Name:
John Edwin Wilkes
Rank:
First Lieutenant
Serial Number:
O-667888
Unit:
514th Fighter Squadron, 406th Fighter Group
Date of Death:
1944-06-07
State:
Florida
Cemetery:
Normandy American Cemetery, Colleville-Sur-Mer, France
Plot:
E
Row:
1
Grave:
40
Decoration:
Air Medal, Purple Heart
Comments:
John Edwin Wilkes was born in 1920 in Georgia. He served in the 514th Fighter Squadron, 406th Fighter Group, as a First Lieutenant and Pilot of the P-47 D-11-RE #42-75391 during World War II.
On June 7, 1944, he took off from Station 417 airfield in Ashford, England, on a patrol mission. He was killed in action when his airplane was shot down by flak at 06:20 and crashed into Villers-Bocage - 30 km southwest of Caen. The plane exploded upon reaching the ground. 1Lt Wilkes is now buried in the Normandy American Cemetery, Colleville-Sur-Mer, France.
Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, francecrashes39-45.net