Point of Interest

Morrell Siding B-52 Bomber Crash Site

Street Address: Morrell Siding, New Brunswick

At 12:05 p.m. on Friday 10 January 1957, a B-52 intercontinental bomber from the 70th Bomb Squadron, stationed at the Strategic US Air Force Command Base at Loring, Maine, exploded and crashed near Morrill Siding, five miles north of Perth-Andover. Traces of the wreckage can still be found. On board were the six crew members and three instructors. Eight airmen in all were killed, while the co-pilot, Captain Joseph L. Church, miraculously survived, parachuting to safety. The bomber was returning from a routine instrument training mission and was undergoing an exercise designed to test the pilot's reflexes. The pilot's vision was partially restricted, most likely by a hood, and then the aircraft was placed in "an unusual position." The pilot was expected to take the appropriate action to regain control of the aircraft. On this occasion something went drastically wrong. The stress placed on the airframe caused it to break apart and explode. This was the fourth crash of a B-52 in eleven months.

B52 Crew Lost at Morrell Siding

The B-52 bomber crew lost at Morrell Siding on completion of its training at Castle Air Force Base, Merced, CA. Co-Pilot Joseph L. Church escaped while two instructors not pictured additionally lost their lives.

Captain William C. Davidson, Pilot Instructor, age 40, married, buried Hanford, California.
Captain Richard A. Jenkins, Pilot, age 35, married, buried in Huron, Ohio.
Captain John E. McCune, Pilot Instructor, age 31, married, buried Hayward, California.
Captain Marquad H. D. Myers, Pilot Instructor, age 35, married, buried Tracey, California.
Lieutenant Charles S. Cole, Navigator, age, 27, married, buried Basin, Wyoming.
Lieutenant Andy Larson, Observer EOM Operator, married, age 26, buried New York City.
Lieutenant Walter A. Thomas, Early Warning EW Operator, age 33, buried Youngstown, Pennsylvania.
Sergeant Ray Miller, Tail-Gunner, married, age 27, buried Racine, Wisconsin.
Lieutenant Charles Samuel Cole
The fate of the aircraft's navigator epitomizes the human cost of the Cold War. Lieutenant Charles Samuel Cole completed his training with his crew at Castle Air Force Base in Merced, California in June 1956, after which they were assigned to 70 Bomb Squadron. He married Theresa Jalbert of Caribou, Maine, and the couple took up residence on Church Street in her home town. Within the year, he was killed at age 26 and was buried in his hometown of Basin, Wyoming. One week after the crash, his widow gave birth to their only child, a son named John who would never know his father.