Owens Harold Eugene “Spank”

Name:

Harold Eugene “Spank” Owens

Rank:

Staff Sergeant

Serial Number:

Unit:

838th Bomber Squadron, 487th Bomber Group, Heavy

Date of Death:

2011-05-05

State:

Indiana

Cemetery:

Tippecanoe Memory Gardens, Indiana

Plot:

Main Chapel, West Wing, Level 4

Row:

Grave:

Decoration:

Comments:

Harold Eugene “Spank” Owens was born on August 1, 1919. He served in the U.S. Army Air Corps in the 8th Army Air Corps 487th Bomb Group (H), 838th Bomber Squadron from Sept. 30, 1942 to Oct. 15, 1945. He was a tail gunner on the B-24H #42-52444 during World War II. While flying over Germany, his plane took a direct hit, and he was the lone survivor. One of the last remaining former German POWs interrogated by the Gestapo, he participated in a 600-mile march in the middle of winter. He escaped from the POW camp and was helped by the French Underground to evade Germans.

Harold died on May 5, 2011 at the age of 91 in Lafayette, Indiana. He is now buried in the Tippecanoe Memory Gardens, West Lafayette, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com