Tag Archives: story

Interesting Canadian aviation history! All of this came directly from a family member to a Buffalo, New York coin dealer and then to me. It originally belonged to Joseph “Joe” Barber, Jamestown, New York, 1st Lt. Co-pilot with pilot 1st Lt. Hank Holmes of a B-24 “Fairy Belle II”, 392nd Bomb Group, 577th Bomb Squadron. The B-24 saw action October 15, 1944 on a mission to bomb Cologne when she was hit by flak at 22,000 ft. The crew jettisoned everything including bombs, guns, radios and received escort from three P-51’s but crashed in a field near Brussels without serious casualties. There is a great deal of information about this incident on the internet and I will include what I have copied. This includes the B-24Second Generation Research pages on the 15 October 1944 Mission # 185 Target: Cologne Crew Loading List with Barber’s name and crew listed. The entire official crash report is on the internet, but I could not copy it. Barber’s post-war story is even more fascinating. His plane was found largely intact but without any sign of the pilot, leading his family to believe that he attempted to walk to civilization. A massive rescue operation was undertaken, with paratroopers dropped to build an airstrip where an expert Indian tracker was to land and join the search. This triggered one of the most well-known and extensive search missions in Canadian history, along with many rumors about what happened to Joe Barber, including his survival. Unfortunately, having survived extensive WWII 8th Air Force combat, he was never found after his crash in the Canadian woods. This lot includes his Distinguished Flying Cross, WWII, unnamed as issued, cased and complete with ribbon bar and lapel pin, his Air Medal, unnamed as issued with titled case, ribbon bar and lapel pin, full wrap brooch, two Air Force patches, one 8th Air Force patch, Army Air Corps Cadet hat badge, 3″ pilot wings, clutch back, looks like sterling but no hallmark, and a pair of Air Corps brass, a pair of “U. Also included is a neat reward poster following his disappearance, a copy of the typed manuscript “Journey into Oblivion, ” written by his brother John describing the crash and search, an 8″ x 10″ photo of the crashed plane with a person his brother? Standing next to it, three original portraits of Butler in uniform, one of which describes the incident at reverse, three images of newspaper clippings related to the search, one original clipping, a three page affidavit by the brother describing the situation, and a letter to him from J. Edgar Hoover on official FBI stationary. Also included is a copy and description of the Cologne mission and a printed image of the Fairy Belle II’s nose art, a copy of an Alberto Vargas pin-up. “Journey Into Oblivion” is a multi-page story by Barber’s brother that includes many details of his 8th Air Force service and then the plane crash. The brother visited the site several times, hiring guides to go look for Lt. Barber and those efforts are described in the manuscript. Edgar Hoover FBI letter to brother John Barber stating that the Bureau did not have the authority to open an active investigation about the family’s suggestion that Lt. Joe Barber might have survived the crash and re-enlisted in the U. ” I have no idea if this is a secretarial or original signature, but other than the use of the “E. ” instead of “Edgar, it looks exactly like those I found with a google search. If you are looking for a medal group with a fascinating history, here it is. Medal, pin and patch conditions XF in EX cases, one set of wings without clutches. Documents and photos generally EX with some edge wear, reward poster with some light creasing, portraits with some soft corner and edge wear, documents with typical edge and corner wear, some spot stains, etc. 8″ x 10″ of plane with a small tear right edge to 1/2, corner bumps. NO OVERSEAS SALES, U. PAY PAL is preferred, please. Box 1136, Alfred, NY 14802. The item “BIG WWII ID’D 8th AIR FORCE DFC & AIR MEDAL GROUP FASCINATING POST WAR STORY” is in sale since Monday, May 16, 2016. This item is in the category “Collectibles\Militaria\WW II (1939-45)\Original Period Items\United States\Medals & Ribbons”. The seller is “gbhmedals” and is located in Alfred, New York. This item can be shipped to United States.