Lawrence R Pote
Information on another Training Accident 6/24/1943 where Pote’s plane burst
into flames on the landing strip but he survived here:
Accident /Bailout
Date
Name
Aircraft
Ser#
Field
430624 POTE, LAWRENCE R P-47C 41-6614 DALE MABRY FIELD, FL
History
Mission to Emden, Germany--358th Squadron, 390th Bomb Group--by Lawrence R. Pote,
2d Lieutenant.
Lt. Pote describes the routine for embarking on a combat mission from the base in East Anglia,
including the combat breakfast and the briefing for the mission. He also describes the lack of
compete cover by P-47 fighters all the way to the target. As a result of enemy fighters, Pote's
plane lost its No. 2 engine, and their plane used extra power on the other engines which resulted
in a shortage of fuel. Their plane reached the U.K., but landed prior to reaching their home field.
Mission to Berlin--358th Squadron, 390th Bomb Group (H), 8th Air Force--by Lawrence
R. Pote, 2d Lieutenant.
Lt. Pote describes in detail his role as a co-pilot on a B-17 as his group participated in the first
attack on Berlin by U.S. Army Air Force planes in March 1944. He describes his plane being hit
by fighters and the struggle to put out the fires. He also describes the flak over the target, the
dropping of the bombs and the loss of one engine and the landing flaps. Lt. Pote completed 28
missions and was rotated to the U.S. prior to June 6, 1944.
Lawrence R. Pote – Obituary
POTE Lawrence R. Pote, age 87, Lt. Colonel, USAF retired, passed away Thursday, August 28,
2008 at Forum at Knightsbridge. Colonel Pote served 27 1/2 years with the USAF during WWII,
flew 27 combat missions as a big flying fortress pilot with the 8th Air Force out of England
against Germany. He served oversea tours in Japan and Panama. He was awarded the
Distinguished Flying Cross, six air medals, 2 commendations and the Presidential Unit Citation.
He was a graduate of the University of Chicago AB 1948, The Harvard Graduate School of
Business MBA 1958 with distinction, the USAF Command and Staff College and was a PhD
candidate at the Ohio State University. He served on the Faculties at The USAF Command and
Staff College, The USAF School of Systems and Logistics and the Adjunct Faculty of The Ohio
State University. He also retired from OSU as the Director of Continuing Education
Management Programs. He is preceded in death by his wife Lavern Pote (nee O'Brien). No
flowers requested, services will be private. Arrangements by the NOVAK FUNERAL HOME,
268-8811.
This is a Record of the mission stats of the B-17 239813 including the attack on Rjukan, Norway
where the entire crew had to bail out in assembly of formation as they almost all lost their lives:
Accepted by USAAF 7 Sep 43. Long Beach Mod Center 7
Sep 43. Grand Island 28 Sep 43. 8th AF 3 Oct 43. Nr. 3
568th
Yankee Bengine caught fire on assembly for mission to Rjukan,
239813
N Bomb
Rebel 17G
Norway on 16 Nov 43. Bail out signal given at 4000 feet two
Squadron
miles from Mt. Pleasant. Plane exploded. Williams, Peternall
KIA, rest bail out safely.
Crew
Member
Position
Crew
Number
Fate
Aircraft
Serial
Mission
Number
Target
Date
Jenkins,
Ora L
Navigator
03
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Jenkins,
Ora L
Navigator
03
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Jenkins,
Ora L
Navigator
03
239813
030
bailed out no
msn
Johnson,
Waist Gunner
Samuel D
03
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Johnson,
Waist Gunner
Samuel D
03
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Johnson,
Waist Gunner
Samuel D
03
239813
030
bailed out no
msn
Kovacik,
Engineer/Top Turret 03
Steven H
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
11/16/1943
11/16/1943
Kovacik,
Engineer/Top Turret 03
Steven H
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Kovacik,
Engineer/Top Turret 03
Steven H
239813
030
bailed out no
msn
Hoover,
Elbert R
Pilot
03
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Hoover,
Elbert R
Pilot
03
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Hoover,
Elbert R
Pilot
03
239813
030
bailed out no
msn
Mars,
Lawrence Waist Gunner
E
03
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Mars,
Lawrence Waist Gunner
E
03
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Mars,
Lawrence Waist Gunner
E
03
239813
030
bailed out no
msn
Parks,
Tail Gunner
Thomas I
03
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Parks,
Tail Gunner
Thomas I
03
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Parks,
Tail Gunner
Thomas I
03
239813
030
bailed out no
msn
Peternell,
Ball Turret
William F
03
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Peternell,
Ball Turret
William F
03
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Peternell, Ball Turret
03
239813
030
no msn
KIA
11/16/1943
11/16/1943
11/16/1943
11/16/1943
11/16/1943
William F
Pote,
Lawrence Co-Pilot
R
03
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Pote,
Lawrence Co-Pilot
R
03
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Pote,
Lawrence Co-Pilot
R
03
239813
030
bailed out no
msn
Sifford,
Bombardier/Togglier 03
Charles M
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Sifford,
Bombardier/Togglier 03
Charles M
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Sifford,
Bombardier/Togglier 03
Charles M
239813
030
bailed out no
msn
Williams,
Radio Operator
Joseph F
03
239813
025
Wilhelmshaven
11/03/1943
GE
Williams,
Radio Operator
Joseph F
03
239813
026
Gelsenkirchen
11/05/1943
GE
Williams,
Radio Operator
Joseph F
03
239813
030
no msn
KIA
11/16/1943
11/16/1943
11/16/1943
MISSION TO RJUKAN, NORWAY
November 16, 1943
By Marshall B. Shore, Lt. Colonel, USAF (retired)
The aiming point of the target was the pen-stocks down the mountain from the dam for the
hydro-electric building in the valley below. This building also contained the Norwegian heavy
water plant which was being used by the Germans to provide heavy water for their
experimentation in the development of the Atomic/Hydrogen bomb.
This was the only mission made by the 390th Bombardment Group to a Norwegian target.
Twenty of our group of B-17Fs took the long route over the North Sea from England to hit this
target. One aircraft tied in with the 1st Division formation and bombed Knaben, Norway.
Rjukan was located in a peaceful valley seventy-five miles west of Oslo. The terrain was rugged
and the hillside where the penstocks came down was steep. This heavy water factory was
instrumental to the German scientists in their plans for building an atomic bomb. The
tremendous amount of hydro-electric power generated from Norwegian streams was to be
harnessed for production of this heavy oxygen or as we called it, heavy water. It was the critical
element the Germans believed could be made into an atomic force which would defeat the allies,
England and America, if they could just get it perfected before the allies did.
On the long over-water trip north over the North Sea our navigator, Gus Mencow, used his
sextant to shoot the sun for a sun line exactly at noontime. This gave him a good location of our
north latitude and the north-south distance covered since we left England. From this, he adjusted
his ground speed value to compute a better-estimated time of arrival (ETA) at the Norwegian
coast. This was the initial point (IP) for the start of our bomb run. I believe this was the only time
that celestial navigation was ever used in the European Theater during World War II. Gus was a
highly competent navigator, a member of the lead crew of Captain Jim Geary in the 570th
Squadron.
Their lead aircraft was affectionately known by its crew as, “Pistol Packin’ Mamma”. Flying
with this crew was Major Joseph Gemmill as Command Pilot and the Squadron Navigator,
Captain Marshall Shore acting in the capacity of Command Navigator. The Bombardier was
Captain Donald Ventress, the 570th Squadron Bombardier.
The bomb load on all 390th aircraft was four (4) each, 1000 pound general purpose bombs.
Three runs were made on the target. On the first run, prop wash from the 95th Bomb Group
interfered, and on the second run clouds and smoke interfered. On the third attempt the bombs
were released prematurely, and struck the hillside west of the target. Other Groups, fortunately,
damaged the plant severely. This plant was later-on struck by a Norwegian sabotage team that
penetrated it on the ground, and Rjukan was never fully developed. The first and only large
shipment of heavy water to head for Germany was sabotaged and the ship was blown up in a
Norwegian fjord before it left Norway. The Norwegians were smarter in this respect than the
Germans. The German quest for heavy water was completely thwarted.
One aircraft # 230455R, Schifliss Skonk, from the 569th Bomb Squadron on its twelfth mission
flown by Raymond Becker, Pilot, caught fire and crashed in the North Sea. Three small boats
were seen to head for the scene. There were no survivors.
Gunners of the 390th group were given credit for shooting down two enemy fighters that
attacked the group over Norway.
On the third run at the target, an unfortunate thing happened to cause the bombs to fall a distance
from the aiming point. The Command Pilot, Joe Gemmill, thinking that the bombs had been
released, even though the red release light in the cockpit had not get come on, took control of the
aircraft from the automatic pilot and started a turn off the target run. This caused a bombing error
which was not the fault of the Bombardier. It was regrettable. We had flown so far to this
important target and wanted very much to make a good hit on the aiming point. But such things
happened occasionally in combat, especially when under attack from fighters or flak. This was
not the case on this mission as flak was not very accurate and there were no fighters around
bothering us at the time.
Our return flight back to England was long and boring. We landed with the loss of one crew that
ditched off the Norwegian coast.