Eugene M. POTTER

P-47 Thunderbolt - type D-22-RE - s/n 42-25881

Macr : 6645

Mission : Reconnaissance armée

Décollage terrain A-3 Cardonville (14)

Crash observé par 2Lt Henry L. OLSEN

Collision en combat aérien avec un chasseur Focke Wulf 190 

piloté par Theo NAU

CIMETIERE PROVISOIRE de -- N°--

Histoire des Cimetières Provisoires 

Plan du Cimetière Américain de St James

VISITS CHERBOURG
Gene's last letter to his brother revealed that he had visited Cherbourg just two hours after the fall of the city.

"The colonel got permission for six pilots to visit the front lines. I was one of the first to ask, so I got to go.

"When we were in Cherbourg the fighting was still on. So, we pulled off to one side of the street--and I about jumped out of my skin. There sat a Jerry, looking straight at me. He even had a gun in his hand.

"I almost died until I saw he was dead.

"Except for that day off, I have been busy flying every day, dive-bombing and strafing the Hun. Blew up a staff car that was belting down the road.

GETS IN EARLY
Capt. Potter began training in the Canadian air force in the winter of 1940-41. He was a member of the first American squadron to fight on foreign soil, the Eagle squadron. Those were the men that didn't wait for this country to get into the war before getting at the Nazis.

Never one to boast, Capt. Potter failed, in his many letters home, to mention the number of Nazi planes he shot down, although dispatches from England long ago termed him an ace and frequently mentioned his victories.

In a letter received from the air force group chaplain, Capt. Donald Cleary, he states, in part:

"In some cases I have been able to hold out some hope that the boys listed as missing in action would return, but in the case of your brother the circumstances do not seem to permit even this hope. He was very popular with the boys and we miss him very much."

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS HERALD, ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILLINOIS, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 1944, FRONT PAGE

Eugene KILLED IN ACTION
Capt. Eugene Potter, fighter pilot, has been officially declared killed in action according to word received by his brother, Edward, of Arlington Heights. Gene was reported missing in action July 7. At that time an air force chaplain wrote that there was little hope for his safety. The German government through the International Red Cross, has reported that Capt. Potter was killed in action.

Gene entered the Canadian air force in the winter of '40-'41. He went to England as a member of the first American squadron to fight on English soil. His group was dubbed the "Eagle Squadron."

Capt. Potter was later transferred to the American air force. It was announced a month ago that he had been awarded the distinguished flying cross and the air medal with a silver oak leaf and six bronze clusters.

Gene attended Arlington Heights schools, and later held a job with a metropolitan daily, before entering the air force.

Submitted by Eric Ackerman