Fearon J. Hanlon was born on May 18, 1917, in Stevens County, Minnesota. He was the son of James Hanlon and Mary LeMieu Hanlon. He enlisted in the service on February 10, 1941. He served with the 786th Bomb Squadron, 466th Bomb Group, Heavy, as a Sergeant and Ball Turret Gunner of B-24H #42-94974, nicknamed “Off Limit's Again” during World War II.

On the morning of October 12, 1944, the 466th Bomb Group dispatched its B-24 Liberators on a mission to Osnabrück, Germany, an important rail and transportation center. Among them was Off Limit’s Again, piloted by 2nd Lt. Quinton E. Bailey. As the formation approached the target, it came under heavy German anti-aircraft fire. Bailey’s B-24 was struck by flak and quickly erupted in flames. Witnesses described the aircraft as one solid mass of flame from the leading edge of the wing all the way to the tail. A wing then broke away, sending the Liberator into a nose-down spin. As it fell, the aircraft broke apart again at the rear bomb bay wall. Another eyewitness, Smith, recalled seeing several parachutes emerge from the stricken bomber, but they were quickly engulfed by flames from the burning high-octane aviation fuel. None of Bailey’s crew survived the loss of Off Limit’s Again.

Sgt Hanlon is now buried in the Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Fort Snelling, Hennepin County, Minnesota, USA.

Sources of information: www.findagrave.com, 555navigator.blogspot.com, americanarchive.iwm.org.uk