Second Lieutenant Eugene Franklin Steffens, Army serial number O-819636, was born at Brooklyn, Kings County, New York on March 15, 1916. His parents were Harry J. Steffens (9 Apr 1883 – 3 Dec 1936), who was born in Germany; and Mary Katherine (Danzer) Steffens (abt 1883 – 18 Nov 1968), who was born in New York. His parents married at Brooklyn, New York on November 5, 1904. His father was a chauffeur and owned a garage. He had a brother, Harold Martin Steffens (17 Oct 1905 – 29 May 1955). By 1930 the family lived at 301 East 2nd Street in Brooklyn.

By April 1940 he completed four years of high school and worked for a laundry company. He married in September 1940. His wife was Mary Jeanette (Hansen) Steffens (4 Feb 1919 – 14 Aug 2012), who was born at Oslo, Norway. He registered for the draft at Brooklyn, New York on October 16, 1940. He was 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighed 150 pounds, and had blue eyes and blonde hair. At that time he and his wife Mary lived at 621 17th Street in Brooklyn, and he worked for the Pilgrim Laundry Company. Later he became a New York City fireman and was assigned to Ladder Company 122. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps at New York City, New York, on December 9, 1942.

He completed Army Air Forces pilot training and was assigned as copilot on the heavy bomber crew of Second Lieutenant Charlton A. Deuschle. The crew completed B-17 operational training at Sioux City, Iowa in June 1944. They deployed from Kearney, Nebraska in a B-17 via the north Atlantic ferry route on June 15, 1944, and arrived in England on June 30, 1944. They inprocessed at the Combat Crew Replacement Center at Bovingdon, England in early July 1944, and were assigned to the 838th Bomb Squadron of the 487th Bomb Group on July 24, 1944. The 487th Bomb Group was based at Army Air Forces Station 137 near Lavenham, Suffolk, England, and was part of the 8th U.S. Army Air Force in Europe. Here is Lt Deuschle's crew roster on August 5, 1944:

B-17G 43-38007 – 838th Bomb Squadron

• Deuschle, Charlton A – 2/Lt – Pilot – POW

• Steffens, Eugene F – 2/Lt – Copilot – KIA

• Underwood, Allan B – 2/Lt – Navigator – KIA

• Gregory, Jesse E – 2/Lt – Bombardier – KIA

• Late, Carl L – T/Sgt – Engineer – KIA

• Cochran, William J – S/Sgt – Radio Operator – KIA

• Hinkson Jr, Harry M – Sgt – Tail Gunner – KIA

• Deelaney, Grady E – Sgt – Ball Turret Gunner – KIA

• Haglund, John L – Sgt – Waist Gunner – KIA

• Crooker, Robert J – Sgt – Waist Gunner – POW

Lt Steffens and seven of his crewmates were killed in action on August 5, 1944 when their aircraft, B-17G 43-38007, was shot down by flak on a mission to bomb an aircraft engine factory at Magdeburg, Germany. The aircraft received direct hits just before bombs away, and exploded within seconds. The fuselage broke apart aft of the ball turret, and part of the right wing came off. Most of the men were either killed instantly, or were ejected from the aircraft without their chutes. The aircraft crashed near Lostau, Germany, about 13 kilometers southwest of Burg, near Magdeburg. (The Germans reported that it crashed between Gerwisch and Biederitz, just south of Lostau—vicinity of 52.173°N, 11.731°E.) Pilot 2/Lt Deuschle and gunner Sgt Robert J. Crooker survived and became prisoners of war. The dead were buried initially at the village cemetery in Lostau (possibly in Alter Friedhof Lostau, the Old Lostau Cemetery).

After the war, Lt Steffens' remains were interred at Ardennes American Cemetery, Neuville-en-Condroz, Belgium, in Plot D, Row 13, Grave 28.

Sources:

1. 487th Bomb Group Association

2. 1905 New York State Census; Kings County; Brooklyn; New York City. Steffens, Harry. 1 Jun 1905 (his father)

3. 1910 US Census; New York; Kings County; Borough of Brooklyn; New York City; Ward 9. Steffens, Harry (his father)

4. 1920 US Census; New York; Kings County; Borough of Brooklyn; New York City. Steffens, Harry. Jan 1920 (his father)

5. 1930 US Census; New York; Kings County; Borough of Brooklyn; New York City. Steffens, Harry. Apr 1930 (his father)

6. 1940 US Census; New York; Kings County; Borough of Brooklyn; New York City. Steffens, Mary. 13 Apr 1940 (his mother)

7. American Battle Monuments Commission

8. Army Air Forces Collection of Mike Voisin. 'Final Approach': Class Book of Army Air Forces Combat Crew Training School Class 06-10. Sioux City, Iowa, circa 1944 (Deuschle crew completed Combat Crew Training at Sioux City, Iowa)

9. Cherry Family Tree at ancestry.com

10. de Jong, Ivo. The History of the 487th Bomb Group (H). Paducah KY: Turner Publishing, Oct 2004

11. Enlistment Record of Eugene F. Steffens

12. New York City FDNY Line of Duty Deaths (information provided by Charles Ryan, Find A Grave member ID 46623503)

13. U.S. Army Air Forces Missing Air Crew Report 7893

14. U.S. War Department. World War II Honor List of Dead and Missing Army and Army Air Forces Personnel. Washington, D.C., June 1946

15. U.S. World War II Draft Cards, Young Men, 1940–1947 (ancestry.com)

Research by:

Paul Webber

Find A Grave member ID 47577572