“Dogpatch Raider”

Piloted by Joe Avendano, Dog Patch Raider came through the low-level Ploesti attack of August 1, 1943 undamaged. The aircraft's fortune ran out on February 3, 1944, when it crashed near Hardwick moments after becoming airborne under the command of Lieutenant Robert W. Roberts, flying with a novice crew of second lieutenants and buck sergeants. All but one man aboard were killed. Ground personnel who pulled the wounded and dead from the burning wreckage, working through gasoline fire and exploding ordnance, were later decorated for the rescue.