Miss Prissy was not his plane but that is the paint scheme (or lack of) that their ships flew with. The plane pictured (B-17G 42-102922) did not have a name as far as I have ever determined. It was flown by Karl Hattenhauer and these pictures as far as I know were taken right before the Memmingen mission where 14 of the 26 483rd group B-17s were shot down by a force of about 200 Luftwaffe fighters. It has been recorded as the fiercest air battle the 15th AF ever flew in. In his log he states that their plane 922 was the most shot up aircraft to ever return to the group from a mission and they had no idea how the wing never fell off. During the mission he had 2 confirmed kills and his crew totaled 6 enemy aircraft. 2 members of the crew were injured but continued to fight and earned the Silver Star for their valor. For more info on the mission go here http://www.483rd.com/mmission.html
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ReplyDeleteThanks very much for this blog and photo. Karl Hattenhauer was my uncle. He was my mom's youngest brother. He died in the early 1960's when he lost control of the Jaguar XK150 Coupe he was driving. His eight year-old son Kurt and another boy survived the crash. I didn't know my uncle very much. My mother occasionally talked about his missions over Germany. I'm not sure if this was the one, but she talked about a time the plane was shot up so badly, that they jettisoned absolutely everything that was not absolutely necessary to fly the plane. This included all personal effects as well as armaments, etc. Everything. As mom told it, Karl and the flight crew were flying in boxers and undershirts because the heavy sheepskin flight outfits were deadly extra weight. Karl was forced to successfully ditch another B17 in the water somewhere, and all the crew survived. I am proud of all these men. They were heroic under the direst of circumstances. Flying these planes to keep one other alive as much as anything else, I suspect. Kevin Freitas Chico, California July 13, 2013
ReplyDeleteKarl E. Hattenhauer
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1st Lt. 328 Base Unit AAF
WW II
DFC-AM & 3 OLC
July 24 1917 - October 5 1958