Nolan B Cargile

1st Lt Nolan B. Cargile graduated from Hope High School in 1938 and attended Louisiana State Normal, Oklahoma Military Academy, and Tulsa University. | | He joined the Army Air Corps in October 1940 and was sent overseas on 19 May 1942, | | The primary target as briefed was Wilhelmshaven in Germany, but due to severe weather and poor navigation, it was decided to hit a “target of opportunity” at Lemmer in the Netherlands. On the way back, the formation was attacked by Me 109s and FW 190s, numbering about 36. A few minutes later, at 1155 hours, the aircraft severely damaged an attacking FW 190 and apparently killed the pilot. This enemy aircraft then crashed into the left wing tip, tearing off the left wing as well as the tail assembly. The aircraft went into a flat spin and crashed into the rather shallow Wadden Sea, as did the FW. No one was able to parachute and there were no survivors. Despite a large-scale search by both the Germans and Dutch, only the bodies of three American airmen were found and identified. | | 1st Lt Cargile is remembered at the Rose Hill Cemetery in Hope, Hempstead County, Arkansas.