Studiegroep Luchtoorlog 1939-1945

						Sgt. William Owens was the nose gunner of B-24 42-51095 ‘Shoo Shoo Baby’ who bailed out with five other crewmembers near Vollenhove early in the afternoon of June 29, 1944. He was brought to Vollenhove by members of the Dutch resistance where he was given civilian clothes and some food. Together with Sgt. Everett Allen (E0580) he travelled from Vollenhove via Meppel by train to Amsterdam. They were taken to a hiding address in the eastern part of the Dutch capital where they joined their fellow crewmembers Sgt. Billy Davis (E0583), 2/Lt. Frederick Erdmann (E0584), 2/Lt. John O. Fullerton (E0585) and Sgt. Frank K. Peichoto (E0587)

At this address they were provided with false identity cards and shortly there after they all moved to Zaandam where they stayed for about a week. Food was in short supply here and next to that there were a lot of Germans around. Henk van Cleef and Ernst Smidt van Gelder took care of the six Americans and decided to move them. The group was split and Erdmann, Peichoto and Owens were the first to leave. Escorted by van Cleef and Smidt van Gelder, they travelled by train to Veghel on July 4. At the station there, they were handed over to members of the Otten family who took the airmen to their home at Kerkstraat 6 in Erp, the so called Pyama House. Fullerton, Allen and Davis followed on 7 July when they joined Peichoto in the safe house of the Otten family.

By that time, Owens and Erdmann had already left on their way to Belgium. On 5 July they were taken by bicycle from Erp to Cor van Laanen in Dinther and from there they travelled via Schijndel to Tilburg. From Tilburg they were taken to Antwerp, probably by Piet Felix of Groep André, but unfortunately their Belgian guides worked for the German Gestapo. They were arrested in Antwerp on July 18 and became Prisoners of War. Owens eventually ended up in Stalag Luft IV Gross Tychow.