Nov 43
History > Statistical Data > Missing Air Crew Reports
During the overseas movement of the air echelon, one crew was lost. Crew 66, flown by 2nd Lt Albert A Poor of the 703rd Bomb Squadron, ditched in the Carribean and there were no survivors among the crew of 10 and their 4 passengers. The plane went down approximately 100 miles South of St. Croix, in the Virgin Islands. As there were no survivors, the cause of the crash will never be known, but a member of another crew of the 703rd making the same transit remembers hearing a desperate call indicating they were having fuel transfer problems.
A subsequent search of the area shortly after the ditching found a few pieces of wreckage, a partially inflated life raft, and a parachute. The seas were 4 to 6 foot waves which would have made the ditching even more difficult. Multiple aircraft were dispatched but no sign was ever found beyond the initial wreckage.
The B-24 Liberator aircraft had a very poor track record when it came to ditching operations. The main fault was the corregated metal bomb bay doors used in place of solid sheet metal doors like that of the B-17. The design of the B-24 was such that the belly of the aircraft was only about 2 feet off the ground. This made it impossible to have door openings large enough for the size bombs the plane would be carrying. The flexible, roll-up doors of the B-24 allowed for even the largest USAAF ordnance of the day to be carried internally.
The rear bomb bay had a bulkhead that was necessary for structural integrity. It was this bulkhead during ditching operations that would cause the most damage. Upon touching down on the water, the bomb bay doors would collapse, filling the front and rear bomb bays with water. The aft bulkhead in the rear bomb bay acts as a dam and absorbes the most impact. The stresses at that point would normally break the back of the aircraft.
MACR # | Date | Tail Number | 1st Pilot | Cause |
15 Nov 43 | 42-7617 | 2nd Lt. Albert A. Poor | Unable to transfer fuel; DIT 100 miles south of the Virgin Islands; 13 MIA |