Group Statistics

GENERAL

During WWII, the 384th Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated in December 1942 and continued as an active military unit until being deactivated in February 1946. Upon completion of initial training in the United States, the Group was transferred to the European Theater of Operations in May 1943. It began combat operations on 22 June and by its final combat mission on 25 April 1945, the Group had flown 9,404 sorties on 316 combat missions.

PERSONNEL

Approximately 7947 personnel served with the 384th during WWII and its aftermath, with about 4,371 being combat aircrew personnel. Of these, 1,581, or about one-third, were lost in combat or accidents:

As a point of interest, we note that 271 who flew in combat only flew one mission.

There is always discussion about which was the most dangerous position aboard a B-17 in combat. While there is no question that all crewmembers were at risk on every mission, the following table may help inform any such discussions.

The number of combat missions required to complete a tour was initially 25, which was raised to 30 in early 1944, then soon after to 35. Listed here are the 83 combat aircrew personnel who exceeded these requirements:

However, we should also recognize that some airmen in the days of the 25-mission tour flew more than their minimum, but we are unable to select that information from the database at this time.

AIRCRAFT

A total of 339 B-17 aircraft were assigned to the 384th BG, which flew about 9,402 credited combat sorties. Boeing produced 196 of these, Douglas produced 80, and Vega built 63. Of these, 188 were lost in combat or accidents:

An additional 52 were "Salvaged" due to being damaged beyond economical repair, or "War-Weary."

However, 13 of the Group's aircraft flew 100 or more missions with the Group, coming to be known as "Century Bombers." That these aircraft were able to complete so many missions is a tribute to the ground crews who maintained them, making them safe for the flight crews who entrusted their lives to them.