John E. Hurley, of Des Moines, Iowa, was born in 1921. He served in the 714th Bomber Squadron, 448th Bomber Group, Heavy, as a Second Lieutenant and Co-Pilot on the B-24 #42-50344 'Red Sox' during World War II.

On June 27, 1944, at 03:50 PM, the crew took off from Station 146 airfield in Seething, England, to bomb the Creil airfield and marshaling yards in Creil Petit-Thérain in France. At around 06:40 PM, the crew evacuated the plane after being shot down by flak. Their airplane crashed between Les Prouhérons and the Chemin de la Procession in the commune of Vez. All members were able to bail out, but two of them were killed later. 2Lt Hurley survived and evaded enemy capture through the aid of the maquis. He was one of the 152 allied airmen and soldiers who were helped and hidden in the Freteval Forest camp by the French Resistance to evade German capture.

Source of information: francecrashes39-45.net