Santiago R. Gutierrez entered the military service in Texas. He served as a Second Lieutenant & Pilot of the P-51 #43-7052, 363rd Fighter Squadron, 357th Fighter Group, U.S. Army Air Force during World War II.

Santiago was declared "Missing In Action" when, after taking off on a bomber escort mission to Brunswick, Germany, he was climbing through the overcast weather about twenty miles east of the base and was involved in a mid-air collision with P-51-B #43-6628 piloted by 1Lt William R McGinley. The pilots are both commemorated on the Tablets of the Missing, Cambridge American Cemetery, Cambridge, United Kingdom.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com