James Gilbert Welsh was born on June 8, 1924, in Cherryhill Township, Indiana County, Pennsylvania. He was the son of William M. Welsh and Elizabeth Forrester Welsh. He resided in Niagara County, New York prior to the war.
James served in the 860th Bomber Squadron, 493rd Bomber Group, Heavy, as a First Lieutenant and Co-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 Welsh is now buried in the Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands.
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