''Black Cat'' was a Consolidated B-24J-1-FO LiberatorThe B-24J was the main production model of the Liberator, accounting for more than a third of all B-24s built. Each factory that built B-24s had a unique code, applied as a suffix to the model number at the time the aircraft was built; ''-FO'' denotes a B-24 built by Ford at Willow Run. aircraft and the last American bomber to be shot down over Germany in World War II. It was one of thousands of B-24s produced by the Ford Motor Company at its Willow Run production plant.

Background

In April 1945, General Dwight D. Eisenhower and SHAEF were convinced Hitler and other die-hard Nazis were planning to make a last stand in the Alps near

Berchtesgaden Berchtesgaden () is a municipality in the district Berchtesgadener Land, Bavaria, in southeastern Germany, near the border with Austria, south of Salzburg and southeast of Munich. It lies in the Berchtesgaden Alps, south of Berchtesgaden; the ...

. In order to prevent this happening, and because the European strategic air war was over, the Allied air forces tried to prevent the Germans from concentrating remaining men and materials in Bavaria.

Fatal mission

On 21 April 1945 at around 0630 local time 137 B-24 bombers from the

466th Bombardment Group The 466th Air Expeditionary Group of the United States Air Force provides support for airmen at stations across Afghanistan. This includes "joint expeditionary tasking" airmen, airmen whose units are assigned to a headquarters other than the one ...

departed from their air force base in Norfolk, England to bomb a railway bridge in Salzburg, Austria. Within the formation, ''Black Cat'' led the third squadron. However once the target was reached four hours later, the mission had to be abandoned due to the heavy cloud and thunderstorms covering the area. The lead aircraft flew a return course over

Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...

. This decision was queried by several navigators in the formation because Regensburg was a heavily bombed and defended city: it was home to the

Messerschmitt Messerschmitt AG () was a German share-ownership limited, aircraft manufacturing corporation named after its chief designer Willy Messerschmitt from mid-July 1938 onwards, and known primarily for its World War II fighter aircraft, in partic ...

factory which had been the

Eighth Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Force ...

's first major bombing target of the war in August 1943. At 20,000 feet above Regensburg, the formation received eight bursts of flak. ''Black Cat'' was the only casualty. It was struck by a shell on the left wing causing the aircraft to crash. Ten of the crew were killed including the pilot, Richard Farrington. The tail gunner, Albert Seraydarian, and the bombardier, Chris Manners, survived and were liberated from German POW camps within a few weeks.

Wayside cross

At the crash site, a wayside cross with a plaque was erected to commemorate the dead.

Commemorative stamp

Surviving members of the 466th Bomb Group petitioned the U.S. Postal Service to release a postage stamp depicting ''Black Cat'' in flight. The stamp was released in 2005.

Notes

References

External links

Image of the ''Black Cat'' commemorative postage stamp
{{Consolidated B-24 Liberator family Individual aircraft of World War II