The Man Behind the Name
Capt. Thomas W. Atkinson served as pilot of B-24D 41-23111 on the October 9, 1943 mission to Danzig. During the mission, the aircraft left formation approximately 10 miles north of Danzig after engine failure. Atkinson successfully landed the aircraft about two miles south of Logaby, Sweden, with all crew members except the navigator, who had bailed out over the Baltic Sea.
Atkinson completed a casualty questionnaire describing these events. As of November 12, 1943, all remaining crew members were at Korshus, Sweden, in good health. He was interned in Sweden following the emergency landing and subsequently returned to duty.
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.