World War II Honoree

James Louis Pattillo

Branch of Service

U.S. Army Air Force

Hometown

Denison, Texas

Honored By

Sam E. Pennartz

Enlisted in the Army Air Corps as an Aviation Cadet on 12 Oct 1940 at Austin, Texas. Completed Basic and Primary flight training, and graduated with the Advanced Pilot Class 41-D at Brooks Field, Texas on 29 May 1941, and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the U.S Army Air Forces. Then assigned to Brooks Field as an advanced flight instructor. November of 1942, B-17 Flying Fortress flight instructor at Hendricks Field near Sebring, Florida. April of 1943, B-24 Liberator flight instructor at Smyrna Army Airfield southeast of Nashville, Tennessee. September of 1943, volunteered for the B-29 Program, joining 20th Air Force, XX Bomber Command, 58th Bomb Wing, 468th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy), the first unit to fly the B-29, at Smoky Hill Army Air Field near Salina, Kansas. During April of 1944, deployed to Kharagpur, India. In August of 1944, transferred to West Field on Tinian in the Mariana Islands. He flew a total of 28 combat missions (i.e., approximately 15-hour round-trip sorties each from Tinian), and ended the war at the rank of Major; and as the Operations Officer of the 468th Bombardment Group 'The General Billy Mitchell Group').