RETTIGNY MEMORIAL, near GOUVY, Belgium.

This Memorial located in Belgium near the border with Luxembourg is in recognition of the 788th Squadron, Lt. William Truxes crew whose aircraft came to grief following the Christmas Day mission of December 1944. Elements of the 467th BG formation came under attack by up to 11 enemy aircraft believed to be FW-190s in the vicinity of St. Vith. B24 42-95220 was badly hit with reports of an engine fire which later exploded catching the right wing on fire and sending the aircraft into a spin before finally crashing to earth. The two pilots were blown out of the aircraft with the RCM Operator and survived. Several crew members were found in the broken nose of the aircraft while others were found close to the wreckage and initially buried in a local cemetery. 

Local man Paul Remy was the driving force of this Memorial Project. His parents lived nearby and as a keen WW2 Aviation researcher had already been involved in another local memorial to a RAF Hudson crew who had crashed nearby in 1944. In April 2010 enquiries were made to this B24 crash and efforts made to establish who were the crew and to what unit they belonged. After painstaking research the Lt. Truxes crew were identified as those involved and efforts were then made to establish a Memorial to those who lost their lives that day. I understand the local municipal authorities were extremely helpful with providing finance and committing workers to the project which finally came to fruition in October 2011.        

Another  wider view of the Rettigny Memorial installed in October 2011

Closer view of the marker plaque revealing the 467th BG crew members memorialized at this rural Belgium location. 

Historic photo of Mike Hardick at the scene of the Lt. William Truxes crashed B24
believed pictured in early 1945. Mike's brother S/Sgt. Peter Hardick was one of the
seven crew members who perished in the incident on Christmas Day 1944. This
precious photo was sent home by Mike and retained by family members whom kindly
have given permission to share the photo on this 467th BG web site.