William F. X. Band
Theater: Burma-India-China
Wife: Emily Band
Highest rank: Major
Born: August, 1921, Orange, N.J.
Died: November, 2005 Buried: Cape May County Veterans' Cemetery, New JerseyDecorations: Silver Star, a Distinguished Flying Cross with 2 oak leaf clusters, an Air Medal with 2 oak leaf clusters, a decoration from Chinese government, plus Chinese pilot wings.
Joe Thalman was his Instructor at Douglas. S/N: O-802973. He became a Fighter Pilot with the Flying Tigers (16th Fighter Sq, 51 Fighter Group). Flew 102 missions. He flew P-40, P-51, B-25, C-47, F-86, T-28, etc. Post war he was with the F.B.I. until recalled for the Korean War, where he spent another 4 years. He wrote the interesting and entertaining book, Warriors Who Ride the Wind.
Click here for his bio, a letter he wrote to his instructor (Joe Thalman) during the War, and comments about his book (a PDF). His Silver Star was awarded for discovering, while doing low level reconnaissance, approximately 4000 Japanese soldiers and horses hiding in a grove a trees. Low on ammunition, he instructed his squadron to drop their belly fuel tanks on the amassed troops. He flew in behind shooting up the gasoline drenched area and setting it ablaze. Hundreds of Japanese soldiers perished. His plane was so shot up by Japanese small arms fire that he had to do a dead stick landing back at his airfield.He was shot down 4 times. Once by a Japanese aircraft, and three times by ground fire. He used to joke that had he been shot down one more time, he would have been a Japanese ace!
