Assigned to 1Lt Bob McKee of 379th Fighter Squadron who flew his first combat mission on 10th February 1944 escorting the heavy bombers to Brunswick. Flying "tail-end charlie", McKee was forced to belly land out of fuel on his return into an open field. It is not known if he was flying "Danny Boy" on this occasion as the serial number is not yet known undentified.

McKee was flying as #3 ship in Rarey's flight on 26th June 44 and witnessed the loss of his fighter pilot/artist friend. His own plane was also hit by the same torrent of 20mm, 40mm and rifle fire which saturated the sky as they made their low level strafing run on a German truck. Rarey's P47 exploded and McKee was also reported lost but he struggled back to arrive 25 minutes after the rest of the flight.



 

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© Ray Bowden 9 December 2023