Fidler, John William

Title: Fidler, John William
Performer: John William Fidler
Interviewer: Joyce Williams
Description: John Fidler was born in Jay County, Indiana, in 1921. In October 1942, since he was mechanically inclined, he enlisted in the Air Force, so that he could work on airplanes. During World War II, the Air Force sent him to aircraft mechanic school in Lincoln, Nebraska. After six months of training, John was sent to Norfolk, Virginia, where pilots were learning to fly and fight with P-47s. He was made crew chief and became completely responsible for maintenance on one of the P-47s, and airplane he was intimately familiar with, and learned to love. During that time, the training outfit only lost two pilots. He was honorably discharged in 1946, having achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant. Fidler flew on the Pride and Honor Flight in 2009.
Date Span: 1942-1946; Dates of Service
Subject: Enlisted; United States Army Air Forces/Corps; 443rd Fighter Squadron; World War, 1939-1945; United States; Staff Sargeant
Publisher: Center for Oral History Research at Eastern Michigan University
Collection Location: 2/8; https://memory.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/bib/loc.natlib.afc2001001.72827
Spatial Coverage: United States