Joseph A. Kerschner was born in 1922 in Tiffin, Seneca County, Ohio. He was the son of Jay Forest Kerschner and Kathryn Katrinka Montz Kerschner. He enlisted in the service on January 24, 1942. He served in the 512th Bomber Squadron, 376th Bomber Group, as a Staff Sergeant and Tail Gunner of B-24D Liberator #42-40658 during World War II.
On December 28, 1943, the aircraft was lost during combat operations in the Mediterranean Theater of World War II while flying from San Pancrazio Airfield, Italy, on a mission to destroy the marshalling yards at Vicenza. During the attack, the bomber was badly damaged after being engaged by a German Messerschmitt Bf-109 fighter and was ultimately shot down near Monselice in the province of Padua. The aircraft was destroyed in the encounter, resulting in the deaths of four crew members, while the remaining airmen survived the loss.
SSgt Kerschner was declared Missing in Action and officially declared dead on December 28, 1943. His name is memorialized in the Tablets of the Missing in the Florence American Cemetery and Memorial, Florence, Cittą Metropolitana di Firenze, Toscana, Italy.
Source of information: www.findagrave.com, https://aviation-safety.net/, weremember.abmc.gov
PRIVATE CITIZENS SUPPORTING AMERICA'S HERITAGE
American
War Memorials Overseas, Inc.
War Memorials Overseas, Inc.
Kerschner Joseph A.
Name:
Joseph A. Kerschner
Rank:
Staff Sergeant
Serial Number:
15098076
Unit:
512th Bomber Squadron, 376th Bomber Group
Date of Death:
1943-12-28
State:
Ohio
Cemetery:
Florence American Cemetery and Memorial, Florence, Cittą Metropolitana di Firenze, Toscana, Italy
Plot:
Tablets of the Missing
Row:
Grave:
Decoration:
Air Medal with Oak Leaf Clusters, Purple Heart Medal
Comments: