Heinz Knoke B-17 Flying Fortress June 25, 1943

My last raid was memorable in that it was a terrible fiasco. On June 25, 1943 we were Hamburg bound to join the Brits in demolishing it. I was with Capt. Roller and we were leading the high squadron. Bill Cline, our original copilot, was now flying our wing with his own crew. As I recall we were in bad soup shortly after take-off, which was compounded by serious contrails as we got higher. Then we began to lose visual contact with others. Our wingmen stuck tight and we finally broke through, and guess what? Our three-ship flight was it! They were not shooting at us very much so we chugged along over a solid undercast as far as the eye could see. At last we joined up with Capt. Billy Southworth of the 427th Sqdn. He had 3 ships with him. We couldn't see the ground so somebody decided to go home. Then we had a nice running fight with "Jerry" for quite sometime. I finally saw the island of Baltrum in the Frisians and made a quick bomb run - six ships together dodging in and out of the clouds. Don't know if we did any damage other than plowing sand and I never could find out. Our six got home together and the rest of the formation straggled home in two's and three's.The 8th AF lost 18 aircraft to no avail. Anyway, when we landed, Bob Yonkman, our bombing officer, met me at the plane with a big drink of rum. I had made it through the war.

Ed. Note: John Shoup, Jack Roller and Bill Cline were part of one of the original crews that came over to Molesworth in October of 1942.Their original aircraft was the "Knockout Dropper, " the first B-17 to reach 75 missions in the ETO.

Description of this victory by Heinz Knoke and different information :

Heinz Knoke's Flightbook mission 205 left page

Heinz Knoke's Flightbook mission 205 right page

Warning !
To facilitate the reading, lines of Heinz Knoke's flightbook, appearing above, were modified with small computing assembly.
If the disposal is not in accordance with the original, the main thing of the information, namely the mission 205 of June 25, has no change.

	Heinz Knoke Informations	Personal comments
Source	I flew for the f... page 101
Date	June 25, 1943
Type of claimed plane	B-17 Flight Fortress
Place of the interception	Beginning of attack over North Sea at 22.000 feet
Crash Location	North Sea	20 minutes North of Nordeney Island
Presumed Mission USAAF		Primary targets were Bremen and Hamburg
Presumed route USAAF	On way germain coast heading Wilhemshaven
Schedule	Alert on 7.00 : enemy concentration in map reference sector Dora Dora Take-off : 08.11 Landing : 09.00	Victory : 08.34
Weather report	Cumulus cloud ceiling at 6000 feet and 15000 feet.
Knoke's Unit	5./JG11 44 Bf 109G of II./JG11
Description of the fight	"I select two isolated heavy bombers flying wing-tip to wing-tip, and we go down to attack them from the rear. I open fire at short range. My cannon-shells land beautifully in the centre of the fuselage. The rear gunner persistently return me fire... ...Holes appear in my right wing as I am hit... ...He will not leave me alone --must have a lots of guts. Closer still I keep on blasting away at the Forttress, concentrating on the rear turret. It disintegrates under the salvoes from my cannon. More high explosive put the dorsal turret out of action also. We are between clouds, in a deep ravine, with milky walls towering high on both sides. It is a glorious picture. I am under fire of the right side and top turret of the second Fortress... ...Tracers pass close by my head. I feel another hit... My Fortress is on fire along the back and in the left inside engine. Still the two gunners in the second Fortress keep on blazing at me. They are only 100 feet away. I continue firing at my victim... ...I remain 150 to 200 feet behind his tail. The fire now spreads to his right wing. ...There is a sudden flash in front of my eyes, and I feel my waving hand slammed violently against the right side of the aircraft... ...My glove is in shreds, with blood trickling out. Once again I grasp the stick with my injured hand, line up the sights on my opponent, and empty the magazine in one long burst. At long the Fortress goes down, falling into the clouds like a flaming torch."
Detail 1	"I go down after it, following as far as the sea. There all that is left of the heavy bomber is a large patch of oil burning on the surface."	A sure victory.
Detail 2	"The Fortresses are nearly 3000 feet below us. They are not flying in massed formation today, but make their way, singly or in groups of threes and fours, through the magnificent cloudscape. In pairs our pilots attack the individual groups of Fortresses. It is a perfect surprise. Our attack throws the Americans into a state of utter confusion."
Detail 3	Knoke didn't mention parachutes.	Probably no survivor.

Luftwaffe' Official Victories on June 25, 1943.

Source : Jagdgeschwader 1 und 11 Tail 1 1939 - 1943 Jochen Prien, Peter Rodeike.

Rank / Pilot	Unit	Plane	Schedule
Olt. Knoke	5./JG11	B-17	08.34
Fw. Wolf	4./JG11	B-17	08.45
Uffz. Gaedicke	3./JG11	B-17	08.45
Fw. Höltken	Stab/JG11	B-17	08.46
Uffz. Römling	4./JG11	B-17	08.47
Uffz. Kurz	II./JG11	B-17	08.50
Hptm. Specht	II./JG11	B-17	08.52
Hptm. Hackl	Stab/JG11	B-17	08.59
Uffz. Güthenke	3./JG11	B-17	09.02
Lt. Heinert	3./JG11	B-17	09.02
Uffz. Spreckels	2./JG11	B-17	09.07
Uffz. Spreckels	2./JG11	B-17	09.26
Olt. Pancritius	3./JG11	B-17
Ofw. Gaumert	4./JG11	B-17
Olt. Frey	7./JG11	B-17
Fw. Zick	7./JG11	B-17

serial number	plane type / name	squadron	code	reason	mission lost on	pilot
42-3023	Boeing B-17F-15-DL "Boozeness"	379 BG 525 BS	OE-V	fighter	Wangerooge Island Crash Location Brahe	Simones, 5KIA, 5POW, MACR 1365
42-3260	Boeing B-17F-40-DL "Angel's tit"	100 BG 349 BS		fighter	Bremen then Juist Island as secondary target Crash Location North Sea	1st Lt Alonzo P. Adams III P KIA F/O George Z. Krech CP KIA 2nd Lt Nicholas Demchak N POW 2nd Lt Jesse D. Gurley B KIA T/Sgt John K. Sullivan E KIA S/Sgt Edmonde J. Walker WG KIA T/Sgt James D. Purcell R KIA S/Sgt John G. Kruzich BT KIA S/Sgt Norman Asbornsen WG KIA S/Sgt Bryant Hutchinson TG KIA MACR 271
42-5180	Boeing B-17F-40-BO	306 BG 423 BS	RD-B	flak	Bremen Crash Location Bourtenge (Hol)	Logan, 1KIA, 9POW
42-5839	Boeing B-17F-25-VE	379 BG 325 BS ?	FR-X	fighter	Wangerooge Island Crash Location Munderloh	Quade, 9KIA, 1POW MACR 1367
42-29499	Boeing B-17F-BO "Ma Ma Chang"	305 BG 422 BS	JJ-Q	fighter	Hamburg Crash Location ditched on North Sea Oude Rekela (Hol)	Wilcox
42-29864	Boeing B-17F-75-BO	379 BG 525 BS	FR-E	fighter	Wangerooge Island Crash Location Oldenburg	Browne, 8KIA, 2POW MACR 1759
42-29892	Boeing B-17F-75-BO	379 BG 527 BS	?	?	?	MACR 1758
42-29986	Boeing B-17F-80-BO	100 BG 349 BS	XR-Q	fighter	Bremen then Juist Island as secondary target Crash Location North Sea	Capt Oran E. Petrich P 2nd Lt Bluford B. Mullins CP 1st Lt Edward N. Jones N 1st Lt. Stanley Morrison B T/Sgt Max P. Brim E S/Sgt Joseph D. Bieu WG T/Sgt Edward J. Zerblis R S/Sgt Henry H. Rutherford BT S/Sgt Pete S. Villalobes, Jr. WG S/Sgt James M. Strong, Jr. TG 10KIA MACR 269
42-30027	Boeing B-17F-80-BO	381 BG 533 BS	VP-E	flak	Hambourg Crash Location Bengerseil	Ist Lt. Schrader, Robert K. P Capt. Hamilton, John H. CP 2nd Lt. Rogers, Edward J. N 2nd Lt. Samara, Edward G. B S/Sgt. Cutting, William K. TTG S/Sgt. Yarnell, William W. RO Sgt. Kurnafil, Stephen WG Sgt. Pruiett, Cecil A. BTG S/Sgt. Frisby, Lewis E. TG Sgt. Leidecker, Ted W. WG, 10KIA, MACR 162
42-30038	Boeing B-17F-85-BO ("Bar Fly")	100 BG 349 BS	XR-?	fighter	Bremen then Juist Island as secondary target Crash Location North Sea	1st Lt Paul J. Schmalenbach P KIA F/O George W. Cox CP KIA 1st Lt John F. Brown N POW 2nd Lt Jack L. Clark B KIA T/Sgt Eugene M. Beck E KIA Pvt Anthony J. Russon WG KIA T/Sgt Frank J. Podbielski R POW S/Sgt Norman C. Goodwin BT POW S/Sgt William C. Lucas WG POW S/Sgt Lewis W. Priegal TG KIA MACR 270
42-30107	Boeing B-17F-85-BO	379 BG 526 BS	?	fighter	Wangerooge Island Crash Location Gross Bergen (Hol)	Homes, 2KIA, 8POW MACR 1366
42-30165	Boeing B-17F-90-BO	379 BG 524 BS	FR-E	fighter	Wangerooge Island Crash Location Wiestel Sogel	Hartman, 2KIA, 8POW MACR 1356


serial number	plane name	squadron	code	reason	mission lost on	pilot
42-5850	Boeing B-17F-25-VE	384 BG 547 BS	SO*M	fighters	Wangerooge Island Crash Location Smallbroek (Hol)	MAJ Selden McMillin P , 1LT J W Smith CP, CAPT J H Foister N, 1LT F J Meyers B, TSGT ? ? Buckley TT, TSGT J J Heichwein RO, SSGT L T Jones BT, SSGT S W McArthur WG, SGT D A Pratt WG, 1LT A W Nelson TG (originally co-pilot, flew as observer on June 25). 1KIA, 9 POW, MACR 16357
42-30049	Boeing B-17F-85-BO "Miss Deal"	384 BG 544 BS	SU*G	fighters	Wangerooge Island Crash Location the wreck was found by Dutch fishermen in Dollart bay on July 7, 1943.	2LT John R Way P KIA, 2LT Stephen Fabian CP POW, 2LT Robert Jansen N POW, 2LT Thomas J Corrigan B POW, SSGT William Raymond Feagin WG KIA, SSGT William C Hill Jr G POW, SSGT Charles E. Crawford BT KIA, SSGT Edmund S Gadomski RO POW, SGT Al Westlake TG POW, SSGT Raymond E Dodge WG KIA, 4 KIA, 6 POW, MACR 16349
42-30143	Boeing B-17F-BO "Yankee Powerhouse"	384 BG 545 BS	JD*Q	flak	Wangerooge Island Crash Location Oldenburg	2LT George T. Riches P KIA, FO Richard McCray KIA, 2LT Donald J. Irwin 2LT William Boomhower SSGT Bernard H. Anderson SSGT William T. Waller SSGT Guy E. Smith SSGT Freeman S. Penney SSGT Stanley S. Martin SSGT Ralph E. Lavoie POW, MACR 16378

serial number	plane name	squadron	code	reason	mission lost on	pilot
42-5390	Boeing B-17F-BO "The Avenger"	303 BG 360 BS	PU-L	?	Wangerooge Island Crash Location Bourgsweer (Hol)	Joseph F. Palmer, 7KIA, 4 POW
42-5382	Boeing B-17F-50-BO "The Witche's Tit"	303 BG 360 BS	?	fighters	Wangerooge Island	David W. Mack, 1KIA, 9 POW
42-5468	Boeing B-17F-50-BO "The Nasty Nine Qui -Nine Bitter Dose"	303 BG	PU-I	?	Wangerooge Island Ditch on North Sea Lt George Stallings bailed his crew out over England and then headed a/c towards sea before bailing out himself	Lt George Stallings, P 10 Rescued.

June 25, 1943, 11th victory

Boeing B-17F-40-DL "Angel's tit" N°42-3260 349th BS 100th BG
2nd Lt Nicholas Demchak

Nicholas Demchak, last survivor of "Angel's tit" 's crew
died on October 5, 2001 and was buried on October 10.
We shall never forget his bravery.

progress of the search
4 Last update February 1 , 2003
Evaluation quality of information
4

June 25, 1943, 11th victory

Boeing B-17F-40-DL "Angel's tit" N°42-3260 349th BS 100th BG 2nd Lt Nicholas Demchak Nicholas Demchak, last survivor of "Angel's tit" 's crew died on October 5, 2001 and was buried on October 10. We shall never forget his bravery.

progress of the search 4 Last update February 1 , 2003 Evaluation quality of information 4

Boeing B-17F-40-DL "Angel's tit" N°42-3260 349th BS 100th BG
2nd Lt Nicholas Demchak

Nicholas Demchak, last survivor of "Angel's tit" 's crew
died on October 5, 2001 and was buried on October 10.
We shall never forget his bravery.

progress of the search
4 Last update February 1 , 2003
Evaluation quality of information
4