World War II Honoree

Sam Crawford

Branch of Service

U.S. Army Air Force

Hometown

El Dorado, Arkansas

Honored By

Marlo B. Krueger

Relationship

Friend

He was stationed in Shipdham, England, with the 44th Bomber Group, 8th Air Force, as a ball-turret gunner and tail gunner. He flew on thirty-two combat missions, including two sorties on D-Day. He also flew other missions as a fill-in for others. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters, the European-African Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with four bronze battle stars, and the WWII Victory Medal. His unit was awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation for an extremely hazardous mission against the naval installation at Kiel on 14 May 1943.