CHIEF SLY'S SON
42-31076
B-17G-l-BO
91/323 OR-L

Just two months after the loss of Chief Sly II, a new G model arrived at Bassingbourn which was to become the third plane to carry the name but, unfortunately, no photograph of this nose, has been located, as yet. However, having been initially assigned to the 323rd Squadron it was not long before the plane was transferred into the 322nd. No record has been found of the aircraft flying any combat sorties with the 323rd Squadron, prior to its transfer to the 322nd and its first mission was to Wilhelmshaven on 3rd November with Eldridge Greer's crew. Greer would fly 2 of the 18 sorties the plane completed before being caught in the mass attacks of the air battle towards Oschersleben on 11th January 1944.

Lt. J. C. Page and his crew were on board on that, day and for almost three and a half hours wave after wave of Luftwaffe fighters roared into the bomber stream from dead ahead, sometime eight planes abreast. The first problems occurred about twenty minutes from the target on the way in when 20mm hits started a fire in the left wing fuel cells. When the formation dropped 20001 lower after bombing, the extra oxygen fueled the, fire and additional hits from another attack killed the engineer. 2Lt J. C. Page ordered the crew to abandon the doomed aircraft and the first six jumped without difficulty. As the two pilots and the bombardier prepared to exit the plane it exploded in a fireball throwing two of them clear but the copilot back into the inferno of the fuselage. His body and that of the engineer were recovered from the wreckage of the plane after it had impacted at Schemde near Steinfeld about ten miles from Dummer Lake.

The pilot, Lt. Page, evaded capture after reaching the ground but, deep inside enemy territory, it was a hopeless prospect and 24 hours later he was caught and joined the rest of the survivors as Prisoners of War.

"Story taken from Plane Names & Fancy Noses, by Ray Bowden"