Crew Roster · Personal File

Arthur W. Thompson

Navigator · 409th Squadron

HometownCambridge, New York

2nd Lt. Arthur William Thompson (O-794181), born April 8, 1919, served as navigator on the crew of the 409th Bomb Squadron, 93rd Bomb Group. Before the war he worked as a machinist and spoke French, German, and some Romanian.

Thompson was on his 13th mission when his aircraft was downed during the August 1, 1943 Ploesti raid. The plane crash-landed approximately 10 miles southwest of the target at 15:15 hours after sustaining severe damage. Thompson was not wounded in the crash.

Thompson and the surviving crew were interned in Romania. He was held as an internee until Romania's change of allegiance in 1944, after which he was released and repatriated through Bari, Italy. He departed Bari by plane on September 4, 1944, arriving at Lyneham on September 6, 1944.

Thompson was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with Cluster. He completed the E&E questionnaire on September 7, 1944. He noted the Halazone water purification tablets as the most valuable item in his aids box, and recommended better maps and proper local currency for future kits.

Completed Tour

Sortie Log

2 CATALOGUED SORTIES
01 AUG 1943 — 01 AUG 1943

The sorties 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.

8AF Mission

Date

Target

Aircraft

№ 115

01 AUG 1943

Ploesti

B-24D serial 42-40265, assigned to the 409th Bomb Squadron, 93rd Bomb Group, departed Site #7 Bengasi on 1 August 1943 on a combat mission to the Ploesti oil fields in Romania. The aircraft was lost as a result of enemy anti-aircraft fire during the low-level attack. Anti-aircraft damage forced the aircraft down at approximately 1150pm on 1 August 1943 near the town of Ploesti, Romania. The aircraft crash-landed in flat terrain approximately 5 to 10 miles from Ploesti. Several crew members were seen standing near the aircraft on the ground. The forced landing was confirmed by photographs taken by the 44th Bomb Group, which flew over the same area approximately 15 to 20 minutes later. The aircraft was described as riddled during the low-level attack, with no altitude remaining for any alternative to a crash landing.

Honkey Tonk Gal / Naked Truth, The42-40265

№ 115

01 AUG 1943

Ploesti

The aircraft was lost on August 1, 1943 during the low-level Ploesti mission (Operation Tidal Wave), approximately 10 miles southwest of the target at around 1515 hours. Two engines were shot out and a third was hit, with the tail section badly damaged. The pilot crash-landed the aircraft rather than ordering a bail-out. None of the crew used parachutes. The plane did not explode on impact but was totally wrecked. Seven of the ten crew members were injured in the crash. Navigator 2nd Lt. Thompson reported seeing all crew members after reaching the ground. The crew was subsequently taken into Romanian custody and held as internees before being repatriated to Allied control in September 1944.

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