Charles Leslie “Les” Herman was born on March 27, 1920, in Arthurville, Oklahoma. He was the son of David Heber and Jessie Josephine Smith Herman. He was married to Mary Helen Mills Herman. After graduating from Canyon City High School, he relocated to Los Angeles, where he secured employment with the Lockheed Corporation in Burbank, California. There, he worked at an aircraft manufacturing plant producing P-38 Lightning fighters and Hudson bombers, many of which were supplied to the Royal Air Force and the Royal Canadian Air Force. When he was drafted into the Army, his experience at Lockheed helped qualify him for training as an aircraft mechanic. Inducted in Los Angeles in February 1943, Charles began basic training in Miami Beach, Florida. He then attended gunnery school in Harlingen, Texas, followed by further instruction at the Aircraft Mechanic School in Biloxi, Mississippi. Certified as both an aircraft mechanic and an aerial gunner, he was qualified to serve as a flight engineer on a bomber crew. He served in the 858th Bomb Squadron, 492nd Bomb Group, Heavy, as a Staff Sergeant and Top Turret Gunner/ Flight Engineer of B-24 #44-40152 nicknamed ''Sierra Blanco'' during World War II.

On May 19, 1944, 'Sierra Blanco' was lost during a bombing mission over Nazi-occupied Europe. The aircraft, flown by Fisher Crew 805, came under heavy German anti-aircraft fire and fighter opposition while over Germany. The damage was severe, and although the crew managed to keep the bomber airborne long enough to leave German airspace, the aircraft could not safely return to its base in England. As the crippled Liberator reached the Netherlands, it became clear that the aircraft was no longer controllable, and the crew was forced to abandon it. The crew bailed out over Holland, but the evacuation came at a cost. Only one crew member was killed in the incident when his parachute did not open after bailing out, while the remaining nine crew members survived but were captured by German forces and became prisoners of war.

SSgt Herman successfully bailed out of the aircraft but was captured by German forces and taken as a prisoner of war. He was subsequently interned at Stalag 357 Oerbke, Prussia. After repatriation, Charles resumed active duty and was stationed at Peterson Field in Colorado Springs, Colorado, serving as an Army Air Forces supply technician. He was honorably discharged on December 3, 1945, with the rank of Technical Sergeant. He died on January 4, 2008, and is now buried in the Vernal Memorial Park, Vernal, Uintah County, Utah, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.zzairwar.nl, americanarchive.iwm.org.uk