B-24 Getaway Gertie Commemoration Planned to Include Diamond Lil Flyover

Oswego, New York, June 23, 2023- A comemoration ceremony for B-24 Getaway Gertie will go on rain or shine on Saturday, June 24. The event will honor the lost airmen of the B-24 Liberator Getaway Gertie, which crashed into Lake Ontario on February 18, 1944.

The program will include New York State Air National Guard’s 174th Attack Wing Honor Guard, a welcome from Oswego City Mayor Billy Barlow, an invocation with Oswego County American Legion Chaplain Debi VanSlyke, and a wreath unveiling with bugler Corey King from Fort Ontario State Historic Site. The Commemorative Air Force is scheduled to pay homage to the Getaway Gertie crew by performing a fly-over with one of the last airworthy B-24 Liberators, Diamond Lil.

A distinguished panel of speakers will pay tribute to the lost aircrew after the ceremony. They include federal, state, and local representatives, along with Bill Crist, chairman of the advisory council for the proposed Lake Ontario National Marine Sanctuary. Of note, Tom Wilber, author of “Vanishing Point: The Search for a B-24 Bomber Crew Lost on the World War II Home Front,” will take the podium to tell the story of “Getaway Gertie.” Wilber will be joined by some family members and descendants of the lost crew members.

UPDATE 6/65/23- Due to weather, the B-24 Diamond Lil was unable to do the flyover. If you have an event in which you would like to have a CAF aircraft attend or perform a flyover, please visit this linl.

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