Seven B-17s left Umnak enroute to Longview. The weather was uncertain; squalls were prevalent over the entire route and during the afternoon Longview was ringed by fog and clouds. The field itself was open during the entire day. From any point off the island, however, it appeared that the field was socked in. McWilliams was flying on Brown’s left wing. Their flight was made down the south side of the chain to a point just east of Longview where Brown decided to go through an open pass between two small islands to the north side of Kulik Bay. They ran into a bit of soup but were determined to go on through. The navigator in Brown’s ship called for a quick turn as he sighted land ahead. Brown made a fast climbing turn to the left. Mac was unable to roll into his turn soon enough and was forced to cross over. In the crossover he tore nearly half of Brown’s right stabilizer and vertical fin off. Several members of Brown’s crew, the last to see McWilliams ship, said that he was climbing apparently straight and level, when he went out of sight. No trace of his ship or crew was found though PBY’s searched the area for several hours during the remainder of the afternoon. Brown was unaware of the extensive damage to his ship though his engineer told him that a part of the vertical fin had been torn off. The rudder was useless and the elevator was jammed in a level flight position. He knew, during his landing that they were not operating properly but, not until he was on the ground, did he realize the almost unbelievable extent of the damage.
(36th Bomb Squadron Journal)
(36th Bomb Squadron Journal)
Seven B-17s left Umnak enroute to Longview. The weather was uncertain; squalls were prevalent over the entire route and during the afternoon Longview was ringed by fog and clouds. The field itself was open during the entire day. From any point off the island, however, it appeared that the field was socked in. McWilliams was flying on Brown’s left wing. Their flight was made down the south side of the chain to a point just east of Longview where Brown decided to go through an open pass between two small islands to the north side of Kulik Bay. They ran into a bit of soup but were determined to go on through. The navigator in Brown’s ship called for a quick turn as he sighted land ahead. Brown made a fast climbing turn to the left. Mac was unable to roll into his turn soon enough and was forced to cross over. In the crossover he tore nearly half of Brown’s right stabilizer and vertical fin off. Several members of Brown’s crew, the last to see McWilliams ship, said that he was climbing apparently straight and level, when he went out of sight. No trace of his ship or crew was found though PBY’s searched the area for several hours during the remainder of the afternoon. Brown was unaware of the extensive damage to his ship though his engineer told him that a part of the vertical fin had been torn off. The rudder was useless and the elevator was jammed in a level flight position. He knew, during his landing that they were not operating properly but, not until he was on the ground, did he realize the almost unbelievable extent of the damage.
(36th Bomb Squadron Journal)
(36th Bomb Squadron Journal)
Gravesite Details
Entered the service from California.
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
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