 |
NAME Louis Arthur Lahr |
NICKNAME — |
SERVICE NUMBER 374357 |
|
| UNIT VMSB-143 Turret Gunner |
HOME OF RECORD Cut Bank, MT |
NEXT OF KIN Mother, Mrs. Anna C. Lahr |
||
| DATE OF BIRTH July 14, 1923 in Cut Bank, MT |
ENTERED SERVICE April 23, 1942 in Butte, MT |
DATE OF LOSS March 21, 1943 |
||
| REGION Solomon Islands |
CAMPAIGN / AREA Bougainville |
CASUALTY TYPE Missing In Action Declared Dead March 22, 1945 |
||
| CIRCUMSTANCES OF LOSS PFC Louis Lahr was an Avenger turret gunner assigned to VMSB-143, a Marine torpedo bomber squadron operating out of Henderson Field, Guadalcanal. On the night of 21 March 1943, 2Lt. Ellis Matheson’s crew was one of forty assigned to sow mines off the coast of Bougainville. The mission was flown in darkness and under strict radio silence. Despite a stretch of bad weather near Guadalcanal, the target area was clear and the mine drop a success. Lt. Matheson’s bomber (TBF-1 Bureau Number 06091) was the only aircraft that failed to return from the mission. The entire crew – Matheson, Sergeant Harold G. Gay, and PFC Lahr – were reported as missing in action. Their status was changed to “declared dead” on 22 March 1945. |
||||
| INDIVIDUAL DECORATIONS Air Medal, Purple Heart |
LAST KNOWN RANK Private First Class |
STATUS OF REMAINS Not recovered. |
MEMORIALS Crown Hill Cemetery, Cut Bank, MT Manila American Cemetery |
|
Biography:
Coming soon. Contact the webmaster for more information about this Marine.
Articles & Records:
