Abner was the oldest child in the Fred Yoder family. He found a way to get transportation to the high school and was able to complete high school (not everybody did then!).
He was helping around the farm at the time WWII started. They still used horses for farming (not enough money for a tractor yet). Abner was also on the local baseball team.
Abner joined the Army Air Force and completed training in Jackson Air Base in Missippi in 1941. He served in Australia with the 405th Bomb Squadron (M) of the 38th Bomb Group. Abner served as crew chief.
Following is the story from a pilot on a second airplane when Abner's plane crashed:
We were returning to 17 Mile from Dobodura when Lt. Apai called that he was having a problem with one of his engines and was returning to Dobo. I was flying with Lt. George Flannery in old #197, in #2 position, so we took over the lead. Sgt. Yoder was in Lt. Apai's ship, along with six
other men, and the ship was loaded with all kinds of gear, they most probably were at max allowable weight, or more. At Dobo they made a single engine approach and had to execute a missed approach for some reason? Anyway, making a missed approach on one engine at a heavy weight is usually a fatal error. They crashed and all were killed. That was on 2/17/44.
He was helping around the farm at the time WWII started. They still used horses for farming (not enough money for a tractor yet). Abner was also on the local baseball team.
Abner joined the Army Air Force and completed training in Jackson Air Base in Missippi in 1941. He served in Australia with the 405th Bomb Squadron (M) of the 38th Bomb Group. Abner served as crew chief.
Following is the story from a pilot on a second airplane when Abner's plane crashed:
We were returning to 17 Mile from Dobodura when Lt. Apai called that he was having a problem with one of his engines and was returning to Dobo. I was flying with Lt. George Flannery in old #197, in #2 position, so we took over the lead. Sgt. Yoder was in Lt. Apai's ship, along with six
other men, and the ship was loaded with all kinds of gear, they most probably were at max allowable weight, or more. At Dobo they made a single engine approach and had to execute a missed approach for some reason? Anyway, making a missed approach on one engine at a heavy weight is usually a fatal error. They crashed and all were killed. That was on 2/17/44.
Abner was the oldest child in the Fred Yoder family. He found a way to get transportation to the high school and was able to complete high school (not everybody did then!).
He was helping around the farm at the time WWII started. They still used horses for farming (not enough money for a tractor yet). Abner was also on the local baseball team.
Abner joined the Army Air Force and completed training in Jackson Air Base in Missippi in 1941. He served in Australia with the 405th Bomb Squadron (M) of the 38th Bomb Group. Abner served as crew chief.
Following is the story from a pilot on a second airplane when Abner's plane crashed:
We were returning to 17 Mile from Dobodura when Lt. Apai called that he was having a problem with one of his engines and was returning to Dobo. I was flying with Lt. George Flannery in old #197, in #2 position, so we took over the lead. Sgt. Yoder was in Lt. Apai's ship, along with six
other men, and the ship was loaded with all kinds of gear, they most probably were at max allowable weight, or more. At Dobo they made a single engine approach and had to execute a missed approach for some reason? Anyway, making a missed approach on one engine at a heavy weight is usually a fatal error. They crashed and all were killed. That was on 2/17/44.
He was helping around the farm at the time WWII started. They still used horses for farming (not enough money for a tractor yet). Abner was also on the local baseball team.
Abner joined the Army Air Force and completed training in Jackson Air Base in Missippi in 1941. He served in Australia with the 405th Bomb Squadron (M) of the 38th Bomb Group. Abner served as crew chief.
Following is the story from a pilot on a second airplane when Abner's plane crashed:
We were returning to 17 Mile from Dobodura when Lt. Apai called that he was having a problem with one of his engines and was returning to Dobo. I was flying with Lt. George Flannery in old #197, in #2 position, so we took over the lead. Sgt. Yoder was in Lt. Apai's ship, along with six
other men, and the ship was loaded with all kinds of gear, they most probably were at max allowable weight, or more. At Dobo they made a single engine approach and had to execute a missed approach for some reason? Anyway, making a missed approach on one engine at a heavy weight is usually a fatal error. They crashed and all were killed. That was on 2/17/44.
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