James Milton Strong Jr. was born April 15, 1923 in Waco, McLennan County, Texas to James Milton Strong Sr. and his wife Lillian (Knott) Strong. His parents were born in Texas and Tennessee, respectively. James had one younger sister. In 1930 the family was living in Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas where his father worked for a wholesale cake company. In 1940 the family was living with James’ mother’s sister in Fort Worth and he attended a local high school.

James enlisted in the US Army Air Forces some time in early to mid-1942 although his enlistment record could not be found. After basic training James evidently received aerial gunnery training, and upon completion was assigned as a Staff Sergeant to one of the initial crews of the 349th Bomb Squadron of the 100th Bombardment Group (Heavy), Eighth Air Force, which flew B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers.

The 100th BG was activated 27 October 1942 at Gowen Field, Idaho then moved to Walla Walla Army Air Base, Washington. After receiving crews and aircraft, the group relocated again on 30 November 1942 to Wendover Field, Utah, where it added additional personnel, aircraft, and crews, and began operational training. On 1 January 1943, the aircraft and aircrews moved to Sioux City AAB, Iowa where they assisted in training of other groups bound for overseas. In mid-April 1943, the aircrews moved to Kearney Army Air Field, Nebraska and received brand new B-17s. After additional operational training, the group's aircrews departed Kearney on 25 May 1943, flying the North Atlantic route to England, where the group was based at Thorpe Abbotts, Norfolk.

On 25 June 1943, the 100th BG flew its first combat mission, sending nineteen B-17s to bomb the U-boat yards in Bremen, Germany. In foreshadowing of dreadful things to come for the group, three aircraft and 30 men did not return from the mission. SSgt Strong was the ball turret gunner aboard B-17F #42-29986 (known as Bluebird “K”) that fateful day. On the way to the target, the unescorted formation of B-17s was not properly assembled, likely due to a combination of the inexperienced crews and poor weather, making it especially vulnerable to attack by enemy fighters. As the scattered formation approached the coast of Germany, SSgt Strong’s aircraft was seen to fall out of formation and disappear into the undercast, likely the victim of an enemy fighter. All ten crewmen aboard were either killed by the enemy fighters or perished when the aircraft crashed into the North Sea. No bodies were ever found.

James Milton Strong Jr. is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing in the Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial in Cambridgeshire, England and in Restland Memorial Park in Dallas, Dallas County, Texas.

Thank you SSgt Strong for your service and your sacrifice, you will not be forgotten.

Crew of B-17F 42-29986

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 here on Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smart phone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story. SBTSProject/Texas/Tarrant.

If you noticed anything erroneous in this profile or have additional information to contribute to it, please contact me at bob.al@storiesbehindthestars.org.

Sources:

1930 United States Federal Census
1940 United States Federal Census
Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, Texas), 21 Mar 1943
100th Bomb Group Foundation, https://www.100thbg.com/
Missing Air Crew Reports, #269
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/112079590/james-milton-strong

James M Strong