Walter Randall Green
MilitaryHardcopy photo of Walter Randall Green part of family photo collection. Identity of Walter Randall Green confirmed by spouse and children.
Prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Walter Randall Green had enlisted as part of the TN National Guard 1st Air Squadron also known as the “Old Hickory Squadron” which was one of the 3 NG Air Service units in the US prior to WWII. It had been a childhood dream of his to fly a plane so when the opportunity arose, he did not hesitate to make a dream become reality. After his unit was federalized, he went for more training and then did both reconnaissance and combat missions in the Pacific Theatre. He was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant. Then was off to England to serve as a B-17 pilot as part of the 3rd Bombardment Division of the 8th Army Air Force, 452nd Bomb Group, 728th Bomb Squad. He flew 35 bombing missions over Europe. While in England, he made 1st Lieutenant and was awarded an Air Medal with 5 OLC. Before retiring, he would make Captain and become a Sr Army Aviator. He did not speak much of his time during the war but he once told his brother that the mission that stood out to him was when his squad was involved in the bombing attack during the Battle of the Bulge. He said, “That mission I knew I was getting to do something that was helping our boys out on the ground and it felt good.”
He was and still is my family's hero. To all of his nieces and nephews, he was our funny, mischievous Uncle Punk.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Forbidden Fruit II
- Unit: 729th Bomb Squadron 728th Bomb Squadron 452nd Bomb Group
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
7 January 1921 | Born at New Site, Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA | |
Enlisted |
1 February 1938 | Enlisted to the 1st Squadron Air Service as part of TN National Guard 30th “Old Hickory” Division This was the first Air Service in the South and 1 of only 3 in the Nation after World War I. | |
Based |
Assigned to 452 Bomb Group to be a pilot on a B-17 | ||
Other Missions in Pacific Campaign |
Reported to Fort Jackson, South Carolina to complete training after federalized. As part of the 105th Observation Squad, 65th Observation Group who flew missions over the Pacific Theatre doing both reconnaissance and combat missions over Japanese targets. With this squad, he flew different aircraft including the twin engine Martin B-10 Bomber, the Vega Ventura B-34, and the North American B-25G Mitchell Bomber. |
Revisions
Added an Association to the A/C #42-102615 & Walter Green listed in the A/C description section.
“The Old Hickory Squadron” 118th Wing Air National Guard, United States Air Force Website-
https://www.118wg.ang.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/43918… (accessed 20 Jan 2021)
National Guard Registrars(Army), National Guard Bureau pub 1 Jan 1938, pub 1 Jan 1953, pub 1 Jan 1957
Family Historian Records
Air Medal Decoration Card for Walter R Green; NARA Catalog Record Group 64 Series: Award Cards, 1942 - 1963 File Unit: Air Force Award Cards [Air Medal]: Gray, William C - Greenwood, James A, Card number 615; https://catalog.archives.gov/id/139433427/615/public?contributionType=t… (accessed 4 Feb 2021)
National Guard Registers (Army) National Guard Bureau; The Secretary of the Army; pub 1 Jan 1953; Oregon State Library, Salem, Oregon; digital copy https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2345/images/40014_1821… (accessed 17 Jan 2021)
Walter Randall Green Photo Collection
1999 Unit Roster / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia