I am the owner of the B-17 Museum Utzenstorf, which is a case sui generis. It displays the history of foreign aircraft in Switzerland between 1939 and 1945, especially the story of US Army Airforce emergency landings and crashes during WWII. Among other things, it includes the B-17 emergency landing of Utzenstorf and the B-24 crashes in Bätterkinden and Jegenstorf. All correspondence and material from World War II that I have collected over the years is on display at my private B-17 Museum in Utzenstorf.
The first time I encountered Warbirds (restored aircraft from World War II) was in the 90s, when I travelled to England with a friend of mine. «Naturally, I was especially fascinated by the B-17, since I knew that one of them had carried out an emergency landing in Utzenstorf.»
When the local Utzenstorf historian Barbara Kummer invited American war veterans (Swiss internees) to the 50th anniversary of the B-17 Bomber emergency landing in Utzenstorf in 1993, I began talking to them. In doing so, I also got to know the president of the Swiss Internees Association, Robert (Bob) A. Long, who had survived an emergency landing in Dübendorf.
Swiss Internees Reunion in Switzerland 1993/1996/1998, visited the emergency landing sites and the places where they had been detained.
14.th October 1943, B-17 F-120-BO, Serial No. 42-30831, Nickname: Lazy Baby, 8th Air Force, 305th Group, 364th Squadron
Impressionen
Individual visits from Swiss Internee veterans, visited the emergency landing sites and the places where they had been detained.
B-17 Flying Fortress debris recovery at the Greifen Lake in 2000, engine, propeller, gun-turret, parachute, radio frequency gauge, etc.
B-17/B-24 parts recovery in the Swiss Alps
Bomber exhibition 60-year Anniversary of the Bomber Landing in Utzenstorf in 2003, initiator and manager/organizer.
Swiss Internees Reunion in Florida in 2004, decision for the petition to achieve POW status for Swiss Internees, bestowal of POW decorations at the Pentagon, USA, in 2015.
Accompaniment of test flights of the DC-3 and P-18.
C-47 ferry flight accompaniment from England/Caen/Zuerich for the Convoy to Remember in 2016.
Der letzte Flug einer alten Lady
Various visits from relatives of Swiss Internees, visited forced landing sites or the places where their fathers, grandfathers, etc. had been detained.
B-17 F-120-BO, Serial No. 42-30831, Nickname: Lazy Baby, 8th Air Force, 305th Group, 364th Squadron Mission: Bombing of ball bearing plant in Schweinfurt, Germany
Lazy Baby
B-24 Commemoration in Bätterkinden, initiator, manager/organizor
B-24 Gedenkfeier Bätterkinden
Movie 100 Years of Aviation in Switzerland, filmed at museum.
Movie 100 Years of Swiss Air Force, flimed at museum.
Movie Emergency Landing, filmed at museum.
Play "The General"
In 1944, Jegenstorf Castle becomes the command post of the general and his staff. But suddenly it is not only about military matters.
Historical advice of the Swiss theater and film actor Daniel Ludwig about the B-17 emergency landing in Utzenstorf, uniforms and equipment of the American bomber crews that were interned in Switzerland from 1943-1945.
Provided various authors with articles, witness reports, and photographs.
This third, updated and extended documentation contains a detailed description of the events of the Foreign Aircraft in Switzerland from 1939 - 1945 and is a compendium for those interested in history. From T. Wilhelm
Foreign aircraft in Eastern Switzerland 1939 - 1945 By Dani Egger
Max Lagoda Rendezvous with history, B-24 memorial plaque inauguration Bätterkinden 12 July 2015
Editorial Office Switzerland since 2016, Rolf Zaugg
They were members of the Swiss Air Force, US Army Air Force, Royal Air Force, French Air Force (Armée de l'Air), Italian Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) In the period from 1939 -1945, then we would like to get to know you.
If you are a son or daughter, grandson or great-grandson of a member of the Swiss Air Force, US-Army Air Force, Royal Air Force, French Air Force (Armée de l'Air), Italian Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) who served in the period 1939 -1945, then we would like to get to know you.
Please contact us under : Info@b17museum.ch or 079 653 13 57
Many thanks
The Gau Tirol-Vorarlberg and the operation zone Alpsforeland, Thomas Albricht Institute for Contemporary History University of Innsbruck, Austria
The B-25 from Arbedo by Christian & Manuela Gloor
Yearbook of the municipality Maurmer 2010
In this book is among other things the story of the B-17 Little Chub contained which crashed on 24. April 1944 into the Lake - Greifensee.
Stories of the men, the missions and the machines.
Including extensive coverage of the Ground Crews.
3nd Edition, By Ken Decker
Where tradition and modernity meet. The Emmental, a diverse and varied landscape, shaped by the unpredictable Emme River and its tributaries, gives its name to the most famous cheese in the world, which is produced here on the lush alpine pastures...
Author: Bruno Lehmann, Photos Sabine Käch
D Region
Help with the book Greifensee Stories by Anette Schär. A lot has happened in the area around Lake Greifensee over the past centuries, including a chapter dedicated to the crash of the B-17G into Lake Greifensee on 24 April 1944
Hans-Heiri Stapher placed an inquiry in the Air Force Association’s newsletter in 1984 asking to correspond with former US airmen interned in Switzerland during World War II. Forrest Clark and Joe Krajewski were brought together as a result. Through Hans’s correspondence Bob Long and Jack Falk were added to the group in 1985. The four men met for dinner at Bob Long’s home in June 1985 and wondered if there was an organization for Swiss internees. They decided to start the Swiss Internees Association and to adopt a logo based on a pin available in Adelboden, Switzerland in 1945. Also, a press release program and a series of notices in magazines were devised to locate other former Swiss internees. Joe Krajewski drew the association’s logo. The four assumed the roles of the association’s trustee officers on a pro-tem basis. Bob Long was familiar with the process of incorporating an organization in New Jersey so he acted as president. Joe Krajewski worked closely with Bob and acted as vice-president. Jack Falk and Bob prepared a letter that Joe and Bob mailed to a mailing list of the internees they knew. By the August 1985 meeting, about 90 responses and a number of donations were received. They decided to open a bank account and Jack Falk was designated as treasurer and Forrest Clark as secretary. In October an organizational meeting of the Swiss Internees Association was held at McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey. Former internees from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts attended. At this meeting the group decided to incorporate for liability purposes. Since Bob, Joe, Jack, and Forrest had been acting in the roles of the association’s officers, they were voted by acclamation to become the new officers. A brief constitution was adopted along with the modified logo, membership card, decal, and pin. A newsletter was authorized and committees were designated. Pete Merisotis chaired the Assistance Committee to help any internee who had a problem with government agencies, especially regarding assistance and POW status for internees. Other committees were Newsletter, Travel, Swiss Memorials, U.S. Air Force Museum Memorial, and Reunion. In November 1985 the paperwork for incorporation of the Swiss Internees Association was submitted. A meeting was held at Dillinger’s Restaurant in New Jersey in January 1986. Jim Mahon’s suggested slogan, Everlasting Friends, was adopted. Efforts to located former internees were actively pursued. The Swiss Internees Association was officially incorporated in New Jersey in February 1986. The association became a 501(c) 3 tax-deductible organization in June 1986. The newsletter was renamed The Swiss Internee in August. Frank Hoch suggested a reunion in Washington, D.C. at the LeEnfant Plaza Hotel. Jack and Edith Falk were traveling to Washington, D.C. so they made the arrangements for first reunion of the Swiss Internees Association, Inc. there in November 1986. Forrest Clark resigned as secretary early in 1986 and Jim Goings was voted in this position by the end of the year.
STRANGERS IN A STRANGE LAND
Assistance in the compilation of the Inventory of Armed Forces and War Memorials of Switzerland. Many thanks for the pleasant and good cooperation with the Defense Group / General Secretariat DDPS, Swiss Army Ms. Fabienne Meyer, M.A. Project Manager INVENTARIO, Army Staff.
Inventory of Armed Forces and War Memorials of Switzerland at the following links:
https://www.admin.ch/gov/de/start/dokumentation/medienmitteilungen.msg-id-85641.html
https://www.vtg.admin.ch/de/die-schweizer-armee/geschichte-der-schweizer-armee/inventario.html
Under Documents / Inventory / Links are the total inventory / inventory of the army and war monuments of Switzerland for download as a pdf-file.
The B-17 Museum Utzenstorf, Switzerland is partnering with American War Memorials Overseas, Inc. American War Memorials Overseas works to document, promote, and preserve non-government supported war memorials honoring Americans outside the United States to ensure that these memorials remain part of local communities forever. The mission of American War Memorials Overseas is to assist in the care of these private memorials and gravesites for which the U.S. government is not responsible. War memorials remind us of our shared past, and war memorials overseas that honor Americans are an important symbol of America's international commitment. American War Memorials Overseas is committed to working with other organizations internationally, nationally, and locally to better secure the future of war memorials honoring Americans overseas in their social and historical context.
Learn more: https://www.uswarmemorials.org/
AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION Booklet
The B-17 Museum Utzenstorf supports students with their semester- and diploma theses with its knowledge and archives about the US-Army Airforce in Switzerland from 1943 -1945.
"Rolf Zaugg, who has made it his life's work to make the transition from the social memory of those affected and their descendants to the cultural memory of our society."
Quote: J. Flückiger, Historyen Social History
Co-authoring of history and examination papers on Swiss-Interness in Switzerland during WWII with students from Pennsylvania State University Under the direction of Douglas Anderson, Professor and Department Chairman; Ph.D., Penn State. Douglas Anderson is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Pennsylvania State University. His main interests are the history of American philosophy, aesthetics and the relationship between history and idealism.
The Archive focuses on people’s stories of RAF Bomber Command and the bombing war in Europe, 1939-1945, from multiple perspectives : on the ground and in the air, military and civilian, and on both sides of the conflict. By and large, items are from private collections in the UK and further afield.
IBCC Digital Archive. Wordsworth Hall, Riseholme Campus, Lincoln, LN6 7TS, United Kingdom
IBCC Digital Archive
The mission of The World War II Foundation is to develop an awareness and appreciation of the contributions and sacrifices made by the men and women of the Allied Forces during World War II. The Foundation’s objective is to educate current and future generations about the role those heroes played in ensuring the basic freedoms we enjoy today. The Foundation dedicates itself to this educational mission in order to instill and inspire in today’s Americans, through the example of the World War II generation, the values of unity of purpose, personal courage and shared sacrifice that they embodied – the Best of America.
World War II Fundation
Sally B is the name of one of the airworthy Boeing B-17G Flying Fortresses from 1945, the only airworthy B-17 in Europe, one of three B-17s in the United Kingdom. The aircraft is at the Imperial War Museum in Duxford, England. The Sally B flies at air shows in the UK and throughout Europe, serving as an aerial memorial to the bomber crews and fighter pilots of the US Air Force who lost their lives in Europe during the Second World War. The aircraft was dispatched to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) on June 19, 1945 as 44-85784, too late to be used actively in the war. After having been converted to a TB-17G training variant and then to an EB-17G, it was decommissioned in 1954. In 1954 the Institut Géographique National in France bought it for use as a survey aircraft. In 1975 it was moved to England, registered with the CAA as G-BEDF, and restored to its state of dispatch on June 19, 1945. The Sally B was first equipped with original turrets and other badly-needed additions for its role as Ginger Rogers, one of the B-17 bombers in the fictitious bomber unit featured in the 1981 We'll Meet Again LWT series. In the winter of 1983/84, the Sally B was painted an olive green and neutral gray instead of the bare metal pattern it had had since construction, in order to protect its airframe from Britain’s humid weather. At the same time it was given the markings of the 447th Bomber Group. The Sally B was used in the 1990 film Memphis Belle as one of five flying B-17s needed for various film scenes, and was also used to recreate the real Memphis Belle in one scene. Half of the plane is still in the Memphis Belle paintwork today, after the Sally B Nose-Art and the black and yellow checkerboard pattern on the engine cowling of the starboard internal engine (No. 3) was restored, as a tribute to Elly Sallingboe, for the companion Ted White, whose Harvard plane had the same pattern on its hood. (Sally B was redesigned to the B-17F configuration for filming.) Since 1985, Sally B has been operated by Elly Sallingboe's B-17 Preservation Ltd and is maintained by Chief Engineer Peter Brown and a team of volunteers. The aircraft is flown by experienced volunteer commercial pilots. The B17 Charitable Trust is used to raise funds to keep the aircraft running. In 2008 Elly Sallingboe was awarded the Transport Trust's Lifetime Achievement Award for more than 30 years of commitment to the preservation and operation of the UK's only airworthy Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress as a flying monument to the tens of thousands of American crew members who lost their lives in its sister aircraft during the Second World War. One of the most important events in Sally B's flight calendar is an annual tribute overflight after Memorial Day service at the American Military Cemetery in Madingley, Cambridge. This takes place on the May holiday weekend. During the summer months, flypasts over former 8th Air Force bases are also conducted whenever possible.
Sally B News Winter 2022 / 2023