George Cloer crew was assigned to the 513th Squadron.
Back row: John McConnon- navigator; Thomas Erskine- bombardier; Walter Greene- co-pilot; George R. Cloer- pilot
Front Row: Wayne Shaffner- engineer; Donald Bock- tail gunner; Charles McKeague- radio operator; Fred Petitt- ball turret gunner; William Trentzech- nose gunner
Not pictured : John Metcalf and Russell Wilkins- gunner.
This crew was shot down over Albania August 10, 1944. Thomas Erskine was not on the plane when it crashed, but is in the photo. When they were shot down, only 4 crew members were able to safely land. Metcalf, McKeague, Trentzech & Petitt.
The crew that was with the aircraft at the time of the crash was:
George R. Cloer (pilot)
Walter C. Greene (Co Pilot)
John S. McConnon (Navigator)
John B. Metcalf (Bombardier)
Wayne O. Shaffner (Engineer)
Charles P. McKeague (Radio)
William F. Trentzech (Waist Gunner)
Russell H. Wilkins (Gunner)
Frederick R. Petitt (Ball Turret)
Donald L. Bock (Tail Gunner)
The website 376bg.org is NOT our site nor is it our endowment fund.
At the 2017 reunion, the board approved the donation of our archives to the Briscoe Center for American History, located on the University of Texas - Austin campus.
Also, the board approved a $5,000 donation to add to Ed Clendenin's $20,000 donation in the memory of his father. Together, these funds begin an endowment for the preservation of the 376 archives.
Donate directly to the 376 Endowment
To read about other endowment donation options, click here.
DATES: Sep 18-21, 2025
CITY:Rapid City, SD
HOTEL:
Click here to read about the reunion details.