850th/857th BSs
Coleman Crew

The Coleman crew are pictured above as an 8-man crew at Harrington in the spring of 1944. Their flyover plane "Baby Bug" B24-H 42-94865 was taken from the crew at Eye, Suffolk, when the 850th moved to Harrington. It served for a short time with the 493rd BG and when it became unsuitable for high altitude bombing, was refurbished as a Carpetbagger plane and came to Harrington in July of 1944, where it was recognised and renamed "Baby Bug II".

The picture below (Mountain Home,ID)has names matched to faces as:

Standing, L-R:
Runyon P.  Coleman  - Pilot            - ASN 0432621
Kenneth R. Beno     - Bombardier       - ASN 0434606
Robert C.  Bray     - Navigator        - ASN 0759836
Edwin C.   Lloyd    - Co-Pilot         - ASN 0755586
Beryl F.   Bryant   - R.O.             - ASN 17071468

Kneeling, L-R:
Raymond S. Jablecki - Gunner           - ASN 20620473
Stanley E. Swain    - Engineer         - ASN 32426677
Joseph F.  Fregeau  - Gunner           - ASN 11036737    (orphaned)
Martin L.  Talley   - Gunner           - ASN 38431454
Thomas H.  Sutton   - Gunner           - ASN 34094093    (orphaned)

Picture credit: (Mountain Home): Ewen Sinclair, UK Historian of the 490th BG.

Combat Period: May-September 1944  

Status: Original 490th BG crew, arrived at Harrington at the end of May 1944.

Preferred Aircraft: B24H 41-29607 

An ex-486th BG plane, it was converted to a night bomber following the Operations period of the summer of 1944, recorded at BAD 2 on 6 Dec 44.  It lasted out the war and was flown to the Zone of the Interior on 9 July 1945, piloted by Bergen of the 856th BS.

Missions from July 1944 (All French targets) Mission Reports.