WW II Museum Seeks Families And Friends Of Those Who Served (NAPSA)—The heroism and dedication of a unique group of men are on display in a unique museum. It started 65 years ago, when the 390th Bombardment Group, an Eighth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortress unit stationed in En- gland, created a place in world history. This group flew 301 combat missions over Europe from 1943 to 1945. The stories of the men and the missions are housed in a special museum—the 390th Memorial Museum located in Tucson, Arizona. The 390th Memorial Museum, on the grounds of the Pima Air & Space Museum, houses a restored B-17G, called “I’ll Be Around.” Visitors can look inside the historic aircraft and see the tight spaces the crew occupied inside a bomber that had no insulation and few safety measures. Their Part in History The 390th Bombardment Group dropped 19,000 tons of bombs and lost 181 aircraft. Most significantly, 714 airmen lost their lives. The B-17s flown by the 390th bombed aircraft factories, bridges and oil refineries. The 390th bombed the coast of Normandy before the ground landings; cut German supply lines during the Battle of the Bulge; and dropped food supplies to the Dutch the week before V-E Day. The crews are memorialized in photos that fill the museum walls; men in uniform in front of their planes that are adorned with nose art and the endearing names of each plane. WWII Research In addition to memorabilia and artifacts, the 390th Museum A restored B-17 and historical research facilities are part of the visitor experience to this unique World WarIl memorial museum. houses the “Top Cover for the J Group” mural, one of the mostrecognized WWII paintings. The Joseph A. Moller Library inside the museum is a private research center for the Air Campaign of Central Europe. The library contains over 90,000 pages of 390th combat history and over 10,000 photographs. “This private library is the resource center for our research department of the 390th Memorial Museum, which is researching details on the men and the missions they flew,” said Emile “Terry” Therrien, executive director of the 390th Memorial Museum Foundation. Searching for Connections With this mission in mind, the Museum is seeking members of the 390th and their descendants. “We’re hoping that the stories of the men involved will live on through this museum,” Therrien said. “We’re encouraging anyone who was part of these military flight missions and ground support units or their relatives to contact the museum.Tell your story.” For more information on the 390th Memorial Museum or to make a donation to the museum, please visit www.390th.org.
