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Earley Joe C.

Name:
Joe C. Earley
Rank:
Major
Serial Number:
O-429505
Unit:
389th Fighter Squadron, 366th Fighter Group
Date of Death:
1945-01-13
State:
Iowa
Cemetery:
Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial, Hamm, Luxembourg
Plot:
E
Row:
4
Grave:
28
Decoration:
Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters, Purple Heart
Comments:

oe C. Earley Major, U.S. Army Air Forces 389th Fighter Squadron, 366th Fighter Group Entered the Service From: Iowa Service #: O-429505 Date of Death: January 13, 1945 Awards: Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters, Purple Heart Joe C Earley (1920 Iowa), a resident of Jefferson County, Iowa enlisted as an Aviation Cadet in the U.S. Army Air Corps on 27 December 1940 at Fort Des Moines, Iowa. Joe was single, stood 64 inches tall, weighed 120 pounds, and had completed 3 years of college. He was working as an actor. 366th Fighter Group The Group moved in England over the New Year of 1944, setting up home first at Membury and then at Thruxton. The pilots' first mission was a fighter sweep of the French coast in March 1944 and from then until D-Day that June the ground supported Allied preparations for the invasion of France, taking out German military sites and equipment in northern France. The Group were awarded a DUC for quite a singular action: when supporting infantry in the St. Lo area on 11 July 1944, the pilots discovered a column of enemy tanks as yet unknown to the infantry. Despite coming under intense fire, the Group, as well as striking nearby pillboxes, the intended target of the mission, attacked this column. This put many of the German tanks out of action before they engaged the infantry. The Group carried out armed reconnaissance missions during the Battle of the Bulge (December 1944-January 1945) and escorted bombers during the assult across the Rhine river. Source: http://www.americanairmuseum.com/unit/313 Fighter Pilot, Major Joe C. Earley, from the 366th Fighter Group/389th Fighter Squadron, flying a P-47D Thunderbolt (42-27230), crashed 13 January 1945 at 12.40 hours, 2 miles west of Gouvy, Belgium. Major Earley was #3 in four ship flight of P-47D. He was shot down as he dove to low altitude to identify suspected enemy vehicles on road near Gouvy, Belgium. The aircraft came down in Achouffe (Houffalize). He had flown out of Y-29 Asch, Belgium. MACR 11929.
Source: Find a Grave