JOSEPH J. PAVELKO, S/Sgt, US Army Air Forces # 13125175 of Philadelphia, PA Consolidated B-24 Liberator Crew Member Position ~ Ball Turret Gunner B-24 ~ serial #42-7554 Aircraft Inscribed Nickname: “Tail End Charlie” Was assigned to: 8th Air Force 445th Bomber Group (Heavy) 702nd Squadron KIA = 22 DEC 1943, Mirns, Holland, age=19 Burial remains are located at: ~~Margraten, Eijsden-Margraten Municipality, Limburg, Netherlands ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The real & true story of an American Hero! ~~~~~~~ S/SGT JOESPH J. PAVELKO ~~~~~~~~~~~ On 22 DEC 1943 the orders were for the 445th Bomber Group (Heavy) were to send in its bombers to targeted areas in Osnabruck & Munster, Germany. A massive raid consisting of 225 B-17’s & 121 B-24 flew to their targets. Between 1356L-1532L hours they struck their targets. 5 B-17’s & 12 B-24’s are lost. Reports from the field revealed the following: 6 immediately confirmed KIA (killed in action) 12 WIA (wounded in action) 160 MIA (missing in action), sadly almost all of the MIA’s will turn into KIA’s. S/SGT Pavelko's B-24, departed on the bombing mission with a 10 man crew. They completed their tasking, however came under attack by German fighters. According to the Co-pilot, 2nd LT Erwin J. Beinvs’ interrogation report to the US Army Air Forces, he stated: “…the B-24 was hit by flak over the target, losing the oxygen supply in the nose. They left the formation and went down to 14,000 feet to give oxygen to the three men in the nose. The plane was then hit by a German ME110 and raked from end to end.” On that mission, 7 air crew members’ lost their lives, 1 evaded capture for 473 days, and 2 became POW’s. Although the story is tragic, families & loved ones are now able to read through several of the most reliable sources of exactly what happened to their service member or loved ones. Thanks to Mr. Jaap Halma, a Dutchman who resides not far from the crash site. Mr. Halma conducted an amazing research project into this event in 2014. And 7 decades after this crash, and through his lengthy and through research came upon the eye witnesses that actually saw this B-24, “Tail End Charlie” as it was crashing into a cemetery in Mirns, Holland. Mr. Halma’s historical research story of the crash was published in March 2014 in: Periodical of the Heritage League of the Second Air Division (USAAF), Issue Number 54, P.15. This is a direct web link to his incredible research and story as told by the eye witnesses who saw the B-24 crashing: The story starts on P. 15. http://www.heritageleague.org/brian/54.pdf Also available and recently released by the US Government is the full and very detailed “Debriefing, aka “INTERROGATION” Report” of the Co-Pilot, 2LT Erwin J. Bevins who was lucky enough to bail out of the B-24 seconds before it crashed. He evaded capture for 473 days in Holland with the help of the Dutch people. http://media.nara.gov/nw/305270/EE-2946.pdf And a final document the MACR = Missing Air Crew Report (MACR # 15597). I have this available, please email me if you would like to read it. Please recognize and thank another Dutchman, Mr. Alexander Tuinhout. Mr. Tuinhout is an Archivist at Historisch Centrum Leeuwarden, Holland. Mr. Tuinhout tracked down our family in the US from Holland several years and has provided much research & information to my family, to include the original published MACR (Missing Air Crew Report) that we never saw before. He has been hard at work researching information and spending countless hours corresponding with government agencies for the release of information on WW II events and service members’ history. A very big thanks’ to our Dutch friends Mr. Jaap Halma & Mr. Alexander Tuinhout for their hard work. The value of this information is, and will be to future families “priceless”! Over the last 70 years many of the detailed historical government reports have surfaced and been released to the public about what happened to our family member and how their efforts contributed during World War II. It cost him his life, and he did it for our country just as tens of thousands of service men have ~ in the name of freedom! The country of Holland, and its Dutch citizens contributed immensely to the U.S. and its allies war efforts during WW II. They saved many allied lives by assisting in underground efforts to provide medical aid, food, supplies, hide and repatriate fallen soldiers & airmen. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Let us not forget the other crew members that were on that B-24 that crashed 3 days before Christmas, 22 DEC 1943. They are: 1LT John Harold Allen, Pilot in command ~ KIA (exact age unknown, believed to be under 25 years old) 2ND LT Erwin James Bevins, JR., Co-Pilot ~ Evaded Capture 2ND LT Joseph F. Gill Jr., Navigator ~ POW 2ND LT Anthony L. Destro, Bombardier ~ KIA T/Sgt John R. Elder, Engineer/Top Turret Gunner ~ KIA T/Sgt Oscar Robbins Jr., Radio Operator ~ KIA T/Sgt James C. Owens, Ass. Engineer ~ KIA S/Sgt Everette Morrison Odom, Waist Gunner ~ KIA S/Sgt Harry L. Henry, Ass. Engineer ~ POW ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~