1944 – May 26, USAAF B-17G crash, Ronald Horn farm 3M west of Anthon, IA — 10
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 4-5-2024 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
— 11 Daily Times Herald, Carroll, IA. “Army Plane Falls…Anthon…Eleven…Die.” 5-26-1944
— 11 Waterloo Daily Courier, IA. “11 Killed as Bomber Falls at Sioux City.” 5-26-1944, p. 1.
— 10 Aviation Safety Network. USSAF B-17G crash 3M W Anton IA, 5-26-1944.
— 10 Mireles 2006. Fatal Army AF Aviation Accidents…US…, V2, July 1943-July 1944, p. 804.
Narrative Information
Mireles: “At 0740, a Boeing B-17G crashed three miles west of Anthon, Iowa, killing the crew of ten. Investigators stated,
B-17G #42107152 took off, with combat crew and instructor pilot aboard, from [Sioux City Army Air Base, Sioux City, Iowa] at 0631 CWT to accomplish an (instructional) instrument check and practice bombing mission. The plan before take-off was to accomplish the instrument check first, which is substantiated by the position report received at 0727 CWT, giving a position one mile west of the base, and also by the fact that the airplane did not crash in the vicinity of the bombing range. The airplane is estimated to have crashed at 0740 CWT. The position of the wreckage indicated that the airplane struck the ground in approximately a 20-degree inverted attitude (20 degrees beyond vertical). Farm people, who saw the airplane prior to the crash, stated that it was flying straight and level at an estimated 1,500 feet agl and headed in a southwesterly direction. Apparently no one observed the actions of the airplane at the time it went into a dive which resulted in the crash.” (Mireles 2006, Vol. 2, July 1943-July 1944, p. 804.)
Aviation Safety Network, Flight Safety Foundation, Database, 1944:
“Narrative: Crashed. Returning from a local bombing range practice flight. Went into an unrecoverable dive, unknown reason. Ten fatalities:
1st Lt. Roger G. Jay, Instructor Pilot
2ns Lt. Hubert B. Godbee, Bombardier
Flt. Off. Lyland Petersen, B-17 Student
Flt. Off. John B. Smith, B-17 Student
Cpl. James O. Hawkins, Gunner
Cpl. James A. Williams, Flight Engineer
Pvt. Fred T. Littlewolf, Radio Operator
Pvt. Joseph A .Calvello, Gunner
PFC Norman Lindjord, Gunner
PFC Ray E. Snider, Gunner
Newspapers
May 26, Associated Press: “Sioux City, Ia. (AP) – All 11 members of the crew of a four-motored bomber from the Sioux City air base lost their lives this morning when the big craft crashed and burned on the Ronald Horn farm about five miles southwest of Anthon, Ia., Colonel George A. Blakey, station commandant of the air base, said. All 11 bodies have been recovered, Colonel Blakey reported….
“Worth Fitchner, working on a farm about a quarter of a mile away, said that his attention was attracted to the plane when the “motors quit.” Fitchner said he saw a “propeller drop” and then the ship seemed to take a nose dive. The plane was seen traveling low over Anthon just prior to the crash.
“Soldiers from the Sioux City air base set up guard around the scene of the accident and officers were conducting an investigation. Wreckage of the plane was strewn widely in the area.” (Daily Times Herald, Carroll, IA. “Army Plane Falls Near Anthon, Ia.; Eleven Men Die.” 5-26-1944, 1.)
May 26, Associated Press: “Sioux City, Ia. – (AP) – All 11 members of the crew of a four-motored bomber from the Sioux City air base lost their lives Friday morning [May 26] when the big craft crashed and burned on the Ronald Horn farm about five miles southwest of Anthon, Ia., Col. George A. Blakey, station commandant of the air base, said.
“All 11 bodies have been recovered, Col. Blakey reported. Names of the victims will be withheld pending notification of next of kin, he said.
“Clelland Yockey, a farmer working in a field adjacent to the Horn place, saw the crash and immediately reported the accident to officers of the air base by telephone.” (Waterloo Daily Courier, IA. “11 Killed as Bomber Falls at Sioux City.” 5-26-1944, p. 1, col. 2.)
Sources
Aviation Safety Network, Flight Safety Foundation, Database, 1944. USSAF B-17G crash 3M W Anton IA, 5-26-1944. Accessed 4-5-2024 at: https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/97963
Daily Times Herald, Carroll, IA. “Army Plane Falls Near Anthon, Ia.; Eleven Men Die.” 5-26-1944, p. 1. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=162012679
Mireles, Anthony J. Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945 (Volume 2: July 1943 – July 1944). Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Co., 2006.
Waterloo Daily Courier, IA. “11 Killed as Bomber Falls at Sioux City.” 5-26-1944, p. 1, col. 2. Accessed 10-4-2012 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=93003604