668th BS Patch

416th Bombardment Group (L)

1Lt. Francis Harold ("Lover") Bursiel

Bombardier/Navigator,  O-749712

Killed In Action - Dec 25, 1944

668th Bombardment Squadron (L)

 WWII-Medal

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B/N Wings        Missing Man        Purple Heart



  Born: 09-Nov-1921, Saugus, Essex County, Massachusetts

Entered Military Service: Date: 6-Mar-1941 At: Boston, MA From: Essex County, Massachusetts
NARA Enlistment Record: Enlisted Serial # 11024931

Buried: Riverside Cemetery, Saugus, Massachusetts

On-line Memorials:
National World War II Registry
Find-A-Grave


Whitman Flier Killed In Action Over Reich

WHITMAN, March 10 - First Lt. Francis H. Bursiel, USA, of the 9th Air Force, was killed in action over Germany, according to word received today by his wife, Mrs. Eleanor Bursiel, of 94 Washington street.

A veteran of 60 missions and holder of the Purple Heart, the Air Medal with 10 Oak Leaf Clusters and two Silver Oak Leaf Clusters, Lt. Bursiel previously had been listed as missing in action last January.

Extracted from Newspapers.com




Notes:
A/C Last Sighted and was Lost as a result of Enemy Anti-Aircraft.

Description:
The formation leader's plane was hit by flak between the I.P. and the target. It lost the left wing and went spinning to the earth, crashing near the town of Resheim. One chute was seen. The crew consisted of Captain R.B. Prentiss, Lt F.H. Bursiel, Staff Sergeant D.M. Brown, and Sergeant A.O. Wylie. ... Both crews are listed as MIA.
(416th BG History 1944)

See also MACR 11668 and Mission # 177



Photos and Documents
Birth Index
1930 US Census
Sunday, March 11, 1945, Boston Herald (Boston, Massachusetts), Page 48
Headstone Application
Headstone Application
Rosters Of WW II Dead
WW II Army and Army Air Force Casualty List
National World War II Memorial Registry


Source information can be viewed at WWII Military Service Fatalities Sources