Francis W. Doll.
Waist Gunner · 330th Squadron · Of Kansas City, Missouri, Missouri.
The Man Behind the Name
Sgt. Francis W. Doll served as right waist gunner aboard a 93rd Bomb Group B-24 on the August 1, 1943 Ploesti mission. Born July 28, 1923, in Kansas City, Missouri, he had served approximately two years and worked as a meat cutter in civilian life. This was his 12th mission.
Doll was wounded during the mission, sustaining burns on his right arm and face and a flak wound in the muscle of his right arm. He survived the crash and was captured, with Romanian forces taking his aids box, purse, and escape equipment shortly after the aircraft went down.
Doll was interned in Romania for over a year. He was released following Romania's surrender and processed through Italy, signing his security certificate in Bari on September 4, 1944. He arrived at Gibraltar on September 6, 1944, and departed for the United Kingdom by air that same day.
In his E&E debriefing, Doll found the lectures on evasion he had received to be of no practical value. He advised future evaders to seek help from the wealthy class rather than peasants, as the former were more likely to speak English and understand Americans. His account is documented in E&E Report No. 1621.
Service record.
Missions flown.
The missions below are those we have been able to document for this airman, drawn from flight logs, mission records, and archival sources. It is not necessarily a complete account of every mission flown; gaps may reflect missing documentation, transferred assignments, or records lost to time.