World War II Honoree

John Marshall Wilson

Branch of Service

U.S. Army Air Force

Hometown

Appleton City, Missouri

Honored By

Fern Wilson Irvin

Relationship

Sister

SERVED IN THE 9TH BOMBARDMENT SQUADRON, 7TH BOMBARDMENT GROUP IN INDIA AS A B-24 BOMBER NAVIGATOR. AWARDED PURPLE HEART POSTHUMOUSLY, FLYING CROSS AND AIR MEDAL. STARTED HIS COMBAT FLYING BY HAULING GAS OVER THE FAMOUS 'HUMP' IN INDIA TO CHINA. STARTED HIS ACTUAL COMBAT DUTY FROM PANDAVESWAR. WHEN HE FINISHED 40 MISSIONS HE WAS MADE A FIRST LIEUTENANT. WHEN HE FINISHED HIS 49TH MISSION HE WROTE HE HAD JUST ONE MORE MISSION TO MAKE AND HE WOULD BE COMING HOME. HE WAS ON HIS 50TH MISSION AS A NAVIGATOR OF A B-24 LIBERATOR BOMBER, WHICH WAS LOW-LEVELING A RADAR STATION AND WAS HIT BY ENEMY ANTI-AIRCRAFT FIRE AND CRASHED IN THE WATER OFF GREAT COCO ISLAND. NO SIGNS OF SURVIVORS WERE SEEN BY OTHER MEMBERS OF THE FLIGHT; MARCH 22, 1945.