Frederick Bittner

Personal Information

Birthplace: Lyndhurst, New Jersey

Service Information

Branch of Service: Army Air Corps

Unit: 8th Air Force, 335 Bomb Sq

Theater of Operation: European

Enlisted / Commissioned: Sep 9, 1942

Discharged: Aug 29, 2005

Highest Rank: STAFF SGT

Military Honors: OAK LEAF CLUSTER, AIR MEDAL, EUROPEAN THEATER, OPERATION (ETO) RIBBON, OAK LEAF CLUSTER—, MIA, DISTINGUISHED UNIT BADGE

Biography

He was attached to the 8th Air Force, 335 Bomb Sq Army Air Force Station 119. He was a B-17 tailgunner He flew 18 bombing missions over occupied Europe. He was shot down on the first daytime bombing mission to Berlin. He was held for nearly 14 months as a prisoner of war at STALAG LUFT III, IV and VI. — he was forced to make a 600-mile march in the middle of one of the coldest winters that Germany has seen in the last 100 years.