Memorial

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Statement by S/Sgt Donald D. Dunn, tail gunner of plane 42-97317: "1st Lt Powell's plane had gone over to the right to avoid propwash. Evidently he caught propwash from another element and went into a dive. He pulled out abruptly and his plane broke in half between the radio room and ball turret. The front half of the plane turned a loop and cut part of the nose of Lt McCormick's plane off. The tail half of Lt Powell's plane hit the tail section of the other plane, tearing part of the horizontal stabilizer off and about all of the vertical stabilizer off. About that time an orange parachute went out and a second later a white one went out. I believe it to be the waist gunner on Lt Powell's crew. Both planes dropped off into a spin and I followed them down to the cloud layer. Nothing else was seen."

Of the nine men crew of A/C 43-38697 eight were killed. Only the tail gunner survived. Of the nine members on board of Lt McCormick's ship, seven were killed.
They were initially buried at the cemetery of Lehmke the same day.

Joseph did not bail out and was one of the three crewmembers who could not be identified. The crewmembers were intially buried at Cemetery Lehmke, Germany.