The third son of Colonel John S. and Mary Hutton Upham, Hudson Hutton Upham was born on December 13, 1912 in Washington, D.C. With his older brothers, John and Frank, the Upham boys’ younger years were spent on foreign military bases where their father was stationed.

In 1934, Hudson graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. 1LT Upham married Nancy Moore, 18, a San Francisco native, in ceremonies in 1939. The couple had two sons, David Upham, born in 1941 and Hudson Moore Upham, born in early 1944. In 1946, Hudson and Nancy divorced shortly before his fatal flight on November 1.

Colonel Upham’s military career was active and upwardly mobile. He attended flying schools at Randolph and Kelly Fields, Texas and Hendricks Field, Sebring, Florida. Upham also graduated from the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics in Orlando, Florida. In the spring 1943, Upham became Deputy Wing Commander of the 56th Light Bombardment Training Wing, Will Rogers Field, in Oklahoma before being assigned as Deputy Field Commander at Ardmore Field.

As Lt. Colonel, he became Commander of the 222nd Combat Crew Training School, Ardmore, Oklahoma, from May-November 1944. LTC Upham was then assigned as Commanding Officer of the 492nd Bomb Group from December 1944-April 1945. When Colonel Upham took command, the group was training for night bombing missions over Germany. In March 1945, the group resumed “Carpetbagger” missions in Germany. These missions required dangerous low-altitude flying to carry equipment and to drop agents behind enemy lines in support of the French freedom fighters.

As the war came to an end, Colonel Upham became Commanding Officer of the 306th Bomb Group from April 1945-May 1946. His final duties were with the European Air Transport Service, Wiesbaden Germany, during the post-war occupation.

Working in Post-War Europe:

On May 8, 1945, V-E Day marked the end of World War II. Germany surrendered, signing documents at the Supreme Headquarters of the Allied Expeditionary Forces (SHAEF) in Reims. America’s fighting men were returning home while the four major world powers grappled with stabilizing and rebuilding war-torn Europe. Reconstruction was complicated by competing ambitions for the future.

Post-war conditions in Europe were chaotic. With millions of war dead and its homeless millions adrift, Europe’s economic and infrastructure conditions were battered beyond usefulness. Food, fuel and housing shortages, lack of infrastructure, displaced citizens and economic uncertainties created a monumental recovery undertaking unlike any experienced in modern times.

Established shortly after World War II, the European Air Transport Service (EATS) transported cargo and personnel for Western Allies’ forces within Europe. Initially, EATS controlled the former IX Troop Carrier Command squadrons after the war and operated both cargo and personnel transport routes in non-Communist controlled areas to support the American, British and French occupation forces with units in Greece (Athens Airport) and Italy.

Lost Above the World:

Scheduled for a flight from Naples, Italy to Bovingdon, England, an eight-man crew was assigned to the European Air Transport Command, 61st Troop Carrier Group, 15th Troop Carrier Squadron. Established shortly after World War II, the European Air Transport Service (EATS) transported cargo and personnel for Western Allies’ forces within Europe. The 15th Transport Squadron was constituted on November 20, 1940, activated on December 4, 1940 and inactivated on July 31,1945.

On November 1, 1946, 0054 LT, Command Pilots Colonel Fair and Colonel Upham departed from Naples-Capodichino Airport, in their B-17 Flying Fortress, #43-39338 bound for RAF Bovingdon, England with an overflight of Bastia, Istres, Lyon and Paris. Their final destination was Wiesbaden, Germany. Pre-flight weather information was not favorable for their planned route. After deliberations, Fair and Upham determined that they would make the flight. One routine radio message was transmitted a few minutes after take-off. No other messages were received. Aboard the flight were:

Command Pilot Colonel Ford Larimore Fair, #O-17029

Command Pilot Colonel Hudson Hutton Upham, #O-19467

Co-Pilot Major Lawrence Lofton Cobb, #O-24736

Navigator, 2LT Alfred Doroteo Ramirez, #O-2082524

Engineer, Master Sergeant John Edward Gilbert, #6990531

Assistant Engineer, Staff Sergeant William Allex Hilton, #38515193

Radio Operator, Staff Sergeant Zoltan Joseph Dobovich, #33835227

Assistant Radio Operator, Technical Sergeant William Seldon Cassell, #34896920

When the heavy bomber failed to arrive at its final destination, the U.S. military and allied resources conducted search-and-recovery (SAR) operations but eventually suspended the search 18 days later. No trace of the aircraft or crew was found during the initial SAR.

The crew was lost when their aircraft went down on Aiguille des Glaciers, one of the rugged peaks in the French Alps. The glacier is near Mont Blanc, the highest point in Europe and close to the French-Italian border. It was believed that the crew encountered deteriorating weather conditions with thunderstorm activity, turbulence and severe icing which may have contributed to the accident.

On July 25, 1947, the 99th French Alpine Infantry Battalion operating in the French-Italian Alps near Estellette Glacier, found the wreckage on the glacier’s slope at an altitude of more than 15,000 feet about five miles southwest of the Mont-Blanc. The crash site was just below the glacial crest. No individual identifications could be made at that time.

The crew’s remains were returned to the United States for a full military burial on October 10, 1947 in a single grave at Arlington National Cemetery. They rest in Section 15A, Site 1-NH in Arlington, Virginia.

Colonel Upham was survived by his children, David and Hudson, his parents and brothers. Older brothers, John Southworth Upham, Jr. and Frank K. Upham, also served in WWII. In a tragically odd coincidence, Frank Upham died on November 1, 1946 in Coronado, California, the same day as his younger brother’s fatal flight.

Colonel Upham was a decorated combat officer. He was awarded the Air Medal, French Croix de Guerre w/ Palms, British DFC, 1945. Distinguished Unit Citations: Germany, January 11, 1944; Germany, February 22, 1944. Distinguished Unit Citation: Germany and German-occupied territory, March 20-25, April, 1945.

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (see www.storiesbehindthestars.org). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen saved on Together We Served and Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smartphone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen serviceperson’s name and read his/her story. Stories Behind the Stars Contributing Author: Pamela C. Baker,

drbaker50@charter.net.

References:

“3 AAF Planes Overdue: Army Reports 23 Men Missing in Pacific, Europe, West Indies,” 1946, The New York Times, New York, New York, November 8, Page 2.

“Air Chief Among Missing B-17 Crew,” 1946, Amarillo Daily News, Amarillo, Texas, November 7, Page 11.

Ancestryinstitutions.org. 1920 United States Federal Census.

Ancestryinstitutions.org. 1930 United States Federal Census.

Ancestryinstitutions.org. 1940 United States Federal Census.

“Army Lists 8 on Board Missing B17” 1947, Stars and Stripes, Vol. 2, Number 309, November 7.

“Colonel Lost with 7 Others on Flying Fort: Chief of Staff of Air Transport in Europe Missing,” 1946, San Antonio Express, San Antonio, Texas, November 7, Page 2.

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/49330431/hudson-hutton-upham

https://www.fold3.com/memorial/640250096/hudson-h-upham

Public Member Stories, Biographical Information, Collection of Margaret Bohman, September 24, 2013. Biographical Information, Military Career, Collection of Epitaphist, February 20, 2020.

Hudson H Upham