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William R. Nevitt
WILLIAM R. NEVITT, born Lake
Charles, La., 1913. Mechanical Engineer.
ing, Iowa State College, 1935. Graduated
U.S. Army Air Corps Flying School, Kelly
Field, Texas, June 1936; assigned 32nd
Bomb Sqd., 19th Bomb Grp. as rated Flying
Cadet, March Field, Calif. Commissioned
2nd Lt., Reserve, 1937. Kelly Field Attack
Section flying instructor, Aug. 1938.
Commissioned 2nd Lt., Regular U.S. Army Air
Corps, Aug. 1939 .
One of original ten officers to write, teach
and fly first student navigators, Barksdale
Field, La., 1941. Director of Training, Navigation Schools, Albany, Ga. and Monroe,
La., 1941-1943.
March 1943 temporary duty, Ferry Command, ferrying fighter aircraft from factory.
First flight in P.47 from factory to Mitchell
Field, L.I. Ferried one of the first P-38 from
Palm Springs, Calif. to Casa Blanca, North
Africa, April 1943.
Deputy Chief of Staff Operations, Seattle
Fighter Wing, 4th Fighter Command, May
1943. 62nd Fighter Wing, DSO, Naples,
Italy (Commander Naples Fighter Sector),
Oct. 1943. Squadron Commander, 523rd
Sqd., 27th Fighter Grp., flying P40, then
P.47 March 1944.. Commander, 27th Fighter Grp., July 1944 until group deactivated
on debarkation in N.y", 1945. Chief Academic Division, Air University, Maxwell
Field, Ala., Jan. 1946. Air War College, class
'50. War Plans Division, Hq. USAF, June
1950. War Plans, Joint Chiefs of Staff, June
1952. Deputy Chief of Staff Operations, 4th
Allied Tactical Air Force (NATO), Trier,
Germany, May 1954, Deputy Commander,
19th Air Force, TAC (Composite Air Strike
Force), Aug. 1957. Commander, Phoenix
Air Defense Sector, Aug. 1961. Commander,
Seattle Air Defense Sector, Aug. 1964. Commander, 552nd Airborne Early Warning and
Control Wing, McClellan AFB, Calif., June
1966.
Retired May 1968. 8,000 plus flying
hours. Promoted Colonel January 1944 by
Gen. Joe Cannon. Shot down on 89th combat
mission strafing air field in South Germany,
Apr. 1945. Wounded, evaded capture,
returned to 27th Fighter Grp. Flew combat
tour Vietnam with 552nd AEW&C Detachment (Big Eye).
Decorations include Legion of Merit;
DFC, 1 OLC; Bronze Star; Air Medal, 8 OLC;
Purple Heart; Presidential Unit Citation;
Chevalier French Legion of Honor; French
Croix de Guerre with 2 palms; British DFC.
Three children. Lives in Austin, Texas
with wife, Pat.
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Pilot Name
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Biography Summary
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John Abbotts
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P-47 transition followed at Pocatello, Idaho and Greenville, Texas after which he was assigned to the 56th Fighter Group in England. When the news of his arrival reached Berlin, Hitler retired to his bunker with his cyanide capsule and revolver. Eva found the news equally depressing.
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Asa A. Adair
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He returned to the States in August of 1944 after participating in the invasion "D" Day. He flew P-63's, P-51's, F-80's, T-33's, F-84's, T-38's, P-47's in numerous assignments during the following twenty years in in, Japan, U.S.A. and Europe before retiring after twenty-six years of Active Duty.
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Edward B. Addison
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The 507th Fighter Group, equipped with P-47N's, won the Presidential Unit Citation for destroying 32 Japanese aircraft in the air on one mission to Seoul, Korea. The average flying time for raids to Korea and Japan would be 7 to 9 hours flying time. In a total of 31 months, the 507th not only provided top cover for B-29's, but also
dive-bombed, napalm-bombed and flew low-level on strafing missions.
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Levon B. Agha-Zarian
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It is rumored that he, took his primary training on a flying rug. He flew Spits, briefly, in England, but as the, war moved to the East, he was sent to India as a Sgt. Pilot and first saw action from Ceylon, flying the Curtiss P.36, the Brewster Buffalo, and the Hurricane. At this point he might have opted for the rug! This was at the time of the fall of Singapore and the sinking of the Prince of Wales and the Repulse.
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George N. Ahles
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Posted to A-20 light bomber squadron Barksdale Field, Louisiana. . Group moved to Hunter Air Base Savannah, Georgia. Qualified for Pilot training November 1940. Entered Aviation Cadets January 1942. Presented wings November 1942 class of 42-J. Married Mary Louise while in Advanced Pilot Training at Craig AFB, Selma, Alabama, September 1942.
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Roy J. Aldritt
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Shortly after the group moved to France he ran into some unseen flak and was forced to make a nylon descent behind the lines; some evasion and a lot of luck had him back with his unit
in 24 hours.
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Eugene J. Amaral
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After graduation from Stonington High School he enlisted as an Aviation Cadet in December 1942 and was called to active duty in March, 1943. He received his wings and commission at Spence Field, Georgia as a member of the Class of 43-C.
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Talmadge L. Ambrose
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Flew 84 missions thru VE Day, was downed by 22mm ground fire over Siefried Line. He destroyed 11 enemy aircraft, 9 known confirmed in air and on
ground, including 4 FW 190-D's in one afternoon over Hanover, Germany, April 8, 1945. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross,
Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal, 17 man, Oak Leaf Clusters, Good Conduct Medal, Pacific Theatre and European Theatre Meda1s with 5 Battle
Stars and Unit Citation Medal.
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John C. Anderson
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After P-47 transition he was assigned to the 406th Fighter Group, 512th Fighter Squadron. (E.T
.0.) He flew 56 missions through January, 1945 destroying supply routes, bridges, and railroads; he also flew close support missions with the ground forces, with attacks on tanks, artillery and enemy positions.
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William Anderson
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It was not always flak,two ME-109's beat the hell out of me one day. The central controller called me and said "Basher-Red Leader do you have contact Bandits," I replied, "I sure do, I'll bring them over the field in 3 minutes, they're chasing me home." Got all the usual medals including two Belgium and two French but one I'm most proud of is the Silver Star -it is the greatest.
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