John J Hess ★ World War II Gold Star Veteran from New York
John J Hess
World War II
➧We do not have a verified profile image in our archive for this service member. Our research team is working to locate and study additional supporting documentation.
On March 7, 1945 Staff Sergeant Hess was declared a casualty of World War II. ★ He served with honor in the United States Army Air Forces. ★ He is remembered by the people of New York. ★ May his positive example inspire us. Working together towards peace, mutual respect, and equality for all.
We all benefit when we work together to honor fallen American service members. The Honor States archive is a grassroots initiative. Of the people, by the people, for the people.
Click to Submit Update Request for this Fallen Service Member▼ Content Integrity Note
Our displayed data concerning the life and military history of John J Hess is a work in progress. We've assembled a list of elements we are in the process of researching and reviewing. This profile was last edited on 2021-04-10 06:31:07.
Missing : Core Data
· Profile image or portrait· Middle name
· Birth date
· Enlistment type
· Date of tour or service
Missing : Supplemental Data
· Birth + childhood location· Educational background
· Marriage history
· Parents, family history
· Expanded references and citations
Service Details
| This Profile ID | 349164 |
| Service ID | 12073495 |
| Name | John J Hess |
| From | Buffalo, Erie County, New York |
| Casualty Date | March 7, 1945 |
| War | World War II |
| Service Branch | Army Air Forces |
| Rank | Staff Sergeant |
| Specialty | Observer |
| Unit/Group | 43rd Bomber Group, Heavy, 403rd Bomber Squadron |
| Casualty Type | Missing in Action |
| Location | Balete Pass, Luzon, Philippines |
| Burial | Tablets of the Missing Manila American Cemetery Manila, Philippines |
| Notable Awards |
★ Air Medal
★ Purple Heart |
| Remembered | 
John J Hess is buried or memorialized at Tablets of the Missing Manila American Cemetery Manila, Philippines. This is an American Battle Monuments Commission location. |
Additional Details
On March 7, 1945 he was on the crew of the B-24J Liberator #44-41481 when they took off from Tacloban Airfield in the Philippines for a bombing mission to Balete Pass in northern Luzon. Weather conditions were very poor with higher elevations obscured by clouds.It was reported that they crashed into a mountain near the target area. All men on the crew were declared missing, never recovered. They were one of two bombers lost on that mountain during the mission. B-24 (44-40979) also crashed under similar conditions. Apparently, due to the weather, they were flying by instruments. Charts showed the mountain was 5,000 feet, however it was in fact 400 feet higher. On this other aircraft, six men were killed, while five others survived, all with injuries. We identified 11 casualties in our archive related to the #44-41481 incident on March 7, 1945.
◼John J Hess :: Observer
We identified 6 casualties related to the associated incident #44-40979.
|
Commendations + Awards
Please note this might not be a complete or completely accurate accounting. For some awards we use probability factors based on known service details. Thanks for your understanding.
★ Air Medal
★ Purple Heart
★ World War II Victory Medal
★ American Campaign Medal
★ Army Presidential Unit Citation
★ Army Good Conduct Medal
★ Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
Notable Reference Sources
These are typically links to pages on external sites that have provided specific nodes of information. In most cases the information has some assurance of being crowd-sourced and vetted by a community of users.New York Gold Star Veterans Gallery
Honoring the men and women of New York who gave their all for their country. May their example of courage and sacrifice be our guide. To be strong and responsible in our lives as citizens of the world. Through honest daily actions, we honor them.
▼ New York was home to over 30,000 American Gold Star veterans from 4 wars of the 20th Century. Some significant statistics:
• 6,362 World War I
• 16,842 World War II
• 2,672 Korean War
• 4,124 Vietnam War
• 397 Prisoners of war
• 8,601 Missing in action
• 94 Pearl Harbor casualties
• 329 D-Day Normandy casualties
• 40 Medal of Honor recipients
• 16,842 World War II
• 2,672 Korean War
• 4,124 Vietnam War
• 397 Prisoners of war
• 8,601 Missing in action
• 94 Pearl Harbor casualties
• 329 D-Day Normandy casualties
• 40 Medal of Honor recipients
Guardians of Honor Credits
▼ Organizational Supporters - HonorStates.org and the National Unified Archive of American Gold Star Veterans is stringently curated. This attention to quality extends to our supporters program. We carefully research and screen prospective organizations we perceive as being suitably aligned with our mission
▼ Balboa Park Veterans Museum
▼ National D-Day Memorial
▼ Rolling Thunder National Riders
▼ Walgreens Supported National Memorial Day Parade
▼ Research Contributors - Groups and individuals who have been directly responsible for curating content. Some are experienced historians and archivists, others are enthusiastic members of the public who have suggested content additions or corrections.
Honor States Admin
Roy "Joker"
Sarah Jo "Lady Chaos"
▼ Primary Sources - These are repositories for artifacts, documents, diaries, manuscripts, and other information that serve as original and authoritative sources of information.
National Archives (NARA)
Library of Congress (LOC)
Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA)
Findagrave.com
Ancestry.com
Honoring our fallen. Together. Uniting us in meaningful common cause. When we work together to honor our Gold Star veterans, we heal our nation together. It's a team effort. Everyone's invited to join as a Citizen Historian and Guardian of Honor. - learn more
Here is Some Important Information!
USS Midway Museum 75th Pearl Harbor Wall of Honor
Located at the harbor in downtown San Diego, California at Navy Pier. The USS Midway is a living, floating museum, housing an extensive collection of aircraft, many of which were built in Southern California. USS Midway saw active duty from 1945 to 1992. Approximately 200,000 sailors proudly served onboard. In 2016 the USS Midway hosted one of the premier events honoring the 75th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Among the featured memorials was a Wall of Honor with over 1000 images of the fallen. Researched by the Honor States Group.
★ Featured National Supporter
Our Supporters are Essential Team Members! - learn more
Collin - Your site is providing educational benefits. Kids especially really need to know of the supreme gifts of their freedom.
Janine - I appreciate the opportunity to learn about the lives of American's who gave all for their country. We owe them everything!
Margaret - Thank you for all the hard work you've put into this project. I know you have a small team and are determined to do your best.
Erica - It makes me happy to Honor the fallen while helping research their backgrounds. I'm eager to get my family involved.
Copyright 2024, Created in the USA
General Disclaimer - This is a private sector project developed by Hello Pineapple LLC. Although we enter into collaborative associations with many supporting organizations, this site is not owned or operated by any Government body. All information found on this site has been obtained through fair use public contributions. We've done our best to craft a valuable and comprehensive product for the benefit of our world's collective history, however we make no claims of 100% accuracy. :)
Furthermore, the information provided on this website is for informational purposes only and is not intended as legal or contractural advice. Parts of this website may include sections that may be considered advertising in a broad sense. All information is current at the time of publication, however it is subject to change by it's very nature.