Wellington HZ355 from 429 Squadron

Looked into the B-17 again and the Pilot was Aurthur P. Hale and not Bill Russell. My Uncle remembers that name and keeps referring to it. I will keep looking.

Well I found out that the Air Force Escape and Evasion Society along with the Canadian Escape and Evasion Society have closed their doors. Not very many people attending anymore. These Societies were the ones that made the recognition possible for the Resistance Helpers.

 

It will be hard to find out more about the Luftwaffe Officer, but my guess would really be the Hopital Baujon.

documents from my private collection! Enjoy! I have also posted these in the 514 thread.

 

Skipper,

Nice....

Okay I must ask this....How many books do you own? How many GB does your brain hold?

Just finished watching the DVD, Last Best Hope finally...very good. I've got a stack of books I purchased and more on a list to get!

 

Let's say I have a "L" shaped libray , a couple of hard discs with documents and thousands of files . To this you can add my pictures, my aircraft relics , my militaria and other documents such as dedicated pictures from veterans, my collection of aircraft paintings, not to forget the few things i keep hidden in my head .

The signatures you see on the cover displayed are original ones.

 

Skipper,

I got one response back from the Canadian Escaping Society and he had no information for me but passed it on to another person. Waiting to hear back from some more.

Jo Ann

 

Jo Ann

slightly off the subject but do you have a photo of Lw pilot Werner Baake ? I note at least one in my files but not a real good reproduction

E ~

 

Erich,

I found one at:
http://www.luftwaffe.cz/index.html

 

Erich,

Opps I hit button before I was done!

anyway, I found the information and a picture of him there.

Have we come to a conclusion on the pilot yet or will it be between Kollack and Baake?

Is the infor at that site based on the book you guys were talking about?

Jo Ann

 

In speaking about POW camps:

Is there a difference between a "Clink" and a "Cooler"?

I take it the "Cooler" is solitary confinement.

Jo Ann

 

Jo Ann glad you were able to access Petr's LW site, I've helped him with other pilots-bios in the past, the site keeps growing which is good.

personally no I am not at any conclusion just yet, it may be answered for you this fall/winter though from Dr. Boitens 2 volumes and hopeful they will be published this late fall..........just not sure with all the publishing hang-ups for so many authors these days

good reading from your postings

Erich ~

 

Good question? I'd say it's the same thing.

 

I sent off for the International Red Cross records on my Uncle. Will take about 3 months to get a response. I got feedback from London Archives and they didn't find anything from the record that I requested. So one of two things either I requested the wrong report or it's not there. So I spent time looking again on the sections and sent for 3 new ones. It will take 10 working days to let me know if they have anything. Confusing because he was an American citizen, who enlisted in the RCAF and then stationed with the RAF Squadron 429. The US archives do not have him listed under the POW search so if they are not at London then I will try Canada.

 

It appears that I have tracked down the "Jim Russell" that was with my Uncle in Fresnes.

Name: Colonel J. Russell Jr. (listed also as Russell Colonel J. Jr. and J. Russell Jr., Colonel)
From San Antonio, TX. (Info also from Ancestry.com)

May 29th, 1943, shot down by flak, target St. Nazarie.
The aircraft, B-17 The Concho Clipper #42-29838, crashed in Ploeren, Brittany, France.

as per: Ploeren - Wikipédia

Checking on crew....

 

I found a lot of information but still need to somehow veryify it's him:

Crew:
Lt. Fc Russell (KIA)
Lt. Colonel J. Russell Jr. (POW) Deceased 2004
Lt. Charles B. Woerhle (POW)
Lt. Roy P. Stealy (POW) Deceased
F/O Leo Grikstas )POW) Deceased
T/Sgt. Wayne I. Baldwin (KIA) Plot L Row 12 grave 21. Brittany American Cemetery St. James.
S/S Charles T. Eaton (POW) Deceased
S/Sgt. Nahanni Bader (KIA) Plot H Row 1 grave 13. Britanny American Cemetery St. James.
S/Sgt. Maurice A. McLaughlin (POW) Deceased
S/Sgt. Frederick D. Williams Jr. (POW) Deceased
A Ceremony on Nov. 18, 2006 with the only living survivor Charles B. Woehrle took place.

 

I am reading the Veteran's Interview of Charles B. Woehrle at:
WoehrleC - Concordia University

And he talks about his Pilot "Jim Russell" getting to Sagan Luft 3 in Nov. 1943 from Fresnes Prison.

 

Hi Jo ann.

I will have to check about this Russel.
The crashsite (near St Nazaire) makes me think this is not a guy who went to Paris (unless betrayed) wheareas he was already very close to the Shelburne network evasion beaches in South Britanny (North of St Nazaire on the Atlantic coast) . Allow me a few hours, I have to go to work , but when I return I wil lcheck my files

 

Skipper,

Charles Woehrle said in his interview that Jim Russell had been in the Resistance and someone had turned him in for a bounty.

Jo Ann

 

that would make sense. I will focuss in that direction then. I wonder if Dessoubrie was behind this story too. It would be interesting to find out.

 

Yippee!

Got a phone call. They found a picture of my Uncle in Eisden with the Resistance Archives! (I had sent them a picture of him to check.) They are putting together a package of a lot of stuff for me! My Uncle's interview helped a lot to put things together.

I called my Uncle, he's out today! I have to wait to tell him!!!!

I also found out that the Colaris (Collaris) House that he stayed at was really the "de Bie family". More to search on....

 

Hi Jo Ann

Just make sure that you have this story copyrighted and protected. This story, if made into a movie, would put "The Great Escape" to shame.

Now you have me addicted.