US Army Air Corps Tech Sergeant Walter "Rick" Adell McClellan was born in St. Augustine, Florida on August 28, 1925, the son of Robert Harry McClellan (1902-1980) and Amy Elizabeth "Bessie" Raley (1904-1994). In 1932, the family moved to Pensacola where his father supported the family in a variety of ways such as a collector for a furniture company in 1930, and in 1940 as a painting contractor. At that time, the family was living in Walter's last Pensacola home at 616 East Belmont Street, which the family was renting for $15.00 per month.
When the war began, Walter was working at NAS Pensacola in the Assembly & Repair building. Rather than wait to be inducted and be sent where the military wanted you, Walter enlisted and volunteered for the US Army Air Corp in November 1943 and was sent to Camp Blanding for processing. After basic, he was sent to the radio operator schools at Gulfport and Sioux Falls. When finished, he was assigned to the 366th Bomb Squadron of the 305th Bombardment Group stationed in Chelveston, England.
On April 17, 1945, Walter and his fellow crewmen in the B-17 named "Towering Titan" took off from Cheveston to bomb the rail depot and marshaling yards in Dresden, Germany. Southwest of the target area, enemy ME 262 "Swallow" jet fighters attacked the formation from the rear and lost several planes to the B-17 gunners. According to the German pilot's report, at 1412 hours, two ME 262 fighters took up positions alongside Walter's bomber. The Titan's gunners shot one down, which exploded while the remaining fighter quickly got in front so the gunners could not bring their guns to bear. In response, Lt. Harris dropped the Titan down to allow the upper turret gunner to fire, but the fighter took evasive action and inadvertently collided with the Titan. Walter's bomber went into a gradual dive and crashed south of Dresden. No parachutes were seen, and it was assumed all eight crewmen were dead. However, Walter miraculously was able to bail out and was immediately captured, interrogated by torture and executed by enemy SS forces after being forced to dig his own grave. His remains were moved to the village cemetery of Burkhardswalde where it was tended to by a local pastor.
American military authorities were notified of the grave's existence in 2007, exhumed in 2008, and brought home to Pensacola and buried in Barrancas National Cemetery in 2010. As for the remaining members of the crew, it was assumed through testimony that they were buried in a mass grave near the crash site of the Titan. Interviewed by WEAR-TV at the time of his final burial, his sister June stated, "He was just an average boy, but he meant the world to us!"
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