Paul Anthony Petris

Paul was born 26FEB1922 in Chicago, IL. His father was born in Yugoslavia and his mother in Illinois to Swedish parents. After high school he enlisted as a private in the Army Air Corps on 29JAN1941 and eventually was accepted for flight training. He joined the 118th while it was in Liuchow and remained with the squadron until the end of the war. After the war he continued flying. In 1964 at the age of 42, Paul was killed while piloting a twin-engined Beechcraft for Arizona Public Service Company where he had been the chief pilot for thirteen years. The aircraft suffered metal fatigue of the left wing's lower spar cap and crashed killing all four onboard. He was survived by a wife, a daughter, and a son.