Buddy was flying a mission over Belgium during WW II. His plane was shot down over Germany. Originally, he was buried in Belgium. My grandma had to fight to get him home to Texas. She was his aunt. His mother, Mae, was her sister. He was reburied January 1948 at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio.
Buddy was married, Alicia, with a daughter. He had 2 sisters, Louise & Mildred. His father was Guy Cole, suppose to be a full-blooded Indian from OK that graduated from OU.
Information is from American Air Museum in Britain:
1st Lt. Guy E. "Buddy" Cole's B-17, 44-8355, was outfitted as a "Pathfinder". It carried flares to mark a target, no bombs. The ball turret was modified to accommodate the necessary equipment needed to perform pathfinder missions. An officer, not a gunner, operated the instruments. B-17 44-8355 had such an officer as part of the crew. All crewmen assigned as pathfinders were the best of the best; success or failure depended largely on their skill to clearly mark the target. B-17 44-8355 was shot down by flak on it's very first mission. On 24Dec1944, 99 B-17s were dispatched on a mission to attack German communication centers in Babenhausen, Germany. 44-8355 was the only plane lost on this mission. 8 men were K.I.A. , 2 escaped the spinning plane and were taken prisoner.
Contributor: Benjamin A. Kniss Sr. (50882687)
Buddy was married, Alicia, with a daughter. He had 2 sisters, Louise & Mildred. His father was Guy Cole, suppose to be a full-blooded Indian from OK that graduated from OU.
Information is from American Air Museum in Britain:
1st Lt. Guy E. "Buddy" Cole's B-17, 44-8355, was outfitted as a "Pathfinder". It carried flares to mark a target, no bombs. The ball turret was modified to accommodate the necessary equipment needed to perform pathfinder missions. An officer, not a gunner, operated the instruments. B-17 44-8355 had such an officer as part of the crew. All crewmen assigned as pathfinders were the best of the best; success or failure depended largely on their skill to clearly mark the target. B-17 44-8355 was shot down by flak on it's very first mission. On 24Dec1944, 99 B-17s were dispatched on a mission to attack German communication centers in Babenhausen, Germany. 44-8355 was the only plane lost on this mission. 8 men were K.I.A. , 2 escaped the spinning plane and were taken prisoner.
Contributor: Benjamin A. Kniss Sr. (50882687)
Buddy was flying a mission over Belgium during WW II. His plane was shot down over Germany. Originally, he was buried in Belgium. My grandma had to fight to get him home to Texas. She was his aunt. His mother, Mae, was her sister. He was reburied January 1948 at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio.
Buddy was married, Alicia, with a daughter. He had 2 sisters, Louise & Mildred. His father was Guy Cole, suppose to be a full-blooded Indian from OK that graduated from OU.
Information is from American Air Museum in Britain:
1st Lt. Guy E. "Buddy" Cole's B-17, 44-8355, was outfitted as a "Pathfinder". It carried flares to mark a target, no bombs. The ball turret was modified to accommodate the necessary equipment needed to perform pathfinder missions. An officer, not a gunner, operated the instruments. B-17 44-8355 had such an officer as part of the crew. All crewmen assigned as pathfinders were the best of the best; success or failure depended largely on their skill to clearly mark the target. B-17 44-8355 was shot down by flak on it's very first mission. On 24Dec1944, 99 B-17s were dispatched on a mission to attack German communication centers in Babenhausen, Germany. 44-8355 was the only plane lost on this mission. 8 men were K.I.A. , 2 escaped the spinning plane and were taken prisoner.
Contributor: Benjamin A. Kniss Sr. (50882687)
Buddy was married, Alicia, with a daughter. He had 2 sisters, Louise & Mildred. His father was Guy Cole, suppose to be a full-blooded Indian from OK that graduated from OU.
Information is from American Air Museum in Britain:
1st Lt. Guy E. "Buddy" Cole's B-17, 44-8355, was outfitted as a "Pathfinder". It carried flares to mark a target, no bombs. The ball turret was modified to accommodate the necessary equipment needed to perform pathfinder missions. An officer, not a gunner, operated the instruments. B-17 44-8355 had such an officer as part of the crew. All crewmen assigned as pathfinders were the best of the best; success or failure depended largely on their skill to clearly mark the target. B-17 44-8355 was shot down by flak on it's very first mission. On 24Dec1944, 99 B-17s were dispatched on a mission to attack German communication centers in Babenhausen, Germany. 44-8355 was the only plane lost on this mission. 8 men were K.I.A. , 2 escaped the spinning plane and were taken prisoner.
Contributor: Benjamin A. Kniss Sr. (50882687)
Gravesite Details
1LT, US Army, World War II
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