Lieutenant Harold E Lane

Harold E. Lane was born to Mr. and Mrs. Uel Lane on December 16, 1917 in Alamogordo NM. He attended school in Alamogordo where his closest friend was Jack Lee. In their senior year in high school Jack would serve as class president and Harold as class vice president. Both would attend NMAMC and both would perish aboard B-17’s over the course of the war. Following his graduation from high school Harold would attend NMMI, NMAMC and Tulane. His time on campus was for the 38-39 and 39-40 school years when he studied in the College of Arts and Sciences. In early 1942 Lane joined the USAAF and received training as a navigator. Following completion of his training in February of 1943, he received a furlough and returned to Alamogordo. From there he traveled with his crew to Salinas, Kansas where they picked up their new B-17 #42-5407. From Kansas they took their plane to West Palm Beach Florida for armament and training. Then they ferried their aircraft to England arriving on March 5, 1943. Once in England they were assigned to the 367th Bomb Squadron, 306th Bomb Group. One of the longest serving squadrons in England, it had the distinction for the highest loss rates of any squadron in the 8th Air Force for the period of August 1942 to October 1943. On 17 April 1943, the squadron was given the order for maximum effort in a strike against a factory in Bremen, Germany. Flying as part of a 26 ship formation, the aircraft were forced to fly through extraordinary flak and fighter defenses both in approach and departing from the target. Lt Harold Lane was killed from either flak shrapnel or fire from enemy fighters, the only member of his crew to die on the mission. His body was returned after the war and today is buried at the Ft Bliss National Cemetery. Lt Harold Lane was 23 years old at the time of his death.