Harry G. Maisch

CAPTAIN HARRY G. MAISCH was born in Camden in 1919, the son of Harry August and Helen E. Maisch. The elder Maisch worked as a clerk for Adams Express and later for the Railway Express Company at the Camden rail terminal. The family lived in Cramer Hill. His parents were active members of Camden Lodge 111 of the Loyal Order of Moose in Camden.

Harry Maisch graduated from Camden High School and was attending the College of William and Mary when he enlisted in the Army Air Corps on September 3, 1941 in Camden. After qualifying for flight duty he trained as a pilot on the B-29 heavy bombers. He was assigned to the 792nd Bomber Squadron, 468th Bomber Group, Very Heavy.

Captain Maisch was flying a B-29-15-BW bomber, Bureau Number 42-6362, which had been delivered to the United States Army Air Force on February 22, 1944. The aircraft and crew departed for India on April 10, 1944 and reached the 468^th Bomb Group on April 19, 1944.

The 468th Bomb Group flew over the Hump to carry supplies from India to staging fields in China before entering combat with an attack on railroad shops at Bangkok, Thailand, on June 5, 1944. On June 15 the group participated in the first Army Air Force attack on Japan since the Doolittle raid in 1942. From bases in India, China, and Ceylon, the 468th mined shipping lanes near Saigon, French Indochina, and Shanghai, China, and struck Japanese installations in Burma, Thailand, French Indochina, Indonesia, Formosa, China and Japan. Targets included iron works, aircraft factories, transportation centers and naval installations.

The 468th received a Distinguished Unit Citation for participation in a daylight raid on the iron and steel works at Yawata, Japan, on August 11, 1944.

B-29 42-6362 and her crew flew 17 missions, of which 10 were India Combat Missions and 7 involved flying over the Himalayas – "The Hump".

Captain Maisch was killed when his aircraft crashed during takeoff crash on November 11, 1944, during the Omura mission. Of the 11 men aboard, 10 were killed, leaving only 1 survivor.

Captain Maisch crashed shortly after takeoff from Peng-shoun, China. He made a normal takeoff but 42-6362 settled into some trees one half mile off the south end of the runway. He lost one of his left engines due to the fact that the prop hit a large tree, breaking off part of one of his blades. 42-6362 pulled off to the left with the left wing down and the right wing up in a very step turn, 42-6362 never pulled out and went into the ground left wing first, cartwheeling. The sole survivor, tail gunner Sergeant Holst, was found 75 feet from the scene of the crash.

Crew

Capt. H.C. Maisch – AC – KIA

Lt. O.E. Whitley – CP – KIA

1^st Lt. E.R. Johnson – FE – KIA

2^nd Lt. P.L. Westbrook – N- KIA

2^nd Lt. F.E. Meredith – B – KIA

2^nd Lt. J.G. Christie – R – KIA

S/Sgt. R.J. Peterson – RO – KIA

T/Sgt. R.R. Brown – RG – KIA

Sgt. H.B. Jackson – CFC – KIA

S/Sgt. O.A. Pegg – LG – KIA

Sgt. Holst – TG – Survived

Captain Maisch was brought home after the war. He was buried at the national cemetery at Honolulu, Hawaii. Captain Maisch's parents were living at 2204 River Road in Cramer Hill when the war began, but had moved to 2202 River Road by 1947. His mother joined the Gold Star Mothers organization. A widow by 1956, she was then living on Grand Avenue in East Camden.

The College of William & Mary - Williamsburg VA
The Flat Hat - March 20, 1946

Three Alumni Die in Service

The Alumni Office has recently been notified of the deaths of three men who attended the College of William and Mary.

Captain Harry G. Maisch, '42, was killed on November 21, 1944, in a plane crash in Peng-shoun.

Maisch entered the College in February, 1938, from Camden High School in Camden, N. J. He participated in freshman track and varsity football. He was a member of the Varsity Club.

Captain Maisch left in June, 1941. He joined the U. S. Army Air Forces and attained the rank of lieutenant in May, 1944, in the 794th Bomber Squadron.

Camden Courier-Post - October 29, 1951

518 TO MARK 30TH BIRTHDAY SATURDAY

Corporal Mathews-Purnell Post No. 518 will celebrate its 30th anniversary at a dinner with the Ladies Auxiliary in the parish hall of the St. Anthony of Padua R.C. Church, River Avenue and Twenty-eighth Street, Saturday, at 7 p, m. This will be the 29th anniversary for the auxiliary.

The Rev. William J. O'Rourke will give the invocation, the Rev. Warren G. Jennings will say grace and Rabbi Max Weine the benediction.

Eleven Gold Star Mothers will be honored guests of Commander Irving J. Stiefel. They are Mrs. Ada Mathews, Mrs. Katherine Corbett, Mrs. Marie Hunt, Mrs. Catherine Cahill, Mrs. Harry Maisch, Mrs. Joseph Selah, Mrs. Walter Haines, Mrs. Charles Reynolds, Mrs. John Peterson, Mrs. John A. Gorman, and Mrs. Mary Simpson.

Other invited guests are Congressman Wolverton, Mrs. Alice Trimble, department senior vice president, Ladies Auxiliary; Mrs. Florence E. Stark, past national president; Mrs. Mary Norcross, Seventh District president; Mrs. Victoria Nicktern , president of the 508 auxiliary; Mr. and Mrs. Frank H. Ryan; Mrs. John J. Tischner; Mr. and Mrs. Joseph H. Meade, Mrs. Herbert L. Stool man, Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Pfrommer, Mrs. George Clymer, Mrs. Fiore Malacrea, Mrs. Warren G. Jennings, Mrs. Max Weine, Albert J. Gifford, past commander, Camden county council; Alvah S. Ward, department chief of staff; County Commander Schuler; Southern area membership chairman, and many others.

The toastmaster will be Stoolman. Michael Mungioli is banquet chairman, and Mrs. Carrie R. Bean, past department president, co-chairman. They will be assisted by Mrs. Victoria Nick tern, president of the 518 auxiliary; Mrs. Beatrice Fredericks, decorations; Mrs. Esther Rowan, Edna Weaver and Mrs. Theresa Mungioli, recreation, and Orris Smith, program.

At a meeting of the post at 2712 Hayes Avenue; Stiefel welcomed two new members, Robert C. Barr, who served in the army, and Gordon Kraft, navy, in World War II. Steve Walter reported that Otto Self is ill in the Philadelphia Naval hospital. Joseph Hasher reported Edward Bossett was in Cooper hospital and doing nicely. He is in room 14.

At the entertainment last Saturday night, with "Big Time" Charlie Crane as master of ceremonies, the following sang: Dot Flanigan, "Sweetheart" of 518; Fred Falkerberger; Ann Flanigan, "Singing Waitress"; Lois "Singing Cow Girl," and Mike "Medals" Mungioli..

Harry G. Maisch

Captain, U.S. Army Air Force

Service # 0-789070

792nd Bomber Squadron,
468th Bomber Group, Very Heavy