LONDONDERRY, N.H. — The Aviation Museum of N.H. has acquired a fragment of an historic B-17 bomber piloted in World War II by Capt. Harl Pease of the U.S. Army Air Corps.
Pease, a native of Plymouth, N.H., received the Medal of Honor posthumously after his aircraft was shot down on Aug. 7, 1942, by enemy fire during a bombing mission over the Japanese-occupied island of Rabaul, New Britain.
The Medal of Honor, the U.S. military’s highest award for valor, was presented to the Pease family by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Pease is the only aviator from New Hampshire to date to receive the Medal of Honor.
The museum will take possession of the authenticated fragment during a presentation ceremony Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, at 10 a.m. at the museum.
The ceremony is free to attend and the public is invited. Veterans of all eras and all service branches are encouraged to attend in uniform, full or partial, to show respect for Pease’s service and sacrifice, according to museum officials.
The fragment is from the B-17E bomber that Pease commanded as part of a successful mission to attack the Vunakanua Airdome on Rabaul. While returning to base, Pease’s plane was struck by enemy fire, forcing it down in Japanese-occupied territory.
Pease and his crew were presumed lost in the crash. After the war, two Catholic priests who had been at the Rabaul prisoner of war camp in 1942 reported that Pease and another crew member did survive the crash. They were taken prisoner and executed on Oct. 8, 1942.
No remains of Pease were ever found. In June 1957, Portsmouth Air Force Base was renamed Pease Air Force Base in his honor. The facility continues to carry his name to this day.
The fuselage of Pease’s downed plane, with a Boeing serial number of 41-2429, remained in place after military action ceased in the Pacific Theatre in 1945. The island is now part of the nation of Papua New Guinea.
In the 1980s, portions of the aircraft’s aluminum fuselage were authenticated, then removed from the crash site and made available for study, exhibit, and for sale in the military history collectibles market.
A piece from the B-17 commanded by Pease was recently acquired by Derry residents Steve and Gisela Heffelfinger. The couple is donating the artifact to the museum, where Steve volunteers as manager of the archive and in other capacities.
The B-17 fragment is showcased in a presentation frame produced by noted aviation artist Ron Cole, which includes a depiction of the aircraft in flight as well as historical information to place the fuselage piece in context.
“We are honored to take possession of this important and real link to Capt. Harl Pease, one of the Granite State’s great heroes of military aviation,” said Jeff Rapsis, executive director of the Aviation Museum of N.H.
“This piece of the fuselage of the B-17E that Capt. Pease was flying when it was shot down in 1942 will aid us in telling the story of his service and his sacrifice to visitors and especially young people, so that it will not be forgotten. It was with him then, and we honored to have it with us now.”
For more information: AviationMuseumOfNH.org
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