Donald L. Alyea, World War II CasualtyPorter County Data on World War II Casualties . . . .
Donald L. Alyea
Sergeant, Gunner, 773rd Bomber Squadron, 463rd Bomber Group, US Army Air
Force
Date of Birth: 1925
Date of Death: December 10, 1944 (officially declared dead January 12, 1946)
Burial: Tablets of The Missing, Florence American Cemetery, Italy
Cause of Death: Missing in Action (B-17 bomber lost over Adriatic Sea)
Date of Enlistment: October 6, 1943
Awards: Purple Heart, Air Medal
Hometown: Hebron
Newspaper Notices:
3 Wounded In European Front Area
Three Porter county men today were listed as having been wounded in action.
At the same time further word was received of a Hebron Yank missing in action.
Pfc. Robert Henderlong, 25, was wounded in Luxembourg, on January 15, according
to word received Thursday by his wife, who resides with his parents, Mr. and
Mrs. Louis Henderlong, 652 Chicago street. Pfc. Henderlong has been overseas 21
months, and has been in Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and Germany.
Pfc. Bernard Ryan, of Hebron, was wounded in action on December 20, in Belgium,
according to word received by his sister, Mrs. Irvin Orr, of Hebron. This is the
second time Pfc. Ryan has been hospitalized, the first time the result of
injuries when the glider plane in which he was being transported crashed.
Pvt. Louis J. Searle, of Hebron RFD 2, was reported wounded in the European
area, according to a War Department release today.
Louis Alyea, father of Sgt. Donald Alyea, of Hebron, reported missing on Dec. 10 over Adriatic sea, has
received a letter from Major Gen. N. F. Twing giving details. Don's group
encountered extremely adverse weather conditions over the Adriatic sea while
enroute to the target. As the group proceeded, visibility became more and more
limited until a point was reached where the flight commander ordered the ships
to return to Italy. When the formations emerged from the overcast Don's plane
was nowhere to be seen. Major Gen. Twing stated that Don had been awarded the
Air Medal.
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Source: The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso, Porter County, Indiana;
February 3, 1945; Volume 18, Page 1, Column 2
DONALD L. ALYEA 35896241 - Before school was out in 1943 Donald Alyea enlisted
in the Army Air Force. He attended school in the Southwest and in Nevada before
his squadron was formed in Florida in 1944. He was assigned to the 15th Air
Force in Italy in October and was based at Foggio Air Base. His squadron was
credited for the final raids on oil refineries in Polesti, Rumania. The
squadron's final missions were directed at the Eastern front in support of the
Russian Armies. Sergeant Alyea was lost on his nineteenth mission which was
directed on Munich, Germany, on December 10, 1944. He was officially declared
dead on December 11, 1945.
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Source: History Committee. 1990.
Charter Centennial: Hebron, Indiana, 1890-1990.
Hebron, Indiana: Star Printing. 120 p. [page 9]
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List of
Porter County World War II Casualties
Information abstracted and transcribed by Steven R. Shook