My name is Kimberly Blankenstein, and this website is dedicated to ten American airmen from the 95th Bomb Group (H) who flew numerous missions over Europe in a B-17 Flying Fortress during the Second World War. Nine of these young men are still missing in action, and only one of them returned home to be buried after the war ended.
Many years ago, as a teenager, I became obsessed with the Second World War and the Mighty Eighth Air Force. I saw The Memphis Belle (the movie and the documentary), researched WW2 on AOL, asked Jeeves, Yahoo-ed, and spent entire days at Borders Books, mastering the military history section and memorizing the stories and timelines.
Other teenagers played sports or hung out with their friends. Initially, I carefully skimmed over books about the Second World War and then put them back on the shelf because I didn’t have the money to buy them all.
Over the years, my wonderfully encouraging Dad, an 82nd Airborne Vietnam veteran, helped purchase plenty of books on WW2, which I think was a worthwhile investment since my little military history hobby has altered the course of my life ever since. It’s taken me traveling and exploring and given me more reasons to be grateful for my life. Little known fact – I still haven’t been to the beaches of Normandy, but it’s at the top of my list. I’ve also had the honor of moving a collection of hefty books around the world, like when I lived in Stockholm, Sweden.
It was back then, though, when I was about twelve, that I stumbled across the book B-17s Over Berlin. Within its many fascinating pages filled with relatable stories, I discovered a group photograph of USAAF officers. In that photograph, by some destiny, I found number fifteen, listed as Flight Officer Joe Noyes.
Joe, in particular, had a youthful face that I found relatable. He stared into the camera lens with an expression that said something along the lines of “I really don’t know what I’ve gotten myself into.” Every teenager can understand how that feels. Call it projection or my interpretation of something that can never be known. That’s basically how this started.
I am not related to anyone from the Joe Noyes crew or a 95th Bomb Group (H) veteran. In my youthful free time, and with little money to spend on activities other than online research and writing, I simply felt compelled to share the stories of these men and, therefore, contribute in some small way to their legacy.
Acting as a volunteer and advocate for the families of these veterans, I have been very grateful for their support since 1997. Maybe we can still find our missing boys, too. We know where their B-17 was last spotted and where Joe Noyes was discovered on a French beach.
Nine American heroes from the Joe Noyes crew are still listed as missing in action today. I built this website as a hobby and as a tribute to them, and to share their life stories with interested parties worldwide. I thank you for visiting, reading, and sharing my work. I also thank you for remembering the men who served with The Mighty Eighth and for keeping their stories alive in your hearts and minds. May we never forget these ten men and their enduring sacrifice.
| F/O Joseph H. Noyes, Washington | 2LT David F. Prees, Wisconsin |
| 2LT Frank A. Roth, New Jersey | 2LT Rex A. Rice, South Carolina |
| TSgt Billie E. Clapper, Kansas | TSgt Edgar A. Lajoie, Rhode Island |
| SSgt Robert H. Willis, North Carolina | SSgt Raymond L. Provost, Texas |
| Sgt Daniel J. Fabritz, Pennsylvania | SSgt William L. Cochran, Texas |
References
- Hawkins, I. (2005). B-17s over Berlin: personal stories from the 95th Bomb Group (H). Washington: Potomac Books, Inc.
- Conley, H. M. (2002). No foxholes in the sky. Trumball, CT.: FNP Military Division.
- Ancestry.com
- WW2 Allied Aircraft Crashes in The Netherlands, North Sea & English Channel
- USAAF Combat Operations in WWII
- The American Air Museum Database
- The 95th Bomb Group (H) Searchable Database https://95thbgdb.com
Acknowledgements
Thank you to these individuals for their support in the past and present.
Robert E. Noyes, Sara Baty Noyes, Matt Noyes, Tom J. Noyes, Elizabeth Noyes Trunkey, John Noyes, Lori Noyes Norton, Tami Noyes Wiegand, Donna Davis Flynn, W.L. Bergman, Col. Harry M. Conley, USAF (Ret.), Col. H. Griffin Mumford, USAF (Ret.), Lt. Col. Robert C. Cozens, USAF (Ret.), Flight Officer Paul E. Perceful, USAF, Gerald Grove, Bob Rosenzweig, Brad Petrella, Rob Morris, Col. Daniel Cummins, USAF (Ret.), Michael Darter, Dennis Sparks, Richard E. Flagg, Bill Murchison, Mary Pirtle (David F. Prees), Marguerite M. Rice (Rex A. Rice), Anna Villanueva (Rex A. Rice), Ayden Alley (Rex A. Rice), Keith B. Taylor (Rex A. Rice), Gregory Blair Rice (Rex A. Rice), Vian A. (Conley) Cafaro (Harry M. Conley), Charles I. Nelson (Robert H. Willis), Ken McPherson, The Hudson Reporter, The Marines’ Memorial Association, The Boeing Company, Squadron Posters who created this amazing B-17 poster for The Joe Noyes Crew, and last but never least, my friends from The 95th Bomb Group (H) Memorials Foundation.
The following people contacted me at some point, and I’d love to hear from them again if they happen to see this.
Marc Eskenazi (son of Jack Eskenazi, a B-26 pilot), Michael Stevenson (who is writing the story of Howard R. Stanbery), John Burgan (the great nephew of Robert J. Nicholson), Garry Miller (the son of Harry S. Miller, a WW2 pilot), Carl, who is from the same hometown as Billie Clapper, and Terry Hirsch, volunteer researcher, Milwaukee War Memorial Center.