On 5 Apr 44, 2nd Lt. Gambale was the bombardier on B-24J #42-73435, one of a group of three planes on a strike mission against the rail line between Rangoon, Burma and Bangkok, Siam. They had dropped two bombs on their first bomb run when hit by ground fire. The plane hit the ground and exploded. Gambale and two others were able to bail out shortly before the crash and became prisoners of war. The other eight men aboard were killed.
2Lt. Gene (NMI) Gambale
10th Air Force / 7th Bombardment Group / 9th Bombardment Squadron
Bombardier - Kauffman Crew
Enlisted: 10 Sep 42
Distinguished Flying Cross Air Medal
Purple Heart
Prisoner Of War
Killed In Rangoon Central Jail Prison Camp - 10 Aug 44
(Image Courtesy of Gambale Family)
Lt. Gambale's Arlington National Cemetery Headstone
On 10 Aug 44, while held in the Rangoon Central Jail POW camp, he was beaten to death by Japanese guards.
Because his body was not recovered, he is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing.
On 17 May 46, a C-47B cargo plane took off from Rangoon carrying the remains of Gambale and approximately forty other service men who died as prisoners of war. They were to be returned to the United States. However, the plane crashed in a storm in India, killing the three man crew as well as the eight passengers from the American Graves Registration Service. The wreckage was discovered in 2009, and efforts are being made to return the remains to the US.
Lt. Gambale's Find-A-Grave.com Memorial
9th BS Personnel
7th BG Personnel
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