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Submit- Full
name
DAVIS, Roy Wayne - Date of
birth
18 December 1919 -
Age
24 - Place of
birth
Hiawatha, Brown County, Kansas -
Hometown
Albany, Linn County, Oregon
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-681347 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
Pilot -
Unit
715th Bombardment Squadron,
448th Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal
Death
-
Status
Missing in Action - Date of
death
19 April 1944 - Place of
death
North Sea, near Dunkirk, France
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Ardennes - Tablets of the Missing
Immediate family
-
Members
Roy Davis (father)
Zilphia B. (Houts) Davis (mother)
Jennette A. Davis (sister)
Hollis A. Davis (brother)
Bernard H. Davis (brother)
Plane data
- Serial
number
41-29565 -
Data
Type: B-24H
Destination: Watten, France
Mission: Bombing of the V1 launch site
MACR: 4303
More information
2nd Lt Roy W. Davis was a mechanic. He enlisted in Portland, Oregon on 10 April 1942.At the time of his death his brother Hollis was serving in the Navy and was stationed at Pasco, Washington. His brother Bernard was serving with the army at Santa Maria army base in California.
Statement of S/Sgt Russell E. Towsley, a crew member of another airplane in the group:
"We were flying at approximately 19000 feet on the let down coming over the French coast in the vicinity of Dunkirk. The left-waist gunner called me at approximately 1715 hours and pointed out flames coming from the #4 engine of A/C 41-29565. We continued to watch the ship and after a few minutes it went into a long glide. During this glide the fire appeared to go out. At what I would judge to be around 11,000 feet the blaze broke out again. At this time the ship went into a spin, the right wing (part of it at least) broke off and the fire spread over the entire left side of the ship. The A/C exploded just before hitting the water. We saw four chutes come from the plane just as the fire broke out the second time (11,000 feet). Three of the chutes appeared to land in the water and the fourth on the coast of France."
The airplane was hit by flak over the target, which resulted in a fire in the bomb bay and two streams of gasoline flowing from the right wing.
Nine crew members were killed in the crash or drowned. T/Sgt Ernest W. Robinson Jr. was picked up ten miles off the French coast but died of his wounds on 22 April.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, Terry Hirsch, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.fold3.com - MACR, www.aircrewremembered.com, www.ancestry.com - 1940 Census, www.newspapers.com, WWII Draft Card
Photo source: Astrid van Erp, www.newspapers.com - Statesman Journal 4 June 1943