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| Lt. Reid Griffiths was a bomardier in the 100th Bombardment Group. |
Reid was born on December 8, 1918 in Rigby, Idaho. His parents Brigham and Adrien were born in Utah. His father worked as a home decorator. Reid had two older brother and three older sisters. In 1940, he had completed four years of high school and was working in a grocery store.
Reid enlisted in the USAAF in January 1942 as an aviation cadet, and upon completion of his training was assigned to the 351st Bomber Squadron of the 100th Bomber Group, Eighth Air Force in September 1943. 2nd Lt. Griffiths served as a bombardier aboard B-17F Flying Fortress heavy bombers flying out of Thorpe Abbots, England. The 100th BG became known as the “Bloody Hundredth” after suffering heavy combat losses in June thru October 1943 during the strategic bombing campaign of France and Germany.
On October 10, 1943 2nd Lt. Griffiths was flying his tenth combat mission aboard B-17F “Shack Rat” when the 100th BG sent 13 aircraft as part of a larger force of 236 bombers to attack the German city of Munster. The Luftwaffe sent up 350 fighters to engage the American force, and flak over the target was intense. Of the 13 B-17s the 100th BG sent out on the raid, only one returned to base. The “Shack Rat” was hit by flak and crashed near Munster, 2nd Lt. Griffiths and seven other crew members were killed in action and two became prisoners of war.
Lt. Griffiths was initially buried at Muenchen-Gladbach Cemetery and was later reinterred in Larkin Sunset Lawn Cemetery in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Thank you Reid for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Reid.
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This profile was written by Bob Fuerst. "I’m a NASA engineer, B-17 Flying Fortress enthusiast, and amateur genealogist so this kind of research is an ideal outlet for me. But more than anything, it’s a way to express my sincere appreciation for The Greatest Generation and the sacrifices that they made, especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice. They should never be forgotten and I’m grateful to Don for allowing me to play a small part in honoring them."
Last year on this date I profiled Medal of Honor hero Joseph Sadowski of the 4th Armored Division. You can read about Joseph here.
On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!
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The Greatest Generation. He paid it all for our freedom. Thank you.
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