buried at the cemetery of Amelsbüren. The rest of the crew was taken prisoner.
A few days before this final mission the crew got back from a mission to Bremen, Germany on one engine. This was with the aircraft "Miss Carriage". This was the first crew in the 8th Air Force to accomplish this task, 400 miles back to England on one engine.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, WWIIMemorial.com, Footnote.com, 100thbg.com, Missing Air Crew Report, www.ancestry.com
Photo source: Michel Beckers, www.ancestry.com, Northeast Catholic High School