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name
CARRARO, William James Jr - Date of
birth
29 January 1919 -
Age
24 - Place of
birth
Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky -
Hometown
Jefferson County, Kentucky
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-678680 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
Navigator -
Unit
567th Bombardment Squadron,
389th Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
7 January 1944 - Place of
death
Near Vrigny, France
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Epinal
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| B | 2 | 68 |
Immediate family
-
Members
William J. Carraro Sr. (father)
Wilhelmina C. (Budke) Carraro (mother)
Helen M. Carraro (sister)
Plane data
- Serial
number
42-40747 -
Data
Type: B-24D
Nickname: Heavy Date
Destination: Ludwigshafen, Germany
Mission: Bombing of the oil refinery
MACR: 1851
More information
2nd Lt William J. Carraro graduated from St. Xavier High School and attended the University of Louisville. He was a clerk before he volunteered for the Air Corps of the Army of the United States at Bowman Field, Kentucky on 3 April 1942. He was sent overseas in September 1943.On 7 January 1944, Heavy Date, was assigned to bomb the Ludwigshafen Oil Refinery in Germany, piloted by Lt. Carl A. Mattson. The plane was attacked, shot up, and damaged by German fighters, It fell out of control and out of position in its formation. It's cockpit caught on fire, as it fell into a spin and crashed. Some of the crew were able to bail out the plane before it exploded and crashed, one kilometer northeast of Vrigny, France.
Lt Shirley D. Berry:
Lt Carraro went berserk and refused to bail out. He was in the ship when it exploded.
He was first buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery in Solers, France.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, www.abmc.gov, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov, www.ancestry.com - Headstone and Interment Record / Weaver Famly Tree, www.fold3.com – MACR, www.findagrave.com – John Dowdy, www.newspapers.com – The Courier Journal - 27 January 1944/29 July 1944
Photo source: www.findagrave.com – Andy, www.newspapers.com – The Courier Journal - 27 January 1944/29 July 1944