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Finding a Fallen Hero: The Death of a Ball Turret Gunner
An author’s quest to discover what really happened to his uncle in World War II
To all appearances, Anthony “Tony” Korkuc was just another casualty of World War II. A gunner on a B-17 Flying Fortress, Korkuc was lost on a bombing mission over Germany, and his family believed that his body had never been recovered. But when they learned in 1995 that Tony was actually buried at Arlington National Cemetery, his nephew Bob Korkuc set out on a seven-year quest to learn the true fate of an uncle he never knew.
Finding a Fallen Hero is a compelling story that blends a wartime drama with a primer on specialized research. Author Bob Korkuc initially set out to learn how his Uncle Tony came to rest at Arlington. In the process, he also unraveled the mystery of what occurred over the skies of Germany half a century ago.
Korkuc dug up military documents and private letters and interviewed people in both the United States and Germany. He tracked down surviving crewmembers and even found the brother of the Luftwaffe pilot who downed the B-17. Dozens of photographs help readers envision both Tony Korkuc’s fateful flight and his nephew’s dogged search for the truth.
A gripping chronicle of exhaustive research, Finding a Fallen Hero will strike a chord with any reader who has lost a family member to war. And it will inspire others to satisfy their own unanswered questions.
To all appearances, Anthony “Tony” Korkuc was just another casualty of World War II. A gunner on a B-17 Flying Fortress, Korkuc was lost on a bombing mission over Germany, and his family believed that his body had never been recovered. But when they learned in 1995 that Tony was actually buried at Arlington National Cemetery, his nephew Bob Korkuc set out on a seven-year quest to learn the true fate of an uncle he never knew.
Finding a Fallen Hero is a compelling story that blends a wartime drama with a primer on specialized research. Author Bob Korkuc initially set out to learn how his Uncle Tony came to rest at Arlington. In the process, he also unraveled the mystery of what occurred over the skies of Germany half a century ago.
Korkuc dug up military documents and private letters and interviewed people in both the United States and Germany. He tracked down surviving crewmembers and even found the brother of the Luftwaffe pilot who downed the B-17. Dozens of photographs help readers envision both Tony Korkuc’s fateful flight and his nephew’s dogged search for the truth.
A gripping chronicle of exhaustive research, Finding a Fallen Hero will strike a chord with any reader who has lost a family member to war. And it will inspire others to satisfy their own unanswered questions.
276 pages, Hardcover
First published March 25, 2008
18 people want to read
About the author
Bob Korkuc
2 books1 followerI am the author of "Finding a Fallen Hero: The Death of a Ball Turret Gunner," published by the University of Oklahoma Press in late March of 2008. PBS Documentary Filmmaker Ken Burns called my book "a riveting story." My non-fiction book reads like a detective novel detailing the true fate of a missing air crew over Germany in World War II. Many readers have been moved to tears by the story.
Praise for "Finding a Fallen Hero":
"Robert Korkuc has written a book that succeeds magnificently on two levels: as a relentless search for a loved one in World War II and as an intimate portrait of a bomber crew. The book grabs the reader from page one and never lets go."--Donald L. Miller, author of Masters of the Air: America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War against Nazi Germany
"A riveting story of what must have been one of the most dangerous and vulnerable jobs in all of war." --Ken Burns, PBS Documentary Filmmaker of "The War"
"A moving, well-researched personal journey into the world that the author's uncle, a B-17 ball turret gunner, experienced in World War II. Anyone who wishes to understand the deep psychic effect that a soldier's death can have on so many people, during and after the war, should read this excellent book." --John C. McManus, author of Deadly Sky: The American Combat Airman in World War II
"Korkuc illuminates the wide, interlocking circles of grief that every act of combat creates and the enduring wounds carried by those who fight our wars and those who love the fighters." --Gregory J. W. Urwin, author of Facing Fearful Odds: the Siege of Wake Island
"Mr. Korkuc takes us on a seven-year quest to learn the fate of his uncle, one of the thousands of American airmen lost in the air war over Europe in World War II. Moving from one clue to another, Korkuc ultimately gains final resolution on how his uncle perished and achieves closure on a family tragedy." --W. Raymond Wood, author of Or Go Down in Flame: The Death of a Navigator over Schweinfurt
"
Praise for "Finding a Fallen Hero":
"Robert Korkuc has written a book that succeeds magnificently on two levels: as a relentless search for a loved one in World War II and as an intimate portrait of a bomber crew. The book grabs the reader from page one and never lets go."--Donald L. Miller, author of Masters of the Air: America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War against Nazi Germany
"A riveting story of what must have been one of the most dangerous and vulnerable jobs in all of war." --Ken Burns, PBS Documentary Filmmaker of "The War"
"A moving, well-researched personal journey into the world that the author's uncle, a B-17 ball turret gunner, experienced in World War II. Anyone who wishes to understand the deep psychic effect that a soldier's death can have on so many people, during and after the war, should read this excellent book." --John C. McManus, author of Deadly Sky: The American Combat Airman in World War II
"Korkuc illuminates the wide, interlocking circles of grief that every act of combat creates and the enduring wounds carried by those who fight our wars and those who love the fighters." --Gregory J. W. Urwin, author of Facing Fearful Odds: the Siege of Wake Island
"Mr. Korkuc takes us on a seven-year quest to learn the fate of his uncle, one of the thousands of American airmen lost in the air war over Europe in World War II. Moving from one clue to another, Korkuc ultimately gains final resolution on how his uncle perished and achieves closure on a family tragedy." --W. Raymond Wood, author of Or Go Down in Flame: The Death of a Navigator over Schweinfurt
"
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 16, 2016
Great book! My uncle was the pilot of the crew.
February 3, 2026
Interesting book. Certainly could have been used as a research guide before the days of Google and endless internet access, but the actions of the author are very off-putting. He was so interested in solving the mystery that he never took the feelings, experiences, and emotions of the surviving crew members into consideration. He didn't acknowledge the trauma or guilt they might still carry with them. His insensitivity almost caused me to stop reading. His approach to Raoul Ramos was awful. It was very clear that Korkuc cared more about his end game than he did about his uncle's friend and crew mate. The author also never explains why his father was shocked to find Tony buried at Arlington. He had to have known because his parents attended the burial, but the beginning of the book makes it seem as if his father still believed that Tony was still buried in Germany.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews