William Donald Curry Jr. | |
---|---|
William Donald Curry Jr.
West Point graduation photo, 1950 |
|
Born | May 15, 1926 Minneapolis, Minnesota |
Died | April 16, 2013 (aged 87) Williamsburg, Virginia |
Place of burial | Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia |
Allegiance | United States |
Service/ |
United States Army Air Forces United States Air Force |
Years of service | 1943-1980 |
Rank | Brigadier General |
Battles/wars |
Brigadier General William D. Curry Jr (May 15, 1926 – April 16, 2013) was a retired United States Air Force officer. He was a command pilot with over 6,500 flying hours, serving in World War II, the Korean and Vietnam Wars.
General Curry was born in Minneapolis in 1926. He entered the United States Army Air Forces from Marshalltown, Iowa, during World War II and served as a B-24 Liberator crew chief until entering the United States Military Academy. Upon graduation in 1950, he was commissioned a second lieutenant.
He began his career during the Korean War flying in a combat tour in F-51 Mustangs. The years following Korea were spent as a fighter pilot and in various operational assignments while serving with Tactical Air Command units until 1958. From 1959 to 1966, he served in the Strategic Air Command as a B-47 Stratojet aircraft commander and operations staff officer.
In 1966 General Curry returned to the fighter business and joined the 366th Tactical Fighter Wing at Da Nang Air Base, Republic of Vietnam, in 1968. While there he flew a combat tour as an F-4 Phantom II squadron commander. A second Southeast Asia combat tour was completed in 1973. During this tour he served as commander of the 354th Tactical Fighter Wing, which was deployed to Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand, flying the A-7D Corsair II.