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name
SANDERS, Billie Richard - Date of
birth
13 March 1918 -
Age
26 - Place of
birth
Texas -
Hometown
Eddy County, New Mexico
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-753931 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
Co-Pilot -
Unit
825th Bombardment Squadron,
484th Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
26 June 1944 - Place of
death
In the Danube River, Austria
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Ardennes
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| B | 41 | 29 |
Immediate family
-
Members
William J. Sanders (father)
Kate Sanders (mother)
Boyd Sanders (brother)
Gilbert Sanders (brother)
Blanche S. (Horne) Sanders (sister)
Fern N. Sanders (wife)
Plane data
- Serial
number
42-94740 -
Data
Type: B-24H
Nickname: Big Dick
Destination: Korneuburg, Austria
Mission: Oil Storage Depot
MACR: 6329
More information
2nd Lt Billie R. Sanders was a bookkeeper and cashier before he enlisted in Santa Fe, New Mexico on 13 August 1941.The airplane was shot by enemy fighters near Ghorhern, Austria.
2nd Lt Billie R. Sanders bailed out somewhere in the vicinity of Vienna. He landed in the swift-moving Danube River and drowned. Lt Sanders could not swim.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, www.abmc.gov, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov - WWII Enlistment Record, www.ancestry.com - U.S., Headstone and Interment Records for U.S. Military Cemeteries on Foreign Soil / 1920/1940 Census / New Mexico World War II Records, www.fold3.com
Photo source: www.findagrave.com, San Angelo Evening Standard - 8 May 1945