The 303rd Bomber Group was the command group, followed by the 379th Bomber Group. Around 2:30 p.m., the first wave of attacks began and less than half an hour later, the second bomber group reached Oranienburg. The main target was the Heinkel Plant 2. The Waffen-SS Main Vehicle Office, a brick factory, a research station for high-altitude flights, and railway lines were also damaged.
After jettisoning their bombs, Vito’s plane exploded and he was the only survivor. There are two different accounts of how he managed to survive. The first account describes the plane as being hit with flak which caused the plane to explode and ejected Vito out of the airplane.
The second and more plausible account states that the American bombers were on their northeast departure when the formation was attacked by German Me 262 jet fighters. The plane was hit on the right wing and rapidly lost altitude, after which the bombardier Carl Hammarlund and navigator Harold Smith exited the plane through the emergency escape hatch. Vito tried to get out the same way, but his shoe got caught in the structure of the opening. Then the bomber exploded. Vito was ejected out of the aircraft and descended to the ground via his parachute.
Five bomber sand a North American P-51 Mustang fighter were shot down during the run. A witness on the ground reported seeing the crash of an American fighter and bomber. He observed several crew members leaving the B-17 before the bomber disappeared in an easterly direction behind the edge of a forest. Later, the witness claimed to have heard that this bomber crashed into Lake Glasow near Groß Schönebeck. Research revealed that the bomber was probably "Henn's Revenge".
Vito was severely wounded and parachuted down with abdominal and leg injuries. After landing he was discovered by German civilians and set upon with pitchforks and scythes. He was rescued by German soldiers who cast him into a box car where he laid for three days without food, water, nor medical attention.
Later he was interrogated and subjected to hours of questioning and much abuse. He refused to talk despite being hung up by his hands while still suffering from his unattended wounds.
Vito said he owes his life due to the kindness of a young German nurse who asked pity for him. He was then sent to a POW camp of several nationalities and was fed a watery soup and a piece of bread each day. Fortunately, 28 days after he was captured, his camp was liberated by advancing American troops. He was flown to a hospital in Paris for medical treatment and later was flown to New York where he was able to contact his parents and announce his safe arrival.
Between 1945and 1947, the remains of four crew members were found on the shores of Lake Glasow. They were initially buried in the cemetery in Groß Schönebeck and transferred to an American military cemetery in Belgium in August 1947. During an investigation in 1948, three of the four remains were clearly identified; the fourth could only be identified by DNA analysis in 2014. In 1951, the remains of co-pilot Lawrence L. Fries Jr. were found. To this day, there is no trace of Commander Robert I. Murray and it is believed that his remains are in Lake Glasow.
In civilian life, Vito received a doctorate in Aeronautical Engineering from the University of Bridgeport while he worked for Sikorsky. He was a gifted mathematician and later worked at Fairchild as an aeronautical engineer, on the wing design for the Fairchild A-10 Thunderbolt II. Despite his long career in aviation, Vito used to caution his family that flying was very dangerous.
Vito passed away at the age of 81, on September 21, 2006. He was awarded the Air Medal with six Oak Leaf Clusters, the Purple Heart, the European Campaign Medal, a Good Conduct Medal and was entitled to the Caterpillar Club Medal for having ‘bailed out’ to save his life. Since Vito would never speak about the war, his family would only learn of his harrowing experience after his death.
Notes:
1. Sgt.Brunale, Blasted From Plane and Seized by Germans Tells of Liberation. Dail Argus Mount Vernon NY: May 26,1945.
2. June19, 2010. Vito John Brumale. Find A Grave. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/53859717/vito-john-brunale
3. Wool, Peter. Interview. Conducted by Larry Dwyer. November 20, 2023.
4. Roger Blum and Jan Seifert. Searching forclues - Getting to the bottom of the fate of the "Henn's Revenge"Easydive24. https://www.easydive24.de/ziel_deutschland_glasowsee.html
