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Submit- Full
name
DIDAS, Leo Joseph - Date of
birth
22 March 1922 -
Age
22 - Place of
birth
Hornell, Steuben County, New York -
Hometown
Steuben County, New York
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-825417 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
Pilot -
Unit
512th Fighter Squadron,
406th Fighter Group
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
2 January 1945 - Place of
death
Near Habay la Neuve, Belgium
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Luxembourg
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| A | 7 | 10 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Leo M. Midas (father)
Margaret E. (Wood) Didas (mother)
Mary A. Didas (sister)
Corrine Didas (sister)
Margaret K. Didas (sister)
Plane data
- Serial
number
42-75435 -
Data
Type: P-47D-11RE
Nickname: Itsie Bitsie
Destination: Bastogne, Belgium
Mission: Ground Support
MACR: 11512
More information
2nd Lt Leo J. Didas graduated from Hornell High School in 1940 and from Rochester Business Institute.He joined the Army in Rochester, New York, on 23 October 1942.
Per 2nd Lt John N. Balog:
Lt Leo J. Didas was Dasher Blue 2 in dropping napalm on a target approximately ten miles northeast of Bastogne, Belgium. I followed Lt Didas on the pass but did not see him get hit by flak. He did not rejoin blue leader, and it was then I saw he was in trouble. I could not contact him by radio, so I called blue leader that I was flying back with Lt Didas. The time was approximately 1250, altitude approximately 3,000 feet. There was a large hole in the middle of the right wing, and the left aileron was loose and damaged. He seemed to have difficulty keeping the plane under control and was gradually losing altitude. He was flying a course of approximately 235 to 240 for about five minutes when I momentarily lost sight of him. I maneuvered to a position to watch him better and then saw the plane on its back, then it crashed nose first. The plane exploded and burned on impact.
He was first buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery at Grand Failly, France.
Lt Didas is remembered at Saint Ann's Cemetery in Hornell, Steuben County, New York.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, Terry Hirsch, www.abmc.gov, www.findagrave.com, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov – WWII Enlistment Record, www.ancestry.com - Headstone and Interment Record, www.fold3.com, http://ardennesavions45.blogspot.nl, New York State Birth Index
Photo source: www.findagrave.com – Luxembourg American Cemetery / Finder 24, Hornell High School 1940