John W. Vink
Sergeant, U.S. Army Air Forces

In January 1944, Sergeant John W. Vink was assigned as an Engineer with the 756th Bomber Squadron, 459th Bombardment Group (Heavy), 304th Bombardment Wing, 15th Air Force, based at Giulia Airfield, Italy. The 459th Bombardment Group flew B-24 Liberator bombers on missions in Italy, France, the Balkans, Austria and Germany.

The Army Air Forces developed a long-range military air transportation system, the Air Transport Command (ATC), to quickly and efficiently transport aircraft, cargo, and personnel from the United States to the various theaters worldwide during World War II. There were seven main air routes. The southeastern route ran from southern Florida to points in the Caribbean Islands (such as Puerto Rico or Trinidad), to Natal, Brazil, and then on to destinations in Africa and the Middle East. The Caribbean Wing, Air Transport Command (CW-ATC) had jurisdiction over the airfields in Florida and the Caribbean, and transported aircraft, personnel and cargo over part of this southeastern route.

On 9 January 1944, SGT Vink was a passenger on B-24 Liberator bomber AAF Serial Number 42-52349 that was engaged in a routine ferrying mission for CW-ATC. The aircraft carried a crew of 10 and 4 passengers. At 0820, when the plane departed Morrison Field, Florida enroute to Waller Field on the Island of Trinidad, the weather was hazy although the skies were clear with good visibility at 3,000 feet. However, after its departure from Morrison Field the plane did not make radio contact with anyone and there were no known witnesses to its loss when it went missing. The aircraft carried fuel for 14 hours of flight.

Search and Recovery Efforts

Extensive search efforts were made immediately following the loss of the aircraft, as well as after the close of the war. After the plane was reported overdue and all intermediate stations reported that they had received no contact from the aircraft, a search for the B-24 was organized. In the days following the loss of the B-24, approximately 100 aircraft from the Army and the Navy participated in the organized search; each aircraft covered a specifically allotted area. The search was conducted along the intended flight route from Morrison Field to Waller Field and approximately fifty miles to either side of the flight route, thereby covering an area of over 1,000 miles. All stations in the line of flight were notified of the search, including Atkinson Field, British Guiana, Belem, Brazil, and Natal, Brazil, as well, which was beyond the B-24's original destination. The search continued the following day, 10 January, "with great concentration," and all available planes from Morrison Field, Boca Raton Field, Miami, Homestead, Nassau, Bowen Field, Guantanamo, and Great Exuma Island were allocated to the search. The Civil Air Patrol (CAP) also searched the swamps northwest of Morrison Field and the adjacent coast line, as it remained unclear where the plane had been lost. Additionally, all transient aircraft flying between Morrison Field and Waller Field were rescheduled from night flights to day flights and ordered to fly at 1,000 feet - rather than the normal 9,000 feet - so they could look for the missing aircraft. Commercial airlines and army transports flying in the area rerouted their flights to lower altitudes as well. The amphibious aircraft CA-10, based at Morrison Field, also searched for a total of 18 hours over two days. The Navy contributed manpower to the search as well, but reported negative results in the area from Nassau and Guantanamo in the vicinity of Mayaguam Island and fifty miles to either side of the track from Morrison Field to Guantanamo.

On 11 January 1944, an empty life raft suspected to be from the B-24 was picked up 26 miles southeast of Great Isaac Light, Bahamas. The search was abandoned that same day and all the occupants of the plane were continued in a Missing status.

On 2 June 1949, all the men who were aboard the aircraft were declared Dead - Lost at Sea and their remains non-recoverable.

B-24 Liberator Bomber AAF Serial Number 42-52349 had the following crew and passengers on 9 January 1944.

Crew

● Pilot: 1LT Charles F. Webb [Honoree Record ID 67282]
● Co-Pilot: 2LT Andrew M. Savage [Honoree Record ID 66599]
● Navigator: 2LT Cyril I. Lankford [Honoree Record ID 65299]
● Bombardier: 2LT Maurice P. Mulroy [Honoree Record ID 65911]
● Engineer: SSGT Roy E. Goff [Honoree Record ID 64475]
● Radio Operator: CPL Floyd J. Eades [Honoree Record ID 64119]
● Gunner: SSGT Charles T. Reed [Honoree Record ID 66401]
● Gunner: SSGT Paul D. Martin [Honoree Record ID 65575]
● Asst. Radio Operator: SSGT Edward D. Brooks [Honoree Record ID 63403]
● Gunner: SSGT Robert B. Hamilton [Honoree Record ID 64629]

Passengers

● Engineer: SGT John W. Vink [Honoree Record ID 67194]
● Mess Sergeant: TSGT Fay E. Walker [Honoree Record ID 67229]
● Radio Mechanic: SSGT Michael Minlionica [Honoree Record ID 65825]
● Medical NCO: SSGT Louis Sardoch [Honoree Record ID 66589]

Medals and Awards

World War II Victory Medal

Memorialization

Sergeant John W. Vink is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing at the East Coast Memorial in Manhattan, New York County, NY.

[Most of the information in this biography was derived from various sections of the 459th Bombardment Group website at http://www.459bg.org/ and permission was granted for its use.]