IRON ASS (PIC 4)

NAME

SER

BLK

SERIAL #

RCL/#

V#-P

PHOTO CREDITS

IRON ASS

42-40769

329

00-4

HANS HERGARDEN

Lost 1 Dec 43, GER - MACR 2185 - Pilot Horace R. Ketchum

Contributor - Clint Gruber (Co-Pilot) via Hans Hergarden (Eicherscheid, Germany)
Research: Philippe Dufrasne, Brussels, Belgium. Eric Mombeek, Brussels, Belgium. Wolfgang Meyer, Bad Munstereifel, Germany.
Taken very soon after the plane was blown up by a Luftwaffe pilot over the small town of Eicherscheid, about 25 miles SW of Cologne 1 Dec 43.
Sadly, Harry Byerman, our tail gunner, was killed in earlier attacks ,but the rest of the crew bailed out successfully before IRON ASS was destroyed. What you see is a portion of the nose from the cockpit forward, with the navigator's dome and the right hand pitot tune visible.

Info Contributor - Tom Brittan
Was originally 8/389/566 (call letter D-) and was involved in a landing accident at St. Mawgan, Cornwall, 1 Jul 43 en route to North Africa. The necessary repairs delayed its departure for MTO and on arrival (probably after the 1 Aug 43 Ploesti mission) it was transferred to become 8/93/329 (call letter X). Lost on 01 Dec 43.