Stephen Frederick “Fred” Scudday, Jr. was born on August 2, 1917 in Brownfield, Terry County, Texas. Enlisting in the RAF in Dallas in November 1940, Fred went directly from Love Field to a port of embarkation in Canada and landed in England where he flew for nine months with the Eagle Squadron. Part of the time hew flew missions and part he was an instructor. He owned his own plane before volunteering for service.

After he completed his 203 operational hours in combat in England, he was moved to the African Gold Coast, thence to Cairo. Se spent 17 months in Africa and was transferred to the US Army Air Forces. Reassigned, he was sent to Massachusetts where he taught combat flying and sailed October 1, 1943 for more overseas duty. He was sent to Caito and later to India where he instructed Chinese boys in combat flying for three months. Later, he was sent back into combat flying out of a secret base in China. He piloted a P-38.

It is not known wether he died in action or from natural causes. Only when another Sweetwater man, based in China, had written that CPT Scudday was ill of pneumonia. He is now buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Honolulu County, Hawaii, USA. CPT Scudday was one of over 2000 Americans who lost their lives defending China from their Japanese invaders from 1941-1945. He is commemorated on the The Monument to the Aviation Martyrs in the War of Resistance Against Japan in Nanjing, China.

Source of information:
The Sweetwater Reporter, Sunday, June 25, 1944
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