The 381st Bomb Group welcomes you to their official 381st Bombardment Group
(Heavy) Memorial Association (381st BGMA) website. The 381st Bomb Group was a
B-17 Flying Fortress unit based at Ridgewell, England, Station 167, as part of the mighty
Eighth Air Force from 1943 to 1945. The group flew in the 1st Combat Wing, First Air
Division of the 8th Army Air Force and completed 297 combat missions from June 1943
until April 1945.
The memorial association is comprised of all elements of the 381st Bomb Group
including the four combat squadrons (532nd, 533rd, 534th, and 535th), the commands of the
432nd Air Service Group, and numerous ground units. Our 500+ members represent
381st WWII veterans, their descendants, and friends of the 381st. The association has
celebrated annual reunions since 1978 with the sole exception of Covid year 2020. We
meet to honor the 619 fallen, POWs, and all 381st veterans together with preserving
381st history. Our reunion for 2024 will be held within the larger 8th Air Force
Historical Society reunion in New Orleans, LA from Sept 25-29, 2024. Full details are
available at www.8thafhs.org You must be a member of the 381st BGMA to attend our
reunions.
In addition to the annual reunions, the 381st BGMA association publishes historical
information on this website, responds to research questions, and maintains a large
independent archive of photograph collections, transcribed war records, and other 381st
historical information. We also offer a college scholarship to a 381st descendant and
have designed, funded, and constructed 381st memorials around the US and at the
Ridgewell base.
The association was formed in 1977 at an Eighth Air Force Association reunion when six
381st BG veterans decided to try to find other group veterans and hold collateral
meetings at the 8th AF reunions. They found about twenty other 381st BG veterans and
held their first independent meeting at Hershey, PA, in 1978 with John Wierman as host.
T. Paxton “Pax” Sherwood was a driving force behind the early years of the association.
The association has held annual reunions honoring the group each year since 1978.
The purpose of the association is “to encourage fraternal activities, foster patriotism and
loyalty, maintain historical records, assist members of the association and their families,
maintain allegiance to the United States, and to preserve and defend it from all enemies.”
(from the association constitution adopted in 1989).
Become An Association Member
Annual dues for membership in the association are $25.00 per year. Click on the “print” button to print a copy of the form, fill it out, and mail it to the address provided. We welcome you to the group!