B-17 Ditched in Pacific with World War One ace Captain Rickenbacker

[Phixer09]

It is widely reported that the B-17 which ditched in the Pacific 21 October 1942 with Eddie Rickenbacker was B-17D 40-3089.
Missing Air Crew Reports #802 and 900 both quote the serial number 40-3089 and date 2 October 1942. The pilot is named as Quentin R Birchard with a combat crew of nine airmen; Eddie Rickenbacker is not listed.

Missing Air Crew Report #16348 lists Eddie Rickenbacker and a non-combat crew with pilot William Cherry. The date and serial number are not quoted but the event is widely recorded as 21 October 1942.

My prime candidate for this plane is 41-2437. It’s record card stops November 1942 and was condemned ‘inventory’ 15 June 1944.
The record card for 40-3089 stops September 1942 and does not record any termination data.

Can anyone suggest a better candidate?

[Steve Birdsall]

It’s not 41-2437. At the time that B-17E was assigned to the 98th Bomb Squadron of the 11th Bomb Group. It completed tactical missions on October 23, 24 and 25, 1942 and was photographed by Life’s Ralph Morse about December of 1942.

[Phixer09]

Thanks.
Strange that a candidate hasn't been identified for a high profile incident.

[suzyQ194]

I just found the film and watched it the other day and was wondering the same thing.
Thsnks.

[Phixer09]

Given the evidence, why do people think that the plane involved was 40-3089?

[Steve Birdsall]

I agree, this should not be a mystery.

Apparently there was a late plane change after the B-17 that was originally scheduled for the Rickenbacker flight had brake problems. I suspect that that plane was a B-17E flown in from Kualoa, maybe 41-2433, but I can’t be 100% sure.

Moving on . . . the records all indicate that Rickenbacker was aboard a B-17D, and the available records show that there were only half a dozen B-17Ds still in service in Hawaii by September-October 1942.

They included 40-3060, which was involved in a takeoff accident from Kualoa Point on 5 July 1942. I don’t have any subsequent history for it, but it was not condemned until 16 October 1943 . . . I believe it’s a possibility for the Cherry-Rickenbacker plane.

Then there was 40-3084 . . . according to Joe Baugher’s site it was involved in an accident in Hawaii on 16 October 1943 and condemned the same day. That doesn’t seem right to me.

40-3085 returned to the U.S. in October 1942 and was Class 26 at Sioux Falls in July 1943.

Our old friend 40-3089 – I can’t see any reason to not accept this as the plane ditched by Quentin R. Birchard on 2 October 1942.

40-3090 was flying with the 31st Bomb Squadron at the time of Midway. It was involved in a fatal landing accident at Kualoa Point on 11 September 1942. I don’t know what happened next, but Baugher has it as condemned 16 October 1943 . . . I suspect that might be a blanket date used when a plane wasn’t around anymore, but there was no readily-available report of its fate.

Finally, 40-3092 returned to the U.S. in October 1942.

Hope this helps in some way.

[Phixer09]

>Moving on . . . the records all indicate that Rickenbacker was aboard a B-17D, and the available records show that there were only half a dozen B-17Ds still in service in Hawaii by September-October 1942.
>> It is unfortunate that the machine printed IARCs for aircraft of this period stop at FY3, calendar month 11 - November 1942; if appropriate, there is a gap before 1944 assignments are recorded.
For example:
It’s not 41-2437. At the time that B-17E was assigned to the 98th Bomb Squadron of the 11th Bomb Group. It completed tactical missions on October 23, 24 and 25, 1942 and was photographed by Life’s Ralph Morse about December of 1942.
The IARC for 41-2437 has the last assignment at HAD FY3, month 11 and then EPIC ‘Con Inv’ 6-15-44.

>They included 40-3060, which was involved in a takeoff accident from Kualoa Point on 5 July 1942. I don’t have any subsequent history for it, but it was not condemned until 16 October 1943 . . . I believe it’s a possibility for the Cherry-Rickenbacker plane.
>> The IARC for 40-3060 has the last assignment at HAD FY3, month 8 and then Condemned at HAD ‘Con Inv’ 10-16-43.
May have been the B-17D which went missing in the Pacific on a secret mission between O’ahu and Midway, Eastern Island, Midway Atoll 23Jul42

>Then there was 40-3084 . . . according to Joe Baugher’s site it was involved in an accident in Hawaii on 16 October 1943 and condemned the same day. That doesn’t seem right to me.
>> I think that’s a false interpretation of Osbourne’s Fortress Log entry which states ‘WO 16/10/43’. Haven’t found any evidence of an accident at that time. The IARC for 40-3084 has the last assignment at HAD FY3, month 11 and then HAD ‘Con Inv’ 10-16-43.

>40-3085 returned to the U.S. in October 1942 and was Class 26 at Sioux Falls in July 1943.
Our old friend 40-3089 – I can’t see any reason to not accept this as the plane ditched by Quentin R. Birchard on 2 October 1942.
>> The IARC for 40-3089 has the last assignment at HAD FY3, month 9 and then Hawaii to Condemned Per Budget Report of 11-25-42.

>40-3090 was flying with the 31st Bomb Squadron at the time of Midway. It was involved in a fatal landing accident at Kualoa Point on 11 September 1942. I don’t know what happened next, but Baugher has it as condemned 16 October 1943 . . . I suspect that might be a blanket date used when a plane wasn’t around anymore, but there was no readily-available report of its fate.
>> 16 October 1943 appears to be an administrative catch-up date and appears on several IARCs.
The IARC for 40-3090 has the last assignment at HAD FY3, month 10 and then HAD ‘Con Inv’ 10-16-43.
The fatal accident has a damage code of 5 which would suggest that it was declared as damaged beyond repair. Any repairs would have taken some time and unlikely given that the B-17D was being withdrawn from the Pacific. Alternatively, would it have been sufficiently airworthy to be used on a high profile mission?

>Finally, 40-3092 returned to the U.S. in October 1942.

>> All of which points to 40-3060 and 40-3084 as being likely candidates for the ‘secret mission’ and Rickenbacker.

[Steve Birdsall]

That seems like a fair call, based on what we know.

For the record, 41-2437 was ditched by Lt Robert B. Smith on February 18, 1943. The crew was picked up by USS Fletcher two days later.

[Chris Brame]

Finally, 40-3092 returned to the U.S. in October 1942.

And eventually ended up with Yale University. (Scott, should '092 be added to the RFC/WAA list for that reason?)

[Steve Birdsall]

And here is 40-3060 in its variation of the Hawaiian Air Force multi-coloured camouflage scheme.

[Phixer09]

(Scott, should '092 be added to the RFC/WAA list for that reason?)

The IARC quotes Class 26 24 July 1943, then 'SCRAPRFC', and RECL COMP 3195 [19 March 1945].

[aerovin2]

Is that photo of 40-3092 at Yale? I have not seen any information that a B-17D went to Yale so I need to chase that down.

Thanks for the head's up.