1943-08-19 P47C-2

1943-08-19,P47C-2,41-6216, 56FG/63FS,2nd.lt.G.L.Hodges, Haringvliet (near Hellevoetsluis)

Engine failure. Ditched and made POW

Statement 1Lt. Harold E. Comstock

About 18:04 hours 2Lt. Glenn L.Hodges, who was flying Postgate Red 4, called and said that his engine was cutting out and that he was going back to the base. I told him to go ahead and that I would cover him. He said that he was getting 26 inches of mercury at 27.000 feet. This was approximately over Breda.

Lt. Hodges started to lose altitude and continued to do so at a gliding speed of 180 miles an hour until we were over Tholen Island. He then nosed it down and was doing about 220 to 230 m.p.h. when we crossed the shore line of Tholen Island and were out in the middle of the Oosterschelde estuary. He was right on the deck and I was around 200 feet above him and behind. He continued to lose speed until he was stalling and his plane hit the water. His ship nosed up and then settled back.

When I last saw Lt. Hodges he was in his plane which was hitting the water in the Oosterschelde estuary North of Noord-Beveland at approximately 18:10 hours.

Harold E. Comstock

1Lt. Air Corps – 63rd. Fighter Squadron

( Hodges and Comstock must have mistaken their exact location and believed to have been over the Oosterschelde estuary)

From the above can be concluded that Hodges was not flying his own plane but that of Lt O`Connor.

Aug 19th., 1943

EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS

STRATEGIC OPERATIONS

(Eighth Air Force)::

VIII Bomber Command Mission 85: Three Luftwaffe airfields in The Netherlands are targetted:

125 B-17's are dispatched to Gilze-Rijen and Flushing Airfields; 38 B-17's hit Gilze-Rijen at 1802-1814 hours and 55 hit Flushing at 1756 hours; they claim 29-1-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; 4 B-17's are lost and 42 damaged; casualties are 9 WIA and 41 MIA; this mission is escorted by 175 P-47's who claim 9-2-4 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 P-47 is lost and the pilot is listed as MIA.

45 B-17's are dispatched to Woensdrecht Airfield but weather prevents them hitting the target. VIII Air Support Command Missions 27A, 27B and 28: Three Luftwaffe air- fields in France are targetted: 1. 36 B-26's are dispatched to Amiens/Glisy Airfield; all hit the target at 1129 hours; they claim 1-0-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 B-26 is damaged beyond repair and 9 are damaged; casualties are 2 WIA. 2. 36 B-26's are dispatched to Poix/Nord Airfield; 35 hit the target at 1218 hours; 1 aircraft is damaged; there are no casualties. 3. 36 B-26's are dispatched to Bryas Sud Airfield but the target is obscured by cloud and the mission is aborted.

source: www.USAAF.net

The US Eighth Air Force's VIII Air Support Command and VIII Bomber Command in England both fly missions.

The VIII Air Support Command flies Missions 27A, 27B and 28 against 3 Luftwaffe airfields in France without loss.

(1) 36 B-26B Marauders bomb Glisy Airfield at Amiens at 1129 hours; they claim 1-0-2 Luftwaffe aircraft.

(2) 35 B-26s are attack Nord Airfield at Poix at 1218 hours.

(3) 36 B-26s are dispatched to Bryas Sud Airfield but the target is obscured by cloud and the mission is aborted.

- The VIII Bomber Command flies Mission 85 against 3 Luftwaffe airfields in The Netherlands.

(1) 38 B-17s attack Gilze-Rijen at 1802-1814 hours and 55 hit Flushing at 1756 hours; they claim 29-1-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; 4 B-17's are lost; escort is provided by 175 P-47 Thunderbolts who claim 9-2-4 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 P-47 is lost.

(2) 45 B-17s are dispatched to Woensdrecht Airfield but weather prevents them hitting the target.

56th Fighter Group

HISTORY:

Constituted as 56th Pursuit Group (Interceptor) on 20 Nov 1940. Activated on 15 Jan 1941. Equipped with P-39's and P-40's. Trained, participated in maneuvers, served as an air defense organization, and functioned as an operational training unit. Redesignated 56th Fighter Group in May 1942. Received P-47's in Jun and began training for combat. Moved to England, Dec 1942-Jan 1943. Assigned to Eighth AF. Continued training for several weeks. Entered combat with a fighter sweep in the area of St Omer on 13 Apr 1943, and during the next two years destroyed more enemy aircraft in aerial combat than any other fighter group of Eighth AF. Flew numerous missions over France, the Low Countries, and Germany to escort bombers that attacked industrial establishments, V-weapon sites, submarine pens, and other targets on the Continent. Also strafed and dive-bombed airfields, troops, and supply points; attacked the enemy communications; and flew counter-air patrols. Engaged in counter-air and interdictory missions during the invasion of Normandy in Jun 1944. Supported Allied forces for the breakthrough at St Lo in Jul. Participated in the Battle of the Bulge, Dec 1944-Jan 1945. Helped to defend the Remagen bridgehead against air attacks in Mar 1945. Received a DUC for aggressiveness in seeking out and destroying enemy aircraft and for attacking enemy air bases, 20 Feb-9 Mar 1944. Received another DUC for strikes against antiaircraft positions while supporting the airborne attack on Holland in Sep 1944. Flew last combat mission on 21 Apr 1945. Returned to the US in Oct. Inactivated on 18 Oct 1945.

Activated on 1 May 1946. Equipped with P-47 and P-51 aircraft; converted to F-80's in 1947. Redesignated 56th Fighter Interceptor Group in Jan 1950. Converted to F-86 aircraft. Inactivated on 6 Feb 1952.

Redesignated 56th Fighter Group (Air Defense). Activated on 18 Aug 1955. Assigned to Air Defense Command and equipped with F-86's.

SQUADRONS:

61st: 1941-1945; 1946-1952.

62d: 1941-1945; 1946-1952; 1955-.

63d: 1941-1945; 1946-1952; 1955-.

STATIONS:

Savannah, Ga, 15 Jan 1941

Charlotte, NC, May 1941

Charleston, SC, Dec 1941

Bendix, NJ, Jan 1942

Bridgeport, Conn, c. 7 Jul-Dec 1942

Kings Cliffe, England, Jan 1943

Horsham St Faith, England, c. 6 Apr 1943

Halesworth, England, c. 9 Jul 1943

Boxted, England, c. 19 Apr 1944-Oct 1945

Camp Kilmer, NJ, c. 16-18 Oct 1945.

Selfridge Field, Mich, 1 May 1946-6 Feb 1952.

O'Hare Intl Aprt, Ill, 18 Aug 1955-.

COMMANDERS:

Unkn, Jan-Jun 1941

Lt Col Davis D Graves, Jun 1941

Col John C Crosthwaite, c. 1 Jul 1942

Col Hubert A Zemke, Sep 1942

Col Robert B Landry, 30 Oct 1943

Col Hubert A Zemke, 19 Jan 1944

Col David C Schilling, 12 Aug 1944

Lt Col Lucian A Dade Jr, 27 Jan 1945

Lt Col Donald D Renwick, Aug 1945-unkn

Col David C Schilling, May 1946

Lt Col Thomas D DeJarnette, Aug 1948

Lt Col Irwin H Dregne, 1949

Lt Col Francis S Gabreski, 1950

Col Earnest White Jr, 1951-unkn.

Unkn, 1955-.

CAMPAIGNS:

American Theater; Air Offensive, Europe; Normandy; Northern France; Rhineland; Ardennes-Alsace; Central Europe.

DECORATIONS:

Distinguished Unit Citations: ETO, 20 Feb-9 Mar 1944; Holland, 18 Sep 1944.

INSIGNE:

Shield: Tenne on a chevron azure fimbriated or two lightning flashes chevronwise of the last. Motto: Cave Tonitrum - Beware of the Thunderbolt. (Approved 4 Apr 1942.)

63rd Fighter Squadron

Code: UN

Callsign: Postgate (A Group)

Northgrove (B Group) to 22 April '44 then:

Daily (A Group)

Yorker (B Group)

History of the 63rd Fighter Squadron

from Global Security

World War II

Activated on January 15, 1941 at Savannah, Georgia, the 63d Pursuit Squadron was originally assigned to the 56th Pursuit Group. On January 15, 1942, it came under control of the 1st Interceptor Command and began flying the P-40 Kittyhawk as it moved to several bases across the northeastern states. Redesignated a fighter unit in May 1942, the 63d served as part of the New York Air Defense Wing, training replacement fighter pilots as its main mission.

During 1942, the squadron began flying the new P-47 Thunderbolt, the “Jug”. The 56th Fighter Group moved to Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, on December 27, 1942, to prepare for deployment to Europe. Embarkation began on January 5, 1943, along with the 61st and 62d Fighter Squadrons. Six days later the group began training at Wittering, England, in brand new Thunderbolts.

As a component of the 56th Fighter Group, the Panthers became one of the most successful squadrons in the United States Army Air Force during World War II. Flying escort and fighter sweeps for United States bomber fleets, the 63d Fighter Squadron operated out of Boxted, England for most of the war. During the next two years, the squadron's pilots destroyed 167.5 enemy aircraft in the air and 110 on the ground. Campaigns the pilots supported included the Normandy Invasion, Battle of the Bulge, Remagen Bridgehead, and the Invasion of Holland. By popular choice, the Panthers kept their rugged Thunderbolts for the whole war.

Honors earned by the squadron include two Distinguished Unit Citations, seven campaign streamers and the American Theater Service Streamer. A few months after Germany surrendered, the 63d Fighter Squadron returned to Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, until inactivation on October 18, 1945.

Post World War II

A COMPLETE LIST OF MISSIONS FLOWN BY THE 56th FIGHTER GROUP DURING WW2

August 1943

9th. Rodeo-Rotterdam. Uneventful.

12th. First use of belly tanks

(1) Ramrod-Gelsenkirchen pen.

(2) Ramrod-Gelsenkirchen w/d Claims: 0-0-1

14th. Circus-Tessel Island. Uneventful.

15th.

(1) Rodeo-Rotterdam. Uneventful.

(2) Ramrod-Kassel. Uneventful.

16th. Ramrod-Paris/Le Bourget. MIA: G.Spaleny (62)

17th.

(1) Ramrod-Regensburg pen.(2) Ramrod-Regensburg w/d

Claims: 17-1-9

First triple victories. G.W.Johnson (61), G Schiltz (63) MIA: V.Day (62), R Stultz (62), A Sugas (63)

19th. Ramrod-Gilze Rijen. Claims : 9-0-3 MIA: G.Hodges

22nd. C Saux (62) and D Tettemer (62) killed in training flight.

23rd. Rodeo-Gilze Rijen. Uneventful.

24th. Ramrod-Evreux. Claims : 3-0-2

25th. Rodeo-Bethune. Uneventful.

31st. Ramrod-Amiens/Glissy. Uneventful.

http://www.56thfightergroup.co.uk/missions.htm

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