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About 44th BGVA
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Let Us Introduce Ourselves.

Our organization is the successor to the old 44th Heritage Memorial Group which, by direction of it's Board Of Directors, closed down in October of 1994.

Active and dedicated Association Members then chose to immediately form a new organization, the 44th Bomb Group Veterans Association. We are incorporated in the State of Illinois and are classified with the Internal Revenue Service. as a 501(c)(19) non-profit Veterans Organization.

Currently we have over 865 paid members and are continuing to grow monthly as new members join us. Our news magazine, "8 Ball Tails", is published three times a year and is sent to all Group Members. The "8 Ball Tails" is our journal of stories by, and about, our members. This outstanding publication is the "Life Blood" of our organization.

Reunions are held annually, and though attendance is diminishing, they present us with a rare opportunity to "Remember And Share - With Those Who Were There". At 80+ it's interesting, and quite emotional, to see and talk to old friends and crew members.

This 44th BGVA (Bomb Group Veterans Association) also has produced several outstanding projects, such as a Diorama Of The Ploesti Mission which is on display at the Mighty Eighth Heritage Museum near Savannah, GA. This exhibit depicts our four Liberators of the lead element as it arrived at the burning targets.

Our most ambitions project, which is currently underway, is to preserve the history, and the legacy, of members of the 44th Bomb Group during WW II.

Military information, located in the National Archives, has been copied by Tony Mastradone and other dedicated members of the 44th Bomb Group. This information is then entered into a custom designed, searchable database format, and then recorded on a C/D. The resulting Military Heritage Database Program can be installed, and run, on any computer. Already entered into the Database are all of the individual sortie reports, all mission flown by the group, all mission summary reports, all crews and their members, all targets, and all aircraft. Also included are the stories and circumstances of those who were listed as MIA, KIA, POW's and hundreds of other cross referenced, searchable facts.

Copies of the 44th Bomb Group Membership Form, an Official 44th BG Military Heritage Database Biographical Form, Reunion Registration Forms, Program Schedule and Event Registration, Hotel Registration Forms, as well as other forms are available. Please Visit Our Forms Forms page.

Accessing the link to the 44th Bomb Group Military Heritage Database will direct you to the 8thairforce.com Web Site. The Military and Personal information of the 44th Bomb Group Database is located at this site. Follow the directions, we think you will be surprised at what you will find.

We want you to be aware of our Web Site activities and invite you to direct your comments "GOOD or BAD" to Arlo Bartsch, at afbas@aol.com - - - your 44th Bomb Group Database Custodian and Webmaster.

With Profound Acknowledgement To - - C. W. "Will" Lundy,
44th Bomb Group Historian and Archivist
The 44th Bomb Group Database Would Not Exist If It Were Not For The More Than Sixty Years "Will" Lundy, And His Wife Irene, Have Devoted To The Acquisition, Preservation, And Search, For A Permanent Repository For The Information Contained In This Database.

The records of the 44th Bomb Group, during World War II, are now archived at the
United States Army Heritage and Education Center - United States Army War College
950 Soldiers Drive - Carlisle Barracks - Carlisle, PA 17013-5021 
 
Send mail to Support@8thAirForce.com with questions or comments about this web site.   Copyright © 2010 44th Bomb Group
Last modified: 07/16/10