One Tour -- Three Views

447th Bomb Group
USAAF Station 126 - Rattlesden
Three Views - the Polansky Crew

The Polansky crew arrived in England on June 6, 1944, and after some additional training, joined the 708th Squadron on June 20.

"Ready to go!"

Standing L-R: Sam Larson, Russ Kerr, Nor Knueppel, Herb Glasscock, Adam Janowski
Kneeling L-R: John Polansky, J.T. WIlliams, Lou Kovach, Art Wayrynen
Combined here are the flying log of co-pilot Herb Glasscock, and diaries of waist gunner Russ Kerr and radio operator Nor Knueppel.

Lt. Herbert Glasscock
Co-pilot, age: 22
Joliet, Illinois
Flying log entries in BLACK

Sgt. Russell Kerr
Waist Gunner, age: 22
Pleasant Valley, Iowa
Diary entries in BLUE

Sgt. Norbert Knueppel
Radio Operator, age: 22
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Diary entries in RED

My notes and comments are in GREEN

Date	Hours	Mission No.	Target	Location

#1. 6/29/44, 9 hrs: Leipzig, Germany. Pilot and myself. Attacked oil refineries, flak light but accurate and no fighter opposition. At least 128 holes in ship and my oxygen system shot out. All returned unhurt. Two ships lost out of our Sqd.
John Polansky flew an Orientation Mission as co-pilot, and Russ Kerr as Waist Gunner with the Douglas Crew on 43-37756 Milk Wagon.

7/6/1944	4:20	#1	Coast Guns	North France
1. July 6th - Calais, France - 6 hrs Flying bomb sites
Herb flew as co-pilot with the Lakeman Crew on 42-31154 Shack Happy. Nor flew with the Thomas Crew on 43-37774.

7/7/1944	8:00	#2	Oil	Leipzig
#2. 7/7/44, 8 hrs: Leipzig, Germany. Whole crew. Attacked oil refineries -- flak heavy but not very accurate. No fighter opposition. Two holes in ship, no one hurt. One ship lost. Had to release 19 bombs by hand.
2. July 7th - Leipzig, Germany - 10 hrs. Oil refinery
42-102632 Due Back

7/8/1944	4:40	#3	Buzz Bomb Ins.	N.W. Paris
#3. 7/8/44, 4 hrs: Paris, France. Whole crew. Target was a storage dump but T. of Opp landing strip. Fighters did not attack our formation. Flak rather heavy and accurate but our ship was not touched. One ship lost out of our formation. Bomb bay doors stuck.
3. July 8th - Paris, France - 6 hrs Flying bomb sites
42-102658 Blanco Diablo

7/9/1944	1:30			Local Flight

7/11/1944	9:15	#4	Oil	(Munich) Munchen
	7/11/44, 4 1/2 hrs: Munich, Germany. Whole crew. Jet propulsion plant was the target. The visibility was completely obscured by a dense layer of clouds so we hit the city itself. There was no fighter opposition, but the flak was very intense tho inaccurate because of the clouds. We picked up three holes and the bombardier was scratched by a piece of flak. Two ships were missing out of our Sqd.
4. July 11th - Munich, Germany - 10 hrs ME-109 factory
43-37774

7/13 to 7/15: London, England, All the pubs, dance halls and women were the principal targets. All came back happy but very tired and broke.

7/16/1944	7:35	#5	Oil	Stuttgart
Herb flew as replacement co-pilot with the Young Crew on 43-37756 Milk Wagon.

7/17/1944	4:10			Local Flight

7/18/1944	3:15		A.B.S. Ret.	North Germany
43-37830 Lady Jane as Airborne Spare, and returned to base before reaching German coast. Charles Edwards replaced Russ on this flight.

7/18/1944	1:40		Heath Ret.	Martelsham
Martlesham_Heath, designated as USAAF Station No. 369, was the home of the 356th Fighter Group.

7/19/1944	6:15		Slow time	Local Flight
"Slow Time" refers to a local flight to break-in new or rebuilt engines.

7/20/1944	7:45	#6	Oil	Leipzig
5. July 20th - Leipzig, Germany - 10 hrs Chemical and munitions factory
Russ was replaced by Charles Edwards for this mission. 43-37351 Quien Sabe

7/21/1944	8:35	#7	Oil	Regansburg
7/21/44, 8 1/2 hrs: Regensburg, Germany. Whole Crew. The flak was very inaccurate and came back with out a hole only after hitting the target on the nose. Two ships were lost out of B Sqd.
6. July 21st - Regensburg - 10hrs: Oil refinery
43-37774

7/22/1944	3:25			Local Flight

7/24/1944	5:40	#8	Beach Head	(N.B.)
7. July 24th - St. Lo - 5 hrs: To bomb German troops
Russ was replaced by Charles Edwards for this mission. 43-37351 Quien Sabe

7/25/1944	5:15	#9	Beach Head	St. Lo
#6 7/25/44, 6 hrs: St. Lo, France. Whole Crew. Bombed the front lines of the Jerries from 12,000 ft. The flak was light + inaccurate. No holes were acquired and no ships lost.
8. July 25th - St. Lo - 5 hrs: Bombed German troops
42-31185 Satchel Lass

7/27/1944	4:20	#10	Plane Plant	Ostend
9. July 27 - Ostend, Holland - 4-1/2hrs.
Russ was replaced by Charles Edwards for this mission. 42-102632 Due Back

8/2/1944	5:05	#11 Virg. Helen	(Abort) Buzz Inst.	Paris
#7 8/2/44 - 5 1/2 hrs: French coast. Whole crew. Developed engine trouble and came back to the base with one prop feathered after flying about 50 miles into France. Dropped bombs in Channel from 150 ft.
10. Aug. 2nd - Paris- 6 hrs: Flying bomb sites, abort
42-32080 Virginia Helen

8/4/1944	1:55		(scrubbed)	Coast
Group records show the Polansky crew assigned to this mission as part of the "C" Group, but "Recalled by Division." 42-32080 Virginia Helen

8/5/1944	4:30			Local Flight

8/7/1944	5:20	#12	Bridge	Anizy
#8 8/7/44, 5 1/2 hrs: N.W. of Paris. Whole crew. We hit a storage dump. The flak was heavy butvery inaccurate. No fighters encountered and no holes were picked up.
Earl Morrison replaced Nor Knueppel for this mission. 42-32080, now named Too Tired

#9 8/8/44, 5 1/2 hrs: French Coast - Whole crew less Herb. We bombed behind the German front line aiding Montgomery in his break thru at Caen. We bombed from 11,000 ft and the flak was severe for our element. We were lucky to get but four holes.
11. Aug 8th - Falaise, France - 5hrs: German troops encircled
Lt. John James replaced Herb Glassscock and Lt. John Mayes replaced Lou Kovach on this mission. 42-32080 Too Tired

8/14/1944	7:20	#13	Buzz Parts	Mannheim
#10 8/14/44, 7 1/2 hrs: Mannheim,Germany. Whole Crew. A jet propulsion plant was the target in the center of the city, which we hit squarely. 150 heavy guns were encountered leaving us with 33 holes, all too close for comfort. Two ships were lost.
12. Aug. 14th - Mannheim - 8hrs: Flying bomb storage depot
On this mission, Nor was unconscious for several minutes after his oxygen supply was hit by flak. He and Russ did not mention the event for fear that Nor would be grounded by the doctors. 42-102658 Blanco Diablo

8/15/1944	5:00	#14	Airfield	Munster
#11 8/15/44, 5 1/2 hrs: Munster, Germany. Whole Crew. An airfield was our target which we completely destroyed. Again the flak was intense – 91 guns at the target. Our ship came thru with but three holes – Hope our luck holds out.
13. Aug. 15 - Munster, Germany - 6hrs: Airfield
42-31185 Satchel Lass

8/16/1944	8:05	#15	Oil	Rositz
#12 8/16/44, 9 hrs: Near Leipzig, Germany. We made a beautiful hit on an oil refinery. Smoke rose 10to 15 thousand feet high. The flak was inaccurate, and altho fighters were around, they did not botherus. Three holes in our ship.
14. Aug. 14th - Leipzig, Germany - 8hrs: Oil refinery
Adam Janowski was replaced by Lt. Moore as bombardier 42-32080 Too Tired

8/18/1944	7:40	#16	Airfield	St. Dizier
#13 8/18/44, 8 hrs: St. Dizier, France This mission turned out to be one of the best as no flak was encountered and we made a perfect hit on an airfield.
15. Aug. 18th - St. Dizier, France - 8 hrs: Airfield
42-32080 Too Tired

8/24/1944	7:55	#17	Synthetic Oil	Brux - Flak
#14 8/24/44: Brux, Germany. 8 1/2 hrs. Seen most of the important cities of Germany. Berlin, Hamburg, Hanover, Bremenhaven. Saw several flak areas and hit intense flak at the target which was an oil refinery. Our luck is still holding out as we got only a few holes whereas several ships came back with dead and wounded.
16. Aug 24th - Brux, Germany - 8hrs: Synthetic oil refinery
42-32080 Too Tired

8/25/1944	8:30	#18	Airfield	Muritz Lake
#15 8/25/44: N. Berlin, Germany. 9 hrs. This mission is of particular interest as we entered Germany from the north over Denmark and the island of Als where I have relatives. Flak was very light in & out and over the airfield we hit. One hole.
17. Aug 25th - Berlin, Germany - 9hrs: Air field
42-32080 Too Tired

8/27/1944	6:20	#19	Recall	Berlin
#16 8/27/44: Danish Coast. 6 1/2 hrs. We were sweating out our first Berlin mission, but we aborted because of dense clouds. Several planes had near collisions because of the visibility.
18. Aug. 27th - Danish coast - 5hrs: no bombs dropped
42-32080 Too Tired

8/31/1944	4:40			Local Flight

9/1/1944	6:55	#20	Recall	Mainz
#17 9/1/44: Mainz, France. 7 hrs. Again we had to abort due to cloud formations. We were lucky to get credit for the mission.
19. Sept. 1st - Mainz, Germany - 6hrs: Flying bomb factory, recalled
42-32081 Yellow Cab

9/3/1944	7:05	#21	Anti-Pers. Fragmentation	Brest Pennisula - 8,000'
#18 9/3/44: Brest, France. 7hrs. We hit a small packet of German installations still holding out against the Yanks. No flak.
20. Sept. 3rd - Brest, France - 7hrs: German troops and installations
43-37756 Milk Wagon

9/5/1944	6:30	#22	Anti-Pers. Fragmentation	Brest Pennisula - 12,000'
#19 9/5/44: Brest, France. 7 hrs. Hit the same target. No flak.
21. Sept. 5th - Brest, France - 7hrs: German troops and installations
42-37854

9/8/1944	6:30	#23		Mainz
#20 9/8/44: Mainz, France. 7 hrs. Flying bomb ordnance depot was the target. Flak was scattered and inaccurate.
22. Sept. 8th - Mainz, Germany - 7 hrs: Airplane and tank factory
43-37797 American Beauty

9/9/1944	7:50	#24	Maquis R & D	Lake Janeva
#21 9/9/44: Dole, France. 7 1/2 hrs. Dropped supplies to the Maquis from a few hundred ft. The scenery was most beautiful. No flak was encountered.
23. Sept. 9th - Dole, France - 8hrs: Supplies for the French Maquis
A German-speaking radio operator, Sgt. George Faistenhammer, accompanied the crew on this mission. 42-32080 Too Tired

9/10/1944	7:35	#25	J. P. Airfield	Giestistadt
#22 9/10/44: Near Frankfurt, Ger. 6 1/2 hrs. An airfield was the target. Flak was scattered & inaccurate. Two ships were lost.
24. Sept. 10th - Frankfurt - 7hrs: Jet-propelled air base
42-32080 Too Tired

9/17 – 9/24 Seven-day leave
In his letter home, Herb stated that he and Navigator Lou Kovach spent three days at a country estate (the location not given "for security"), while the rest of the crew stayed in London.

9/25/1944	6:35	#26	Chemical Plant	Ludwigshaven
#23 9/25/44: Ludwigshaven, Ger. 6 1/2 hrs. Chemical factories were hit by P.F.F. because of clouds. Flak did not hit our Sqd.
25. Sept. 25th - Ludwigshaven - 7hrs: Chemical factory
A German-speaking radio operator, Sgt. George Faistenhammer, accompanied the crew on this mission. 42-32080 Too Tired

9/26/1944	6:50	#27	Focke-Wulfe Plant	Bremen
#24 9/26/44: Bremen, Ger. 6 hrs. Aircraft factories. Picked up 4 holes.
26. Sept. 26th - Bremen - 6hrs: FW-190 factory
42-32080 Too Tired

9/27/1944	6:10	#28	Chemical Plant	Ludwighaven - Kovach hit
#25 9/27/44: Ludwigshaven, Ger. 6 hrs. Aircraft factories as last resort target. Flak heavy, 107 holes, Nav's broken left arm was the result of one of them. John [Williams] took care of Nav while I flew as Eng. Our pilot made a beautiful landing.
27. Sept. 27th - Ludwigshaven - 7hrs: Jet-propelled factory (Lt. Kovach, Nav. hit by flak)
A German-speaking radio operator, Sgt. George Faistenhammer, accompanied the crew on this mission. 42-32080 Too Tired

9/28/1944	7:45	#29	Chemical Plant	Merseberg - Janowski hit
Our bombardier flew the 28th and got a chipped shoulder blade from flak
For reasons unknown, Herb is listed as Tail Gunner on the pathfinder 42-97769 with the Loughrey crew (Maj. Bonham as lead pilot). Adam Janowski was the replacement bombardier for the Hawkins crew aboard 42-97400 (Fuddy Duddy). The rest of the Polansky crew did not fly this mission.

10/2/1944	7:15	#30	Ordinance Depot	Kassel
#26 10/2/44: Kassel, Ger. 7 1/2 hrs. Tiger tank ordnance factory as 2nd P.F.F. target. 6 holes in the waist, all too close for comfort. While coming back we were fired on by Yank 155mm guns and five huge holes in the radio room was the result. A good thing Nor was in the waist with me.Our identity was unknown to the Yanks.
28. Oct. 2nd - Kassal - 8hrs: Tiger tank factory
Lt. Joseph Calisprone replaced Lou Kovach. 42-97400 Fuddy Duddy

10/3/1944	7:45	#31	3rd Target	Ulm
#27 10/3/44: Nuremburg, Ger. 8 hrs. Marshalling yards. Flak was light.
29. Oct. 3rd - Nuremburg - 8hrs: Marshalling yard
Lt. Joseph Calisprone replaced Lou Kovach. 42-97400 Fuddy Duddy

10/9/1944	5:50	#32	Tank Plant	Mainz
#28 10/9/44:Frankfurt, Ger. 7 hrs. Tank factory. Two holes.
30. Oct. 9th - Frankfurt - 7hrs: Tank factory
Lt. Joseph Calisprone replaced Lou Kovach. 43-37531 Quien Sabe

10/12/1944	6:35	#33		Bremen
#29 10/12/44: Bremen, Ger. 6 1/2 hrs. Tank factory. Flak was heavy but missed our Sqd. Four holes, all small. One ship lost.
31. Oct. 12th - Bremen - 6hrs: Tank factory
Lt. Joseph Calisprone replaced Lou Kovach. 43-37531 Quien Sabe

10/14/1944	See note 6:20 to Lille 1:30 to England	#34		Cologne
	Run away prop on #2 engine couldn't feather, cowling flew off, caught fire twice. Vibration very bad. Landed near Lille, France. Removed prop. Stayed at Hotel Royal. Got 375 Gal. of fuel from Canadians. Took off & returned on 3 engines, rain bad 300' ceiling. Radio Operator injured left knee - grounded.
#30 10/14/44: Ruhr (Cologne), Ger. ? hrs. Made a forced landing at Lille. Everything was okay until we left the target when No. 2 ran away. We were all ready to jump when fire broke out, but it was put out with CO2. From then the engine cowling flew every direction putting a huge hole in top turret. We landed on an old heavily bombed Ger. fighter base. The Pilot made a wonderful landing. We spent the nite in a wonderful hotel (Hotel Royal) everyone treating us like kings. Using money in our escape kits we all proceeded to enjoy ourselves on champagne and cognac in the Strasbourg Taverne. After removing the bad prop, we mad a hazardous takeoff with three engines on a short runway. Even with all the ammo and flak suits out we used every inch of the runway. The rest of the trip was uneventful.
32. Oct. 14th - Cologne - Marshalling yard (plane hit by flak, engine on fire, hurt knee in dive)
	44-6511 Lt. Ervin Aholt replaced Lou Kovach. According to J.T. Williams, Flt Engineer, flak damage to No. 2 engine destroyed the oil line to prop governor, allowing prop to over-rev and prevented feathering. The crew was listed as MIA for two days.

10/17/1944	6:30	#35		Cologne
LAST ONE for P, CP & E.M. B - 2 to go
#31 10/17/44: Ruhr (Cologne), Ger. 6 1/2 hrs. This was the pilot's 35th and our last due to our experience on the previous one. Flak was heavy on all sides of us. Only two holes were picked up, both against the armor plating above my head. Aside from that it was a good mission. All in all our tour in the E.T.O. was very exciting with no resulting serious injuries. Much credit is due to our pilot, John Polansky and co-pilot Herbert Glasscock. "Finis"
The end of a terrible nightmare.
Lt. George Hoidra replaced Lou Kovach. Nor remained in the base hospital, Earl Kneupher took his place. 42-31225 Scheherazade Adam Janowski would fly his final missions on October 19 and 30.

All Done... Standing L-R: John Polansky, Herb Glasscock, Adam Janowski Kneeling L-R: Art Wayrynen, Sam Larson, J.T. WIlliam, Russ Kerr Not pictured: Lou Kovach and Nor Knueppel