Commander of Memphis Belle dies at 85, weeks after fall and fractured neck

The Associated Press is reporting that Col. Robert Morgan, USAF (Ret), 85, Commander of Memphis Belle, the famous B-17 bomber which flew combact missions in WWII, died late Saturday night from complications of a fall.

Col. Morgan was hospitalized April 22 with a fractured neck after he fell during an air show at the Asheville Regional Airport in Asheville (NC). Unfortunately, his condition deteriorated to the point where the difficult decision was made to remove life support systems. At the time of his passing, his wife Linda, two daughters, a close family friend and two ministers were at his side.

Col. Morgan was a native son of Ashville, and earned worlwide fame as the commmander of the Memphis Belle, the B-17 in which he flew 25 combat missions over Germany and France during World War II. The crew of the Belle completed its 25th mission on May 17, 1943.  "Twenty-five doesn't sound like much until you start flying them," Morgan later said.

The aircraft later became the subject of the 1990 Hollywood film "Memphis Belle," which told a fictionalized version of that 25th mission.

(Ed: I last saw Col. Morgan at S-N-F 2004 in Lakeland. I consider myself privileged to have had the opportunity to meet him. Blue skies, Colonel, and thank you for all the sacrificies you made so that people like me can enjoy the freedom of living in the US of A. - JJ)

FMI: www.memphisbelle.com