Rank: First Officer
Unit: Royal Air Force Transport Command, 45 Group
Died: 7th April 1943
Harry was born on the 30th January 1907 in Manhattan, New York to Russian born parents George and Rebecca Abrin (née Weiss) . George and Rebecca became American citizens in 1907. He had a younger sister Ethel. Harry married Bernice M. Orcutt on the 5th March 1938 in Staten Island, New York. Harry was an Electrical Engineer.
On 7 April 1943, he was serving as First Officer on a ferry flight from North Carolina to Scotland to deliver PBY-Catalina FP138. Flying with two British airmen, and 3 Canadians, Harry's aircraft received a message to divert to Portsmouth en route, but ended up flying near the coast of Normandy. Running low on fuel, the Captain chose to down the aircraft in a coastal inlet, but came under fire from anti-aircraft guns. After regaining height the aircraft was then attacked by two Luftwaffe fighters and Harry was shot in the back and legs. The pilot then downed the damaged aircraft near a rocky outcrop, 2 miles off shore. Harry's body washed ashore two-days later on the 9th April 1943. Two other members of his crew also perished, and the remaining three were taken Prisoner of War.
Harry was reported Missing In Action by the American Consulate in Canada in May 1943, before being declared dead. He is the only American buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in Bayeux France.
(Sources: CWGC, Ancestry, Find My Past. American Museum, Remembering the Jews of WW2,
(Bio: Woose)
Unit: Royal Air Force Transport Command, 45 Group
Died: 7th April 1943
Harry was born on the 30th January 1907 in Manhattan, New York to Russian born parents George and Rebecca Abrin (née Weiss) . George and Rebecca became American citizens in 1907. He had a younger sister Ethel. Harry married Bernice M. Orcutt on the 5th March 1938 in Staten Island, New York. Harry was an Electrical Engineer.
On 7 April 1943, he was serving as First Officer on a ferry flight from North Carolina to Scotland to deliver PBY-Catalina FP138. Flying with two British airmen, and 3 Canadians, Harry's aircraft received a message to divert to Portsmouth en route, but ended up flying near the coast of Normandy. Running low on fuel, the Captain chose to down the aircraft in a coastal inlet, but came under fire from anti-aircraft guns. After regaining height the aircraft was then attacked by two Luftwaffe fighters and Harry was shot in the back and legs. The pilot then downed the damaged aircraft near a rocky outcrop, 2 miles off shore. Harry's body washed ashore two-days later on the 9th April 1943. Two other members of his crew also perished, and the remaining three were taken Prisoner of War.
Harry was reported Missing In Action by the American Consulate in Canada in May 1943, before being declared dead. He is the only American buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in Bayeux France.
(Sources: CWGC, Ancestry, Find My Past. American Museum, Remembering the Jews of WW2,
(Bio: Woose)
Rank: First Officer
Unit: Royal Air Force Transport Command, 45 Group
Died: 7th April 1943
Harry was born on the 30th January 1907 in Manhattan, New York to Russian born parents George and Rebecca Abrin (née Weiss) . George and Rebecca became American citizens in 1907. He had a younger sister Ethel. Harry married Bernice M. Orcutt on the 5th March 1938 in Staten Island, New York. Harry was an Electrical Engineer.
On 7 April 1943, he was serving as First Officer on a ferry flight from North Carolina to Scotland to deliver PBY-Catalina FP138. Flying with two British airmen, and 3 Canadians, Harry's aircraft received a message to divert to Portsmouth en route, but ended up flying near the coast of Normandy. Running low on fuel, the Captain chose to down the aircraft in a coastal inlet, but came under fire from anti-aircraft guns. After regaining height the aircraft was then attacked by two Luftwaffe fighters and Harry was shot in the back and legs. The pilot then downed the damaged aircraft near a rocky outcrop, 2 miles off shore. Harry's body washed ashore two-days later on the 9th April 1943. Two other members of his crew also perished, and the remaining three were taken Prisoner of War.
Harry was reported Missing In Action by the American Consulate in Canada in May 1943, before being declared dead. He is the only American buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in Bayeux France.
(Sources: CWGC, Ancestry, Find My Past. American Museum, Remembering the Jews of WW2,
(Bio: Woose)
Unit: Royal Air Force Transport Command, 45 Group
Died: 7th April 1943
Harry was born on the 30th January 1907 in Manhattan, New York to Russian born parents George and Rebecca Abrin (née Weiss) . George and Rebecca became American citizens in 1907. He had a younger sister Ethel. Harry married Bernice M. Orcutt on the 5th March 1938 in Staten Island, New York. Harry was an Electrical Engineer.
On 7 April 1943, he was serving as First Officer on a ferry flight from North Carolina to Scotland to deliver PBY-Catalina FP138. Flying with two British airmen, and 3 Canadians, Harry's aircraft received a message to divert to Portsmouth en route, but ended up flying near the coast of Normandy. Running low on fuel, the Captain chose to down the aircraft in a coastal inlet, but came under fire from anti-aircraft guns. After regaining height the aircraft was then attacked by two Luftwaffe fighters and Harry was shot in the back and legs. The pilot then downed the damaged aircraft near a rocky outcrop, 2 miles off shore. Harry's body washed ashore two-days later on the 9th April 1943. Two other members of his crew also perished, and the remaining three were taken Prisoner of War.
Harry was reported Missing In Action by the American Consulate in Canada in May 1943, before being declared dead. He is the only American buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in Bayeux France.
(Sources: CWGC, Ancestry, Find My Past. American Museum, Remembering the Jews of WW2,
(Bio: Woose)
Inscription
MY BELOVED HUSBAND
WHOM I SHALL ALWAYS LOVE.
GOD BLESS HIM
Gravesite Details
First Officer, Royal Air Force Ferry Command. Age: Unknown.
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