Wilson Kirby Baker Jr

Military
media-38410.jpeg UPL 38410 Lt. Wilson K. Baker, Jr. enlisted at Camp Forrest, TN on 17 October 1942. Earning two aerial victories and one E/A damaged, Lt. Baker flew 42 combat missions with the 370th Fighter Squadron from 2 May 1944 until his August 4, 1944 flight, when he was interned in Sweden for several weeks. His tour of duty with the 359th Fighter Group officially ended on 30 November 1944. 359th Fighter Group collection

Photo archived by Char Baldridge, Historian, 359th Fighter Group Association.
Posted by Janet Fogg, 359th Fighter Group Historian.

Object Number - UPL 38410 - Lt. Wilson K. Baker, Jr. enlisted at Camp Forrest, TN on 17 October 1942. Earning two aerial victories and one E/A damaged, Lt. Baker flew 42 combat...

Assigned to 496FTG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to 370FS, 359FG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) bomber escort to Anklan, Germany. Escorted Capt Lancaster to Sweden, on return shot down Do17 and low on fuel returned to land in Sweden. Interned (INT)

4-Aug-44. MACR 7432. RTD, ETD.



Awards: DFC, AM (4OLC), WWII Victory, EAME.



Post war: Remained in USAF, killed in service when F-86 Sabre 52-5065 went missing from Hill AFB Utah.

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: P-51 Mustang
  • Unit: 359th Fighter Group 370th Fighter Squadron

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

Harbert, TN 23 September 1924 Son of Wilson Kirby Sr and Grace M Baker.

Enlisted

Forest Camp Rd, Spring City, TN 37381, USA 17 October 1942 Camp Forrest, Tennessee

Other

Transferred

Wretham, Thetford IP24, UK 5 February 1944 - 30 November 1944 Transferred to 370FS, 359FG, 8AF USAAF.

Other

Interned (INT)

Sweden 4 August 1944 Failed to Return (FTR) bomber escort to Anklan, Germany. Escorted Capt Lancaster to Sweden, on return shot down Do17 and low on fuel returned to land in Sweden. Interned (INT) 4-Aug-44. MACR 7432.

Other

Promoted

Wretham, Thetford IP24, UK 4 August 1944 Promoted to 1st Lieutenant.

Other

End Tour of Duty (ETD)

England, UK 30 November 1944

Died

Great Salt Lake, Utah, USA 13 January 1956 Killed in service when F-86 Sabre 52-5065 went missing from Hill AFB Utah. Low on fuel with an aborted landing, did not declare emergency, assumed to have crashed into the Great Salt Lake.

Based

Promoted

Goxhill Assigned to 496FTG, 8AF USAAF.
Atlanta, GA, USA

Buried

Marietta National Cemetery Marietta Cobb County GA Memorialised Marietta National Cemetery Marietta Cobb County Georgia, USA

Revisions

Date
Changes
Sources

Merged with duplicate entries to include details from:
- MACR 7432;
- Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database;
- the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Ted Damick, VIII Fighter Command pilots list

Wilson Kirby Baker: Gallery (1 items)