REED, ACE FROM IOWA, IS KILLED
Meets Death on Mission With 14th Air Force
Headquarters 14th Air Force in China Dec 20 (Delayed by Censors) (AP) -- Lt. Col. William Norman Reed, 27, Marion, Iowa, ranking ace of the 14th air force, was killed Tuesday night on a mission.
The circumstances of Reed's death were not disclosed.
He was acting commander of the 'Al's Assassins' fighter group of the Chinese-American composite wing, having succeeded Col. T. Alan Bennett, presently acting wing commander.
Reed shared honors with Col. David L. (Tex) Hill for enemy planes downed in this theater. Hill, now in the United States, has downed 18 1/4 and Reed had 16 1/2. (The fractional victories were won in the old American volunteer group, which gave bonuses for planes destroyed.)
Reed's score will go higher posthumously because he had victories still to be credited officially when he was killed.
Source: The Mason City Globe-Gazette, January 1, 1945 (photo included)
William Norman Reed was born Jan. 8, 1917 to Edward J. and Mayme Ellen Dearborn Reed. He died Dec. 19, 1944 and is buried in Riverside Cemetery, Anamosa, IA.
Lt. Col. Reed served in World War II with the U.S. Army Air Corps 3rd Fighter Group and was KIA while returning from a mission over Pengpu when he was forced to bail out and the chute did not open.
Veteran of World War II. Recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross with 2 OLC, Air Medal with 9 OLC, Chinese Cloud Banner. Commissioned as a second lieutenant in October 1940. Granted leave of absence from the service, he left for Burma with the AVG to assist China in protecting the Burma Road. He served in the 3rd Squadron, "Hell's Angels" and flew 75 missions with 3 confirmed aerial victories, eight on the ground and other probables. Disbanded in July 4, 1942, he returned home to Iowa.
Commissioned a Major in 1943, he returned to the Chinese theater to fight again under General Chennault with the Chinese American Composite Wing, 14th Army Air Force. Flew 66 mission, with 6 confirmed aerial victories, 9 on the ground and many other probables. Promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and Commander of the Third Fighter Group.
Killed while returning from a mission over Pengpu when he was forced to bail out and the chute did not open. He was returned to Iowa after the war and is buried beside his parents, Mary Ellen Dearborn Reed and Edward Reed. He is Iowa's most decorated pilot of World War II.
Source: Extracted from information provided by Edward Reed to the Flying Tiger Web Site.
