MEDAL OF HONOR

DONALD JOSEPH GOTT

Rank and organization: 1st Lieutenant, United States Army Air Forces, 729th Bombardment Squadron, 452nd Bombardment Group
Place and date: Saarbrücken, Germany, 9 November 1944.
Entered service at: Arnett, Oklahoma.
Born: 3 June 1923, Arnett, Oklahoma.

War Department, General Order No. 38, 16 May 1945

Citation:

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to First Lieutenant (Air Corps) Donald Joseph Gott (ASN: 0-763996), United States Army Air Forces, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 729th Bombardment Squadron, 452d Bombardment Group (H), Eighth Air Force in action over Saarbrucken, Germany, on 9 November 1944. On a bombing run upon the marshaling yards at Saarbrucken a B-17 aircraft piloted by First Lieutenant Gott was seriously damaged by anti-aircraft fire. Three of the aircraft’s engines were damaged beyond control and on fire; dangerous flames from the No. 4 engine were leaping back as far as the tail assembly. Flares in the cockpit were ignited and a fire raged therein, which was further increased by free-flowing fluid from damaged hydraulic lines. The interphone system was rendered useless. In addition to these serious mechanical difficulties the engineer was wounded in the leg and the radio operator’s arm was severed below the elbow. Suffering from intense pain, despite the application of a tourniquet, the radio operator fell unconscious. Faced with the imminent explosion of his aircraft, and death to his entire crew, mere seconds before bombs away on the target, First Lieutenant Gott and his copilot conferred. Something had to be done immediately to save the life of the wounded radio operator. The lack of a static line and the thought that his unconscious body striking the ground in unknown territory would not bring immediate medical attention forced a quick decision. First Lieutenant Gott and his copilot decided to fly the flaming aircraft to friendly territory and then attempt to crash land. Bombs were released on the target and the crippled aircraft proceeded alone to Allied-controlled territory. When that had been reached, First Lieutenant Gott had the copilot personally inform all crewmembers to bail out. The copilot chose to remain with 1st. Lieutenant Gott in order to assist in landing the bomber. With only one normally functioning engine, and with the danger of explosion much greater, the aircraft banked into an open field, and when it was at an altitude of 100 feet it exploded, crashed, exploded again and then disintegrated. All three crewmembers were instantly killed. First Lieutenant Gott’s loyalty to his crew, his determination to accomplish the task set forth to him, and his deed of knowingly performing what may have been his last service to his country was an example of valor at its highest.

MEDAL OF HONOR

WILLIAM EDWARD METZGER, JR.

Rank and organization: 2nd Lieutenant, United States Army Air Forces, 729th Bombardment Squadron, 452nd Bombardment Group (H)
Place and date: Saarbrücken, Germany, 9 November 1944.
Entered service at: Lima, Ohio.
Born: 9 February 1922, Lima, Ohio.

General Orders: War Department, General Orders No. 38 (May 16, 1945)

Citation:

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to Second Lieutenant (Air Corps) William Edward Metzger, Jr. (ASN: 0-558834), United States Army Air Forces, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 729th Bombardment Squadron, 452d Bombardment Group (H), Eighth Air Force. On a bombing run upon the marshaling yards at Saarbrucken, Germany, on 9 November 1944, a B-17 aircraft on which Second Lieutenant Metzger was serving as copilot was seriously damaged by anti-aircraft fire. Three of the aircraft’s engines were damaged beyond control and on fire; dangerous flames from the No. 4 engine were leaping back as far as the tail assembly. Flares in the cockpit were ignited and a fire roared therein which was further increased by free-flowing fluid from damaged hydraulic lines. The interphone system was rendered useless. In addition to these serious mechanical difficulties the engineer was wounded in the leg and the radio operator’s arm was severed below the elbow. Suffering from intense pain, despite the application of a tourniquet, the radio operator fell unconscious. Faced with the imminent explosion of his aircraft and death to his entire crew, mere seconds before bombs away on the target, Second Lieutenant Metzger and his pilot conferred. Something had to be done immediately to save the life of the wounded radio operator. The lack of a static line and the thought that his unconscious body striking the ground in unknown territory would not bring immediate medical attention forced a quick decision. Second Lieutenant Metzger and his pilot decided to fly the flaming aircraft to friendly territory and then attempt to crash land. Bombs were released on the target and the crippled aircraft proceeded along to Allied-controlled territory. When that had been reached Second Lieutenant Metzger personally informed all crewmembers to bail out upon the suggestion of the pilot. Second Lieutenant Metzger chose to remain with the pilot for the crash landing in order to assist him in this emergency. With only one normally functioning engine and with the danger of explosion much greater, the aircraft banked into an open field, and when it was at an altitude of 100 feet it exploded, crashed, exploded again, and then disintegrated. All three crewmembers were instantly killed. Second Lieutenant Metzger’s loyalty to his crew, his determination to accomplish the task set forth to him, and his deed of knowingly performing what may have been his last service to his country was an example of valor at its highest.

The wounded man for whom Lieutenants Gott and Metzger sacrificed their lives was the bomber’s radio operator, Technical Sergeant Robert Alexander Dunlap, of Fresno, California. Unknown to the two pilots, the tail gunner, Staff Sergeant Herman Bruce Krimminger, from Charlotte, North Carolina, had become entangled in the airplane’s tail section. He was also killed in the crash.

Donald Joseph Gott was born 3 June 1923, on a family farm 12 miles (19 kilometers) northeast of Arnett, Oklahoma. He was the fifth child of Joseph Eugene Gott, a farmer, and Mary Lucy Hanlon Gott. He attended Fargo High School, Fargo, Oklahoma, graduating in 1939.

In 1942, when Gott registered for Selective Service (conscription), he lived in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and was employed by the United States Aluminum Company. He had brown hair, blue eyes, a light complexion, was 5 feet, 7½ inches (171.45 centimeters) tall and weighed 150 pounds (68 kilograms).

On 21 September 1942, Donald Gott joined the Enlisted Reserve Corps. He began flight training as an aviation cadet in March 1943.

Donald Joseph Gott was commissioned as a second lieutenant, Air Corps, Army of the United States, 6 January 1944.

The 9 November 1944 mission was Gott’s fortieth combat mission. He had ten more to complete the fifty missions required for a combat tour by that stage of the war.

The Medal of Honor was presented to Lieutenant Gott’s mother by Major General Robert Boyd Williams ¹ during a ceremony at Fargo High School, 18 June 1945. In addition to the Medal of Honor, Gott was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and the Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters (four awards).

Lieutenant Gott’s remains were initially buried at a temporary U.S. Army cemetery at Limey, Meurthe-et Moselle, France, along with those of Technical Sergeant Robert A. Dunlap and Staff Sergeant Herman B. Krimminger, but later removed and reburied at the Harmon Cemetery, Harmon, Oklahoma.

William Edward Metzger, Jr., was born 9 February 1922 in Allen County, Ohio. He was the second of five children of William Edward Metzger, a real estate agent, and Ethel V. Badeau Metzger. He attended the Lima Central High School, and after graduation, was employed by the Lima Electric Motor Company.

Metzger registered for Selective Service (conscription) on 27 June 1942. He was described as having brown hair, blue eyes and a light complexion, was 5 feet 7 inches (170.18 centimeters) tall and weighed 150 pounds (68 kilograms).

Metzger enlisted in the United States Army as a private, 5 October 1942, at Toledo, Ohio. He served at Camp Perry, Ohio, and at the Desert Training Center, Camp Young,² near the Chiriaco Summit in the Colorado Desert of southern California. Private Metzger was next assigned as an aviation cadet. He began flight training in March 1943.

William Edward Metzger, Jr., was commissioned as a second lieutenant, Air Corps, Army of the United States, 21 August 1944.

Major General Frederick L. Anderson, Jr., Assistant Chief of Staff, United States Army Air Forces (formerly, commanding general, VIII Bomber Command), presented the Medal of Honor to Lieutenant Metzger’s parents during a ceremony held at the  Market Street Presbyterian Church, Lima, Ohio, 17 June 1945. He was also awarded the Purple Heart, and the Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters (four awards).

Along with 1st Lieutenant Gott, Sergeants Dunlap and Krimminger, Lieutenant Metzger’s remains were buried at the temporary U.S. Army cemetery at Limey, Meurthe-et Moselle, France. His remains were later removed and reburied at Woodlawn Cemetery, Lima, Ohio, 30 August 1948.

Sergeant Dunlap’s remains were later interred at the Lorraine American Cemetery, St. Avoid, France. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart, and previously, the Air Medal with two oak leaf clusters (three awards).

Vega Aircraft Corporation B-17G-35-VE Flying Fortress 42-97904 (s/n 17-7269) was  accepted by the United States Army Air Forces at Lockheed Field, Burbank, California, in March 1944. It was delivered to the Douglas Aircraft Modification Center (Air Force Plant #3) at Tulsa, Oklahoma, 31 March 1944. The bomber was then transferred to Kearney Army Airfield, a processing field for B-17 aircraft and their crews, 5 miles (8 kilometers) northeast of Kearney, Nebraska, 29 May, 1944. It was flown to Dow Field, Bangor, Maine, 6 June 1944, for ferrying across the North Atlantic Ocean. 42-97904 was damaged while taxiing at RCAF Gander Field, Newfoundland, where it had stopped to refuel on that same day. On arrival in England, 7 June 1944, -904 was assigned to the 452nd Bombardment Group (Heavy) at RAF Deopham Green (USAAF Station 142), 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) north of Attleborough, Norfolk, England. The bomber was originally nicknamed Why Worry, but this was later changed to Lady Jeanette.

The B-17G was the final production variant of the Flying Fortress. It entered service with the United States Army Air Forces in 1943.

The Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress was a four-engine heavy bomber operated by a combat crew of nine to ten men. It was 74 feet, 8.90 inches (22.781 meters) long with a wingspan of 103 feet, 9.38 inches (31.633 meters) and an overall height of 19 feet, 1.00 inch (5.187 meters). The wings have 3½° angle of incidence and 4½° dihedral. The leading edges are swept aft 8¾°. The total wing area is 1,426 square feet (132.48 square meters). The horizontal stabilizer has a span of 43 feet (13.106 meters) with 0° incidence and dihedral. Its total area, including elevators, is 331.1 square feet (12.18 square meters). The B-17G had an empty weight of 35,972 pounds (16,316.6 kilograms), and the maximum takeoff weight was 67,860 pounds (30,780.8 kilograms).

The B-17G was powered by four air-cooled, supercharged, 1,823.129-cubic-inch-displacement (29.876 liters) Wright Cyclone C9GC (R-1820-97) nine-cylinder radial engines with a compression ratio of 6.70:1. The engines were equipped with remote General Electric turbochargers capable of 24,000 r.p.m. The R-1820-97 had a Normal Power rating of 1,000 horsepower at 2,300 r.p.m. at 25,000 feet (7,620 meters), and 1,200 horsepower at 2,500 r.p.m. for Takeoff and Military Power. The engine could produce 1,380 horsepower at 2,500 r.p.m., War Emergency Power. 100-octane aviation gasoline was required. The Cyclones turned three-bladed, constant-speed, Hamilton Standard Hydromatic propellers with a diameter of 11 feet, 7 inches (3.835 meters) through a 0.5625:1 gear reduction. The R-1820-97 engine was 3 feet, 11.80 inches (1.214 meters) long and 4 feet, 7.10 inches (1.400 meters) in diameter, and weighed 1,315 pounds (596 kilograms).

The B-17G had a cruising speed of 172 knots (198 miles per hour/319 kilometers per hour) at 10,000 feet (3,048 meters). The maximum speed was 285 knots (328 miles per hour/528 kilometers per hour) at 26,700 feet (8,138 meters). The service ceiling was 38,450 feet (11,720 meters) at maximum power.

The B-17G had a fuel capacity of 2,780 gallons (10,523 liters) in twelve wing tanks. Two “Tokyo tanks” could be installed in the bomb bay, increasing capacity by 820 gallons (3,104 liters). The B-17G combat radius of 689 nautical miles (793 statute miles/1,276 kilometers) with max bomb load, and a maximum ferry range of 2,624 nautical miles (3,031 statute miles/4,878 kilometers).

The B-17G was armed with thirteen Browning AN-M2 .50-caliber machine guns for defense against enemy fighters. Power turrets mounting two guns each were located at the nose, dorsal, and ventral positions. Two guns could be installed in flexible mounts in the nose compartment, one in the radio compartment, two in the waist and two in the tail. 5,970 rounds of ammunition were carried.

The maximum bomb load of the B-17G was 12,800 pounds (5,806 kilograms). The internal bomb bay could be loaded with a maximum of six 1,000-pound general purpose bombs, or ten 1,000-pound armor piercing bombs; eight 1,600-pound (725.75 kilogram) armor piercing bombs; or two 2,000-pound general purpose bombs. The physical size of e

type limited the number that could be carried in the bomb bay. A 4,000-pound bomb could be carried on each of the bombers two underwing bomb racks.

The B-17 Flying Fortress was in production from 1936 to 1945. 12,731 B-17s were built by Boeing, Douglas Aircraft Com

pany and Lockheed-Vega. (The manufacturer codes -BO, -DL and -VE follows the Block Number in each airplane’s type designation.) 8,680 of these were B-17Gs, with 4,035 built by Boeing, 2,395 by Douglas and 2,250 by Lockheed-Vega.

¹ General Williams led the raid against the ball bearing factories at Schweinfurt, Germany,17 August 1943.

² Camp Young was the headquarters of General George S. Patton’s 3rd Armored Division.

© 2024, Bryan R. Swopes