It may be easier to read, if printed out.
Note: Many who view the above formation, must have watched a movie or a program on television, which showed how close the “Battle Formations” flew together. This was for the mutual protection of each B-17, based on each B-17's zones of protective fire and overlapping that protection for all in the formation in a combat area. When leaving the Strasbourg bomb drop point, the 388th had already lost three B-17s since entering Europe. The Melville loss was the fourth B-17 lost and the first lost in France. Thirty-five miles to the west of Strasbourg, the Melville B-17 went down. Peeled from the lead squadron, she was flying just behind the mission leader. Meaning, as she left the formation, when the eleven B-17s that returned that day, almost every surviving crewmen, about 1,100 men, would have seen the Melville B-17 spinning out of control.
When they returned, not one of them mentioned any other fact about the Melville B-17 other than, about 30 to 35 miles to west of Strasbourg, soon after bomb drop, the Melville B-17 went down. Yet, with all those “strong historical documents” available today, both DPMO and JPAC continue to claim, the Melville B-17 crashed 261 miles to the west of the true Melville crash site. Which was located by me, on 9 November, 2013, on a mountainside, just to the south and above the village of Luvigny, Department of the Vosges, France. The crash site is located about 35 miles to the west of Strasbourg and the villagers describe perfectly what happened, matching the descriptions of the returning aircrews and the survivors of the Melville crew. Both DPMO and JPAC had been informed of the location of the true Melville B-17 crash site and the fact, the dead were now in a German miliary cemetery as German military dead, when the Major General wrote his letter! And, one might think, “Until They Are Home” is a waste of space on the stationary!
If, DPMO and JPAC are allowed to continue to maintain the misidentification of the Mohr crew dead as the Melville crew dead, by “cherry picking” all the available documentation, all of which consists of “strong historical documentation.” Then, no documentation concerning any MIA personnel or USAAF Mission Reports can continue to be believed to be “strong historical documentation,” as demanded by the Commanding General’s letter that you have read. He states, only they/(he) are capable of selecting “strong historical documentation” and or/parts of such documents, to be believed or not to be believed. This creates a situation where no historical military history that uses any information from any of the available “strong historical documents” available can be believed to be truthful. That is, unless a certain, self-selected Major General personally states, any information used has been reviewed by him to be truthful or not to be believed!
One has to wonder, who made him the “God” of “strong historical documents?” If, for no other reason, any person who reads this on the Internet, should write both your Senators and locally elected Congressional Representative and demand, that DPMO and JPAC be disbanded and a new organization be created as soon as possible!
Modified For the Internet By: Willis S. Cole, Jr. - Battery Corporal Willis S. Cole Military Museum - 20Mar14(20prt-C-(8))