William Francis Harrington was born in 1923 in New York. He served as a Sergeant and Left Waist Gunner on B-17F #42-30421, 561st Bomber Squadron, 388th Bomber Group, U.S. Army Air Force during WW II. They were shot down and crashed in the North Sea off Germany during the war. Three to four minutes after having dropped the bomb load 42-30421 ran into problems. Apparently it was hit by flak and the propeller on number one engine was feathered while at the same time a minor fire started in number two engine. The aircraft entered a spiral dive while the crew bailed out. Ten parachutes were observed. William was Missing in Action or buried at sea. His name is commemorated on the Tablets of the Missing, Cambridge American Cemetery, Cambridge, United Kingdom. He was one of the many brave Americans of the 388th Bomber Group who lost their lives in aerial operations against the German forces from June 1943 - August 1945.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, www.flensted.eu.com