John H. Buckner
JOHN H. BUCKNER, born January
11, 1919 in Cleburne, Texas, a graduate of
Cleburne High School and John Tarleton
College, attended Texas A&M College,
entered the U.S. Military Academy in 1939
and received his wings at Spence Field in
Moultrie, Georgia in Class 42-K. Upon graduation
from the Military Academy in January, 1943
he was commissioned and returned
to Spence Field for further P-39 and P-40
training until moved to the 323rd Fighter
Squadron at Richmond AAB for checkout in
the P-47. He joined the 366th Fighter
Squadron, 358th Fighter Group in April,
1943, remaining with them and serving as
wing man, element leader, Flight Commander,
and Operations Officer, flying escort,
dive-bombing, strafing, rocketry, and close
air support missions from England, France,
and Germany until the end of 1944. He was
shot down by German Flak over the coast of
France in May, 1944 but managed to glide
across the English Channel and bailed out,
just making the coast of England by a scant
50 yards. He was made Squadron Commander
of the 365th Fighter Squadron, 358th
Fighter Group in January, 1945 where he
remained until after VE Day. He flew 122
combat missions in the P-47 and was awarded
the DFC with 10LC, the Air Medal with 20
OLC, the Distinguished Unit Citation with 2
OLC, the EAME Campaign Medal with 6
service stars, and the French Croix de
Guerre. After VE Day he was made Commander
of the 86th Fighter Group at
Schweinfurt, Germany, flying the P-47 until
transferred to the ZI in May, 1946. His
airplane was named Ponk and he was flying
Ponk IX when VE Day came.
He continued on active duty with the Air
Force until retirement as a Major General on
November 1, 1971.
He married Ann Son field in the USMA
Chapel on April 24, 1946. They have one
daughter, 2 sons, and 3 grandchildren, and
now reside at Emerald Bay on Lake Palestine,
Texas. Currently he is part owner and President
of Buckner Construction Company,
Jacksonville, Texas, which is engaged in highway
and commercial building construction.
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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