News articles and crash site pictures 
of the B17 bomber crash in Idaho in 1942
The complete text concerning the crash - courtesy of the Boise, Idaho
IDAHO DAILY & SUNDAY STATESMAN
of Sunday, April 5, 1942 and Monday, April 6, 1942

Easter Sunday, April 5, 1942
PLANE DIVES TO EARTH IN DARKNESS
Strevell Farmer Reports Seeing Explosion in Air
By Phillip Hiaring
BRIDGE, Idaho AP – A four-motored Army bomber on a night flight from Ogden to Boise crashed with terrific force near this Utah-Idaho border town, killing seven fliers and presumably an eighth whose body had not been found late Saturday.

Wreckage of the huge ship was scattered over a wide area. First reports were that there were nine aboard, but Capt. R. S. Gibbs, Gowen Field public relations officer at Boise said clearance papers showed only eight.

The dead were listed by Gibbs as: Second Lt. James R. Walker, pilot; Second Lt. Albert J. Rich, co-pilot; Second Lt. Maurice Victor Bradley, Sgt. Hugh P. Jennings, Sgt. Henry O. Williams Jr., Pvt. Joseph W. Koury, and Pvt. Charles J. Gneiding.

One Man Missing
Also listed as a crew member was Pvt. Kenneth S. Biddinger. Rescuers expressed belief his body was covered by part of the plane. Biddinger was the son of Mrs. Helen Biddinger of Indianapolis, Ind. Gowen Field officials announced the plane missing Saturday morning, saying it had left Hill Field at Ogden, approximately 150 miles from Bridge on a routine training flight at 8:18 p.m. They theorized the crash, about 15 miles north of the Utah line, occurred shortly after takeoff.

Louis Gunnell of Stevell, a few miles from Bridge on U.S. highway 30 south, discovered the wreckage and reported that two men were dead.

When Gowen Field crash crews arrived on the scene, the additional bodies were discovered. Terrain at the site is fairly level and covered with sage brush.

Investigation Planned
An Army board of officers will investigate in an effort to determine cause of the mishap, Capt. Gibbs announced.

The crew had been stationed at Gowen Field and was returning to its base after a trip to Hill Field at Ogden.



Explosion Hinted
BURLEY AP – Supposition among investigators and crash workers at the scene of a four-motored bombing plane smashup 12 miles out of Malta near the Utah border is that the great ship exploded in the air before it hit the ground, Sheriff Bert Mahoney of Cassia county, said Saturday night.

The sheriff sain that the supposition was "not official" but that this was the general opinion expressed at the crash scene, according to Deputy Sheriff W.W. Williams who went there. Farmer Heard Crash
Sheriff Mahoney said he was informed that Louis Gunnell, Strevell farmer, saw the explosion and heard the crash Friday night. The farmer started a search on foot thinking the flash of light he had seen was at a point west of Highway 30 South (now called State Highway 81) in that section. Gunnell, the sheriff said, searched that area until midnight, before he finally returned to his home. Saturday morning he started out again in the territory east of the highway. There he stumbled upon parts of the wrecked plane and saw two bodies. He then immediately notified authorities.

Sheriff Mahoney said he was informed the wreckage of the big ship was scattered along a “three mile stretch”. Gunnell was quoted as saying it was a ”very dark” night when he saw the explosion and that it was raining.

Crashed Near Highway
The ship hit at a point one-half to three quarters of a mile off Highway 30 South to the east. It was about one and one-half miles south and a little east of the regular airway line beacon 12 miles out of Malta.

“I was told that if you knew where to look you could see parts of the wreckage from the highway,” the sheriff said, “but if you did not know where to look you could have driven along the road all day and never noticed it.”

#
Easter Sunday, April 5, 1942
PILOT OF WRECKED PLANE WAS RECENT BOISE BRIDEGROOM
Second Lt. James R. Walker, pilot of the Gowen Field bomber that crashed in Cassia County Friday evening was formerly of Seattle and a onetime University of Washington student. He had been married only a few months. His wife lives at 1028 State Street.

The co-pilot, Second Lt. Albert J. Rich was the son of Mrs. Fannie E. Rich of Hemet, Calif. He attended Riverside Junior College in Riverside, Calif.

The third officer aboard the plane, Second Lt. Maurice Victor Bradley, leaves a wife who lives a 1120 Pueblo Street in Boise, and was the son of S. L. Bradley of Hydro, Okla. He had attended Oklahoma A and M and took an air engineering course at Purdue.

Sgt. Jennings is a son of Mr. and Mrs. Cecil Jennings of New Bedford, Mass.; Sgt. Williams parents are Mr. and Mrs. H. O. Williams of Bellview, Ark.; Pvt. Koury is the son of Mrs. Rose Koury of Kansas City, Mo. and Pvt. Charles J. Gneiding is the son of Charles A. Gneiding of Ridgefield Park, N.J.

#


Monday, April 6, 1942
AIR CRASH TOLL REACHES EIGHT
Army Recovers Body of Missing Flier in Bomber Tragedy
Recovery of an eighth body from the wreckage of a four-motored Army bomber plane at Bridge, Idaho, near the Utah-Idaho border in southernmost Cassia County was reported by radio Sunday night to Gowen Field in Boise.

Capt. R. S. Gibbs, public relations officer at the base, said that although identification was not yet positive, it was assumed the last body found was that of Pvt. Kenneth S. Biddinger, an engineer on the wrecked ship, son of Mrs. Helen Biddinger of Indianapolis, Ind.

Bodies Brought to Boise
Bodies of the seven other members of the eight-man crew have been returned to Boise, Capt. Gibbs added, and will be accompanied by military escorts to their home cities for services.

The plane was on a routine training flight from Ogden to Boise when it crashed sometime Friday night or early Saturday morning.

In addition to Pvt. Biddinger, those killed in the crash included: Second Lt. James R. Walker, pilot; Second Lt. Albert J. Rich, co-pilot; Second Lt. Maurice Victor Bradley, navigator; Sgt. Hugh P. Jennings, gunner; Sgt. Henry O. Williams Jr., radio operator; Pvt. Joseph W. Koury and Pvt. Charles J. Gneiding.

Parachutes Not Used
Capt. Gibbs said the crash apparently came so quickly that none of the men had an opportunity to use parachutes.

He added that an Army investigating board had gone to the scene but said its report probably would not be available for some time.

As to the plane itself, Capt. Gibbs said: “We understand the wreckage was scattered over a wide area. We have no additional details at present.”

He expressed belief metal and salvaged parts from the ship would be taken to Hill Field in Ogden since that point is closer to the scene of the accident than is Boise.

Don with his memorial in place.

Click on the above image to see the full size picture.

Map Showing the Crash Site Location

Click on the above image to see the full size picture.




Picture of Approximate Crash Site

Click on the above image to see the full size picture.




The Memorial Inscription
Click on the above image to see the full size picture.





RETURN TO PAGE ONE

Contact the Author, Don Gneiding at
don_gneiding@q.com


To see the actual memorial sign, when driving north from Utah, take highway 30 west from Snowville, Utah, which changes to 42 at the next junction, continue on to the Utah Idaho border where the road becomes highway 81, drive for 14.3 miles to reach the sign, If you are in Idaho driving south on Highway 81, it's 8.7 miles past Malta, Idaho.

Update: Don and I drove up there in the early part of 2017 and couldn't find the sign. It seems to have been removed.




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