788th/859th BSs
Fox Crew


The picture below is not dated, the only man identified is William E. Sanderson, standing far left.




The
picture above was taken at Harrington, summer of 1944, the crew was one of three augmentation crews brought in to fill out the 788th when that squadron transferred to Harrington three crews short after losses at Rackheath in daylight bombing missions. The background B24 is probably 42-51211, the Carpetbagger "signature" aircraft which was the only "Y" tail number in their squadron at the time this picture was taken. The picture was first seen by the Group in the newsletter of March 1988, page 4. Therein, the men were identified as follows:

Standing, L-R:

Edmund M.  Erickson       -    Bombardier    ASN 0706822
William E. Sanderson      -    Navigator     ASN 0712424
Edward F.  Haldeman       -    Copilot       ASN 0818743
John W.    Fox            -    Pilot         ASN 0697410

Kneeling, L-R:

William M. Cox            -    Engineer      ASN 33596709
Joseph     Newcomb        -    Gunner        ASN 32571814
John J.    Considine      -    R.O.          ASN 36641343
Richard J. Macone         -    Dispatcher    ASN 11056908

ASNs so-colored for EMs link to their NARA Enlistment Records.

Errata: 
Still had ten missions to go when Ops wound down in September of 1944 and had to stay on. They appear in the Late Period Log for eight gas-haul missions in the last two weeks of September. In December they went on Detached Service with the 859th BS to Italy.

Combat Period: Jul-Dec 1944 (at Harrington)

Preferred Aircraft:
 
B24-J 42-50603 Z
Data from July 1944 indicate the following for the crew:

Pilot MR# Date Target Aircraft
  Fox  1035 14  Stationer 111D   B24J 42-50603 Z
  Fox  1053 16  Stationer 138   B24H 42-50393 W
  Fox  1080 17  Shipwright 7   B24J 42-50603 Z
  Fox  1134 19  Fireman 14B   B24J 42-50603 Z
  Fox  1147 20  Percy 30   B24J 42-50603 Z
  Fox  1268 28  Peter 38F   B24J 42-50603 Z
  Fox  1330 30  Digger 53   B24J 42-50603 Z

Errata: This plane was shot down by friendly fire in September of 1944 while on a
mission flown by the James McLaughlin crew.

Agents Carried/Delivered:

1364    2    Unidentified personnel
1756   
3    No Drop
1897   
6    Part of OSS OG Team Christopher


Leaflets Carried/Delivered: Leaflets were carried on many of the missions but were not annotated, or were annotated incorrectly. Those herein are the only verified ones known at this time.

USF-75
USF-78
USF-128
USF-133


Additional Crew Data sources:
Fox Crew personnel files

Group-Related Downloads:
AAFRH-21 "AAF Aid to European Resistance"
Allied Leaflets Index
"Carpetbaggers" by Parnell

"They Flew by Night" editor Robert Fish

Serial Number Index of B24s
Station 179 Operations Log
(handwritten Apr44-Jul45)
Station 179 Operations Log (transcribed Sep44-Jul45)

Available on Request:
Group Mission Reports Jan-Sep44 (On disk $12ea - $10ea via Paypal)
"Chronology of SOE Operations with the Resistance In France During WWII" by Foot & Boxhall
"Spies,Supplies & Moonlit Skies Vols 1&2" by Ensminger
(On disk $12ea - $10ea via Paypal)

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