Donald A. Larson (2 April 1915 or 1917 – 4 August 1944) was an American fighter pilot and World War II

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...

from

Yakima, Washington Yakima ( or ) is a city in and the county seat of Yakima County, Washington, United States, and the state's 11th most populous city. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 96,968 and a metropolitan population of 256,728. The ...

. He attained to the rank of major in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

while serving with 505th Fighter Squadron,

339th Fighter Group The 339th Fighter Group was a unit of the United States Air Forces during World War II.Maurer, Maurer (1983). ''Air Force Combat Units Of World War II''. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. . It comprised the 503rd, 504th, and ...

Larson Air Force Base Larson Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located five miles (8 km) northwest of the central business district (CBD) of Moses Lake, in Grant County, Washington. After its closure in 1966, the airport facility became ...

Moses Lake Moses Lake is a lake and reservoir along the course of Crab Creek, in the U.S. state of Washington. Moses Lake is part of the Columbia River basin, as Crab Creek is a tributary of the Columbia River. Although originally a shallow natural lake ...

was named after him.

Early life

Larson and his identical twin brother Ronald were born in Yakima, Washington, on 2 April 1915. His parents were Alvin N. Larson and Anna D. Larson. He took flying lessons at McAllister Flying School at McAllister Field in Yakima in 1928.

Military career

Larson enlisted as an Air Cadet at McChord Field, Tacoma, Washington, in April or May 1941, where he received his flight training, and continued as a flight instructor. He was assigned to the 339th Bomb Group in 1943. That year, the 339th Bomb Group was moved from Hunter Army Air Field in Georgia to Walterboro Army Air Field in South Carolina, where they flew reconfigured P-39s in as fighter-bombers. Larson went with the 339th as it was moved to Fowlmere, England in April 1944, and began flying P-51s. He was later posted to the 505th Fighter Squadron as a combat pilot. On 13 May 1944, he shot down his first enemy aircraft, and earned a promotion to major. Only 11 days later, on 24 May, he shot down an additional three aircraft. He earned the ace designation by shooting down his fifth enemy aircraft on 25 July 1944. During his career, he flew three different aircraft in combat missions: P-51B #42-1066646, P-51D #42-106819 (which he named "Mary Queen of Scotts" after his girlfriend, Mary Scott), and a P-51D #44-13881 or #13889 (also named Mary, Queen of Scotts), which he was flying when he died. Major Larson commanded an Eighth Air Force fighter squadron. An article dated 7 August 1944 (three days after Larson's death) said that the squadron had claimed "the destruction of 103 enemy planes in 100 missions—54 in the air and the rest aground." The ''Daily Record'' continued: "It also claims two enemy planes probably destroyed and 22 damaged."

Death and burial

On 4 August 1944, Larson was on a fighter sweep, and shot down his fifth and sixth enemy aircraft. His P-51D Mustang was also shot down and crashed near

Uelzen Uelzen (; ), officially the Hanseatic City of Uelzen (), is a town in northeast Lower Saxony, Germany, and capital of the district of Uelzen. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, a Hanseatic town and an independent municipality. Uelz ...

, Germany. He had flown 57 combat missions. According to some sources, he had destroyed 12 enemy aircraft in his career. His body was initially recovered by enemy forces and buried near Uelzen. After his grave was discovered, his remains were re-interred at the

Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War American military war grave cemetery, located in the village of Neuville-en-Condroz, near the southeast edge of Neupré, some south-west of Liège in Belgium. The cemetery, dedicated ...

at Neuville-en-Condroz,

Neupré Neupré (; ) is a wallonian municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège. On January 1, 2006, Neupré had a total population of 9,798. The total area is 31.69 km2 which gives a population density of 309 inhabitants per km2. Th ...

Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...

, Belgium, nine miles southwest of

Liège Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...

. His grave is in Plot D, Row 11, Grave 9.

Aerial victory credits

::::SOURCES: ''Air Force Historical Study 85: USAF Credits for the Destruction of Enemy Aircraft, World War II''

Awards and honors

According to U.S. Representative Hal Holmes of Ellensburg, Major Larson had "been awarded almost all the medals the air force gives". His awards included: *

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

* Distinguished Flying Cross with

Oak Leaf Cluster An oak leaf cluster is a ribbon device to denote preceding decorations and awards consisting of a miniature bronze or silver twig of four oak leaves with three acorns on the stem. It is authorized by the United States Armed Forces for a spec ...

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establi ...

with three clusters *

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

American Defense Service Medal The American Defense Service Medal was a United States service medals of the World Wars, military award of the United States Armed Forces, established by , by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, on June 28, 1941. The medal was intended to recogniz ...

* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with two

Bronze Stars The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

American Campaign Medal The American Campaign Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was first created on November 6, 1942, by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The medal was intended to recognize those military members who had per ...

World War II Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal was a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. Histo ...

The Air Force undertook a memorialization program to rename many bases in honor of local war heroes. Moses Lake Army Air Base, which operated from 1942 to 1945, reopened on 26 November 1948 and was renamed to Larson Air Force Base in May 1950 in his honor. Although the Air Force base was closed down, the section of Moses Lake North that comprises the former base housing continues to be known as the Larson community.

Footnotes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Larson, Donald A. 1910s births 1944 deaths People from Yakima, Washington American World War II flying aces Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Air Medal United States Army Air Forces personnel killed in World War II Aviators killed by being shot down Burials at Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial Aviators from Washington (state) Military personnel from Washington (state) Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in Germany Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1944 American twins