Curtis Daris Lovelace was born on February 21, 1920, in Fulton, Fulton County, Kentucky. He was the son of Curtis D. Lovelace and Butonne Edna Kennedy Lovelace. He served in the 600th Bomber Squadron, 398th Bomb Group, Heavy, as a First Lieutenant and Pilot of B-17 #42-102599 during World War II.

On July 16, 1944, the aircraft was lost during a bombing mission over Munich, Germany, bearing the squadron code N8-U, which had been delivered earlier that year and was operating from Nuthampstead, England. During the mission, the B-17 sustained severe damage from enemy anti-aircraft fire (flak), leading to its crash near Brettersberg, northeast of Innsbruck, Germany. Of the nine-man crew, two were killed, while the remaining seven were captured and became prisoners of war.

1Lt Lovelace was Killed in Action and is now buried in the Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial, Saint-Avold, Departement de la Moselle, Lorraine, France. Curtis D. Lovelace's name is inscribed on the Anstey Window Memorial in Panel 2 (center), on Butterfly 12, in the bottom right wing (section D).

Source of information: B-17flyingfortress.de, www.398th.org