Aviation Museum Honors Bomber Pilot Killed in WWII

Pease, a pilot with the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, was shot down August 7, 1942, during a raid of the Japanese-occupied island of Rabaul, New Britain, in Papua New Guinea. Pease's aircraft crashed behind enemy lines and the crew was presumed killed in action.

The wreckage remained lost in the jungle until it was found in the 1980s. Since then, the site has been visited and wreckage removed for study and as collectibles on the WWII  collectible  market.

Saturday, an authenticated fragment of Pease's B-17 was presented to the museum by Derry, New Hampshire, residents Steve and Gisela Heffelfinger, who recently acquired the artifact. Steve is a volunteer at the museum as a manager of its archives.

Pease's B-17E with serial number 41-2429 was shot down as it returned from a successful mission to attack the Vunakanau Airfield on Rabaul.

It was presumed that the entire crew was lost in the crash. Following the war, however, two Catholic priests who were in a Japanese prison camp in Rabaul came forward and said that both Pease and another crewman survived the crash and were captured and executed by the Japanese in October 1942.

The Pease family was presented the Medal of Honor, the U.S. military's highest award for valor from President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Museum officials said that Pease is the only aviator from New Hampshire to receive this honor. 

In 1957, Portsmouth Air Force Base was renamed Pease Air Force Base in his honor.

According to museum officials, the B-17 fragment is showcased in a presentation frame created by aviation artist Ron Cole. The frame includes a depiction of the aircraft in flight as well as historical information to place the fuselage piece in context.

“We are honored to take possession of this important and real link to Captain Harl Pease, one of the Granite State’s great heroes of military aviation,” said Jeff Rapsis, executive director of the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire 

“This piece of the fuselage of the B-17E that Captain Pease was flying when it was shot down in 1942 will aid us in telling the story of his service and his sacrifice to visitors and especially young people, so that it will not be forgotten. It was with him then, and we are honored to have it with us now."