Frank Fong served as a fighter pilot with the 359th Fighter Group. On 29 June 1944 he was sent on detached service to Air Sea Rescue as part of what became known as the 5th Emergency Rescue Squadron.



Lt. Frank S. Fong enlisted on 27 October 1942. Assigned to the 369th Fighter Squadron on 21 February 1944, he flew 44 combat missions with the 359th Fighter Group through 29 June 1944, when he went on detached service to 5ERS, then the 496FTG, before returning home to Miami, FL, on 23 January 1945.



15 March 1944: At the other end of the scale, a section of 369th fought 10 Me109s from 26,000 down to the 12,000, Lt. Charles H. Kruger destroying one. Kruger came out on the deck with Lts. Robert L. Thacker and Frank S. Fong. On the way they strafed two locomotives. All three had a difficult time getting home as all hit trees and/or high tension wires inside Germany. But the Thunderbolts again behaved like homing pigeons despite battered wings and torn propeller blades



27 March 1944: The group’s 57th mission on 27 March cost Lt. Kerns in a muddled combat by Captain McKee’s flight which the rest of the group never could find. There was much initial doubt if we could get off that day on Field Order 282, an attack on Chartres. Zero hour was delayed 60 minutes at 1100 but at 1145, Wretham still had only 1100 yards visibility and a 300-foot ceiling. The weather cleared slightly, and the group got up at 1257 with 47 aircraft. Lt. Fong, who knocked down a Focke-Wulf 190 was the only Chinese-American pilot in the theatre the day he scored this victory on his seventh mission. Then 24, he was born in Augusta, Ga., worked as a commercial artist, entered the Army 18 May, 1942, and was commissioned 1 October, 1943. His father is a chef in a Miami restaurant. He came, via Atcham, from RTU at Fort Meyer. Lt. Pherson one of the group’s originals, also scored that day, and Captain McKee claimed two damaged.



On 23 January 1945 he was transferred to the 555th Fighter Training Squadron of the 496th Fighter Training Squadron. He served with the Headquarters of the 496th FTG.



Fong fought the Veterans Administration for over 50 years, before finally getting compensation and backpay for an injury he received during WWII in his P-47.



Awards: DFC (OLC), AM (7OLC), PH, WWII Victory, EAME (6 bronze stars).