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name
WOLSTEIN, Isadore - Date of
birth
30 December 1925 -
Age
18 - Place of
birth
Hennepin County, Minnesota -
Hometown
Hennepin County, Minnesota
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
17118603 -
Rank
Corporal -
Function
Ball Turret Gunner -
Unit
833rd Bombardment Squadron,
486th Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
6 December 1944 - Place of
death
About 100 yards off the end of the breakwater
North Sea, IJmuiden, the Netherlands
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten - Walls of the Missing
Immediate family
-
Members
Max Wolstein (father)
Mary (Getter) Wolstein (mother)
Meyer L. Wolstein (brother)
Harold Wolstein (brother)
Plane data
- Serial
number
43-37927 -
Data
Type: B-17G
Nickname: The Last Roundup
Destination: Merseberg, Germany
Mission: Bombing of the oil refinery
MACR:11048
More information
Isadore Wolstein attended North High School in Minneapolis, Minnesota.He joined the Air Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve at Fort Snelling, Minnesota on 5 February 1944.
According to Capt. Smith of the 78th Fighter Group, one of the escorting fighterpilots, #1 and #2 engines already went out over the target, due to flak hits. The B-17 was escorted back with an escort of six fighters. It headed for a flak area at Ijmuiden, the Netherlands. The fighters tried to contact the B-17 on VHF but there was no answer. Then they tried to signal him visually but withour any luck. It went trough the flak area and had #3 and #4 engines shot out and catching fire. The right wing fell off and the plane went down in flames. It was seen to explode as it hit the water at about 100 yards off the end of the breakwater at IJmuiden.
Although three parachutes were seen, nine crew members were killed and only one man survived and was taken prisoner.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, www.486th.org, National WWII Memorial, Footnote, www.ancestry.com - 1930 Census
Photo source: Peter Schouteten, Hayley Wolstein - Courtesy of Wim slangen