Lynch Richard Theodore

Name:

Richard Theodore Lynch

Rank:

Flight Officer

Serial Number:

T-192721

Unit:

155th Photographic Squadron, 10th Photo Reconnaissance Group

Date of Death:

1944-07-18

State:

Ohio

Cemetery:

Brittany American Cemetery, Montjoie Saint Martin, France

Plot:

K

Row:

3

Grave:

1

Decoration:

Air Medal, Purple Heart

Comments:

Richard Theodore Lynch was born on July 2, 1922, in Akron, Ohio. He was the son of Albert James Lynch and Theresa Laverna Gates Lynch.

Richard served in the 155th Photographic Squadron, 10th Reconnaissance Group, as a Flight Officer and Navigator on the A-20 Havoc #43-21466 during World War II.

On July 18, 1944, his crew took off from Station 465 airfield in Chalgrove, England, for a photo reconnaissance mission in the Vire region in France. Shot down by flak near Briqueville sur Mer at 10:51 PM, the plane allegedly exploded in flight (possibly a mechanical problem) and crashed near the shore of Regnéville-sur-Mer. F/O Lynch's body fell into the sea and drifted to Regnéville-sur-Mer where he was recovered and then buried in the cemetery of the town. His body remained there until 1948 and later was transferred to the US cemetery of Saint James.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, francecrashes39-45.net