HIAWATHA, Iowa — A World War II veteran from Cedar Rapids believes wreckage of a plane recently found by a fisherman in France belongs to a B-17 bomber he was aboard when it crashed more than 70 years ago.
KCRG-TV reports 92-year-old Joe Koenig's plane crashed in 1944 after being shot down by a German fighter during an air raid in the Bordeaux region of France.
All of the 10-member crew survived the crash, and Koenig says the plane ended up about 75 yards off the Bay of Biscay.
A French newspaper in March reported a fisherman found large pieces of a WWII bomber during low tide in the bay. Koenig's family has notified the military about the wreckage and is considering traveling to France to view it themselves.
