An N.C.O. in an Army Air Forces maintenance unit whose last furlough home before going overseas proved tragic

An N.C.O. in an Army Air Forces maintenance unit whose last furlough home before going overseas proved tragic
A C-47 copilot who survived the dangerous first American airborne combat mission only to die in a crash weeks later
A black soldier in an airbase security battalion who served in the southwest Pacific
A pilot in a gunnery training unit who died in a stateside training accident shortly after becoming a father.
A B-29 Superfortress navigator killed in a tragic training accident shortly before he was scheduled to ship out for the Pacific
An Army Air Forces armorer killed in a tragic accident at an airfield in Sardinia
A B-24 gunner in the ill-fated 492nd Bomb Group killed during a costly raid on Germany
A plumber/pipefitter turned Army Air Forces firefighter caught up in a tragic accident at an airfield in Italy
William J. Harden c. 1943 (Courtesy of the Delaware Public Archives) ResidencesCivilian OccupationBorn in Maryland, raised in DelawareStudentBranchService NumbersU.S. Army Air ForcesEnlisted 12054590 / Officer O-681855TheaterUnitMediterranean737th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 454th Bombardment Group (Heavy)AwardsCampaigns/BattlesAir Medal with one oak leaf cluster, Purple HeartEuropean strategic bombing campaign Early Life & Family William Joseph Harden was born in Westernport, …
Continue reading 2nd Lieutenant William J. Harden (1921–1944)
A Pennsylvanian in the 815th Engineer Aviation Battalion whose final act of sacrifice saved his brother's life