Warbird Information Exchange

AIRCRAFT: Douglas (Long Beach) B-17G-50-DL Flying Fortress, #44-6405 "BIG YANK"



UNIT: 840th BS (H)/483rd BG (H)/306th Combat Wing/5th Air Division/15th AF

Theater: MTO

"BIG YANK" was named by Crew Chief Irvin "Irv" Davis. The nose-art included a portrait of the wartime President Franklin D. Roosevelt and was painted by Italian artist Mario Rucci. "BIG YANK" completed 50 combat missions as the mount of various crews. After VE-Day, the B-17 was converted for passenger use with the so-called "Homebound Airlines", part of the "GREEN PROJECT" which utilized ex-combat aircraft returning to the USA to transport returning servicemen as well. "BIG YANK" was subsequently selected as an Air-Sea Rescue plane and was used at least once in this role to drop a boat to a downed American fighter pilot in the Adriatic Sea. As the 483rd BG was deactivated at Pisa, Italy in September 1945, "BIG YANK" was returned to the USA. The plane's last flight was to Walnut Ridge, Arkansas on December 28, 1945. A picture of "BIG YANK" is displayed at the Boeing Flight Museum at Seattle, Washington.

CREW:
P William S. Strapko
CP Clair E. Harper
N Edwin F. Levin
B (1) Franklin R. Harrison, Jr.
E/TTG Howard C. Wehrner
RO/G Albert Bishop
BTG Cecil E. Shellabarger
A/WG #1 (4) Jack T. Lengsfield
A/WG #2 (2) James H. McIntyre
LWG Kenneth E. Roberts
TG #1 Louis E. Brown
TG #2 (3) Lincoln F. Broyhill

SERVICE:
The Strapko crew assembled and received 10 weeks of intensive combat training at Drew Field near Tampa, Florida. On completion of training, the crew reported to the staging area at Hunter Field, Savannah, Georgia in February 1945. There the crew were issued combat clothing and equipment, then assigned to a Lockheed-Vega B-17G-85-VE Flying Fortress, #44-8815 for their flight overseas from their POE at Dow Field, Bangor, Maine. Bad weather forced the crew to layover for several days at Syracuse, New York. Other stops were made at Gander, Newfoundland; Valley, Wales; Marrakech, French Morocco and Tunis, Tunisia before the crew landed at the 52nd Advance Depot at Giola, Italy. The crew arrived to the 483rd Bomb Gp. (H) at Sterparone, Italy on March 5, 1945 and almost immediately began flying combat missions on March 8, 1945.
After President Roosevelt passed away, on Sunday April 15, 1945, a special memorial service was held at Sterparone. "BIG YANK" Radio Operator Albert Bishop was fittingly chosen to play "Taps".

On April 27, 1945, McIntyre was relieved to the USA. After VE-Day - Brown, Broyhill, Harrison, Lengsfield, Roberts and Shellabarger went to the 301st Bomb Group on May 18, 1945. Eventually, all crew members returned safely home to the USA.
Strapko, Harper, Levin, Wehner and Bishop were sent to Pisa, Italy to become part of the so-called "Homebound Airlines". When the 483rd BG was deactivated, the remaining five-man Strapko Crew went to the 2nd BG at Naples, Italy and were assigned a "war-weary" B-17 "O, MOM" (For Ohio, Michigan, Oklahoma and Minnesota) for the return flight to the USA.

STORY:
On March 24, 1945, the Strapko Crew of the 840th BS were assigned to "BIG YANK" and to the "tail-end Charlie" position with 816th BS for a mission to Berlin. "BIG YANK" was one of 28 of the 483rd Bombardment Group's B-17s assigned to the mission. The Berlin mission would prove to be the longest escorted bomber mission of World War II in Europe. Included on the mission were replacement crew-members: bombadier Harrison, armorer/waist gunner McIntyre and tail gunner Broyhill. Near the target, the Daimler-Benz tank works, the group was attacked in-force by defending Luftwaffe Me 262 jet fighters.
Radio Operator/Gunner Albert Bishop remembers: "Our 'Red Tail' 99th (Ftr. Sq. ) fighter escort took off as soon as the Me 262s' presence was announced on combat radios. 'BIG YANK' had 'Tail-end Charlie' position. They dived into us, firing, with flaps down at about 20-30 degrees and noses up attitude setting up a very good target for our gunners at our slow airspeed."
From an interview published May 3, 1945, in the Des Moines, Iowa "Plain Talk"

Tail Gunner Lincoln Broyhill recalled: "I saw four jets attacking a lone B-17 from another group. The B-17 knocked down one of the enemy fighters before it flew in a crippled manner towards the Russian lines. The remaining three fighters came at our plane. Two of them came right behind each other at my position. They were about 1000 yards away when I started cutting loose with my guns. The first (Me 262) made a pass at 200 yards and my tracers were going right into its fuselage. Suddenly it went down in flames. The second came into my sights after the first had dropped. I kept shooting away because he was getting into my hair. Suddenly, it also spiraled down. Upon hitting the ground, it burst into flames. Because I had my guns spitting lead so rapidly, they jammed."

Ball-turret Gunner Cecil Shellabarger recalled: "I began shooting at the third enemy plane when it was about 800 yards away and when he came within 100 yards of our tail, he peeled off. He seemed to stand on end when all at once, he fell off on his left wing. I shot at him again and hit him between the wing and fueslage. He went down into a straight dive and about 4,000 feet from the ground, it disintegrated."

Engineer/Top-turret Gunner Howard Wehner recalled: "They started coming right at me. I kept my guns trained on them and 'bingo', two more jets were going down in flames."

RO/G Al Bishop recalled: "...one of them came so close that we thought it would ram into us." With Wehrner continuing to fire away, Co-Pilot Clair Harper recalled seeing the enemy pilot's eyes and shouting to Pilot William Strapko, "He's going to ram us, Bill!". Fortunately, the Me 262 exploded just short of a collision.

Records achieved March 24, 1945 by the crew of "BIG YANK" and the 483rd BG include:
* Most German Jets destroyed by a single bomb group on one mission - Six.
* Most German Jets destroyed by one bomb group for the entire war - Seven.
* Most German Jets destroyed by a single crew on one mission - Three.
* Most German Jets destroyed by a single crew for the entire war - Three.
* Most German Jets destroyed by a single gunner, Broyhill, on one mission - Two.
* Most German Jets destroyed by a single gunner, Broyhill, for entire war - Two.
* Most German Jets destroyed by a single bomber for entire war - Three.
Due in no small part to the achievements of the Strapko Crew of "BIG YANK" on the Berlin mission of March 24th, the 483rd Bomb Group was awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation - However, the crew was somehow overlooked, on this day, for any personal awards. They did receive a considerable amount of recognition in "Stars and Stripes" and newspapers in the USA. There is a further effort to get awards for the crewmembers in recognition of their significant accomplishments and the connection to FDR.

SOURCE: http://www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org/URG/bigyank.html

Below a rare photo of BIG YANK with three me-262 kills shown.







Below photo: Douglas-built B-17G-50-DL Flying Fortress "Big Yank" (#44-6405) of the 15th Air Force, 483rd Bombardment Group, 840th Bombardment Squadron, is shown sometime after its 30th mission in March 1945. The names Ken/Jack-D appear on the chin turret. Assigned to the 15th Air Force on August 17, 1944, Italian artist Mario Rucci was commissioned by the plane's crew chief, Irvin H. Davis, to paint the visage of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. On March 24, 1945, this plane was commanded by Lieutenant William S. Strapko for an attack on Berlin, the longest escorted bombing mission of World War II. Jumped by Messerschmitt Me-262 jet fighters, "Big Yank's" top turret gunner, Staff Sergeant Howard Wehner, shot down one and tail gunner, Staff sergeant Lincoln Broyhill, shot down two. "Big Yank" shared credit for a fourth aircraft probably shot down. The aircraft carried crews home from 50 missions before the surrender of Germany. The 840th was disbanded in Pisa, Italy in September 1945 and the aircraft returned to the United States as part of the "Green Project" that returned American servicemen home. Later "Big Yank" was converted for Air-Sea Rescue duty, and dropped a life raft to at least one pilot in the Adriatic. She was scrapped in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas on December 28, 1945.

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[Thread title is ridiculous btw]

Another great post. TY

This is such a spectacular action, I wonder if anyone has researched the German unit the jets were with, and the fate of their pilots.

Thanks for posting. My Dad was in the 483rd, 816th and stayed after the war for the Homebound Airlines Project. Always appreciate 15th AF pics.
Very interesting comment there about the Red Tails.

Steve G

Nice post. Thanks

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SSgt Ed "Tye" Tyszkiewicz S/N 36868066 B-26 top turret gunnet was credited with downing 2 262s on one mission.
The combat occured on April 20, 1945 and it was in B-26C "Jolly Roger" s/n 41-34942 YU+U. 455th BS 323rd BG 9th AF.
One of the jets involved was Me 262 A1-b of 12/JG 7.

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Don't touch my junk!!

My father flew home from Italy after the war as part of the green project. He said that men who were going to be discharged upon return to the USA had to take troopships home. Soldiers who were going to be part of the invasion of Japan were flown home. He left Italy in a war weary B-17 as he put it and flown to Casablanca. He said the passengers were pulling stuff out of their bags to plug the flak holes as it was cold at altitude. He departed Morocco on a C-54 and arrived in Miami after 3 engine changes enroute. He was given 2 weeks leave and then was to report for training to invade Japan.

While he was on leave the war with Japan ended but he still served for another year.

My Dad's log book has many pages of Pisa/Casablanca trips. He's on the right, back row.

Thanks for posting the pic as I had never seen the Home Bound Air Lines logo before. The thought that your Dad could have flown my Dad on that route is pretty neat.

Great post. My late father-in-law SSGT Edward Potocki was a flight engineer with 815th BS 483rd BG. He was part of the initial cadre that formed in the US and went to Sterapone, Foggia, Italy. Badly wounded in action.