Charles F. Anderson was born on March 31, 1919, in Crab Orchard, Lincoln County, Kentucky. He joined the 4th Fighter Group, 335th Fighter Squadron, on August 11, 1943. He flew P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs, shooting down a mixed bag of Luftwaffe aircraft. He shot down Me-109s and Fw-190s, plus a Do-217 to make ten aerial victories, and destroyed five different types of aircraft on the ground for a total of 15.

His P-47 was named "Hell's Belle," and his P-51 was called "Paul." His first victory was scored on January 30, 1944, when on an abortive bomber escort mission, the group was attacked by the Luftwaffe. Charles was the only one to score, and he also damaged a second. On March 29, he destroyed 2 1/2 Fw-190s to become an "Ace." On April 12, he became a "Double-Ace" with the destruction of two Me-109s.

Unfortunately, Cpt Anderson was killed in action one week later on a Ramrod mission to Eschwege. He was shot down by an enemy fighter in Hoher-Meissner, Germany.

Cpt Anderson is now buried in the Calumet Park Cemetery, Merrillville, Lake County, Indiana, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.americanairmuseum.com, 4thfightergroupassociation.org
Source of photo: 4thfightergroupassociation.org