Sponsored by:

Navy Federal Credit Union
Wilbur
W.
Aring
POW (WWII)
April 27, 1908

–

December 18, 1980

Born:

Cleveland

, 

Ohio

Home:

Dayton

, 

Ohio

Buried: 

Arlington

, 

Virginia

Cemetery:

Arlington National Cemetery

After serving in the Army Air Forces in World War II, during which he was shot down on his thirteen air mission and interned as a Prisoner of War, Wilbur Aring transferred to the U.S. Air Force when it became a separate branch of service in 1947. He retired in 1965 as a U.S. Air Force Brigadier General.

Awards Received

  • Prisoner of War Medal

    Service:

    United States Army Air Forces

    Rank:

    Lieutenant Colonel (Air Corps)

    Division:

    Prisoner of War

    Action Date:

    1943 – May 1945
    NARA Database: Records of World War II Prisoners of War, created, 1942 – 8927

    Lieutenant Colonel (Air Corps) Wilbur W. Aring (ASN: 0-20458), United States Army Air Forces, was captured by German forces after he was shot down in 1943, and was held as a Prisoner of War until his return to U.S. Military Control at the end of hostilities in May 1945.

  • Silver Star

    Service:

    United States Army Air Forces

    Rank:

    Lieutenant Colonel (Air Corps)

    Regiment:

    319th Bombardment Group (M)

    Division:

    12th Air Force

    Action Date:

    World War II
    Headquarters, Northwest African Strategic Air Force, General Orders No. 42 (August 19, 1943)

    (Citation Needed) – SYNOPSIS: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Lieutenant Colonel (Air Corps) Wilbur W. Aring (ASN: 0-20458), United States Army Air Forces, for gallantry in action against the enemy while serving as Pilot of a B-26 Marauder Bomber and as Commanding Officer of the 319th Bombardment Group (Medium), TWELFTH Air Force, in aerial operations in the North Africa Theater of Operations, in 1943. The gallant actions and dedicated devotion to duty demonstrated by Lieutenant Colonel Aring, without regard for his own life, were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Army Air Forces.