Roy W. Christianson

World War II
-
Fallen

County:
Ramsey

Date of Loss:

Branch of Service:
Army

Rank:
2nd Lieutenant

Listed on/in the:
Register of North Dakota Veterans World War II 1941-1945 and Korean Conflict 1950-1953, published 1968

Major Battle/Theatre:
European African Middle Eastern Theater

Medals and Honors:

Circumstances:

Their target on Jan. 23, 1943, was a large German submarine base at Lorient, France, on the Bay of Biscay. The U-boat port represented a major threat to Allied ships bringing troops, munitions and supplies to England. During the mass raid, according to subsequent military accounts, Christianson's B-17 was hit by a bomb dropped by another U.S. plane flying above. It tore off most of the tail section, killed the tail gunner and caused the bomber to roll and fall from formation. As it fell, German fighter aircraft attacked, killing the pilot and other crew members, and the bomber went into a slow glide into the woods near Pluvigner.

Biography:

Christianson was born on Oct. 4, 1916, at Upham, N.D., and graduated from Edmore High School in 1934. After at-tending UND, he taught at Appleton, Wis., before joining the Army in February 1941.

In November 1941, just before the attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into World War II, Christianson transferred to the Army Air Corps. He received his wings and commission as an officer on July 3, 1942, and soon after shipped out to England. He was stationed at a former British Royal Air Force base at Molesworth, which had been converted to an American bomber base. He was the co-pilot on a B-17 named "Beats Me" — apparently the answer given with a shrug by most of the crew when pilot Mel Schulstad asked them what they should call the plane.

Their target on Jan. 23, 1943, was a large German submarine base at Lorient, France, on the Bay of Biscay. The U-boat port represented a major threat to Allied ships bringing troops, munitions and supplies to England. During the mass raid, according to subsequent military accounts, Christianson's B-17 was hit by a bomb dropped by another U.S. plane flying above. It tore off most of the tail section, killed the tail gunner and caused the bomber to roll and fall from formation. As it fell, German fighter aircraft attacked, killing the pilot and other crew members, and the bomber went into a slow glide into the woods near Pluvigner.The three survivors spent more than two years in German POW camps. One of them, 2nd Lt. John Embach, later served in Korea, where he was killed on May 24, 1952.

He is buried in Section D, Grave 306 B at Rock Island, Illinois