Hometown: Akron, OH
Branch: U.S. Army (Air Forces)
Unit: 93rd Bomber Group (Heavy), 328th Bomber Squadron, 8th Air Force
Military Honors: Medal of Honor, Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, Air Medal (3)
Date of Sacrifice: August 1, 1943 - KIA near Ploiesti, Romania 
Age: 36
Conflict: World War II, 1939-1945

Addison Baker was born in Chicago, Illinois, on January 1, 1907. Shortly after, his family moved to Coventry Township south of Akron, Ohio, when his father took a job at the B.F. Goodrich company.

Baker attended Central High School in Akron, but was not cut out to sit in school. In an interview with the Akron Beacon Journal, Baker’s grandniece, Mary Ostrow said, “When he would go into school, he would go in the front door and out the back. He was a little bit of a wild child.”

Addison left school early and eventually joined the U.S. Army, enlisting at Fort Hayes in Columbus, Ohio, on January 17, 1929. After serving for a year at Fort Crockett in Galveston, Texas, he went through flight school training at Brooks and Kelly Fields in Texas, and earned his pilot’s wings on February 27, 1931. Three years after enlisting, Baker married his sweetheart, Frances Rodgers.

Baker served for a time at Selfridge Field in Michigan. In February 1932, he left active duty. He joined to the Army Reserve in 1939, and was called back to active duty a year later.

The U.S. Department of Defense recounts, “He worked his way up to the rank of lieutenant colonel by the time the United States was heavily involved in World War II. During the summer of 1943, Baker was stationed in North Africa and was the commander of the 328th Bombardment Squadron's 93rd Heavy Bomb Group.”

On August 1, 1943, Lt. Col. Addison Baker was a squadron leader for a massive and daring mission to destroy “Hitler’s gas station” in Ploesti, Romania. Code named Operation Tidal Wave, a total of 117 B-24 Liberator bombers with more than 1,700 U.S. airmen aboard took off from an airfield near Benghazi, Libya.

The strategic importance of the Ploesti refineries could not be overstated, as they provided nearly a third of the oil fueling the Nazi war machine, Allied commanders hoped its destruction would deliver a decisive blow to German ambitions.

What made the mission so risky was that the refineries were heavily defended. To preserve the element of surprise, the 117 long-distance heavy bombers would fly low to evade German radar—but in closer range of anti-aircraft guns. The difficulty of flying the B-24 at low altitudes required two pilots. Flying the “Hell’s Wench” was squadron commander Lt. Col. Baker and his co-pilot, Maj. John “Jack” Jerstad.

According to Katie Lange of U.S. Department of Defense News:

[Hell’s Wench] was the first aircraft in the second of five formations that flew for 18 hours on the 2,400-mile roundtrip trek. As they neared the target area, Baker and several other pilots noticed that the mission’s lead pilot, Col. K.K. Compton, turned at the wrong point and was heading toward Bucharest instead of Ploiesti. Records show that Compton didn’t respond to calls to warn him of the error, so Baker made a split decision—he broke formation and led the rest of the men in the 93rd Bomb Group back on the right track.

Lt. Col. Baker’s B-24 Liberator was the first bomber to reach the target. On their approach, Hell’s Wench was hit by an anti-aircraft artillery fire. The plane was badly damaged and ablaze.

Baker was over terrain where they could have abandoned the mission and attempted a crash-landing. But he and Maj. Jerstad chose instead to lead the attack and deliver their bombs to the target. They successfully completed their mission.

After dropping their bombs, the two pilots attempted to increase altitude enough for the crew to parachute out safely. The Hell’s Wench was too badly damaged, and crashed in flames. There were no survivors.

According to the U.S. Department of Defense, “The raid destroyed 42 percent of the refining facility, striking a heavy blow to the Germans for several weeks. However, it took a heavy toll on the Allies, too. Fifty-four bombers were lost, and 532 of the 1,726 personnel involved had died, were missing or were taken prisoner.”

Five men from the daring mission were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor: Lt. Col. Addison Baker, Maj. John Jerstad, Lt. Lloyd Hughes, Col. Leon Johnson, and Col. John Kane.

Lt. Col. Baker’s Medal of Honor Citation reads:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action with the enemy on 1 August 1943. On this date he led his command, the 93d Heavy Bombardment Group, on a daring low-level attack against enemy oil refineries and installations at Ploesti, Rumania. Approaching the target, his aircraft was hit by a large-caliber antiaircraft shell, seriously damaged, and set on fire. Ignoring the fact he was flying over terrain suitable for safe landing, he refused to jeopardize the mission by breaking up the lead formation and continued unswervingly to lead his group to the target upon which he dropped his bombs with devastating effect. Only then did he leave formation, but his valiant attempts to gain sufficient altitude for the crew to escape by parachute were unavailing and his aircraft crashed in flames after his successful efforts to avoid other planes in formation. By extraordinary flying skill, gallant leadership, and intrepidity, Lt. Col. Baker rendered outstanding, distinguished, and valorous service to our nation.

Lt. Col. Baker’s remains were recovered but not identified after the crash. He was first buried in the Hero Section of the Civilian and Military Cemetery of Bolovan, Romania.

According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, “In 2017, DPAA began exhuming unknowns believed to be associated with unaccounted-for airmen from Operation TIDAL WAVE losses. These remains were sent to the DPAA Laboratory at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, for examination and identification.”

Through the dedicated work of the DPAA scientists, Lt. Col. Baker’s remains were positively identified on April 8, 2022, using DNA from surviving family members.

On September 12, 2022—nearly 80 years after he courageously carried out his mission—a horse-drawn cart brought Lt. Col. Addison Earl Baker down a paved road at Arlington National Cemetery, where he was buried with full military honors (Section 403, Site 78).

Lt. Col. Baker’s name is engraved on the Tablets of the Missing at the Florence American Cemetery in Impruneta, Italy. As is customary, a rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been found.

Sources
U.S. Department of Defense, Medal of Honor Monday: Army Air Forces Lt. Col. Addison Baker
Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency: Medal of Honor Pilot Accounted For From World War II (Baker, A.)
Air Force Historical Support Division: Baker—Lt Col Addison Baker
Congressional Medal of Honor Society: Addison Earl Baker
Akron Beacon Journal, Sep. 14, 2022: WWII pilot from Coventry Township finds final resting spot at Arlington National Cemetery
U.S. Department of Defense, Medal of Honor Monday: Army Maj. John Jerstad
Burial Site: Find a Grave