George D. Steel, Jr.
Service ID: 2036224.
Entered the service from Wyoming.
Rank: 2nd Lieutenant, U.S. Army Air Forces
Unit: Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command
Date of Death: 01 October 1944, killed when the plane he was on crashed somewhere between Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (now part of Indonesia) and Finschhafen Airfield, Territory of New Guinea (now Papua, New Guinea).
Status: Missing in Action
Memorialized: Manila American Cemetery – Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1920 United States Federal Census (03 January 1920): Mathews Village, Big Prairie Township, New Madrid County, Missouri (sheet 3A, family 53) – George D. Steel, Jr. (3 11/12 Missouri).
1930 United States Federal Census (07 April 1930): Cape Girardeau (Ward 4), Cape Girardeau County, Missouri (sheet 6A, family 132, 1406 West-Broadway) – George D. Steel, Jr. (14 Missouri).
George graduated from Central High School, Cape Girardeau, Missouri – Class of 1933. He then attended State College.
1937 Laramie, Wyoming, City Directory - George D. Steel, Jr., Oil Field Wkr, r805 Grand Av
George Dawson Steel, Jr. (24, 28 January 1916, Matthews, Missouri), a resident of 112 So. Beech St., Casper, Wyoming, signed up for his World War II Draft Registration Card (Serial No. 2471, Order No. 375) on 16 October 1940 in Casper, Natrona County, Wyoming. He was employed by Mountain Sales and Service Company. George listed his uncle, W. V. Moore, as the person who would always know hiss address. He was described at 6' in height, 175 lbs., with a light brown complexion, brown eyes and black hair. He had a "bad scar on his left arm".
George D. Steel, Jr. enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in December 1941 in Wyoming. He was assigned to the Fifth Air Corps and sent to the South Pacific. It was one of the first units to be sent to New Guinea.
2nd Lt. George D. Steel Jr. (S/N 2036224), Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, U.S. Army Air Forces.
He was moved to Hollandia, New Guinea from where the Far East Air Service Command supported theater operations.
01 October 1944
2nd Lt. George D.Steel was passenger on a U.S. troop carrier plane (a Douglas C-47A-DK Skytrain with Serial Number 42-92062) that took off at 5:47 a.m. on 01 October 1944 from Cyclops Drome near Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (now part of Indonesia) on a flight bound for Finschhafen Airfield, Territory of New Guinea (now Papua, New Guinea). Aboard were four flight crew from the 70th Troop Carrier Squadron. Also aboard were passengers from the U.S. Army and seven Australians. Although the weather conditions were clear, with occasional scattered thunderstorms, and visibility was good, the plane failed to arrive at its destination. A search for the plane was made over the next few days without results. Nothing is known of what happened to it and no trace of the plane has ever been found. All 27 (4 crew and 23 passengers) were listed as missing in action.
Crew from the 70th Troop Carrier Squadron:
Pilot: 1st Lt. (posthumously promoted to Captain) Russell Andrew Morrison, (S/N 0-740880), De Leon, Texas.
Co-Pilot: 2nd Lt. Kenneth E. Wirth, (S/N 0-772242), Lincoln, Nebraska.
Aerial Engineer: TSgt. John F. Semmens, (S/N 12123113), Harrington Park, New Jersey.
Radio Operator: SSgt. Frank M. Staker, (S/N 39529923), Liberal, Kansas.
Passengers:
Lt. (jg) John Hartwell "Jack" Fezler, D-V (G), USNR (S/N 0-228365), Mobile Explosives Investigation Unit One (MEIU #1), Navy 134, Oklahoma.
Aviation Chief Ordnanceman (AA) William Cecil Meadville, USNR (S/N 6048993), Mobile Explosives Investigation Unit One (MEIU #1), Navy 134, Pennsylvania.
Colonel Oscar D. McNeely, (S/N O-7325), Headquarters, 25th Anti-aircraft Artillery Group, Oklahoma.
Captain (posthumously promoted to Major) Hal Sayre, III, (S/N O-355966), 821st Engineer Battalion, Aviation, Denver, Colorado.
Captain Boothe C. Haltom, (S/N O-366455), 146th Anti-aircraft Artillery Operations Detachment, Mississippi.
2nd Lt. (posthumously promoted to 1st Lt.) John R. Riisoe, (S/N O-2036215), Headquarters, Far East Air Force, Kansas.
2nd Lt. George D. Steel Jr., (S/N O2036224), Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, Wyoming.
1st Lt. Harry E. Petersen, (S/N O1640812), 93rd Signal Battalion, Roosevelt, Minnesota.
1st Lt. William L. Pilgrim, (S/N O1289620), 151st Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division, South Carolina.
1st Lt. Claude "Alvin" Reese, Jr., (S/N O-1288619), 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, Fort Worth, Texas.
Pfc. Paul E. Almon, (S/N 39197973), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Washington.
Pfc. Irvin H. Miller, (S/N 33489435), Battalion Headquarters Company, 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Pennsylvania.
T/5 John L. Zajicek, S/N 37181290, 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Mississippi.
Pvt. Francis J. Benson, (S/N 38363676), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Texas.
T/5 Alfred G. Daigneau, (S/N 15376994), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Ohio.
Pfc. William Hardaway Hatch, Jr. , (S/N 34466193), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Captain Clement Loughlin Schrader, (S/N SX9339), 2/7th Field Regiment Royal Australian Artillery, Cowandilla, Australia.
Lt. Peter Ogilvie Graham, (S/N QX26597), 2nd Marine Logistic Group, attached to 1st Australian Corps Headquarters, Kingaroy, Queensland, Australia.
Joseph Engel, (S/N TC 10622), Australia.
Arthur Hawley, (S/N TC 7041), Australia.
Roland Ince, (S/N TC 2405), Australia.
John Mignot, (S/N TC 10720), Australia.
Dennis Rawson, (S/N TC 9730), Australia.
All U.S. Army crew and passengers were officially declared dead the day of the mission. The U.S. Navy passengers were officially declared dead on 02 October 1945, one year and one day after the plane went missing.
LIEUTENANT STEEL IS PRESUMED DEAD
Lieut. George D. Steel, Jr., formerly of Cape Girardeau, who was reported missing in action on Oct. 1, 1944, has been declared dead by the War Department. No trace of the C-47, which he was aboard, nor of any of the other 26 men aboard, has been found. The plane was enroute from Hollandia to Finschhafen, New Guinea.
Lieut. Steel was the son of Mr. and Mrs. George Steel of St. Louis. After his graduation from Central High School in 1933 he entered State College, and in December 1941, enlisted in the Fifth Air Corps, which was the first to enter New Guinea, where he served 37 months. Source: The Weekly Record (New Madrid, Missouri), Friday, 26 April 1946, page 4
2nd Lieutenant George Dawson Steel, Jr. is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery.
He also has a cenotaph in Matthews Cemetery, Matthews, New Madrid County, Missouri
Service ID: 2036224.
Entered the service from Wyoming.
Rank: 2nd Lieutenant, U.S. Army Air Forces
Unit: Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command
Date of Death: 01 October 1944, killed when the plane he was on crashed somewhere between Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (now part of Indonesia) and Finschhafen Airfield, Territory of New Guinea (now Papua, New Guinea).
Status: Missing in Action
Memorialized: Manila American Cemetery – Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1920 United States Federal Census (03 January 1920): Mathews Village, Big Prairie Township, New Madrid County, Missouri (sheet 3A, family 53) – George D. Steel, Jr. (3 11/12 Missouri).
1930 United States Federal Census (07 April 1930): Cape Girardeau (Ward 4), Cape Girardeau County, Missouri (sheet 6A, family 132, 1406 West-Broadway) – George D. Steel, Jr. (14 Missouri).
George graduated from Central High School, Cape Girardeau, Missouri – Class of 1933. He then attended State College.
1937 Laramie, Wyoming, City Directory - George D. Steel, Jr., Oil Field Wkr, r805 Grand Av
George Dawson Steel, Jr. (24, 28 January 1916, Matthews, Missouri), a resident of 112 So. Beech St., Casper, Wyoming, signed up for his World War II Draft Registration Card (Serial No. 2471, Order No. 375) on 16 October 1940 in Casper, Natrona County, Wyoming. He was employed by Mountain Sales and Service Company. George listed his uncle, W. V. Moore, as the person who would always know hiss address. He was described at 6' in height, 175 lbs., with a light brown complexion, brown eyes and black hair. He had a "bad scar on his left arm".
George D. Steel, Jr. enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in December 1941 in Wyoming. He was assigned to the Fifth Air Corps and sent to the South Pacific. It was one of the first units to be sent to New Guinea.
2nd Lt. George D. Steel Jr. (S/N 2036224), Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, U.S. Army Air Forces.
He was moved to Hollandia, New Guinea from where the Far East Air Service Command supported theater operations.
01 October 1944
2nd Lt. George D.Steel was passenger on a U.S. troop carrier plane (a Douglas C-47A-DK Skytrain with Serial Number 42-92062) that took off at 5:47 a.m. on 01 October 1944 from Cyclops Drome near Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (now part of Indonesia) on a flight bound for Finschhafen Airfield, Territory of New Guinea (now Papua, New Guinea). Aboard were four flight crew from the 70th Troop Carrier Squadron. Also aboard were passengers from the U.S. Army and seven Australians. Although the weather conditions were clear, with occasional scattered thunderstorms, and visibility was good, the plane failed to arrive at its destination. A search for the plane was made over the next few days without results. Nothing is known of what happened to it and no trace of the plane has ever been found. All 27 (4 crew and 23 passengers) were listed as missing in action.
Crew from the 70th Troop Carrier Squadron:
Pilot: 1st Lt. (posthumously promoted to Captain) Russell Andrew Morrison, (S/N 0-740880), De Leon, Texas.
Co-Pilot: 2nd Lt. Kenneth E. Wirth, (S/N 0-772242), Lincoln, Nebraska.
Aerial Engineer: TSgt. John F. Semmens, (S/N 12123113), Harrington Park, New Jersey.
Radio Operator: SSgt. Frank M. Staker, (S/N 39529923), Liberal, Kansas.
Passengers:
Lt. (jg) John Hartwell "Jack" Fezler, D-V (G), USNR (S/N 0-228365), Mobile Explosives Investigation Unit One (MEIU #1), Navy 134, Oklahoma.
Aviation Chief Ordnanceman (AA) William Cecil Meadville, USNR (S/N 6048993), Mobile Explosives Investigation Unit One (MEIU #1), Navy 134, Pennsylvania.
Colonel Oscar D. McNeely, (S/N O-7325), Headquarters, 25th Anti-aircraft Artillery Group, Oklahoma.
Captain (posthumously promoted to Major) Hal Sayre, III, (S/N O-355966), 821st Engineer Battalion, Aviation, Denver, Colorado.
Captain Boothe C. Haltom, (S/N O-366455), 146th Anti-aircraft Artillery Operations Detachment, Mississippi.
2nd Lt. (posthumously promoted to 1st Lt.) John R. Riisoe, (S/N O-2036215), Headquarters, Far East Air Force, Kansas.
2nd Lt. George D. Steel Jr., (S/N O2036224), Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, Wyoming.
1st Lt. Harry E. Petersen, (S/N O1640812), 93rd Signal Battalion, Roosevelt, Minnesota.
1st Lt. William L. Pilgrim, (S/N O1289620), 151st Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division, South Carolina.
1st Lt. Claude "Alvin" Reese, Jr., (S/N O-1288619), 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, Fort Worth, Texas.
Pfc. Paul E. Almon, (S/N 39197973), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Washington.
Pfc. Irvin H. Miller, (S/N 33489435), Battalion Headquarters Company, 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Pennsylvania.
T/5 John L. Zajicek, S/N 37181290, 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Mississippi.
Pvt. Francis J. Benson, (S/N 38363676), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Texas.
T/5 Alfred G. Daigneau, (S/N 15376994), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Ohio.
Pfc. William Hardaway Hatch, Jr. , (S/N 34466193), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Captain Clement Loughlin Schrader, (S/N SX9339), 2/7th Field Regiment Royal Australian Artillery, Cowandilla, Australia.
Lt. Peter Ogilvie Graham, (S/N QX26597), 2nd Marine Logistic Group, attached to 1st Australian Corps Headquarters, Kingaroy, Queensland, Australia.
Joseph Engel, (S/N TC 10622), Australia.
Arthur Hawley, (S/N TC 7041), Australia.
Roland Ince, (S/N TC 2405), Australia.
John Mignot, (S/N TC 10720), Australia.
Dennis Rawson, (S/N TC 9730), Australia.
All U.S. Army crew and passengers were officially declared dead the day of the mission. The U.S. Navy passengers were officially declared dead on 02 October 1945, one year and one day after the plane went missing.
LIEUTENANT STEEL IS PRESUMED DEAD
Lieut. George D. Steel, Jr., formerly of Cape Girardeau, who was reported missing in action on Oct. 1, 1944, has been declared dead by the War Department. No trace of the C-47, which he was aboard, nor of any of the other 26 men aboard, has been found. The plane was enroute from Hollandia to Finschhafen, New Guinea.
Lieut. Steel was the son of Mr. and Mrs. George Steel of St. Louis. After his graduation from Central High School in 1933 he entered State College, and in December 1941, enlisted in the Fifth Air Corps, which was the first to enter New Guinea, where he served 37 months. Source: The Weekly Record (New Madrid, Missouri), Friday, 26 April 1946, page 4
2nd Lieutenant George Dawson Steel, Jr. is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery.
He also has a cenotaph in Matthews Cemetery, Matthews, New Madrid County, Missouri
George D. Steel, Jr.
Service ID: 2036224.
Entered the service from Wyoming.
Rank: 2nd Lieutenant, U.S. Army Air Forces
Unit: Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command
Date of Death: 01 October 1944, killed when the plane he was on crashed somewhere between Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (now part of Indonesia) and Finschhafen Airfield, Territory of New Guinea (now Papua, New Guinea).
Status: Missing in Action
Memorialized: Manila American Cemetery – Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1920 United States Federal Census (03 January 1920): Mathews Village, Big Prairie Township, New Madrid County, Missouri (sheet 3A, family 53) – George D. Steel, Jr. (3 11/12 Missouri).
1930 United States Federal Census (07 April 1930): Cape Girardeau (Ward 4), Cape Girardeau County, Missouri (sheet 6A, family 132, 1406 West-Broadway) – George D. Steel, Jr. (14 Missouri).
George graduated from Central High School, Cape Girardeau, Missouri – Class of 1933. He then attended State College.
1937 Laramie, Wyoming, City Directory - George D. Steel, Jr., Oil Field Wkr, r805 Grand Av
George Dawson Steel, Jr. (24, 28 January 1916, Matthews, Missouri), a resident of 112 So. Beech St., Casper, Wyoming, signed up for his World War II Draft Registration Card (Serial No. 2471, Order No. 375) on 16 October 1940 in Casper, Natrona County, Wyoming. He was employed by Mountain Sales and Service Company. George listed his uncle, W. V. Moore, as the person who would always know hiss address. He was described at 6' in height, 175 lbs., with a light brown complexion, brown eyes and black hair. He had a "bad scar on his left arm".
George D. Steel, Jr. enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in December 1941 in Wyoming. He was assigned to the Fifth Air Corps and sent to the South Pacific. It was one of the first units to be sent to New Guinea.
2nd Lt. George D. Steel Jr. (S/N 2036224), Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, U.S. Army Air Forces.
He was moved to Hollandia, New Guinea from where the Far East Air Service Command supported theater operations.
01 October 1944
2nd Lt. George D.Steel was passenger on a U.S. troop carrier plane (a Douglas C-47A-DK Skytrain with Serial Number 42-92062) that took off at 5:47 a.m. on 01 October 1944 from Cyclops Drome near Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (now part of Indonesia) on a flight bound for Finschhafen Airfield, Territory of New Guinea (now Papua, New Guinea). Aboard were four flight crew from the 70th Troop Carrier Squadron. Also aboard were passengers from the U.S. Army and seven Australians. Although the weather conditions were clear, with occasional scattered thunderstorms, and visibility was good, the plane failed to arrive at its destination. A search for the plane was made over the next few days without results. Nothing is known of what happened to it and no trace of the plane has ever been found. All 27 (4 crew and 23 passengers) were listed as missing in action.
Crew from the 70th Troop Carrier Squadron:
Pilot: 1st Lt. (posthumously promoted to Captain) Russell Andrew Morrison, (S/N 0-740880), De Leon, Texas.
Co-Pilot: 2nd Lt. Kenneth E. Wirth, (S/N 0-772242), Lincoln, Nebraska.
Aerial Engineer: TSgt. John F. Semmens, (S/N 12123113), Harrington Park, New Jersey.
Radio Operator: SSgt. Frank M. Staker, (S/N 39529923), Liberal, Kansas.
Passengers:
Lt. (jg) John Hartwell "Jack" Fezler, D-V (G), USNR (S/N 0-228365), Mobile Explosives Investigation Unit One (MEIU #1), Navy 134, Oklahoma.
Aviation Chief Ordnanceman (AA) William Cecil Meadville, USNR (S/N 6048993), Mobile Explosives Investigation Unit One (MEIU #1), Navy 134, Pennsylvania.
Colonel Oscar D. McNeely, (S/N O-7325), Headquarters, 25th Anti-aircraft Artillery Group, Oklahoma.
Captain (posthumously promoted to Major) Hal Sayre, III, (S/N O-355966), 821st Engineer Battalion, Aviation, Denver, Colorado.
Captain Boothe C. Haltom, (S/N O-366455), 146th Anti-aircraft Artillery Operations Detachment, Mississippi.
2nd Lt. (posthumously promoted to 1st Lt.) John R. Riisoe, (S/N O-2036215), Headquarters, Far East Air Force, Kansas.
2nd Lt. George D. Steel Jr., (S/N O2036224), Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, Wyoming.
1st Lt. Harry E. Petersen, (S/N O1640812), 93rd Signal Battalion, Roosevelt, Minnesota.
1st Lt. William L. Pilgrim, (S/N O1289620), 151st Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division, South Carolina.
1st Lt. Claude "Alvin" Reese, Jr., (S/N O-1288619), 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, Fort Worth, Texas.
Pfc. Paul E. Almon, (S/N 39197973), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Washington.
Pfc. Irvin H. Miller, (S/N 33489435), Battalion Headquarters Company, 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Pennsylvania.
T/5 John L. Zajicek, S/N 37181290, 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Mississippi.
Pvt. Francis J. Benson, (S/N 38363676), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Texas.
T/5 Alfred G. Daigneau, (S/N 15376994), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Ohio.
Pfc. William Hardaway Hatch, Jr. , (S/N 34466193), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Captain Clement Loughlin Schrader, (S/N SX9339), 2/7th Field Regiment Royal Australian Artillery, Cowandilla, Australia.
Lt. Peter Ogilvie Graham, (S/N QX26597), 2nd Marine Logistic Group, attached to 1st Australian Corps Headquarters, Kingaroy, Queensland, Australia.
Joseph Engel, (S/N TC 10622), Australia.
Arthur Hawley, (S/N TC 7041), Australia.
Roland Ince, (S/N TC 2405), Australia.
John Mignot, (S/N TC 10720), Australia.
Dennis Rawson, (S/N TC 9730), Australia.
All U.S. Army crew and passengers were officially declared dead the day of the mission. The U.S. Navy passengers were officially declared dead on 02 October 1945, one year and one day after the plane went missing.
LIEUTENANT STEEL IS PRESUMED DEAD
Lieut. George D. Steel, Jr., formerly of Cape Girardeau, who was reported missing in action on Oct. 1, 1944, has been declared dead by the War Department. No trace of the C-47, which he was aboard, nor of any of the other 26 men aboard, has been found. The plane was enroute from Hollandia to Finschhafen, New Guinea.
Lieut. Steel was the son of Mr. and Mrs. George Steel of St. Louis. After his graduation from Central High School in 1933 he entered State College, and in December 1941, enlisted in the Fifth Air Corps, which was the first to enter New Guinea, where he served 37 months. Source: The Weekly Record (New Madrid, Missouri), Friday, 26 April 1946, page 4
2nd Lieutenant George Dawson Steel, Jr. is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery.
He also has a cenotaph in Matthews Cemetery, Matthews, New Madrid County, Missouri
Service ID: 2036224.
Entered the service from Wyoming.
Rank: 2nd Lieutenant, U.S. Army Air Forces
Unit: Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command
Date of Death: 01 October 1944, killed when the plane he was on crashed somewhere between Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (now part of Indonesia) and Finschhafen Airfield, Territory of New Guinea (now Papua, New Guinea).
Status: Missing in Action
Memorialized: Manila American Cemetery – Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1920 United States Federal Census (03 January 1920): Mathews Village, Big Prairie Township, New Madrid County, Missouri (sheet 3A, family 53) – George D. Steel, Jr. (3 11/12 Missouri).
1930 United States Federal Census (07 April 1930): Cape Girardeau (Ward 4), Cape Girardeau County, Missouri (sheet 6A, family 132, 1406 West-Broadway) – George D. Steel, Jr. (14 Missouri).
George graduated from Central High School, Cape Girardeau, Missouri – Class of 1933. He then attended State College.
1937 Laramie, Wyoming, City Directory - George D. Steel, Jr., Oil Field Wkr, r805 Grand Av
George Dawson Steel, Jr. (24, 28 January 1916, Matthews, Missouri), a resident of 112 So. Beech St., Casper, Wyoming, signed up for his World War II Draft Registration Card (Serial No. 2471, Order No. 375) on 16 October 1940 in Casper, Natrona County, Wyoming. He was employed by Mountain Sales and Service Company. George listed his uncle, W. V. Moore, as the person who would always know hiss address. He was described at 6' in height, 175 lbs., with a light brown complexion, brown eyes and black hair. He had a "bad scar on his left arm".
George D. Steel, Jr. enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in December 1941 in Wyoming. He was assigned to the Fifth Air Corps and sent to the South Pacific. It was one of the first units to be sent to New Guinea.
2nd Lt. George D. Steel Jr. (S/N 2036224), Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, U.S. Army Air Forces.
He was moved to Hollandia, New Guinea from where the Far East Air Service Command supported theater operations.
01 October 1944
2nd Lt. George D.Steel was passenger on a U.S. troop carrier plane (a Douglas C-47A-DK Skytrain with Serial Number 42-92062) that took off at 5:47 a.m. on 01 October 1944 from Cyclops Drome near Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (now part of Indonesia) on a flight bound for Finschhafen Airfield, Territory of New Guinea (now Papua, New Guinea). Aboard were four flight crew from the 70th Troop Carrier Squadron. Also aboard were passengers from the U.S. Army and seven Australians. Although the weather conditions were clear, with occasional scattered thunderstorms, and visibility was good, the plane failed to arrive at its destination. A search for the plane was made over the next few days without results. Nothing is known of what happened to it and no trace of the plane has ever been found. All 27 (4 crew and 23 passengers) were listed as missing in action.
Crew from the 70th Troop Carrier Squadron:
Pilot: 1st Lt. (posthumously promoted to Captain) Russell Andrew Morrison, (S/N 0-740880), De Leon, Texas.
Co-Pilot: 2nd Lt. Kenneth E. Wirth, (S/N 0-772242), Lincoln, Nebraska.
Aerial Engineer: TSgt. John F. Semmens, (S/N 12123113), Harrington Park, New Jersey.
Radio Operator: SSgt. Frank M. Staker, (S/N 39529923), Liberal, Kansas.
Passengers:
Lt. (jg) John Hartwell "Jack" Fezler, D-V (G), USNR (S/N 0-228365), Mobile Explosives Investigation Unit One (MEIU #1), Navy 134, Oklahoma.
Aviation Chief Ordnanceman (AA) William Cecil Meadville, USNR (S/N 6048993), Mobile Explosives Investigation Unit One (MEIU #1), Navy 134, Pennsylvania.
Colonel Oscar D. McNeely, (S/N O-7325), Headquarters, 25th Anti-aircraft Artillery Group, Oklahoma.
Captain (posthumously promoted to Major) Hal Sayre, III, (S/N O-355966), 821st Engineer Battalion, Aviation, Denver, Colorado.
Captain Boothe C. Haltom, (S/N O-366455), 146th Anti-aircraft Artillery Operations Detachment, Mississippi.
2nd Lt. (posthumously promoted to 1st Lt.) John R. Riisoe, (S/N O-2036215), Headquarters, Far East Air Force, Kansas.
2nd Lt. George D. Steel Jr., (S/N O2036224), Headquarters, Far East Air Service Command, Wyoming.
1st Lt. Harry E. Petersen, (S/N O1640812), 93rd Signal Battalion, Roosevelt, Minnesota.
1st Lt. William L. Pilgrim, (S/N O1289620), 151st Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division, South Carolina.
1st Lt. Claude "Alvin" Reese, Jr., (S/N O-1288619), 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, Fort Worth, Texas.
Pfc. Paul E. Almon, (S/N 39197973), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Washington.
Pfc. Irvin H. Miller, (S/N 33489435), Battalion Headquarters Company, 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Pennsylvania.
T/5 John L. Zajicek, S/N 37181290, 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Mississippi.
Pvt. Francis J. Benson, (S/N 38363676), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Texas.
T/5 Alfred G. Daigneau, (S/N 15376994), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Ohio.
Pfc. William Hardaway Hatch, Jr. , (S/N 34466193), 574th Signal Air Warning Battalion, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Captain Clement Loughlin Schrader, (S/N SX9339), 2/7th Field Regiment Royal Australian Artillery, Cowandilla, Australia.
Lt. Peter Ogilvie Graham, (S/N QX26597), 2nd Marine Logistic Group, attached to 1st Australian Corps Headquarters, Kingaroy, Queensland, Australia.
Joseph Engel, (S/N TC 10622), Australia.
Arthur Hawley, (S/N TC 7041), Australia.
Roland Ince, (S/N TC 2405), Australia.
John Mignot, (S/N TC 10720), Australia.
Dennis Rawson, (S/N TC 9730), Australia.
All U.S. Army crew and passengers were officially declared dead the day of the mission. The U.S. Navy passengers were officially declared dead on 02 October 1945, one year and one day after the plane went missing.
LIEUTENANT STEEL IS PRESUMED DEAD
Lieut. George D. Steel, Jr., formerly of Cape Girardeau, who was reported missing in action on Oct. 1, 1944, has been declared dead by the War Department. No trace of the C-47, which he was aboard, nor of any of the other 26 men aboard, has been found. The plane was enroute from Hollandia to Finschhafen, New Guinea.
Lieut. Steel was the son of Mr. and Mrs. George Steel of St. Louis. After his graduation from Central High School in 1933 he entered State College, and in December 1941, enlisted in the Fifth Air Corps, which was the first to enter New Guinea, where he served 37 months. Source: The Weekly Record (New Madrid, Missouri), Friday, 26 April 1946, page 4
2nd Lieutenant George Dawson Steel, Jr. is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery.
He also has a cenotaph in Matthews Cemetery, Matthews, New Madrid County, Missouri
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