John J. French was born on November 18, 1921, in New York. He enlisted in the service on April 22, 1942. He served with the 784th Bomb Squadron, 466th Bomb Group, Heavy, as a First Lieutenant and Bombardier of B24H #42-51134, nicknamed ''Liberty Belle'' during World War II.

On the morning of September 1, 1944, the 458th Bomb Group was preparing for a bombing mission against an ammunition dump near Pfaffenhoffen, Germany. Two Pathfinder Force (PFF) B-24 Liberators from the neighboring 466th Bomb Group were assigned to lead the formation, with 'Liberty Belle' serving as the deputy lead aircraft. The aircraft was piloted by 1st Lt. Homer Y. Harris, while Capt. Leland G. Griffith of the 458th Bomb Group was aboard as command pilot. Shortly before 7:28 a.m., Liberty Belle and the lead Pathfinder approached RAF Horsham St Faith (USAAF Station 123) at low altitude. They flew over the airfield at approximately 300 feet, apparently as part of the procedure to signal the 458th Bomb Group to begin launching its aircraft for the mission. As the two Liberators made a right turn toward Runway 23, Liberty Belle, flying behind the lead aircraft, began to overtake it. Harris apparently attempted to increase the separation between the two bombers by placing his aircraft into a steep bank, estimated by one witness at approximately 40 to 45 degrees. During the maneuver, Liberty Belle was believed to have encountered propeller wash and turbulence from the B-24 flying immediately ahead. At such a low altitude, Harris had almost no room to recover. Although he attempted to regain control, the Liberator continued to lose altitude and struck the ground at approximately 7:28 a.m., about 300 yards northeast of Runway 23 at Horsham St Faith. The aircraft immediately caught fire and was destroyed. All 12 men aboard Liberty Belle were killed in the crash. The aircraft had already been loaded with bombs for the mission, but fortunately they did not explode when the Liberator crashed, preventing further destruction and casualties around the airfield.

1Lt French is now buried in the Long Island National Cemetery, East Farmingdale, Suffolk County, New York, USA.

Sources of information: www.findagrave.com, 458bg.com