Master Sergeant (MSgt) Roy V. (RV) Duncan was born on September 14th, 1906 to Joseph J. “Dode” and Lona (Youngblood) Duncan. He joined the US Army Air Forces on August 29, 1940 at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
MSgt Duncan was the Flight Engineer on a B-29 aircraft #42-94201 that took off from Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands on April 16th, 1945 with a crew of eleven (11) and one (1) passenger. The Aircraft Commander was 1st Lt. John D. O’Reilly with a destination of North Field, Guam. As the plane approached the east coast of Guam it crashed. Captain Robert H. Mitchell, US Marine Corps Reserve witnessed the accident and gave the following account. “Just after taking off Agana on a routine instrument flight, I observed a four-engine plane off the east coast of Guam. This plane was about six hundred (600) feet, paralleling the coastline, when first observed and was in a gentle glide. The plane was observed to continue its glide to the water. Upon impact with the water, the plane skipped once, exploded upon next impact and burning. We proceeded to the scene of the accident immediately. We spotted what we believed to be one survivor. The fact that there was one survivor was confirmed by an F6F pilot flying there. We dropped a raft upwind from the survivor. On the next time around, the raft was still closed. We made another pass and the raft was then open. I thought that I saw a man holding to the side of the raft. We dropped two smoke bombs to mark survivor's position and continued circling at one thousand (1000) feet. When Dumbo arrived at 1430, we departed. The crash occurred approximately one thousand (1000) yards off shore. The wreckage drifted in toward shore. One open life raft was observed about 200 hundred yards south of the wreckage. The survivor was about fifty (50) feet south-east of the aircraft. Time of accident was approximately 1355.”
There were a couple of more witnesses to the crash and the details were approximately all the same. While Captain Mitchell reported he may have seen a survivor there were none in the end. All twelve are listed as “Missing in Action” by the Defense Prisoner of War, Missing Personnel Office.
(Sources: Army Air Forces Report of Major Accident #45-4-16-507; http://39th.org/39th/aerial/60th/crew11.html;
Roy also has a "Cenotaph" in the Wimberly Cemetery, Huxley, Texas.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Airmen who perished on B-29 #42-94201:
Constantine, Bertrand H ~ Corp, Passenger, OR
Duncan, Roy V ~ M/Sgt, Engineer, TX
Munson, Phillip S ~ 2nd Lt, Radar Observer, CA
Navarra, Peter G ~ Sgt, CFC, NY
O'Reilly, John D ~ 1st Lt, Flight Commander, CA
Rauzi, John A ~ 2nd Lt, Bombardier, WY
Reid, Stewart J ~ Corp, Left Gunner, MI
Rusin, Walter M ~ Corp, Right Gunner, MD
Scaffidi, Anthony J ~ S/Sgt, Radio Operator, LA
Stallings, Harry F, Jr ~ 2nd Lt, Navigator, NC
Stoll, Raymond M ~ Corp, Tail Gunner, MA
Wampack, Jack G ~ 2nd Lt, Pilot, WI
( Bio & Crew Report by: Russ Pickett )
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MSgt Duncan was the Flight Engineer on a B-29 aircraft #42-94201 that took off from Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands on April 16th, 1945 with a crew of eleven (11) and one (1) passenger. The Aircraft Commander was 1st Lt. John D. O’Reilly with a destination of North Field, Guam. As the plane approached the east coast of Guam it crashed. Captain Robert H. Mitchell, US Marine Corps Reserve witnessed the accident and gave the following account. “Just after taking off Agana on a routine instrument flight, I observed a four-engine plane off the east coast of Guam. This plane was about six hundred (600) feet, paralleling the coastline, when first observed and was in a gentle glide. The plane was observed to continue its glide to the water. Upon impact with the water, the plane skipped once, exploded upon next impact and burning. We proceeded to the scene of the accident immediately. We spotted what we believed to be one survivor. The fact that there was one survivor was confirmed by an F6F pilot flying there. We dropped a raft upwind from the survivor. On the next time around, the raft was still closed. We made another pass and the raft was then open. I thought that I saw a man holding to the side of the raft. We dropped two smoke bombs to mark survivor's position and continued circling at one thousand (1000) feet. When Dumbo arrived at 1430, we departed. The crash occurred approximately one thousand (1000) yards off shore. The wreckage drifted in toward shore. One open life raft was observed about 200 hundred yards south of the wreckage. The survivor was about fifty (50) feet south-east of the aircraft. Time of accident was approximately 1355.”
There were a couple of more witnesses to the crash and the details were approximately all the same. While Captain Mitchell reported he may have seen a survivor there were none in the end. All twelve are listed as “Missing in Action” by the Defense Prisoner of War, Missing Personnel Office.
(Sources: Army Air Forces Report of Major Accident #45-4-16-507; http://39th.org/39th/aerial/60th/crew11.html;
Roy also has a "Cenotaph" in the Wimberly Cemetery, Huxley, Texas.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Airmen who perished on B-29 #42-94201:
Constantine, Bertrand H ~ Corp, Passenger, OR
Duncan, Roy V ~ M/Sgt, Engineer, TX
Munson, Phillip S ~ 2nd Lt, Radar Observer, CA
Navarra, Peter G ~ Sgt, CFC, NY
O'Reilly, John D ~ 1st Lt, Flight Commander, CA
Rauzi, John A ~ 2nd Lt, Bombardier, WY
Reid, Stewart J ~ Corp, Left Gunner, MI
Rusin, Walter M ~ Corp, Right Gunner, MD
Scaffidi, Anthony J ~ S/Sgt, Radio Operator, LA
Stallings, Harry F, Jr ~ 2nd Lt, Navigator, NC
Stoll, Raymond M ~ Corp, Tail Gunner, MA
Wampack, Jack G ~ 2nd Lt, Pilot, WI
( Bio & Crew Report by: Russ Pickett )
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Master Sergeant (MSgt) Roy V. (RV) Duncan was born on September 14th, 1906 to Joseph J. “Dode” and Lona (Youngblood) Duncan. He joined the US Army Air Forces on August 29, 1940 at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
MSgt Duncan was the Flight Engineer on a B-29 aircraft #42-94201 that took off from Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands on April 16th, 1945 with a crew of eleven (11) and one (1) passenger. The Aircraft Commander was 1st Lt. John D. O’Reilly with a destination of North Field, Guam. As the plane approached the east coast of Guam it crashed. Captain Robert H. Mitchell, US Marine Corps Reserve witnessed the accident and gave the following account. “Just after taking off Agana on a routine instrument flight, I observed a four-engine plane off the east coast of Guam. This plane was about six hundred (600) feet, paralleling the coastline, when first observed and was in a gentle glide. The plane was observed to continue its glide to the water. Upon impact with the water, the plane skipped once, exploded upon next impact and burning. We proceeded to the scene of the accident immediately. We spotted what we believed to be one survivor. The fact that there was one survivor was confirmed by an F6F pilot flying there. We dropped a raft upwind from the survivor. On the next time around, the raft was still closed. We made another pass and the raft was then open. I thought that I saw a man holding to the side of the raft. We dropped two smoke bombs to mark survivor's position and continued circling at one thousand (1000) feet. When Dumbo arrived at 1430, we departed. The crash occurred approximately one thousand (1000) yards off shore. The wreckage drifted in toward shore. One open life raft was observed about 200 hundred yards south of the wreckage. The survivor was about fifty (50) feet south-east of the aircraft. Time of accident was approximately 1355.”
There were a couple of more witnesses to the crash and the details were approximately all the same. While Captain Mitchell reported he may have seen a survivor there were none in the end. All twelve are listed as “Missing in Action” by the Defense Prisoner of War, Missing Personnel Office.
(Sources: Army Air Forces Report of Major Accident #45-4-16-507; http://39th.org/39th/aerial/60th/crew11.html;
Roy also has a "Cenotaph" in the Wimberly Cemetery, Huxley, Texas.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Airmen who perished on B-29 #42-94201:
Constantine, Bertrand H ~ Corp, Passenger, OR
Duncan, Roy V ~ M/Sgt, Engineer, TX
Munson, Phillip S ~ 2nd Lt, Radar Observer, CA
Navarra, Peter G ~ Sgt, CFC, NY
O'Reilly, John D ~ 1st Lt, Flight Commander, CA
Rauzi, John A ~ 2nd Lt, Bombardier, WY
Reid, Stewart J ~ Corp, Left Gunner, MI
Rusin, Walter M ~ Corp, Right Gunner, MD
Scaffidi, Anthony J ~ S/Sgt, Radio Operator, LA
Stallings, Harry F, Jr ~ 2nd Lt, Navigator, NC
Stoll, Raymond M ~ Corp, Tail Gunner, MA
Wampack, Jack G ~ 2nd Lt, Pilot, WI
( Bio & Crew Report by: Russ Pickett )
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MSgt Duncan was the Flight Engineer on a B-29 aircraft #42-94201 that took off from Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands on April 16th, 1945 with a crew of eleven (11) and one (1) passenger. The Aircraft Commander was 1st Lt. John D. O’Reilly with a destination of North Field, Guam. As the plane approached the east coast of Guam it crashed. Captain Robert H. Mitchell, US Marine Corps Reserve witnessed the accident and gave the following account. “Just after taking off Agana on a routine instrument flight, I observed a four-engine plane off the east coast of Guam. This plane was about six hundred (600) feet, paralleling the coastline, when first observed and was in a gentle glide. The plane was observed to continue its glide to the water. Upon impact with the water, the plane skipped once, exploded upon next impact and burning. We proceeded to the scene of the accident immediately. We spotted what we believed to be one survivor. The fact that there was one survivor was confirmed by an F6F pilot flying there. We dropped a raft upwind from the survivor. On the next time around, the raft was still closed. We made another pass and the raft was then open. I thought that I saw a man holding to the side of the raft. We dropped two smoke bombs to mark survivor's position and continued circling at one thousand (1000) feet. When Dumbo arrived at 1430, we departed. The crash occurred approximately one thousand (1000) yards off shore. The wreckage drifted in toward shore. One open life raft was observed about 200 hundred yards south of the wreckage. The survivor was about fifty (50) feet south-east of the aircraft. Time of accident was approximately 1355.”
There were a couple of more witnesses to the crash and the details were approximately all the same. While Captain Mitchell reported he may have seen a survivor there were none in the end. All twelve are listed as “Missing in Action” by the Defense Prisoner of War, Missing Personnel Office.
(Sources: Army Air Forces Report of Major Accident #45-4-16-507; http://39th.org/39th/aerial/60th/crew11.html;
Roy also has a "Cenotaph" in the Wimberly Cemetery, Huxley, Texas.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Airmen who perished on B-29 #42-94201:
Constantine, Bertrand H ~ Corp, Passenger, OR
Duncan, Roy V ~ M/Sgt, Engineer, TX
Munson, Phillip S ~ 2nd Lt, Radar Observer, CA
Navarra, Peter G ~ Sgt, CFC, NY
O'Reilly, John D ~ 1st Lt, Flight Commander, CA
Rauzi, John A ~ 2nd Lt, Bombardier, WY
Reid, Stewart J ~ Corp, Left Gunner, MI
Rusin, Walter M ~ Corp, Right Gunner, MD
Scaffidi, Anthony J ~ S/Sgt, Radio Operator, LA
Stallings, Harry F, Jr ~ 2nd Lt, Navigator, NC
Stoll, Raymond M ~ Corp, Tail Gunner, MA
Wampack, Jack G ~ 2nd Lt, Pilot, WI
( Bio & Crew Report by: Russ Pickett )
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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