This Standard 11008/41 type Battle Headquarters (TL 8447 9915) is within the former perimeter of RAF Polebrook. It was home to the 351st Bombardment Group (Heavy) of the 8th Air Force, who flew B17s on 311 group combat bombing missions between 1943 and 1945, during which time they lost 175 aircraft and crews.
This shows the overgrown stairs to the entrance.
The 351st Bombardment Group first completed combat mission took place on May 14th, 1943, when 18 B-17's targeted a German airfield in Belgium. Its final mission of World War II, their 320th, was to Brandenburg, Germany where the target was railway marshalling yards. The actual number of missions they flew was 311. The 351st lost 175 B-17's and their crews. Among those who died are two men who were awarded, posthumously, the Medal of Honor. Lt. Walter E. Truemper and S/Sgt. Archibald Mathies heroically attempted to land a badly damaged B-17 to save the life of its severely wounded pilot who was unable to bail out. Sadly, both were killed in the attempted landing near the base at Polebrook. At the end of tha main runway a memorial stands to the 351st. (Photos by Mark Brotherton.)
To see a map or aerial photo of this location.
