Name and Rank, Technician Fifth Grade Oscar Ramsey Adams.
Unit/Placed in, 2047 Engineer (Aviation) Firefighting Platoon.
Oscar was born on 18 August 1923 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia.
Father, Thomas Henry Adams.
Mother, Elizabeth “Lizzie” Rose (Worley) Adams.
Sisters, Martha, Bertha and Druesy Bell Adams.
Brothers, James Dempsey, Curtis, Paul, Bernard Elbert and Burkley Edwards Willard Leslie, Harold Wade, Clayton Adams.
Spouse, Paulina Kate (Watson) Adams
Oscar entered the service from Virginia in March 19, 1943 with service number # 33535904.
Oscar R. Adams was a rank/duty Tec5/Firefighter in the 2047th Engineer Aviation Firefighting Platoon
Oscar was KIA, when a B-26 came back from the Mission and made a crash-landing on the Advanced Landing Ground (A-71) during the firefight and rescue of crewmembers of the plane a bomb went off, killing the crewmembers and several Firefighters, on 9 Dec. 1944, and he is honored with the Soldiers Medal, Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal, American Campaign Medal, Army Presidential Unit Citation, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, WW II Victory Medal.
Crewmembers from the FireFighting Platoon who also died of Injuries received while performing firefighting duties at Advance Landing Ground A-71, Chastres, France, when a B-26C, #42-107844, returning from an operational mission crashed at the East-West runway and immediately burst into flames on December 9, 1944.
Brasington, James C ~ Pvt, South Carolina
Crabb, Lester C ~ Sgt, Tennessee
Dixon, Harry A ~ Tech/5, Maryland
Felion, George A ~ Pfc, Vermont
Garcia, Inez G ~ Corp, Texas
Jones, Roy W ~ Sgt, Texas
La Voy, Charles P ~ Tech/5, Missouri
Nelson, Harold A ~ Tech/5, Minnesota
Orante, Armando R ~ Pfc, Arizona
Page, Leo V ~ Tech/5, Rhode Island
Perez, Carlos S ~ Pvt, Texas
Pick, Charles R, Jr ~ Sgt
Radlinger, Laurence E ~ 1st Lt, South Dakota
Sandstrom, Joseph H ~ Pfc, Connecticut
Oscar is mentioned/buried at Epinal American Cemetery and Memorial, Epinal, Departement des Vosges, Lorraine, France.
Thanks to http://www.firetrucks-atwar.com/xxm.html https://www.flickr.com/groups/1905648@N24/pool/
https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/G7WT-V66
Jean Louis Vijgen, ww2-Pacific.com ww2-europe.com
Air Force Info, Rolland Swank.
ABMC Website, https://abmc.gov
Marines Info, https://missingmarines.com/ Geoffrey Roecker
Seabees History Bob Smith https://seabeehf.org/
Navy Info, http://navylog.navymemorial.org
POW Info, http://www.mansell.com Dwight Rider and Wes injerd.
Philippine Info, http://www.philippine-scouts.org/ Robert Capistrano
Navy Seal Memorial, http://www.navysealmemorials.com
Family Info, https://www.familysearch.org
WW2 Info, https://www.pacificwrecks.com/
Medals Info, https://www.honorstates.org
Medals Forum, https://www.usmilitariaforum.com/
Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com
Tank Destroyers, http://www.bensavelkoul.nl/
WordPress en/of Wooncommerce oplossingen, https://www.siteklusjes.nl/
Military Recovery, https://www.dpaa.mil/
The criteria for the medal are: “The Soldier’s Medal is awarded to any person of the Armed Forces of the United States or of a friendly foreign nation who, while serving in any capacity with the Army of the United States distinguished himself or herself by heroism not involving actual conflict with an enemy.”
Moved through the area in early September 1944, heading towards Saint-Quentin. The airfield was seized and turned over to the United States Army Air Force (USAAF). IX Engineer Commands 846th Engineer Aviation Battalion moved in around 7 September 1944 and started a quick rehabilitation of the base to allow use by American aircraft Designated Advanced Landing Ground “A-71 Clastres Airfield” it was declared operationally ready for combat units on 9 September, only a few days after having been captured from German forces. Although operationally usable with one runway, Athies was still a wrecked base from the Allied air attacks and what was blown up by the Germans as they withdrew. The Americans worked with what could be repaired and moved in what equipment was necessary to conduct combat operations, the rest was done with tents.
Under American control, Ninth Air Force used the base for several units. Known units assigned to the base were:
387th Bombardment Group (387BG), from 30 October 1944 until 29 April 1945, flying B-26 Marauders
367th Fighter Group (367FG), from 8 September 1944 until 28 October 1945, flying P-38 Lightnings
One of the early missions of Clastres was to provide much needed fuel for the ground troops fighting on the western front. On September 11, 1944, the 467th Bombardment Group (B-24 Liberators) began a period of ferrying operations to carry gasoline to France, called Operation TRUCKIN’. Men from the Group were assigned to France to perform the necessary duties in connection with TRUCKIN’ operations. The first airfield used was Orleans/Bricy south of Paris, but this was soon changed to Clastres, and it was to here that most of the Group’s planes flew. In addition to the 467th’s own aircraft, a number of war weary aircraft from other groups were also used. Skeleton crews were used, and at first the gasoline was carried in five-gallon cans unloaded by the crew at the destination. Later bomb-bay tanks and P-47 belly tanks were installed in the planes and a pumping station was installed at Clastres.
When the combat units moved out, Clastres was turned over to Air Technical Service Command to become an Air Depot and later, during the summer of 1945, a storage depot for large numbers of surplus aircraft, whose units had returned to the United States by ship. Clastres airfield was closed on 30 November 1945 and turned over to the French Air Ministry.
