Staff Sgt. Rollen Harold Eubank - Citra, OK
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member QuarrellaDeVil
N 34° 48.264 W 096° 22.629
14S E 739936 N 3854488
The headstone marking the final resting place of Rollen Harold Eubank in Citra Cemetery indicates that he was killed in a bomber crash while in the service in 1943.
Waymark Code: WM17P7B
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 03/18/2023
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member YoSam.
Views: 2

The headstone is modern, made of red granite, and there are flowers in the upper corners. Complementing the Army Aviation Badge is a photo medallion, and below is this inscription:

Staff Sgt.
Rollen Harold Eubank

Born Nov. 10, 1917
Killed in a bomber crash near
Boise, Idaho while in U.S. Service
Jan. 15, 1943
Aged 25, Yrs, 2 Mo, 5 Dys.

His Findagrave page essentially repeats what is on the headstone, but it mentions that nine other airmen perished. One of them, Staff Sergeant Christian Fisher Weinhold, has further information on his Findagrave page (see below):

He was killed after a mid-air collision with another B-17 in the skies near Kuna, about 10 miles southwest of Gowen Field, Idaho. Ten crewmembers were killed and one parachuted and survived, but with serious injuries. The twelve crewmembers aboard the other bomber survived and returned to the airfield without serious injuries. The pilots of B-17 41-2603 told investigators they didn't see the lights of B-17 41-9181 as it was approaching at a near head-on angle at about 7,000 feet elevation. They made an abrupt pull up, but still 41-9181's cockpit collided with the underside of the tail section, probably causing the severe injury or deaths of the pilots, and Weinhold's aircraft went out of control. B-17 41-2603 returned to the airfield.

Those killed in the accident were:

2LT Paul C Painter, O-792625, OH, Pilot
2LT William W Reed Jr, O-735451, WA, Co-Pilot
2LT Raymond A Hay, O-735999, TX, Navigator
2LT Howard H Norton Jr, O-734729, OK, Bombardier
SSGT Raymond A Etherton Jr, 37217143, KS, Asst. Radio Operator
SSGT Rollen H Eubank, 38088357, OK, Flight Engineer
SSGT William J Griffiths, 35353459, IN, Radio Operator
SGT Arthur P Mayer, unknown, NY, Gunner
SGT Pasquale P Patri, 12093429, NJ, Asst. Engineer
SGT Christian F Weinhold, 32267078, NJ, Asst. Radio Operator

Type of Death Listed: Accident

Cause of death inscription on headstone: Killed in a bomber crash

Website (if available): [Web Link]

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