Memorial

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Sgt Sylvester Duke was a blacksmith before he joined the Air Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve in New Cumberland, Pennsylvania on 2 February 1944.

The aircraft was hit by fighters after it left Hamburg and started the return flight home. The first group knocked out the oxygen and one of the engineers. Some of the crew had already left the ship when the aircraft went into a spin and the nose and a section of the side tore off. One of the crewmembers said that just before he bailed out he saw (Lt. Webster) helping Lt. Whitt out of the cockpit. Duke and Lakin stood in front of Richard Meehan to save him as he had no flak suit on. They got it and were killed right in front of him and he crawled out on his hands and feet over their dead bodies to get to the door. Then it wouldn't open, it was frozen. He wasn't able to walk so he made it to the other side of the ship and then bailed out. The sky was so thick with flak that you couldn't hardly see anything. The Germans met them that day with everything they had. So when Meehan left (Lt. Webster) was in the ship still, getting them all out and Whitt was then shot in the leg and Webster was putting his chute on Whitt. He said the ship went on fire just when he got out.... the way he told it, it was the 13th mission on New Year's Eve, and Webster had a place all hired for a big party for the crew when they got home that night." This information was provided by Anne Webster

Five crewmembers were taken prisoner. Four were killed and were initially buried at the cemetery of Osenhorst.