Earlier this month I was contacted by Peter from the UK. Peter has authored a history of Scorton airfield in England. Three of the USAAF Squadrons were stationed at Scorton during WW2 (417th, 422nd and 425th). A brief history of each squadrons time at Scorton is included in the document Peter has written.
If you are interested in reading more about Scorton airfield’s history and the time the USAAF and RAF spent here, please visit his wonderful website.
Click on the link for “History of Scorton Airfield” and it should take you to a PDF document which you can read on the site or download.
In our email exchanges, Peter also included this photo of a bench located in the area.
How great is that?
Lastly, Peter is looking for anyone who might have memories or photos of the time squadron members were stationed at Scorton. If you have something to share, please contact me via the Contact Us form for this website and I put you in touch with Peter.
In May of this year, I was contacted by a young Frenchman who had found the Military Certificate for Lt. Samuel Russell, a member of the 414th who was transferred to the 417th in 1944. Unfortunately, the information on the card was in such terrible condition that as soon as it dried out it was impossible to read anymore.
Despite this setback, the young man hoped I would have more information on Sam’s time in the war and perhaps a photo.
The 417th Illustrated History only had a few mentions of Sam but no photos. But, as luck and perseverance would have it, I located an email and physical address for Sam in one of the lists my father kept. I wrote and emailed these addresses in the hopes that someone would respond.
Earlier this month, I heard back from Sam’s son and wife. They were kind enough to supply two photos of Sam during his time in the war. I hope to hear more about Sam’s time and share it with you.
Samuel Russell. Member of the 414th NFS. Transferred to the 417th in 1944.Sam Russell (on right) with Bob Perkins (2nd on right). Others unknown.
These photos have been added to the Faces of the 417th page. Scroll down to the end of the first gallery of photos.
Sam passed away in November of 2021 and was likely the last surviving member of the 417th. I thank him for his service and his family for sharing these photos with us.
Lyle J Montbriand – A Soldier’s Diary
I wrote a teaser about this quite awhile ago. It took me 8 months, but I got there. I am happy to report that I have published the War Diary of Sgt. Lyle James Montbriand. The diary was supplied by his son, Randall.
Lyle was a member of the original 417th when it was formed in Kissimmee and traveled extensively with the squadron. When he joined up, he was issued a diary where he kept photos from his early training days and on thru to the end of his tour in Germany.
To learn more about Lyle’s journey and see the images he captured during his time with the 417th, head to the Letters, Diaries and Tributes page and scroll down to the Diaries section. Lyle’s story is below the diary for David Diehl.
I have recently been contacted by a 19 year old WWII enthusiast in France. He recently found the military certificate of Lt. Samuel E “Sam” Russell buried in the grounds of a former US Staging area near Marseille. He is after a photo and more information on Sam.
Based on my research and the documentation I have on hand, Lt. Samuel E Russell was originally with the 414th as a navigator and was transferred to the 417th in October of 1944 in Le Vallon, France.
Lt. Russell lived to be 100 and passed away quite recently (18 Nov 21). I think this would make Sam one of the longest living 417th members. I would love to tell his story and share a photo.
If you have any information, please get in touch via the contact us page.
I have recently been contacted by an amateur historian in France who is doing research leading up to a celebration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Vannes, France. The 425th NFS was stationed in Vannes and the town plans to pay tribute to the members of the 425th NFS and honour 3 members who died during missions flown out of Vannes airfield (1st Lt. Nelson D. WILLIS (pilot) – August 26, 1944 / 2nd Lt. Joseph C. WEBB (pilot) and 2nd Lt. Robert E. English (radar-operator) – August 28, 1944)
The historian found this website thru a You Tube video that was produced by George Hoover (you can find the link here). There are several shots from Vannes along with a few of the P-61 that may have flown out of that airfield.
The celebration in Vannes is scheduled for 2024.
I am after any of the following information:
o Contact information (email or home addresses) for family members of anyone who served in the 425th NFS.
o photos from Vannes that may have been taken by members of the 425th during their time there.
o A list or photos of P-61s flown out of Vannes. I currently believe the “Plenty of Pissed Off Patootie III” and “Wabash Cannonball IV” were flown out of Vannes. Others???
o Contact information for Jerry Moore, Charlene Smith or Thomas/Rita Rose who attended the 2007 NFS Reunion
If you have a anything to share, please contact me via the Contact Us link on this website, or place a comment on this post with details on how I can get in touch with you.
