USAAF
13th AF
307th BG
372nd BS
1944 via Pat Ranfranz
December 11, 2005 |
Pilot 2nd Lt. Gerald D. Coleman 0-806220 (Idabel, OK)
Co-Pilot 2nd Lt. John E., Jurica Jr. 0-813010 (Freeland, PA)
Navigator 2nd Lt. Martin B. Unger 0-814450 (New York, NY)
Bombardier 2nd Lt. James F. Lind 0-754917 (Los Angeles, CA)
Engineer T/Sgt Robert P. Wagoner 35283528 (Bison, KS)
Radio T/Sgt James R. Hurd 13121851 (Martinsville, VA)
Asst. Radio T/Sgt John R. McCullough 39293812 (Covina, CA)
Gunner T/Sgt Romeo Tetreault 20113352 (New Bedford, MA)
Gunner T/Sgt Bill Williams 17038239 (Grand Island, NE)
MIA June 25, 1944
MACR 10023
Aircraft History
A new B-24, painted natural silver it was flying on its first mission.
Mission History
Took off from Mokerang Field on Los Negros in the morning for a bombing raid on Yap. Shot down by A6M Zero fighters.
The plane went down approximately three to five miles southeast off the southern tip of Yap. Submairne USS Albacore spend 4 days on lifeguard duty, and looking for Coleman’s crew between supporting other B-24 missions.
Patrick T. Ranfranz adds:
"My uncle, T/Sgt John R. McCullough, was the Assistant Radio Operator on the Coleman B-24 Crew and declared missing and non-recoverable on 25 June 1944. The plane went down approximately three to five miles southeast of the southern tip of Yap."
Search By Relative
In October 2005, Pat Ranfranz traveled to Yap to search for his uncle's bomber:
Patrick T. Ranfranz adds:
"My wife and I traveled to Yap Island in October 2005 to search for my uncle's missing B-24 from the 307th BG. Although we did not find the bomber on this trip, we located numerous American crash sites and conducted a lot of interviews with Yapese elders. We plan to return to Yap next year to continue the search."
References
Thanks to Patrick Ranfranz of MissingAirCrew.com for aircraft information. USS Albacore, War Patrol Report #9
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October 1, 2009
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