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In reply to the discussion: Check in if your dad was in The Big One! [View all]enlightenment
(8,830 posts)Served as a navigator in the CBI theatre; 11 Bombardier Squadron, which was part of the China Air Task Force. They later became part of the 341st Bomb Group of the 14th AF (the Flying Tigers). They flew Mitchell Bombers (B-25s) until the last month of the conflict, when they transitioned to the A-26 Invader. Because he was selected as one of the crews to fly those brand-new aircraft back to Europe (and because none of the CBI crews had as many "points" as European air crews) he spent another year after the war ended in Germany, serving as an Inspector at the depots where they were destroying the tons of equipment and supplies left behind.
A good thing he didn't get sent home right away; he met my mom in Germany (she was American; working as a secretary to the base commander) and they were married six weeks later. Dad's subsequent military career was mostly in SAC, as a pilot (he had three ratings during the war and got his pilot wings immediately afterward); he retired after 32 years.
Their marriage lasted a good bit longer - 64 years. They died in 2011, 8 months apart.
edited for spelling