850th/857th/858th BS

Wonnell Crew

The Wonnell crew arrived at Harrington as a replacement crew for the 850th BS in late July or early August of 1944.  The picture above shows them armed with their caliber .45 automatics holstered, one of the few pictures showing crewmen armed.  The men in the picture have been identified by John Windle (August 1998) as:

Back Row, L-R:
Donald G. Coale    -    Bombardier
Leslie P. Baumann  -    Navigator
John J. Windle     -    Copilot
Thomas S. Wonnell  -    Pilot


Front Row, L-R:
Harold L.Gann          -    Engineer
John T. Gault          -    Dispatcher     (KIA) 
Doyle R. Herring       -    Tail Gunner
Colbert D.Fountaine    -    Engineer

As a crew they experienced every kind of mission the Carpetbaggers flew; Carpetbagger, Gas Haul and Night Bombing.  Gault, trying to get in 30 missions and qualify for a DFC, volunteered to fly his 30th with the Shaw crew in April of 1944.  The crew met their fate over Norway and went down without survivors.  Further details of this incident are on the Honor Roll page.

During the first nine months of the Group's active operations, Heflin did not allow crews to take a rest at any of the 8th AF "Rest Homes", apparently for security reasons. But in the autumn of 1944, crews started to enjoy these facilities at the directions of the C.O.. In March of 1944, the officers of the Wonnell crew had their turn at one, Furzedown House (officially known as Station 563), shown on the postcard below:

Combat Period: Aug 1944 - Apr 1945

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