Crew 46, 62nd Squadron - 39th Bomb Group (VH)

Crew 46 Main Page	Crew 46 History	Mission List	Plane Ditched	MACR# 14539
Crew 46 aided by P-59 29 May 1945	Two Families Meet Exchange 60 yr old Letters		Crew 46 Photos	5

Crew 46's Slic Chic in flight
Photo courtesy of Robert Davenport, son of William T. Davenport, RG
Click the nose section in the photo above

Photo Courtesy of Kenneth Toeppe, brother of Lawrence, LG
click image to enlarge

L to R Standing:
Sgt	Gordon E. Harr	Crew Chief
1st Lt	Arland F. Christ-Janer	Bombardier
1st Lt	Edgar B. Grear	Airplane Commander
F/O	Richard F. Wilcox	Pilot
2nd Lt	Howard L. Howes	Navigator
2nd Lt	Ralph V. Hayenga	Radar Observer
L to R Kneeling:
S/Sgt	Lawrence J. Toeppe	Left Gunner
Sgt	William T Davenport	Right Gunner
S/Sgt	Elias T. Schutzman	Radio Operator
M/Sgt	Clare Lovelace, Jr.	Flight Engineer
Sgt	Charles Markowitz	Tail Gunner
T/Sgt	Frank E. Williams	CFC Gunner

Click on the crew member's name to learn more

	Crew 46 Honor Roll
Sgt William T. Davenport	Right Gunner	KIA: 29 May 1945
M/Sgt Clare Lovelace, Jr.	Flight Engineer	KIA: 29 May 1945
Sgt Charles Markowitz	Tail Gunner	KIA: 29 May 1945
S/Sgt Lawrence J. Toeppe	Left Gunner	KIA: 29 May 1945
1st Lt Edgar B. Grear	Airplane Commander	7 July 1974
2nd Lt Ralph V. Hayenga	Radar Observer	11 October 1995
T/Sgt Frank E. Williams	CFC Gunner	Jun 1986
2nd Lt Howard L. Howes	Navigator	22 January 1997
F/O Richard F. Wilcox	Pilot	12 June 1983
S/Sgt Elias T. Schutzman	Radio Operator	06 October 2002
Sgt Gordon E. Harr	Crew Chief	06 April 2004
1st Lt Arland F. Christ-Janer	Bombardier	09 November 2008

Updates:

25 Sep 2009: We received an email from Ken Freeze who provided us with the DOD of Edgar Barry Grear being 7 July 1974 per the Florida Death Index through Ancestory.com - the birth date matches that of "Edgar B. Grear" that is listed below. Therefore - his name has been added to the crew honor roll and the Final Flight Honor Roll Section of this web site.

Additionally - an email was received from Yvette Hyatt Kovary, USCG (SPAR), WWII - with additional information about Edgar B. Grear - this information has included a lead to Ed Grear's widow now Muriel H. Lein. Perhaps contact can be established so more can be learned about Ed Grear.

With this additional information abt Ed Grear and his death - there are no other members of this crew living.

14 Nov 2008: Arland Christ-Janer has been added to Crew Honor Roll. With the passing of Christ-Janer this leaves all the members of combat Crew 46 accounted for except for 1st Lt Edgar B. Grear, Airplane Commander. (Currently there is no family contact with anyone from the Grear family).

Historian's Note - Regarding the status of 1st Lt Edgar B. Grear

The name of Edgar Grear (no M.I.) listed is found in the Social Security Death Index (SSDI):

DOB: 10 Aug 1917
DOD: Jul 1974
SS# Issued in New York

The name "Edgar B. Grear" was found in the WWII Enlistment Record (Reserve Corps Record) database on the National Archives web site. The Army Serial Number listed in the database is an Enlisted Men's Serial Number - any that is known from orders of the 39th BG list his ASN after he received his Officer's Commission; however other information contained in the file are:

Residence County: Queens
Residence State: New York
Year of Birth: 1917
Nativity: New York

In a letter (dated Jul 1945) from Mrs. Toeppe (mother of S/Sgt Lawrence J. Toeppe lost 29 May 1945) to Mrs. Philip Markowitz (mother of Charles Markowitz also lost 29 May 1945) she cites Lt. Grear's wife can be contacted in Jefferson Heights, New York.

With the common information between these 3 documents ... it is very possible that the Edgar Grear listed in the SSDI is indeed 1st Lt Edgar B. Grear; If so - then there are no more members of the combat crew living.

62nd Squadron Crew Index