World War II Honoree
Killed in World War II
Vernon D. Anderson
Branch of Service
U.S. Army Air Force
Hometown
Multnomah County, Oregon
Honored By
John Meurs
SERVICE NUMBER O-926286. NAVIGATOR WITH THE 398TH BOMB GROUP, 601ST BOMB SQUADRON OF THE 8TH AIR FORCE BASED IN ENGLAND. HIS B-17 'UGLY DUCKLING', SERIAL NUMBER 42-102565, CRASHED IN THE IJSSEL LAKE, FORMER ZUIDER ZEE, NETHERLANDS, ON SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 1944 AFTER A MISSION TO THE SYNTHETIC FUEL PLANT IN MISBURG, GERMANY. BOMBER WAS HIT BY FLAK OVER ZWOLLE, NETHERLANDS. WHOLE CREW BAILED OUT SAFELY BUT PERISHED IN THE ICE COLD WATER OF THE LAKE. ON JUNE 29, 1945 HIS BODY WAS PICKED UP FROM THE LAKE BY A FISHERMAN. HE WAS INITIALLY BURIED IN THE MUNICIPAL CEMETERY OF ELBURG IN THE NETHERLANDS AND WAS AT A LATER STAGE RE-INTERRED THE AMERICAN MILITARY CEMETERY NEAR MARGRATEN, NETHERLANDS.