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Personal info

Full name
KRAUS, Eugene J
Date of birth
31 October 1923
Age
20
Place of birth
Pittston, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
Hometown
Warren County, Pennsylvania

Military service

Service number
O-808561
Rank
Second Lieutenant
Function
Co-Pilot
Unit
563rd Bombardment Squadron,
388th Bombardment Group, Heavy
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters

Death

Status
Killed in Action
Date of death
4 February 1944
Place of death
Mondorf-Niederkassel, 3 miles north of Bonn, Germany

Grave

Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
Plot Row Grave
I 8 11

Immediate family

Members
Edward Kraus (father)
Johanna E. (Paulus) Kraus (mother)
Edward S. Kraus (brother)
John L. Kraus (brother)
Mary E. Kraus (sister)

Plane data

Serial number
42-31781
Data
Type: B-17G
Nickname: Cock of the Walk
Destination: Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Mission: Bombing of the railroad yards
MACR: 2350

More information

2nd Lt Kraus graduated from William Penn Senior High School.

The airplane received a direct hit of flak on the right wing just before bombs away causing the right aileron and stabilizer to be blown off. The plane flipped on its back and went down with right wing in flame and disappeared in the clouds at 16,000 feet.

Source of information: Peter Schouteten, Raf Dyckmans, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov, www.ancestry.com - Veteran Compensation Application File / 1930 Census, www.newspapers.com - The Gazette and Daily

Photo source: Peter Schouteten, www.newspapers.com - The Gazette and Daily