Donald W. Hetherington (1916-2002) - Find A Grave Memorial

MACR 14367

O-771711

Pilot (right seat), B-29-70-BW Superfortress serial #44-70004 aka "City of Cooperstown" tail code Black-Square-P-16, 60th Bomber Squadron, 39th Bombardment Group (VH), 314th Bomb Wing, XXI Bomber Command, 20th Air Force, USAAF, stationed at North Field on Guam in the Mariana Islands; Pacific Théâtre of Operations.

Don Hetherington, co-pilot on Crew 16 submitted the following for "History of the 39th Bomb Group":

The crew #16 went down on their first bombing mission. "On May 4 over Oita, we had some damage to the right wing, close to the fuselage; it was probably from a phosphorous shell. Fire started coming through the radio operator's compartment. Engineer Harry Clark, Bombardier James Engleholdt, and Navigator Al Fields were attempting to lower the nose wheel with a hand crank and said it had jammed. I hit the alarm bell, called on the intercom to bail out and called to our buddy plane that we were going out. I later assumed that our engineer had turned off the battery and generator switches, as I did not transmit. I said that I would go back and to see if I could get the bomb bay doors open. Radio Operator Clyde Anderson was working on the emergency handles and jumping on the doors. After four or five jumps, the doors opened and he fell out with his one-man life raft on fire. I called out to the crew up front that the doors were open. Al dove through the emergency hatch with his entire flying suit on fire. He would spend about 3 years having plastic surgery to rebuild his nose, ears and damage to his arms and legs.

As I stepped into the bomb bay, there was an explosion up front and I was blown out. It apparently popped my chute; I saw the D-ring falling beside me. Hugh O'Brien said when he got to the rear door someone had frozen. Hugh thought if he jumped the rest would follow.

The following would be Missing In Action: Smith L. Edwards, James Engelholdt, Odie Kelly, Harry Clark, Gerald Arundale, Ernest Nyholm and a tail gunner who's name I never knew. He replaced our regular tail gunner James Ogilvie, who had accidentally shot himself in the foot just before going to the gunner's briefing.

Donald W Hetherington