Roland R. Wright (30 March 1919 – 19 October 2015) was a brigadier general of the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

who was a pilot during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

and the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. During World War II, Wright was assigned to the 364th Fighter Squadron,

357th Fighter Group The 357th Fighter Group was an air combat unit of the United States Army Air Forces during the Second World War. The 357th operated P-51 Mustang aircraft as part of the U.S. Eighth Air Force and its members were known unofficially as the Yoxford ...

where he flew the

P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter aircraft, fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 by a team headed ...

. Wright had three confirmed aerial victories, one of which was against a

Me 262 The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed (German for "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ("Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Messersc ...

—the eighth to have ever been shot down. All three P-51 Mustangs he flew were dubbed the 'Mormon Mustang'. Wright eventually reached the rank of brigadier general, retiring in 1976. He was also one of the first members of the

Utah Air National Guard The Utah Air National Guard (UT ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Utah, United States. It's a reserve of the United States Air Force and along with the Utah Army National Guard an element of the Utah National Guard of the larger United ...

. Wright was a member of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church). Prior to joining the Air Force he served as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

in the Northern States

Mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

, headquartered in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. After retiring, Wright served as the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

from 1977 to 1980 and as director of the Washington DC Temple Visitors Center from 1991 until 1993. On October 18, 2014, Wright was honored by the Utah Air National Guard when the Utah Air National Guard Base was formally renamed to the Roland R. Wright Air National Guard Base. A remake of his plane currently resides at Legacy Flight Museum where it is flown by pilot John K. Bagley. Wright died in October 2015.

Notes

References

*''

Church News The ''Church News'' (formerly ''LDS Church News'') is a multi-platform supplement and subdivision of the ''Deseret News'', a Salt Lake City, Utah newspaper owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (informally, the LDS Church). ...

'', Nov. 14, 2009, p. 14.
website about Roland Wright and the Mormon Mustangshort article about WrightSaints at War siteVertigo

Archived Interview with Roland R. Wright; BYU Special Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Roland R. 1919 births 2015 deaths 20th-century Mormon missionaries American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints United States Air Force personnel of the Korean War United States Air Force personnel of the Vietnam War American Mormon missionaries in the United States United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II Mission presidents (LDS Church) United States Army Air Forces officers United States Air Force generals