2nd Lieutenant, US Army Air Force WWII; killed in action,in a dog fight, in the village of Cramoisy, France a few miles north of Paris. He was a member of the 474th Fighter Group, 428th Fighter Squadron, 9th US Army Air Force. His place was one of 11 from his group shot down that day. 4 of his group were caught and became prisoners of war, 3 evaded capture and 4 were killed.
Information from Jean Claude Clouet, he is an honorary member of the 474th Fighter Group.∼On Sunday 31st August 2014, the municipality of Cramoisy (Oise), France paid a moving tribute to 2nd Lt. Jerome J. Zierlein, a young American fighter pilot shot down in aerial combat over the village a few days before the Liberation which was commemorated at the same time. A special ceremony to which the ASAA was invited.
On 25th August 1944, while Paris was celebrating its Liberation, 23 pilots of P-38 "Lightning", belonging to the 428th and 429th Squadron of the 474th Fighter Group, 9th Air Force, took off from their base in Neuilly-la-Foret (Calvados). Their mission: to attack German airfields in the area of Laon and Reims.
Intercepted above the Oise department by a force of thirty German fighters Messerschmitt-109 and Focke-Wulf-190 of JG76 and JG26 in the triangle Creil-Clermont-Beauvais, a dogfight of a period of twenty minutes ensued. In spite of their numerical superiority many German fighters were lost.
For the 474th Fighter Group, eleven P-38 "Lightning" were shot down during this Friday 25th August mission which become, with a loss rate of around 50%, Black Friday.
Among these pilots, seven managed to get out of their aircraft. 2nd Lts Capron, Jarvis and Leahy were collected and hidden by the population. 2nd Lt. Spiker and Koch and 1st Lt. Patterson and Austin were captured after landing by parachute. These two managed to escape afterwards. Capt Holcomb, 1st Lt Stone, 2nd Lts. Packard and Zierlein were killed.
According to witnesses, in order to avoid crashing into the village of Cramoisy 2nd Lt. Zierlein managed to straighten out his powerless aircraft before baling out. Being at too low an altitude, his parachute did not have time to open and the body of the young 23-year old Texan pilot was found near the Bois de la Garenne, not far from the place where his plane crashed.
Quickly arriving at the scene, the Germans took the body of the pilot to the hospital of Creil where his death was recorded. He was buried in the town cemetery. A few days later, on 31st August, the Creil region was liberated by the American Army.
The remains of 2nd Lt. Jerome J. Zierlein were repatriated after the war to the United States. He now rests in the San Jacinto Memorial Park, Houston, Texas.
Source: A.S.A.A. Association des Sauveteurs d'Aviateurs Alliés
Information from Jean Claude Clouet, he is an honorary member of the 474th Fighter Group.∼On Sunday 31st August 2014, the municipality of Cramoisy (Oise), France paid a moving tribute to 2nd Lt. Jerome J. Zierlein, a young American fighter pilot shot down in aerial combat over the village a few days before the Liberation which was commemorated at the same time. A special ceremony to which the ASAA was invited.
On 25th August 1944, while Paris was celebrating its Liberation, 23 pilots of P-38 "Lightning", belonging to the 428th and 429th Squadron of the 474th Fighter Group, 9th Air Force, took off from their base in Neuilly-la-Foret (Calvados). Their mission: to attack German airfields in the area of Laon and Reims.
Intercepted above the Oise department by a force of thirty German fighters Messerschmitt-109 and Focke-Wulf-190 of JG76 and JG26 in the triangle Creil-Clermont-Beauvais, a dogfight of a period of twenty minutes ensued. In spite of their numerical superiority many German fighters were lost.
For the 474th Fighter Group, eleven P-38 "Lightning" were shot down during this Friday 25th August mission which become, with a loss rate of around 50%, Black Friday.
Among these pilots, seven managed to get out of their aircraft. 2nd Lts Capron, Jarvis and Leahy were collected and hidden by the population. 2nd Lt. Spiker and Koch and 1st Lt. Patterson and Austin were captured after landing by parachute. These two managed to escape afterwards. Capt Holcomb, 1st Lt Stone, 2nd Lts. Packard and Zierlein were killed.
According to witnesses, in order to avoid crashing into the village of Cramoisy 2nd Lt. Zierlein managed to straighten out his powerless aircraft before baling out. Being at too low an altitude, his parachute did not have time to open and the body of the young 23-year old Texan pilot was found near the Bois de la Garenne, not far from the place where his plane crashed.
Quickly arriving at the scene, the Germans took the body of the pilot to the hospital of Creil where his death was recorded. He was buried in the town cemetery. A few days later, on 31st August, the Creil region was liberated by the American Army.
The remains of 2nd Lt. Jerome J. Zierlein were repatriated after the war to the United States. He now rests in the San Jacinto Memorial Park, Houston, Texas.
Source: A.S.A.A. Association des Sauveteurs d'Aviateurs Alliés
2nd Lieutenant, US Army Air Force WWII; killed in action,in a dog fight, in the village of Cramoisy, France a few miles north of Paris. He was a member of the 474th Fighter Group, 428th Fighter Squadron, 9th US Army Air Force. His place was one of 11 from his group shot down that day. 4 of his group were caught and became prisoners of war, 3 evaded capture and 4 were killed.
Information from Jean Claude Clouet, he is an honorary member of the 474th Fighter Group.∼On Sunday 31st August 2014, the municipality of Cramoisy (Oise), France paid a moving tribute to 2nd Lt. Jerome J. Zierlein, a young American fighter pilot shot down in aerial combat over the village a few days before the Liberation which was commemorated at the same time. A special ceremony to which the ASAA was invited.
On 25th August 1944, while Paris was celebrating its Liberation, 23 pilots of P-38 "Lightning", belonging to the 428th and 429th Squadron of the 474th Fighter Group, 9th Air Force, took off from their base in Neuilly-la-Foret (Calvados). Their mission: to attack German airfields in the area of Laon and Reims.
Intercepted above the Oise department by a force of thirty German fighters Messerschmitt-109 and Focke-Wulf-190 of JG76 and JG26 in the triangle Creil-Clermont-Beauvais, a dogfight of a period of twenty minutes ensued. In spite of their numerical superiority many German fighters were lost.
For the 474th Fighter Group, eleven P-38 "Lightning" were shot down during this Friday 25th August mission which become, with a loss rate of around 50%, Black Friday.
Among these pilots, seven managed to get out of their aircraft. 2nd Lts Capron, Jarvis and Leahy were collected and hidden by the population. 2nd Lt. Spiker and Koch and 1st Lt. Patterson and Austin were captured after landing by parachute. These two managed to escape afterwards. Capt Holcomb, 1st Lt Stone, 2nd Lts. Packard and Zierlein were killed.
According to witnesses, in order to avoid crashing into the village of Cramoisy 2nd Lt. Zierlein managed to straighten out his powerless aircraft before baling out. Being at too low an altitude, his parachute did not have time to open and the body of the young 23-year old Texan pilot was found near the Bois de la Garenne, not far from the place where his plane crashed.
Quickly arriving at the scene, the Germans took the body of the pilot to the hospital of Creil where his death was recorded. He was buried in the town cemetery. A few days later, on 31st August, the Creil region was liberated by the American Army.
The remains of 2nd Lt. Jerome J. Zierlein were repatriated after the war to the United States. He now rests in the San Jacinto Memorial Park, Houston, Texas.
Source: A.S.A.A. Association des Sauveteurs d'Aviateurs Alliés
Information from Jean Claude Clouet, he is an honorary member of the 474th Fighter Group.∼On Sunday 31st August 2014, the municipality of Cramoisy (Oise), France paid a moving tribute to 2nd Lt. Jerome J. Zierlein, a young American fighter pilot shot down in aerial combat over the village a few days before the Liberation which was commemorated at the same time. A special ceremony to which the ASAA was invited.
On 25th August 1944, while Paris was celebrating its Liberation, 23 pilots of P-38 "Lightning", belonging to the 428th and 429th Squadron of the 474th Fighter Group, 9th Air Force, took off from their base in Neuilly-la-Foret (Calvados). Their mission: to attack German airfields in the area of Laon and Reims.
Intercepted above the Oise department by a force of thirty German fighters Messerschmitt-109 and Focke-Wulf-190 of JG76 and JG26 in the triangle Creil-Clermont-Beauvais, a dogfight of a period of twenty minutes ensued. In spite of their numerical superiority many German fighters were lost.
For the 474th Fighter Group, eleven P-38 "Lightning" were shot down during this Friday 25th August mission which become, with a loss rate of around 50%, Black Friday.
Among these pilots, seven managed to get out of their aircraft. 2nd Lts Capron, Jarvis and Leahy were collected and hidden by the population. 2nd Lt. Spiker and Koch and 1st Lt. Patterson and Austin were captured after landing by parachute. These two managed to escape afterwards. Capt Holcomb, 1st Lt Stone, 2nd Lts. Packard and Zierlein were killed.
According to witnesses, in order to avoid crashing into the village of Cramoisy 2nd Lt. Zierlein managed to straighten out his powerless aircraft before baling out. Being at too low an altitude, his parachute did not have time to open and the body of the young 23-year old Texan pilot was found near the Bois de la Garenne, not far from the place where his plane crashed.
Quickly arriving at the scene, the Germans took the body of the pilot to the hospital of Creil where his death was recorded. He was buried in the town cemetery. A few days later, on 31st August, the Creil region was liberated by the American Army.
The remains of 2nd Lt. Jerome J. Zierlein were repatriated after the war to the United States. He now rests in the San Jacinto Memorial Park, Houston, Texas.
Source: A.S.A.A. Association des Sauveteurs d'Aviateurs Alliés
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