52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks (2020) – Week 19 Service: George J. Gorrell’s WWII Service at Burtonwood Air Depot

This is my third year working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow. I will write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My Trails Into the Past. I have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways.

This is a continuation of the story of George J. Gorrell’s service during World War II in the Army Air Forces. Previous posts:

• George J Gorrell Served in the Army Air Corps During WWII
• US Army Air Corps Base in England Where George J Gorrell Served
• Letters Home, Using V-Mail

George J. Gorrell enlisted in the Army Air Forces on 27 July 1943 in San Francisco.[1] He was part of the group of men who were already working at air depots doing maintenance on airplanes. He was told he would be doing the same work.[2]

In 1941, he had trained at Curtiss-Wright Technical Institute in Glendale, California and was awarded a diploma as Master Aviation Mechanic.[3] He also received training at the Sacramento Air Depot (McClellan Field) in hydraulics in 1942, and job instructor training in March 1943.[4] These trainings would serve him well in the Air Force.

After training in Texas, he went overseas to the Burtonwood Depot, located outside of Warrington, England, which is east of Liverpool.[5] There were two large depots in England: Burtonwood and Warton, and one in Northern Ireland: Langford Lodge. Previously, Burtonwood had been built for the RAF and used from 1940 to 1942. Burtonwood was known by the US Army as BAD (Base Air Depot) #1. It was a center of supply and maintenance for US aircraft in the 8th and 9th Air Forces.[6] There were nearly fifteen thousand personnel at Burtonwood.[7]

He worked as a hydraulics mechanic, serving with the 8th Air Force, 4th Battalion  in England, and the 913th Air Engineering Squadron in Germany. Some of the duties he did were inspect, service, and repair hydraulic systems used to actuate such aircraft equipment as landing gears, wheel brakes, wing flaps, bomb-bay doors, and gun chargers.[8]

The base at Burtonwood was huge and many of the enlisted men were unskilled and untrained and received their training there. Work was done on a mass-production style, training the men to perform one small portion of the work, as they then became specialized. Planes moved from station to station, instead of crews of men moving from plane to plane.[9] Burtonwood and the other BADs were used for 4th echelon maintenance, i.e. major overhauls and repairs.

AD-4 Hangar where he worked, photo taken by George J Gorrell

George did not write many details of his work in his diary. He worked mostly night shifts. Some weeks it was 8 hour shifts, others 9 or 11 hours, as work became heavier in 1944. He mentioned planes that came into the hangar for work: P47, P38, B17, B25, to name a few. On June 17, 1944, he fell from a P47 and broke a rib. The rib bothered him well into July.[10]

Some entries recorded in his diary were:

Sept 30 [1943]: Helped change 2 B-17 tires, the first LG work since leaving Sacramento. Saw Robert Randall, Hanger 5. Reported for pay in OD shirt and pants, was sent to get full dress. Received 19/8/3 [19 pounds, 8 shillings, 3 pence], approximately $76.67. Signed for leather jacket and gloves.

Between Oct 26 to Nov 4 [1943], he was in the hospital because of a fever.

Nov 29 [1943]: Was placed in charge of 3-man crew at work.

Dec 12 [1943]:  Mass moving of men. Am to be grouped with men I work with. New address: 3rd Aero Rep, Sect., Sqd B, BAD #1, AP) 365 c/o PM NY. Moved into a corrugated iron hut (Gerard hut) sized to house 48 men. Double bunks. Freezing inside as stove is N.G. Swing shift. Moved to Hut C-2.

Jan. 10, 1944: Issued rifle, Springfield 1903. Rush on P 47 project.

Feb 8 [1944]: Installed stabilizer on P 47 with Micka. Rec’d 5 letters.

Feb 29 to Mar 13 [1944]: sick again in hospital with fever and sore throat.

Apr 7 [1944]: Tried to talk with one of hangar lieutenants about chance for leaving. Dissatisfied as most others are. Disunity in hangar. 60% efficiency.

Apr 18 [1944]: Gen. Patton and others of rank visit AD-4 today.

May 2 [1944]: 64 planes through AD-4 last month and 80 stage mods.

May 17 [1944]: General Eisenhower visits hangars. British-made battle jackets issued us. Runway lights on for first time 3 a.m. Saw C 47 plane take off then.

June 6 [1944]: 5:25 a.m. Reveille, march to mess hall, roll call there, to work as usual 6:40 a.m. Invasion news 10:15 a.m. at hangar. Lots of air activity. Carpet baggers (Black B24s for cargo or leaflets) take off. Trucks mount guns.

After this time, he has more details about his work, perhaps because of the invasion. Though his diaries mentioned some about his work, there are many entries about the local trips he took, usually staying at the American Red Cross. He visited Wales, Scotland, London, and other places in England. He also made mention of every movie he saw, when he did laundry or got a haircut.

He was promoted to PFC on January 21, 1944; Corporal on May 4, 1944; Sergeant on November 1945, and Staff Sergeant on December 12, 1945.[11]

In March 1945, he created a bungee stretcher to be able to “insert a spreader pipe to enable installation in C47 aircraft landing gear.” He won an award of a one-day pass off base.[12]

His invention

On August 3, 1945, his work location AD-4 was clear of work for the first time and on August 25 it was closed down.

He remained at Burtonwood until after the surrender of Germany, when he was transferred to another unit and sent to Germany.  On Sept 4, 1945, he was transferred to Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, 401st and sent to Germany, marking the end of his service at Burtonwood. 

Today the site of the RAF-turned US air depot is an amusement park. However, there is a small museum on the site with historic records and photos of the old depot.[13]

---

[1] For the enlistment date, see Enlisted Record and Report of Separation, Honorable Discharge, George J Gorrell, 39 137 673, United States Army, 11 March 1946, 913th Air Engineering Squadron. For the place, see “Diary of George J Gorrell,” typed transcript from notebook purchased at the Presidio of Monterey PX, dated 1943-1946, Gorrell Family Papers.

[2] “Diary of George J Gorrell.”

[3] Certificate from Curtiss-Wright Technical Institute, Grand Central Air Terminal, Glendale, California, Master Aviation Mechanic, George Joseph Gorrell, July 1941, Gorrell Family Papers.

[4] Certificate of Training, Sacramento Air Depot at McClellan Field, Sacramento, California, 1942, George J. Gorrell, Gorrell Family Papers.

[5] “Diary of George J Gorrell.”

[6] “Burtonwood,” American Air Museum in Britain (https://www.americanairmuseum.com/place/69).

[7] David A. Loska, “Eighth Air Force Depot Maintenance & Logistics Leadership in World War II,” Air Power, Fall 2019. Back issues available at https://www.airforcemag.com/issue/.

[8] “Separation Qualification Record,” Army of the United States, George J. Gorrell.

[9] “Maintenance,” p 388-397, Chapter 11 “The AAF’S Logistical Organization,” The Army Air Forces In World War II, Volume Six “Men and Planes,” (Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History, 1983).

[10] “Diary of George J Gorrell.”

[11] “Diary of George J Gorrell.”

[12] Photo, taken by George J. Gorrell. Caption written by George on the back.

[13] Burtonwood Heritage Centre at the Gulliver’s World theme park in Warrington, http://www.rafburtonwoodheritagecentre.co.uk/.

Copyright © 2020 by Lisa S. Gorrell, My Trails into the Past. All Rights Reserved.