On December 26, 1944, residents of Borek Fałęcki heard the growing roar of engines around 1:00 PM. A large, silver aircraft appeared first at considerable height, heading toward the so-called “Madera” — a section of the railway station in Płaszów. Unfortunately, a so-called “Flak-Zug” — an anti-aircraft defense train — was stationed there and opened fire on the already damaged aircraft. The bomber circled over the southern districts of Kraków and came over Kobierzyn and Borek again — this time very low, from the direction of the former Austrian forts in Skotniki. The pilot belly-landed the bomber without landing gear; the aircraft plowed deep furrows in the frozen but snow-free ground. The terrain sloped upward, which caused the enormous machine to lose speed, slightly rotate, and come to a halt a few dozen meters from the moat of another post-Austrian fort, number 52. That moat could have become the grave of the crew, which — as it turned out — had not exhausted their share of luck that day, having survived the barrage over the southern complex of plants at Blechhammer (Blachownia Śląska).
The first to reach the bomber were, of course, children. The Americans exited the aircraft, carrying out two wounded comrades, and calmly awaited their fate. They quickly distributed their food rations — chocolates and oranges — to the Polish children. They burned maps and damaged the Norden bombsight before the German military police appeared, approaching cautiously.
The airmen were transported to Kraków; the brave commander did not allow the crew to be separated, standing up several times in defense of the wounded waist gunner, who was Jewish and whom the Germans wanted to treat in their customary manner. The crew was locked up under Luftwaffe guard at the Rakowice airfield — here the Americans were treated relatively well.
During the night, the Poles signaled to the Yankees that they would try to free or sneak them out. Unfortunately, the following morning they were taken out of Kraków. After a multi-day journey of suffering, they ended up in a prisoner-of-war camp in Oberursel. They emerged from there sick — lighter by several dozen kilograms, but… alive. Their aircraft was disassembled after several days and transported to the ramp of the Rakowice-Czyżyny airfield. Its enormous tail section tore down the tramway wires in several places.
According to some sources, the aircraft later served in the famous KG 200 regiment and was shot down by… an American fighter over the Zuider Zee. According to others, the Germans dismantled it for parts.
B-17G serial number 44-6337, named “Candie,” belonged to the 352nd Bomb Squadron, 301st Bomb Group, 5th Bomb Wing, 15th Air Force USAAF. Its crew was:
Pilot — Lt. Harry O’Filer
Co-pilot — 2nd Lt. Alfred J. Cryer
Navigator — 2nd Lt. Gilbert T. Nesch
Bombardier/nose turret gunner — Sgt. William E. Nassif
Flight engineer/top turret gunner — Sgt. Ernest M. Anticola
Radio operator/gunner — Sgt. Earle J. Cochrane
Ball turret gunner — Pvt. Edward A. Codo
Waist gunner — Pvt. Philip Shlom
Waist gunner — Pvt. Franklin J. Elmen
Tail turret gunner — Pvt. Patrick M. Hicks
