Herbert Drumm Rossberg was born on July 4, 1920, in Syracuse, Onondaga County, New York. He was the son of Herbert Bismark Rossberg and Catherine Drumm Rossberg. He served in the 527th Bomber Squadron, 379th Bomber Group, Heavy, as a Second Lieutenant and Pilot of B-17G #42-39782 nicknamed "Pistol Packin' Mama" during World War II.

On February 8, 1944, the B-17 Pistol Packin' Mama was shot down during Mission #214, which targeted Frankfurt, Germany. The bomber departed at 08:15 from Station 117 in Kimbolton, Cambridgeshire, UK. While flying over the Oise department in France—west of the commune of Amy and southeast of Roye—it came under attack by a German Fw 190 fighter. The crew began to bail out from an altitude of 22,000 feet around 10:25; however, one member was killed during the initial assault. It is believed that one of the attacking fighters may have fired on the parachuting crew, resulting in additional fatalities.

2Lt Rossberg was Killed in Action and is now buried in the Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial, Neuville-en-Condroz, Arrondissement de Liège, Liège, Belgium.

Source of information: http://francecrashes39-45.net/