Frederick Walker Castle-Henri-Chapelle, Belgium - Medal Of Honor Resting Places on Waymarking.com

He was born on October 14, 1908 in Fort McKinley, Manila, Philippine Islands and he was killed in action on December 24, 1944. His Medal of Honor information and citation is: FREDERICK WALKER CASTLE
Organization: U.S. Army
Company:
Division: 4th Bomber Wing
Born: 14 October 1908, Manila P.I.
Departed: Yes
Entered Service At: Mountain Lakes, N.J.
G.O. Number: 22
Date of Issue: 02/28/1947
Accredited To:
Place / Date: Germany, 24 December 1944
Citation
He was air commander and leader of more than 2,000 heavy bombers in a strike against German airfields on 24 December 1944. En route to the target, the failure of 1 engine forced him to relinquish his place at the head of the formation. In order not to endanger friendly troops on the ground below, he refused to jettison his bombs to gain speed maneuverability. His lagging, unescorted aircraft became the target of numerous enemy fighters which ripped the left wing with cannon shells. set the oxygen system afire, and wounded 2 members of the crew. Repeated attacks started fires in 2 engines, leaving the Flying Fortress in imminent danger of exploding. Realizing the hopelessness of the situation, the bail-out order was given. Without regard for his personal safety he gallantly remained alone at the controls to afford all other crewmembers an opportunity to escape. Still another attack exploded gasoline tanks in the right wing, and the bomber plunged earthward carrying Gen. Castle to his death. His intrepidity and willing sacrifice of his life to save members of the crew were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service.

Photo by Mr D and posted on findagrave.com.

*SPECIAL EXCEPTION WAYMARK* This category made the decision to approve this waymark based on the research and partnerships between the submitter, Don.Morfe, and individuals who gave permission for their photos of Medal of Honor resting places to be used in this community. Although the vision and philosophy of the Waymarking body is to promote in-person visits and photo documentation, special circumstances can be made on a case-by-case basis such as this submission. We appreciate the fact that Don.Morfe spent over 20 years visiting more than 2,900 Medal of Honor resting places and has documented them in this category with personal photos the past 18 months. He recently took it upon himself to document many more Medal of Honor resting places around the world that he could not visit in person. He reached out to individuals on FindaGrave.com and elsewhere and received permission to use their photos, created write-ups and submitted them here for approval. A compromise was made to allow his submissions here in order to gain a sense of appreciation to those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms. Thank you, Don, for your tireless efforts and contributions to this category and to the Waymarking community!

Armed Service: Air Force

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Date Logged Log User Rating   09/23/2022 Axel-F visited it