WWII veteran, Utah resident signs historic B-17 wing

  • Published
  • By Richard W. Essary
  • 75th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
Last week, a World War II veteran had his signature immortalized on an important piece of history.

Olen Grant, 91, a Syracuse resident, signed the wing panel of an old B-17 bomber that's currently making its way around the country and made a stop at the Hill Aerospace Museum's Col. Nathan H. Mazer Memorial Chapel on April 22.

The panel is part of the aluminum skin of a B-17, which was the aircraft flown by the 384th Bomber Group, the unit Grant served with during WWII. According to the website, www.384thbombgroup.com, the group was stationed at Grafton-Underwood, England, from 1943 to 1945 and flew 316 combat missions over Europe.

An association called the 384th Bomb Group, Inc., which is the official veteran's association for the 384th, owns the panel and is shipping it around the country in an attempt to get signatures from the unit's surviving members.

Amy Mieghan, a Roy resident, and next generation member of the veteran's association, is helping spearhead the effort and said she hopes the signatures on the wing panel will help keep the memories of those who served in the 384th alive.

Terry Kendrick, the daughter of Olen Grant, attended the signing and spoke briefly to a small gathering of friends and family afterwards.

Kendrick shared details from a poem and transcript written by her father, which highlighted the time he served with the 384th Bomber Group; most notably, on September 6, 1943, when the B-17 that Grant was assigned to was shot down during a mission over Germany.

Click HERE to read the poem and transcript.

Unable to egress from the B-17, he went down with the plane and survived. Following the crash, he underwent several surgeries and eventually was taken prisoner by German forces where he remained a prisoner of war for more than a year. Grant, originally from Hot Springs, Ark., turned 21 years old at the time.

Kendrick concluded that throughout her father's experiences and his life he's never complained and has never been bitter towards his enemies. She said she's grateful for all of the sacrifices he and others who have served with the 384th have made for our nation.

Grant, who is now battling cancer, "... is an example to all of us," Kendrick said of her father. "He is my hero."

To date, about 90 signatures have been gathered on the wing panel, which has been traveling around the country for a couple of years now. Meighan said it is slated to go to Idaho and Arizona next.

The 384th Bomb Group, Inc., is looking for all 384th Bomb Group veterans or their family members who think their living veteran might be interested in signing the wing panel in Utah or other states.

It's still undecided where the wing will eventually end up. The ultimate destination for the wing is still being worked out, Meighan said, but will eventually be displayed only after all possible signatures have been acquired.

For more information, call Meighan at 360-280-8049 or Christopher Wilkerson, coordinator of the project, at 310-866-8457.