Selden R Edner
MilitaryUploaded
Born on 26 January 1919, Selden Edner moved to California in the 1930s and in 1940, after reading the news about the war in Europe, he left home to join the Royal Canadian Air Force.
After completing pilot training he was posted to the RAF No. 121 "Eagle Squadron" in England. While flying with the Squadron, Edner was credited with the destruction of 5 enemy aircraft in aerial combat, 1 shared probable, and 2 damaged.
In late summer 1942, when the Eagle Squadron transferred to the U.S. Army Air Forces, he was commissioned as a Captain on September 16, 1942. He then returned to the U.S. where he served as an instructor pilot.
On 29 April 1943, he was promoted to the rank of Major and was assigned in October of that year to the 336th Fighter Squadron of the 4th Fighter Group in England. Achieving the rank of Lt Colonel on 29 November 1943, he took command of the 336th Squadron. Becoming Operations Officer for the 4th Fighter Group in January 1944, he was named the Group’s Executive Officer the next month.
On 8 March 1944, he was forced to bail out over Germany and was made a Prisoner of War. Selden Edner was held at Stalag Luft 3 in Sagan-Silesia Bavaria and later at Nuremberg-Langwasser before returning to Allied Military control on 29 April 1945, probably at Stalag 7A in Moosburg, where Stalag Luft 3 POWs had arrived after a long forced-march.
After the war, Selden Edner returned to flying status and later served as an Air Attaché to Greece during the Civil War there. On 21 January 1949, flying as an observer in the back seat of an AT-6 flown by a Greek pilot on a reconnaissance mission, the aircraft was shot down by Communist guerillas near Karpenision (Karpenissi), Greece. While the pilot died, Lt Col Edner was wounded and survived the crash only to be hanged by the guerillas that same day.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Headquarters
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Type Category: Fighter
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: P-47 Thunderbolt
- Unit: 4th Fighter Group 50th Fighter Group 313th Fighter Squadron 336th Fighter Squadron
- Aircraft Type: P-51 Mustang
- Unit: 4th Fighter Group 336th Fighter Squadron Headquarters (4th Fighter Group)
- Aircraft Type: Spitfire
- Unit: 52nd Fighter Group No 121 'Eagle' Squadron
Missions
- Date: 8 March 1944
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Site type: Airfield
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
Fergus Falls, Minnesota, United States | 26 January 1919 | Born in January 26, 1919 in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, USA. |
Other Comissioned Captain in USAAF |
England, UK | 16 September 1942 | On transfer to the USAAF, commissioned as a Captain on September 16, 1942. |
Other Promoted Major |
England, UK | 29 April 1943 | Promoted to the rank of Major, 29th April 1943. |
Other Promoted Lt Colonel |
England, UK | 29 November 1943 | Promoted Lt Colonel on 29th November 1943, took command of the 336th Squadron. |
Other Prisoner of War |
Stalag Luft III, Zagan, Poland | 8 March 1944 - 29 April 1945 | Bailed out. Arrested, he was first interned at Stalag Luft III and later at Nuremberg-Langwasser. |
Other Shot Down/Bailed Out |
Hagenburg, Germany | 8 March 1944 | Shot down, his P-51B 43-6442 crashed near Hagenburg, Germany. |
Died |
Karpenissi, Greece | 21 January 1949 | On 21 January 1949, flying as an observer in the back seat of an AT-6 flown by a Greek pilot on a reconnaissance mission, the aircraft was shot down by Communist guerillas near Karpenision (Karpenissi), Greece. While the pilot died, Lt Col Edner was wounded and survived the crash only to be hanged by the communist guerillas that same day. |
San Jose, CA, USA | San Jose, California, USA. | ||
Other Joined RCAF |
Canada | Joined Royal Canadian Air Force. | |
Other Completed pilot training RCAF. |
Canada | Completed pilot training with RCAF. | |
Other Posted RAF No 121 (Eagle) Sqn |
England, UK | Posted to the RAF No 121 (Eagle) Squadron in England. | |
Other Credited 5 kill/1 shared/2 damaged |
Great Britain, United Kingdom | Credited with the destruction of 5 enemy aircraft in aerial combat, 1 shared probable, and 2 damaged. | |
Other Returned Stateside |
United States | Returned to the U.S. where he served as an instructor pilot. | |
Other Assigned |
Assigned October 1943 to the 336th Fighter Squadron of the 4th Fighter Group in England. | ||
Other Operations Officer 4th FG |
Op's Officer for the 4th FG, January 1944. | ||
Other Executive Officer 4th FG |
England, UK | Executive Officer 4th FG, February 1944. | |
Other Educated |
San José State University, 1 Washington Sq, San Jose, CA 95192 | Attended San Jose State University, 1937-1940. |
Revisions
Merged with duplicate entries to include details from :
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia ;
MACR 2838;
Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces;
Ted Damick, VIII Fighter Command pilots list
* NARA WWII POW Records
* MACR 2838
* Page 16 of the book “VIII Fighter Command at War: Long Reach” by Michael O'Leary
* Details at http://veterantributes.org/TributeDetail.php?recordID=682
* 4th Fighter Group website : http://www.4thfightergroupassociation.org/uploads/8/2/0/3/8203817/336_e…
* Photos at
http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205199501
http://www.gettyimages.be/detail/nieuwsfoto's/the-work-of-no-121-squadr…
* Page 87 at http://sill-www.army.mil/firesbulletin/archives/1949/MAR_APR_1949/MAR_A…
* 1949 newsreel about the crash at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6npugkT2L7I
MACR 2838 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database