Daniel Rufus Treece was born on August 18, 1921. He served in the 860th Bomber Squadron, 493rd Bomber Group, Heavy, as a First Lieutenant and Pilot on the B-17G #43-38115 'Reluctant Lassie' during World War II. He was killed in the explosion of his airplane during a mission in Germany on September 30, 1944.
B-17G #43-38115 took off, with a crew of 9, from Station 152, England, on a bombing mission over Bielefeld, Germany. Near the target, they were believed to have been hit by bombs dropped from another B-17 that was above them causing his aircraft to explode and crash near Wellenkotten, Germany. Only one parachute was seen leaving B-17G #43-38115. The debris, due to the explosion of B-17G #43-38115, also caused B-17G #43-38480 to crash as well.
1Lt Treece is now buried in the Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia, USA.
Airmen who perished on B-17G #43-38115:
Barton, Ernest R, Jr. ~ T/Sgt, Engineer, MA
Gage, Stanton ~ 2nd Lt, Bombardier, TX
Moss, Carroll E. ~ Sgt, Ball Turret Gunner, MD
Spatarella, Enrico J. ~ S/Sgt, Waist Gunner, NY
Stamps, Carrel W. ~ S/Sgt, Tail Gunner, OK
Tourtellott, Theodore ~ T/Sgt, Radio Operator, IL
Treece, Daniel R. ~ 1st Lt, Pilot, NJ
Welsh, James G. ~ 1st Lt, Co-Pilot, NY
The only crew member to survive this crash was 2nd Lt. Artemon P. Johnston, the Navigator.
Source of information: www.findagrave.com