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McVey Charles R.

Name:
Charles R. McVey
Rank:
Technical Sergeant
Serial Number:
Unit:
20th Bombardment Squadron
Date of Death:
1985-04-04
State:
New York
Cemetery:
Calverton National Cemetery, Calverton, Suffolk County, New York, USA
Plot:
B/A
Row:
0
Grave:
513
Decoration:
Comments:

Charles R. McVey was born on August 10, 1922. He was the husband of Mary W. McVey. He served in the 20th Bombardment Squadron, 2nd Bomber Group, Heavy, as a Second Lieutenant and Navigator of B-17 #42-31885 nicknamed 'Lovely Ladies' during World War II.

On August 29, 1944, during Mission 263, the Air Battle over the White Carpathians, the 15th U.S. Air Force launched a bombing raid from Italy against the Moravská Ostrava industrial complex in occupied Czechoslovakia. The formation met fierce resistance from German fighters and flak, and the 20th Bomb Squadron, 2nd Bomb Group, lost all eight of its B-17s. Among them was B-17G “Lovely Ladies” (42-31885), which was heavily damaged by enemy fire and exploded in midair before crashing near Vyškovec, Czech Republic. Of its ten crew members, nine were killed, and he was the sole survivor, captured and held as a prisoner of war.

McVey was held at Stalag Luft I in Barth, Germany. After the war, he concluded his military service with the rank of Technical Sergeant. He died on April 4, 1985, and is now buried in the Calverton National Cemetery, Calverton, Suffolk County, New York, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, b17flyingfortress.de, www.leteckabitvakarpaty.cz