43-38595
Crashes > of the USAAF
While approaching the bomb targets Cologne-Eifeltor and Cologne-Gremberg, two important railway junctions in Cologne, the B-17G “Stormy Weather” entered the range of anti-aircraft fire around Cologne. It was hit between the second and third engines and the wing immediately caught fire. The pilot ordered the crew to bail out immediately, which almost all of them did. They all reached the ground safely and were taken prisoner by the Germans.
Only the bomb aimer, 1st Lt. Kehoe, was killed in the crash. Whether he remained in the crashing aircraft because he was already wounded or whether he managed to leave the aircraft is still unclear today. It is quite possible that he was able to leave the aircraft but was unable to pull the ripcord of his parachute due to his injuries. It is also possible that he suffered fatal injuries while exiting the aircraft.
There are also statements from a surviving crew member who claims that 1st Lt. Kehoe was killed on the ground by German civilians. This statement cannot be substantiated in any way and there has never been an investigation into the matter.
The plane crashed unpiloted in Engelskirchen-Stiefelhagen near the “Hundskopf,” exploded, and burned completely.
There is much to suggest that 1st Lt. Kehoe was on board the aircraft when it hit the ground, causing it to explode with its bomb load. This is supported by the statement in the German Air Force telegram of November 10, 1944, and the statement in KU Report 3193 that “the smallest body parts were found and buried on the spot.” These body parts have not been found or exhumed to this day.
Despite intensive research, there are no records of this crash in the Engelskirchen city archives. Only a list of Allied aircraft crashes during the war compiled after the war records this crash.
Only the bomb aimer, 1st Lt. Kehoe, was killed in the crash. Whether he remained in the crashing aircraft because he was already wounded or whether he managed to leave the aircraft is still unclear today. It is quite possible that he was able to leave the aircraft but was unable to pull the ripcord of his parachute due to his injuries. It is also possible that he suffered fatal injuries while exiting the aircraft.
There are also statements from a surviving crew member who claims that 1st Lt. Kehoe was killed on the ground by German civilians. This statement cannot be substantiated in any way and there has never been an investigation into the matter.
The plane crashed unpiloted in Engelskirchen-Stiefelhagen near the “Hundskopf,” exploded, and burned completely.
There is much to suggest that 1st Lt. Kehoe was on board the aircraft when it hit the ground, causing it to explode with its bomb load. This is supported by the statement in the German Air Force telegram of November 10, 1944, and the statement in KU Report 3193 that “the smallest body parts were found and buried on the spot.” These body parts have not been found or exhumed to this day.
Despite intensive research, there are no records of this crash in the Engelskirchen city archives. Only a list of Allied aircraft crashes during the war compiled after the war records this crash.
top:
The approximate crash site of the B-17G, 43-38595, at Hundskopf near Engelskirchen-Stiefelhagen
Center left:
The only fatality of this crash, 1st Lt. William Jerome Kehoe.
Center right:
Excerpt from KU report 3192 stating that body parts found at the crash site were buried there.
Bottom left:
Flak logbook entry recording the shooting down of the B-17 near Miebach