Memorial

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Sgt William J. O’Brien joined the Air Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve in Camp Blanding, Florida on 13 December 1943.

2nd Lt Harry P. Hillhouse:
While flying at 30,000 feet at 10:42 AM, the bomber's radio operator - Staff Sgt Robert Haglund - reported having engine problems. In his distress call, he claimed the severe weather had caused the no. 2 engine to freeze up. It had begun to leak oil. A couple of minutes later he reported that yet another engine had quit working and the aircraft was in trouble. Suddenly the instruments were failing; the plane began spinning out of control. The crippled airplane spiraled into the Schöneck Mountain near Kleinsölk, Austria at 8,000 feet. That was the last anyone heard from them.

After the war, the navigator, Lt Harry Hillhouse stated tthat the plane went down due to several conditions: a run-away prop in No. 2 enging that could not be feathered, oil leak in No. 4 engine and extremely bad ecing in which diving of climbing could not relieve the situation. The plane went out of control and started into a power spin form an altitude of 32,500 feet, from which it failed to pull out.