The William H. Hitchcock crew: 708th Squadron
Photo from Steven Borcherding; also appears on CC25 of Operation CAPTION (but printed backwards in the book)
Rattlesden, undated
| Standing, L-R: |
| Sgt Walter M. Sechrest |
| Lt Edwin H. Chapin |
| Lt Joseph D. Gentner |
| Sgt Walter A. Herudek (Frederick?) |
| Sgt John C. Pritchett |
| Capt William H. Hitchcock |
| Sgt Fred W. Shoksnyder |
| Kneeling, L-R: |
| Lt. William A. Fisher |
| Cpl Lawrence E. Berry |
| SSgt James G. Sykes |
| S/Sgt Harvey D. May, Jr. |
| Sgt Charles H. Sanner |
| unknown ground crew |
| 8/43 | Moses Lake, WA |
| 08/43 – 11/43 | Harvard, NE |
| 11/43 | In Transit (by air) |
| 11/43 – 04/44 | 708th Squadron, Rattlesden, UK |
| Missions flown: 30 | |
Flights with William H. Hitchcock listed as Pilot
These lists are NOT limited to officially credited Combat missions, and may include Aborts, returns and non-takeoff occurrences as well.
| 447th Mission (Date) | Target | Plane Number | Notes |
| #3 (31-Dec-43) | Cognac, France | 42-31207 | |
| #5 (05-Jan-44) | Merignac, France | 42-31155 | |
| #8 (14-Jan-44) | Grand Parc, France | 42-31207 | |
| #11 (29-Jan-44) | Frankfurt, Germany | 42-31207 | |
| #13 (03-Feb-44) | Wilhelmshaven, Germany | 42-31207 | |
| #17 (08-Feb-44) | Weisbaden, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #20 (20-Feb-44) | Rostock, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #21 (21-Feb-44) | Diepholz, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #25 (29-Feb-44) | Brunswick, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #26 (03-Mar-44) | Berlin, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #27 (04-Mar-44) | Berlin, Germany | 42-38039 | ABORT #1 Eng |
| #28 (06-Mar-44) | Berlin, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #29 (08-Mar-44) | Berlin, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #31 (11-Mar-44) | Munster, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #32 (13-Mar-44) | Bois de la Justice, France | 42-37854 | moved in from the High Sq |
| #33 (15-Mar-44) | Brunswick, Germany | 42-38039 | |
| #35 (18-Mar-44) | Munich, Germany | 42-31095 | |
| #37 (22-Mar-44) | Berlin, Germany | 42-32081 | |
| #39 (26-Mar-44) | Cherbourg, France area | 42-32081 | |
| #42 (01-Apr-44) | Ludwigshafen, Germany | 42-37868 | |
| #44 (09-Apr-44) | Warnemunde, Germany | 42-107020 | Landed at Rackheath |
| #45 (10-Apr-44) | Diest Schaffen, Germany | 42-107020 | |
| #46 (11-Apr-44) | Arnimswalde, Poland | 42-107020 | |
| #47 (13-Apr-44) | Augsburg, Germany | 42-107020 | |
| #48 (18-Apr-44) | Oranienburg / Rathnow, Germany | 42-107020 | |
| #49 (19-Apr-44) | Lippstadt / Werl, Germany | 42-107020 | |
| #50 (20-Apr-44) | Cherbourg / Bois de la Justice, France | 42-107020 | |
| #51 (22-Apr-44) | Hamm, Germany | 42-107020 | |
| #52 (24-Apr-44) | Friedrichshafen, Germany | 42-107020 | |
| #55 (27-Apr-44) | Le Culot, France | 42-107020 | |
| #56 (29-Apr-44) | Berlin, Germany | 42-107020 |
Photo from Shields’ History: 447th Bomb Group probably taken at Harvard in Oct or Nov 1943.
| Lt. William Hitchcock | Pilot |
| Lt. Edwin Chapin | Copilot |
| Lt. Joseph Gentner | Navigator |
| Lt. William Fisher | Bombardier |
| Sgt. Fred W. Shoksnyder | Engineer |
| Sgt. John C. Pritchett | Radio Operator |
| Sgt. Charles H. Sanner | Ball Turret Gunner |
| Sgt. James G. Sykes | Waist Gunner |
| Sgt. Walter Sechrest | Waist Gunner |
| Sgt. Frederick Herudek | Tail Gunner |
Joseph D Gentner; Navigator
While the aircrews were getting all the glory, back at Rattlesden ground crews worked around the clock to keep the aircraft of the 447th in the air. Harvey May Jr.‘s crew also included crew chief Norman V. Shoup, L. Dittman, G. Reinke, J. Coppinger, A. Baylor, H. Smith and D. Bohn.
In the archive: Combat Diary- Lt. Joseph Gentner; Deployment orders for the 708th from US to England, provided by Mr. Gentner
Combat Missions (previously compiled)
The following list shows missions on which Lt. William Hitchcock is listed as first pilot, and may not reflect all missions flown by members of the Hitchcock crew.
| No. | Date | Target | Aircraft | Comments | |
| 1 | 3 | 12/31/43 | COGNAC | 42-31207 | |
| 2 | 5 | 01/05/44 | MERIGNAC | 42-31155 | |
| 3 | 8 | 01/14/44 | NOBALL NO. 107 GRAND PARC | 42-31207 | |
| 4 | 11 | 01/29/44 | FRANKFURT | 42-31207 | |
| 5 | 13 | 02/03/44 | WILHELMSHAVEN | 42-31207 | |
| 6 | 17 | 02/08/44 | WEISBADEN | 42-38039 | |
| 7 | 20 | 02/20/44 | TUTOW | 42-31724 | |
| 8 | 21 | 02/21/44 | DIEPHOLZ | 42-38039 | |
| 9 | 25 | 02/29/44 | BRUNSWICK | 42-38039 | |
| 10 | 26 | 03/03/44 | BERLIN – RECALL | 42-38039 | |
| 11 | 27 | 03/04/44 | BERLIN – RECALL | 42-38039 | |
| 12 | 28 | 03/06/44 | BERLIN | 42-38039 | |
| 13 | 29 | 03/08/44 | BERLIN | 42-38039 | |
| 14 | 31 | 03/11/44 | MUNSTER | 42-38039 | |
| 15 | 32 | 03/13/44 | NOBALL NO. 74 BOIS DE LA JUSTICE | 42-38039 | |
| 16 | 33 | 03/15/44 | BRUNSWICK | 42-38039 | This aircraft was damaged on this mission, subsequently transferred to the 388th BG, and lost during April 1944 |
| 17 | 35 | 03/18/44 | MUNICH | 42-31095 | |
| 18 | 37 | 03/22/44 | BERLIN | 42-37854 | |
| 19 | 39 | 03/26/44 | NOBALL NO. 93 LA SORELLERIE | 42-32081 | |
| 20 | 42 | 03/31/44 | LUDWIGSHAFEN | 368 ? | |
| 21 | 45 | 04/10/44 | DIEST SCHAFFEN | 42-107020 | |
| 22 | 46 | 04/11/44 | ARNIMSWALDE | 42-107020 | |
| 23 | 47 | 04/13/44 | AUGSBURG | 42-107020 | |
| 24 | 48 | 04/18/44 | ORANIENBURG RATHNOW | 42-107020 | |
| 25 | 49 | 04/19/44 | LIPSTADT WERL | 42-107020 | |
| 26 | 50 | 04/20/44 | NOBALL | 42-107020 | |
| 27 | 51 | 04/22/44 | HAMM | 42-107020 | |
| 28 | 52 | 04/24/44 | FRIEDRICHSHAFEN | 42-107020 | |
| 29 | 55 | 04/27/44 | LE CULOT | 42-107020 | |
| 30 | 56 | 04/29/44 | BERLIN | 42-107020 |
Some photos/information provided by:
- Mr. Joseph Gentner
- Mr. Steve Borcherding (grandson of 708th Squadron mechanic S/Sgt Harvey May, Jr.)
- Mr. Michael Berry
Some information and/or images sourced from the American Air Museum database