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Contact Info
Home Town Taylor, Texas
Last Address Dallas, Texas
Date of Passing Jun 06, 1964
Location of Interment Taylor City Cemetery - Taylor, Texas
He was the co-pilot in crew #5 on the Doolittle Raid. Earlier he had been the co-pilot of a B-25 that had spotted and sunk a Japanese submarine at the mouth of the Columbia River. Later he would command a B-25 unit in England, North Africa and the Mediterranean.
His DFC citation: Awarded for actions during World War II The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to First Lieutenant (Air Corps) Ross Rodney Wilder, United States Army Air Forces, for extraordinary achievement as Co-Pilot of a B-25 Bomber of the 1st Special Aviation Project (Doolittle Raider Force), while participating in a highly destructive raid on the Japanese mainland on 18 April 1942. Lieutenant Wilder with 79 other officers and enlisted men volunteered for this mission knowing full well that the chances of survival were extremely remote, and executed his part in it with great skill and daring. This achievement reflects high credit on himself and the military service. Action Date: April 18, 1942 Service: Army Air Forces Rank: First Lieutenant Company: 1st Special Aviation Project Division: Doolittle Tokyo Raider Force
Crew #5 (Plane #40-2283, target Tokyo): 95th Bomb Sq. L-R: Lt. Eugene F. McGurl, navigator; Capt. David M. Jones, pilot; Lt. Denver V. Truelove, bombardier; Lt. Ross R. Wilder, copilot; Sgt. Joseph W. Manske, flight engineer/gunner. (U.S. Air Force photo)
