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name
REED, Frederick Gordon - Date of
birth
12 April 1919 -
Age
25 - Place of
birth
Haverhill, Essex County, Massachusetts -
Hometown
California
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-767651 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
Pilot -
Unit
350th Bombardment Squadron,
100th Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
6 October 1944 - Place of
death
Ringstrass 51-6, Finkenkrug, Germany
10 km west of Spandau, Germany
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Ardennes
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| A | 8 | 15 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Fred Reed (father)
Bertha C. Reed (mother)
Ruth (Lewis) Reed (fiancee)
Plane data
- Serial
number
43-37882 -
Data
Type: B-17G
Nickname: Happy Go Lucky
Destination: Berlin, Germany
Mission: Bombing of the industrial area
MACR: 9509
More information
2nd Lt Frederick G. Reed graduated from Westboro High School in 1937, where he played on the football team.He joined the Air Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve as a private in Los Angeles, California on 12 November 1942.
He was a graduate from Pilot School at Stockton Field, California. He is also a graduate of the Aero I.T.I. at Glendale, California.
The aircraft received a direct flak burst between engines 2 and 1. The wing burst into flame and it peeled off, spinning and burning. No parachutes were seen.
The bomb load detonated some time after the crash and killed a German woman who was attempting to assist the crew. One crewmembers was taken prisoner. Eight bodies were recovered as unknow and buried in the communal cemetery of Falkensee, Germany.
In August 1947 four crew members were positively identified and returned to the USA. At the request of next of kin the unidentified were buried in Ardennes in two adjoining graves. There is a gravestone between the two crosses with the names of the buried crewmen. Joseph J. Burghardt and John T. Carmichael are buried in separate graves.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, Terry Hirsch, WWII Draft Card,
http://airforce.togetherweserved.com/, http://www.mcadams.org/fpdb/100thcasualty.asp, http://www.westboroughlib.org
Photo source: Peter Schouteten, www.100thbg.com, http://www.westboroughlib.org