Robert Priser joined the Royal Canadian Air Force before the entry of the United States into the war. After training at Glendale, California, he arrived in England in January 1942 where he followed additional training on Spitfires. Assigned to RAF N°71 “Eagle Squadron” at Church Fenton, 180 miles North of London. It was the first squadon composed of volunteer American pilots like himself.

The Tucson Daily News wrote in its 6 March 1942 edition that “Pilot Officer Robert L. Priser of the Royal Air Force, son of Vern E. Priser of Tucson, was among a group of soldiers recently presented to Queen Elizabeth and Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret Rose at tea at Windsor castle. Priser, in a letter to his father, told of chatting with the queen for 10 minutes and with the princesses for about 20 minutes. Priser described the queen as cordial and the princesses as combining youthfulness with dignity. The spirits of the British people, he said, have not been depressed by the war and they are especially cordial to Americans in service. Priser, who is stationed near London, reports that there are New Zealanders, Australians, South Africans and Canadians in his group.”

Transferred in July 1942 to RAF Squadron N° 133 “Eagle Squadron”, he flew his first mission with that unit in August.

On 12 September 1942 the three Eagle Squadrons were incorporated into the U.S. Army Air Forces as the 334th, 335th, and 336th Fighter Squadrons which were combined into the newly activated 4th Fighter Group of the American Eighth Air Force.

Priser was transferred on 15 September 1942 to the 334th Fighter Squadron at Debden and flew missions on P-47 Thunderbolts with that Group. He became “A” Flight Commanding officer in that unit on 13 September 1943. Transferred on 23 November 1943 to the 354th Fighter Group/353rd Fighter Squadron at Boxted, Essex, he flew missions on P-51 Mustangs. Named Commander of that Group’s 353rd Squadron in December 1943, he married British-born Jill G. Potter on Christmas Day 1943. Credited with more than 60 missions, Robert Priser was flying escort with his Squadron on 24 January 1944 when the formation was attacked by Fw190s. Shot down by one of them above Belgium (according to his E&E report, the enemy fighter was painted in the colors of an American P-47 Thunderbolt), Priser had to bail out of his burning Mustang, landing near Soignies, Belgium. He had bloodshot eyes, cuts in his left hand and right leg and some bruised ribs. Helped and cared for by Belgian patriots, he was hidden in many places in the region and was liberated by British troops on 3 September 1944. Escape & Evasion Report E&E 1588.

See the complete story of his evasion at http://www.evasioncomete.org/fpriserrl.html