Murl Francis Simmons was born on October 5, 1922, in De Kalb Junction, St. Lawrence County, New York. He was the son of Ralph R. Simmons and Isabelle June Savage Hall. He worked at the Rushmore Paper Company before enlisting in the service on November 24, 1942. He served in the 534th Bomber Squadron, 381st Bomb Group, Heavy, as a Staff Sergeant and Top Turret Gunner of the B-17 #42-97084 nicknamed ''Spare Charlie'' during World War II.
On June 22, 1944, the B-17 Flying Fortress "Spare Charlie" was shot down while on a bombing mission between Tingry (Pas-de-Calais) and Abbeville (Somme), France. The aircraft took off from Station 167 in Ridgewell, Essex, UK, and was hit by German anti-aircraft fire over the target area. The flak strike damaged two engines and set the wing ablaze. At 19:08, just moments before the aircraft broke apart and crashed, the waist gunner was the only crew member able to bail out. The B-17 disintegrated in mid-air and went down near Épagnette, France. The rest of the crew perished in the crash.
SSgt Simmons was Killed in Action and is now buried in the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, Colleville-sur-Mer, Departement du Calvados, Basse-Normandie, France.
Source of information: francecrashes39-45.net/, www.americanairmuseum.com