Shaw - #43-1
Photo via Don Seiler
Standing L-R: Budimir, John D. Jr. (LWG); Flanagan, John (N); Shaw, Stockton B. (P); Harley, Leo M. (TG); Benbow, Robert 'Bob' (RO/RW)
Kneeling L-R: Lolli, Alfred M. Sr. 'Al' (B); Kimsey, Alden F. (Asst. RO/BG); Lilly, Gilbert M. 'Gib' (E/TT); Seiler, Donald L. 'Don' (Asst. E/NG)
Not in Picture - Roberts, Doch W. Jr. (CP) [KIA 6 November 1944]
From Don Seiler:
Shaw's crew
met, formed and trained as a crew at Westover Field, Springfield, MA in
June or early July 1944. We were assigned to the 766th Squadron.,
461st Bomb Group, 49th Bomb Wing, Fifteenth Air Force at Torretta, Italy
(Cerignola).
We flew our missions from
August 1944 to late April 1945. We were then returned to the USA.
Crew's plane was known as "Lo and Behold".
Courtesy of Geoffrey Garrett
Doc Roberts and Gilbert Lilly
Courtesy of Chuck Parsonson
Members of the Shaw crew in Rome on September 8, 1944
Back row L-R: Gilbert Lilly, Leo Harley, John Budimir
Front row L-R: Alden Kimsey, Don Seiler
Photo via Don Seiler
The Shaw crew at the 1989 reunion in Dayton, OH
Standing L-R: Budimir, John D. Jr. (LWG); Flanagan, John (N); Shaw, Stockton B. (P); Harley, Leo M. (TG); Benbow, Robert 'Bob' (RO/RW)
Kneeling L-R: Lolli, Alfred M. Sr. 'Al' (B); Seiler, Donald L. 'Don' (Asst. E/NG)
Courtesy of Judi Blackmur
A Gunners' Vow and Judi's father, Leo Harley.
Tail Gunner's Prayer and Dad's photo. He was a Staff Sergeant, and a tail gunner on B24s, and completed 50 missions, serving in Africa, the Middle East and Europe, winning the Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, a Presidential Citation, 8 bronze battle stars, the Air Medal, and five Oak Leaf Clusters.
I wrote a while back, with the sad news that my dad, Leo Harley, had passed away. Dad was part of the 461st Bombardment Group, based in Cerignola, although the Cerignola base was in Torretta. He was a Staff Sergeant, and a tail gunner on B24s, and completed 50 missions, serving in Africa, the Middle East and Europe, winning the Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, a Presidential Citation, 8 bronze battle stars, the Air Medal, and five Oak Leaf Clusters. He rarely ever spoke of his experiences, but I know that the co-pilot of the Lo and Behold (Doch Roberts) was killed in action when the plane was shot down behind enemy lines in 1944. Dad said he and the rest of the crew had to make their way to base under the cover of night, but he never said where the plane went down and they buried their co-pilot. Dad's crew met periodically over the years and he had much praise and respect for his pilot, Stockton Shaw. I will try to attach some photographs which you, and your members, might find interesting, although bizarrely, it seems I can only add one to each post!!. They include what I think is a group photo taken in Cerignola, my dad and some of his crew on leave in Rome (?), a list of the missions he and his crewmates completed, a 'No Smoking' sign taken from somewhere on his base (he was a smoker), and 'The Gunner's Prayer' which includes a photo of my dad in uniform. RIP, Dad....
