On October 7, 1944, Captain George Tudor piloted the B-24 Liberator bomber “Burma Bound” on a mission to bomb an oil refinery in Vienna, Austria. It was his nineteenth and final combat mission. He was 27 years old.
During the bomb run, the aircraft was heavily hit by flak. Seven crew members were wounded, including Tudor himself. The hydraulic system was destroyed, meaning the plane had no brakes. Fuel was running critically low.
As they approached the island of Vis, the control tower informed them that the runway was partially blocked by a disabled B-24 and advised them to bail out. But with seven wounded aboard, bailing out was not an option.
Tudor had to land.
The crew manually cranked down the landing gear. Knowing they had no brakes, they tied parachutes to the waist gun mounts to slow the aircraft after touchdown. Tudor brought “Burma Bound” down on the short runway and deployed the parachutes. The plane stopped.
All ten crew members survived.
Early Life and Service
George Tudor was born on May 31, 1917, in Union, Iowa. He received his pilot wings in July 1943 and joined the 725th Bomb Squadron, 451st Bomber Group.
Tudor and his crew regularly flew the aircraft “Extra Joker.” But on August 23, 1944, on a mission to attack Markersdorf Airdrome, they had to switch planes because a different bomb sight was needed to lead the bomb run. That twist of fate saved their lives — their usual “Extra Joker” was shot down by German fighters that day with no survivors. The moment German fighters hit their aircraft was captured by the unit photographer who happened to be aboard Tudor’s plane that day.
For that mission, the 451st Bomber Group received a Distinguished Unit Citation — the group destroyed 29 enemy fighters in the air and 12 on the ground, while nine B-24s were shot down by the Luftwaffe.
Honors
For his courage and skill, Captain Tudor was awarded the Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, and Air Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters.
Post-War Life
After the war, Tudor married Jane Pattison in 1948 and they had two children. He spent 33 years as a pilot for American Airlines, retiring as Captain. He settled in Maine where he designed his own home and enjoyed piloting his boat, which he named “Extra Joker II” — in memory of the aircraft that saved his life by not being his to fly that day.
Tudor remained actively involved in the 451st Bomb Group Association, attending annual reunions from 1980 to 2008.
