Rank and Name, Staff Sergeant Earl Allen Rinehart.
Unit/Placed in, 749th Bomber Squadron, 457th Bomber Group Heavy.
Earl is born on 28 December 1916.
Father, Joseph Clarence Rinehart.
Mother, Ruby Olive (Northrup) Rinehart.
Sister(s), Ruth Maxine (Lucus), Alma Mae (Miller) and Ora Lee Rinehart.
Brother(s), William Howard, Joseph Charles, Richard Nicoton and Harold Parker Rinehart.
Earl enlisted the service in Indiana with service number # 15083847.
Earl‘s Crew-members and their position on-board the plane a B-17 were,
Lt. William T. Robertson Pilot
Lt. Clifford Hendrickson Co Pilot (KIA 23/12/1944)
Lt. Charles W. Carbery Bombardier
Lt. Elmer L. Mankin Navigator
Sgt. Earl A. Rhinehart Top Turret Gunner (KIA 12/09/1944)
Sgt. Louis A. Dahle Nose Turret Gunner
Sgt. Bernhard Stutman Radio Operator/Gunner
Sgt. Clifford B. Digre Ball Turret Gunner
Sgt. Julius Kornblatt Right Waist Gunner
Sgt. Stanley P. Szydlowski Left Waist Gunner
Sgt. John F. Brown Tail Gunner
Earl was KIA on the way back from the Mission they were hit by FLAK his respirator was cut by shrapnel on 12 Sep. 1944, he is honored with a Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal, American Campaign Medal, Army Presidential Unit Citation, European African Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, WW II Victory Medal.
Earl was first buried at Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial, Coton, South Cambridgeshire District, Cambridgeshire, England.
Earl was in reburied at Clarks Hill Cemetery, Clarks Hill, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, USA.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7416336/rin
Thanks to, http://www.457thbombgroup.org/
Jean Louis Vijgen, ww2-Pacific.com ww2-europe.com
Air Force Info, Rolland Swank.
ABMC Website, https://abmc.gov
Marines Info, https://missingmarines.com/ Geoffrey Roecker
Seabees History Bob Smith https://seabeehf.org/
Navy Info, http://navylog.navymemorial.org
POW Info, http://www.mansell.com Dwight Rider and Wes injerd.
Philippine Info, http://www.philippine-scouts.org/ Robert Capistrano
National Historian
Navy Seal Memorial, http://www.navysealmemorials.com
Family Info, https://www.familysearch.org
Info, https://www.pacificwrecks.com/
Medals Info, https://www.honorstates.org
Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com
Tank Destroyers, http://www.bensavelkoul.nl/
WordPress en/of Wooncommerce oplossingen, https://www.siteklusjes.nl/
Military Recovery, https://www.dpaa.mil/
When they were 30 to 40 minutes from the target, they were hit by light but accurate flak. When we passed the flak pocket, Robbie called for an oxygen check starting with: tail gunner OK, waist gunner OK, ball turret OK, radio operator OK, but then no answer from top turret. Earl’s intercom had been intermittent so Robbie asked that he turn the turret if he was OK. Still no response, so copilot Cliff Hendrickson left his seat and went back to Earl. He was still standing upright in his turret position, but when Hendrickson gave a slight tug on his trousers, he slumped down. He was completely unconscious; when Cliff saw the severed oxygen hose, he knew what had happened. Cliff, with Elmer Mankin (the navigator) help, brought him up to the nose. They loosened his clothing and put him on pure oxygen. While Elmer was working on Earl, we were struck by a fierce fighter attack consisting of an estimated fifty fighters (ME-109s and FW-190s) as well as new jet-propelled fighters. At one instant I saw three B-17s hit and going down end over end in flames, and from those three planes I saw only three parachutes open. It was a horrible sight, one I’ll never forget. Our group lost a total of twenty-eight men that day, either killed or missing in action.
They put Earl on a respirator and rushed him by ambulance to the nearest hospital. Later that evening they reported to us that he was dead.
Yesterday Carbery was injured by flak; today Earl was killed. What’s ahead? You never know.
