Bone Howard Jett

Name:

Howard Jett Bone

Rank:

Second Lieutenant

Serial Number:

O-746031

Unit:

338th Fighter Squadron, 55th Fighter Group

Date of Death:

1944-03-04

State:

Illinois

Cemetery:

Mount Auburn Cemetery, Greenville, Illinois

Plot:

Row:

Grave:

Decoration:

Air Medal with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster, Purple Heart

Comments:

Howard Jett Bone was born on May 21, 1918, in East Saint Louis, Illinois. He was the son of Edgar William Bone and Margaret T. Jett Bone.

Howard served in the 338th Fighter Squadron, 55th Fighter Group, as a Second Lieutenant and a Fighter pilot. On February 23, 1944, 2Lt Bone had taken off on a fighter bomber combat mission. A few minutes after take-off, he returned to Nuthampstead for landing. He was behind another P-38, which was on its final approach to the runway. 2Lt Bone's aircraft dropped its belly tanks and made a gentle turn to the left toward the runway. The first aircraft landed safely while Bone's aircraft continued the left descending turn, which progressively steepened in the bank. It continued until his aircraft, at a near-vertical altitude, struck the ground. A few seconds later, a black billowy smoke cloud arose from the wreckage.

2Lt Bone is now buried in the Mount Auburn Cemetery, Greenville, Bond County, Illinois, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com