The tail gunner’s position was notoriously perilous, but Eugene Paul Moran kept fighting after his plane was hit – and survived

On November 29, 1943, Eugene Paul Moran manned the tail gun of a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress during a bombing mission over Germany when disaster struck. Enemy fire tore through the aircraft, setting it ablaze and sending it spiraling toward the ground—a near-certain death sentence for anyone trapped in the exposed tail section. Against all odds, Moran survived.

The tail gunner’s position was notoriously perilous, offering little armor and few escape options. Yet Moran lived to tell the tale, his survival standing as a remarkable testament to endurance, courage, and the sheer unpredictability of war.

Enlisting in the US Army Air Forces (USAAF)

Eugene Moran, born on July 17, 1924, in Wisconsin, grew up working on his family’s farm near Soldiers Grove. When World War II began, instead of continuing his farm work, he answered the call to serve his country overseas, in response to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Motivated by these events, he enlisted in the US Army Air Forces (USAAF).

Like many of his peers, Moran enlisted at the age of 18 in October 1942. Following his training, he was assigned to the 96th Bombardment Group, 339th Bombardment Squadron, Eighth Air Force.

Eugene Moran enters the fight

Now in the fight, Eugene Moran became a tail gunner aboard the B-17 Flying Fortress Rikki Tikki Tavi, after the mongoose in the Rudyard Kipling novel, The Jungle Book. He, along with the nine crewmen, were stationed at RAF Snetterton Heath, tasked with flying daytime bombing runs over Germany.

Moran and the rest of Rikki Tikki Tavi‘s crew had only completed four missions when disaster struck.

Disaster strikes the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress Rikki Tikki Tavi

On November 29, 1943, Rikki Tikki Tavi joined other B-17s of the Eighth Air Force on a mission targeting Bremen, Germany. Following the bombing run over the city, Rikki Tikki Tavi fell behind the formation, drawing the full attention of the German defenses.

The B-17 sustained severe damage from both aerial and ground attacks. Eight crew members were killed, leaving only Eugene Moran and the navigator as the sole survivors. The navigator, stationed in the forward section, successfully parachuted to safety, while Moran remained trapped in the tail section.

Things go from bad to worse

Despite the chaos already unfolding, the situation was about to grow even more dire. Before Eugene Moran could react, German flak found its mark, ripping Rikki Tikki Tavi apart in midair. Miraculously, the tail section—just ahead of the vertical and horizontal stabilizers—remained intact. Trapped inside, Moran fought to open the hatch, only to discover it was jammed shut.

As the rest of the bomber broke apart and fell in flames, Moran’s section descended at a slower, more controlled pace. Instead of plummeting, it glided downward through the smoke-filled sky—a fragile pocket of hope amid the devastation.

Eugene Moran fought until the very end

For most people, survival would have been their first priority. With that out of his hands, Eugene Moran continued to fight until he reached the ground. He fired his two M2 Browning machine guns at the Luftwaffe-flown Messerschmitt Bf-109s that continued to attack him. Seeing a seemingly unknown aircraft above, the German flack batteries also continued firing at Moran.

A few moments later, the tail section of Rikki Tikki Tavi glided down to earth, stopping abruptly when it flew into a tree. Moran was alive, but badly injured. He was bloodied and had a cracked skull from when his head was thrown against his machine guns upon impact. He’d also sustained broken ribs and forearms. Moran was attended to by two Serbian prisoners of war (POW), who were doctors. They’d seen the crash and rushed to help.

Surviving his time as a prisoner of war (POW)