V-PACKETTE
42-5225
B-17F
91/323 OR-S

Prior to receiving this title, the plane had been known as "Stormy Weather" and was the ship that George Birdsong brought back to Bassingbourn after catching fire and with no hydraulics, to overshoot the runway. That had been on 4th March 1943 after returning from Hairan and the plane ended up in a field adjacent to the base. Hauled back to its hardstand and repaired, it was then assigned to the newly arrived crew of Leland Forsblad.

Leland recalled the plane and reflected, "I do not remember who did the artwork but the name was selected by consensus of the crew. We all had a good chuckle. A V-Packette was a regular military issue prophylactic in a blue plastic container. The nose art was a facsimile of that container."

Their amusement at the nose art turned to considerable concern a month or so later during the visit of a very special party - the King and Queen. As the Royal party toured the base and reviewed several of the group's Fortresses and crews lined up for them, they stopped beside "V-Packette", thinking it a good place for publicity photos to be taken. The King and Queen were not aware of the real meaning of the plane's title but the accompanying PR men most certainly were and began frantic attempts to move the group on as diplomatically as possible. Eventually, "Memphis Belle" became the backdrop to the press pictures and considerable embarrassment was averted.

How "V-Packette's" identity survived after this incident without immediate censorship is not known, but survive it did - until the mission to Schweinfurt on 17th August 1943. This mission had been planned as a supreme example of what could be achieved by massed daylight raids carried out by heavily fortified bombers flying in tight, self-defending formations. It was a disaster of unparalleled proportion which cost the 8th Air Force 60 heavy bombers and their crews, and more than 160 damaged. The 91st lost ten of their Fortresses and another ten damaged out of 42 that had left Bassingbourn.

"V-Packette" was flying the outside corner position in the low squadron, commonly known as tail-end Charlie, when the formation was attacked by Fwl90s from the Luftwaffe's 1/J626. On board was Don Von Der Heyde and his crew, on their tenth mission. The German fighters came in to attack in tight formations, mainly from dead ahead - one assault was recorded as being from as many as 25 fighters flying in line abreast. The first pass missed "V-Packette" but the second did not. Cannon shells and bullets sliced through the plane and smashed into the leading edge of the left wing between the engines causing the entire wing to break away. The ship went into a tight spin and the centrifugal force pinned men inside, most had not had the chance to clip on their chutes. As the tremendous unseen forces built up within it, the plane split apart, spilling men and equipment into the air. The tumbling wreckage crashed to earth a few kilometers northwest of Leopoldsburg, at Baelen in Belgium, taking eight men to their death.

The replacement navigator, Edgar Yelle, had only arrived at Bassingbourn that morning and been assigned immediately to the crew. He managed to evade capture but the only other survivor, bombardier Walter Brown, was quickly caught.

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