World War II Honoree
World War II Veteran
Calvin Coolidge 'Cal' Worthington
Branch of Service
U.S. Army Air Force
Hometown
Bly, Oklahoma
Honored By
A Grateful American
AT THE BEGINNING OF WWII, HE ENLISTED IN THE ARMY AIR CORPS. COMMISSIONED A SECOND LIEUTENANT, HE WAS THE AEROBATICS CHAMPION AT GOODFELLOW FIELD IN SAN ANGELO, TEXAS. HE SAW COMBAT AS A B-17 FLYING FORTRESS PILOT WITH THE 8TH AIR FORCE, 390TH BOMBER GROUP, FLYING 29 MISSIONS OVER GERMANY. HE WAS AMONG THE FIRST BOMBER PILOTS TO LEAD DAYTIME RAIDS OVER BERLIN, HAMBURG, AND FRANKFURT. WAS DISCHARGED AFTER THE WAR AS A CAPTAIN. HE WAS AWARDED THE AIR MEDAL FIVE TIMES, AND RECEIVED THE DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS, WHICH WAS PRESENTED TO HIM BY GENERAL JIMMY DOOLITTLE.