2nd Lt. John E. Cadle Jr. served as pilot of B-24H 41-29656, 93rd Bomb Group, 328th Bomb Squadron. He was reported missing in action on 26 February 1945 during a bombing mission to Berlin and subsequently returned to duty.
On 26 February 1945, his second combat mission as aircraft commander of the 328th ship to Berlin, flak knocked out number 3 then number 4. He feathered both, called for little friends, and when England was impossible he turned the B-24 into the two dead engines toward the Oder. He ordered the crew to jettison guns and loose gear, then called bailout over the Russian lines.
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.
Articles, columns, and letters naming this airman in the 2nd Air Division Association journals and the group’s own newsletters. The summaries below are ours; the pieces themselves belong to the writers and publications that produced them.
On 26 February 1945 a 93rd Liberator on the Berlin run lost two engines over the Oder, held altitude long enough for the crew to jump, and came down in Soviet-held ground.
Original documents behind what this page says about this airman — reports, records, and histories the archive holds and is free to reproduce. Check the sources for yourself.