World War II Honoree

William Charles 'Bill' Meadows

Branch of Service

U.S. Army Air Force

Hometown

Sentinel, Washita County, Oklahoma

Honored By

Robert S. Cox

ENTERED MILITARY SERVICE AFTER GRADUATING FROM HIGH SCHOOL ABOUT 1943. VOLUNTEERED AND WAS SELECTED FOR PILOT TRAINING. COMPLETED THE (NON-FLYING) BASIC MILITARY COURSE, AND CIVILIAN PREFLIGHT SCHOOLING. COMPLETED THE PRIMARY FLYING SCHOOL, BASIC FLYING SCHOOL, AND ADVANCED FLYING TRAINING, WHICH INCLUDED GROUND SCHOOL AND FLIGHT TRAINING. DURING BASIC SCHOOL, HE WAS CLASSIFIED FOR 2-ENGINE TRAINING. UPON COMPLETION OF ADVANCED TRAINING, HE WAS EARMARKED FOR 2-ENGINE FIGHTER AIRCRAFT TRAINING, AWARDED HIS SILVER PILOT WINGS, AND COMMISSIONED A SECOND LIEUTENANT IN 1944. HE WAS THEN SENT TO TRANSITION FLYING TRAINING TO FLY THE TYPE OF AIRCRAFT HE WOULD FLY IN COMBAT (P-38 ‘LIGHTNING’ FIGHTER). HE WAS ASSIGNED OVERSEAS TO THE ASIATIC-PACIFIC THEATER DURING THE WAR IN 1944, AND SERVED WITH THE 80TH FIGHTER ‘HEADHUNTERS’ SQUADRON, 8TH PURSUIT (FIGHTER) GROUP. HE WAS A P-38 FIGHTER PILOT WHO FLEW COMBAT MISSIONS IN THE SOUTHWEST, AND WESTERN PACIFIC OCEAN AREAS. THE P-38 WAS BASICALLY A SINGLE SEAT, 2-ENGINE, HIGH SPEED, LONG RANGE AIRCRAFT WITH A FAST RATE OF CLIMB, AND VERSATILE IN THE DIFFERENT VARIATIONS OF MODELS USED (E.G. PHOTO RECONNAISSANCE VARIENT, AIR SUPERIORITY, FIGHTER-BOMBER, AND HIGH ALTITUDE BOMBER ESCORT COMBAT ROLES). HE PARTICIPATED IN THE AIR OFFENSIVE-JAPAN, CHINA DEFENSIVE, NEW GUINEA, BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO, WESTERN PACIFIC, LEYTE, LUZON, SOUTHERN PHILIPPINES, AND CHINA OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGNS. HE WAS STATIONED AT WAMA AIRFIELD ON MOROTAI IN THE NETHERLANDS EAST INDIES ABOUT SEPTEMBER 20, 1944, AT DULAG AIRFIELD ON LEYTE IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS ON NOVEMBER 30, 1944, AT MCGUIRE FIELD SAN JOSE ON MINDORO ISLAND IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS ON DECEMBER 20, 1944, AND AT IE SHIMA AIRFIELD IN THE RYUKYU ISLANDS ON AUGUST 5, 1945. HIS SQUADRON SERVED IN JAPAN AS PART OF THE ARMY OF OCCUPATION FORCES, AFTER THE END OF HOSTILITIES, AT FUKUOKA AIR BASE FROM NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 26, 1945. AWARDED THE AIR MEDAL, AMERICAN CAMPAIGN MEDAL, ASIATIC-PACIFIC CAMPAIGN MEDAL WITH BRONZE ARROWHEAD DEVICE, WWII VICTORY MEDAL, AND ARMY OF OCCUPATION MEDAL WITH ‘JAPAN’ CLASP. HE WAS AWARDED A DISTINGUISHED (PRESIDENTIAL) UNIT CITATION FOR EXTRAORDINARY HEROISM IN ACTION IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS ON DECEMBER 26, 1944. ALSO AWARDED THE PHILIPPINE LIBERATION MEDAL FOR SERVICE IN THE LIBERATION OF THE PHILIPPINES. HIS SQUADRON WAS AWARDED THE PHILIPPINE PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION FOR WWII SERVICE. HONORABLY DISCHARGED AFTER THE WAR WITH THE RANK OF FIRST LIEUTENANT AND ISSUED THE HONORABLE SERVICE LAPEL BUTTON.