John Barnes was from North Dakota. He served on the B-24 “Battlin Baby” (42-94989) as the Right Waist Gunner.
On July 13 1944, B-24 “Battlin Baby” (42-94989) assigned to the 713th Bomber Squadron, 448th Bomber Group, 8th Air force took off from Seething (Station 146) for a bombing mission of the railway yards in Saarbrucken, Germany. During the mission, “Battlin Baby” was hit and lost # 3 and #4 engines. The Pilot headed to Switzerland and over Switzerland in a perilous situation, the crew bailed out and the plane exploded over the town of Bätterkinden, Switzerland. The crew survived and were interned initially in the Adelboden Internment (Camp Moloney) Camp. Officers were later transferred to the Davos Internment Camp. Several of the crew escaped the internment camps and were returned to duty. Reference: Missing Aircraft Report {MACR} 7561