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Jacobson Robert Theodore “Jake”

Name:
Robert Theodore “Jake”  Jacobson
Rank:
First Lieutenant
Serial Number:
Unit:
330th Bomber Squadron, 93rd Bomber Group
Date of Death:
2010-09-14
State:
Mississippi
Cemetery:
Austin Memorial Park Cemetery, Austin, Travis County, Texas
Plot:
Sect 5B
Row:
Grave:
Decoration:
Comments:

Major (then 1LT) Robert T. “Jake” Jacobson was born on November 1, 1916 in Mississippi . He was a Crewmember (Bombardier) on the B-24 Liberator “Hot Stuff (41-23728) assigned to the 330th Bomb Squadron, 93rd Bombardment Group (Heavy), 8th Air Force, U.S. Army Air Forces (World War II; European Theater of Operations) flying combat mission's out of RAF Bovingdon, England. “Hot Stuff” was the first US Bomber to complete 25 missions, 25th mission on February 7, 1943, against long odds at a time when many planes were being shot down. Hot Stuff became the first heavy bomber in the 8th Air Force to complete twenty-five missions in Europe in World War II and reached its 25th mission three-and-a-half months before the widely celebrated B-17 "Memphis Belle". After Hot Stuff completed thirty-one missions, the plane and her crew were on the return flight to the states for a War Bonds publicity and morale-boosting tour on May 3, 1943, and Lieutenant General Frank M. Andrews, Commander of the European Theater of Operations needed to get back the states as he had been summoned to Washington DC by the General of the Army, George Marshall. Andrews and his entourage hitched a ride on Hot Stuff, and in doing so bumped five crewmembers from the flight to include Jacobson. Though they were supposed to refuel at Prestwick, Scotland before heading out over the Atlantic, the crew elected to skip stopping at Prestwick and proceed to their next waypoint, Reykjavik, Iceland. They arrived to find the weather at their destination quite dicey with snow squalls, low clouds and rain. After several aborted attempts to land at the Royal Air Force station at Kaldadarnes, Iceland, the B-24 crashed into the side of 1,600-foot-tall Mount Fagradalsfjall, near Grindavik, Iceland. Upon impact, the aircraft disintegrated except for the tail gunner’s turret which remained relatively intact and 14 of the 15 aboard died except the tail-gunner Sgt Eisel who, though injured, survived the crash. A monument remembering the achievements of “Hot Stuff”; the May 3, 1943 crash and LTG Andrews is located in Iceland in Grindavik. FROM FIND GRAVE: Robert T. "Jake" Jacobson was born November 1, 1916, in Cedars, Mississippi, and passed away Tuesday, September 14, 2010 in Round Rock, TX. He was preceded in death by his, father Harry A. Jacobson, and mother Jean Gillan Jacobson, sisters Elizabeth, Delnia, brother Richard and step grandson, Troy Borge. He leaves one brother Charles Jacobson of Forest, Mississippi, a son, daughter, grandchildren and step grandson, as well as his very dear friends. Jake attended Carrol College in Waukesha, Wisconsin where he was a starter for three years on the varsity football team and president of Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity. Upon graduating from college he enlisted in the US Army Air Corp (Forces) where he served in the European Theater of Operations as a B-24 Bombardier assigned to the 330th Bomb Squadron 93rd Bombardment Group (Heavy), 8th Air Force, RAF Bovingdon, England as a crew member on the B-24D Liberator (tail #41-23728) "Hot Stuff". Hot Stuff became the first heavy bomber in the 8th Air Force to complete twenty-five missions in Europe in World War II and reached its 25th mission three-and-a-half months before the widely celebrated B-17 "Memphis Belle". After Hot Stuff crashed on a fateful flight that Jake had been bumped from by Lieutenant General Frank M. Andrews (3 May 1943), he served in the Pacific Theater as a B-29 Superfortress Bombardier. Jake received several medals including the Distinguished Flying Cross during his service. After the war he returned to the United States, earned his Master's of Hospital Administration from Northwestern in Chicago, was recommisioned in the USAF, was eventually being promoted to Major and serving as a hospital administrator in Japan, Phoenix, and Ankara Turkey before retiring to Austin in 1968. After moving to Austin he was hired by the City of Austin as an Assistant Administrator of Brackenridge Hospital, where he worked until his retirement in 1983. Jake was an avid golfer and one of the founding members of Lost Creek Country Club, playing and loving the game daily until his health problems became too serious. Jake loved his friends and family he will be dearly missed, he was a huge influence to all those who's lives he touched. The family received friends Thursday, September 16, 2010 at Harrell Funeral Home, Austin, TX. Funeral service were Friday, September 17, 2010 at Harrell Funeral Home; burial followed at Austin Memorial Park. The website "A Story of Triumph & Tragedy" honors the crew and passengers. It is http://stridsminjar.is/hotstuff/