Edwin Heller was born in Philadelphia in 1918. He entered the service in February 1942 and graduated from flying school 12 months later. After transitioning to P-47s he joined the 486th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group, at Republic Field, Long Island. The group departed for England in July 1943 to begin bomber escort for the Eighth Air Force.

Lieutenant Heller flew a tour in Thunderbolts and two 25-hourextensions in P-51 Mustangs. On the first England-to-Russia shuttle mission in June 1944, he shot down an Me-109 over Poland - almost 1,000 miles from his home base, considered at the time the furthest in

the ETO. After 30 days leave, Heller flew another full tour in Mustangs to finish the war with 520 combat hours, 5 and a half aerial victories and 14 planes destroyed on the ground.



During the Korean War, Heller commanded the 16th Fighter Squadron of the 51st Fighter Group. In some 40 missions he was credited with 3 and a half Soviet-built MiG-15s before being shot down and captured. He spent 2 years as a prisoner of the Chinese.

Retired from the Air Force in 1967 as a lieutenant colonel, Ed Heller has a son and daughter and nine grandchildren. He resides with his wife, Johanna, in Grass Valley, California.





Decorations: Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, 6 DFCs, 15 Air medals, Purple Heart, French Croix de Guerre.