Lieutenant Colonel Edward J. Saylor, Ret. (March 15, 1920 – January 28, 2015) served in the U.S. Air Force. He was a veteran of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and participated in the Doolittle Raid on

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

on April 18, 1942. Saylor was one of the last four surviving Doolittle Raiders at the time of his death in 2015.

Early life

Saylor was born in

Brusett, Montana Brusett is an unincorporated tiny rural hamlet in northwestern Garfield County, Montana, United States. It lies about the intersection of Brusett Road and Edwards Road, local roads west of the town of Jordan, the county seat of Garfield County. ...

, on March 15, 1920, and raised on a

cattle ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...

. Tired of ranch life, he joined the military in 1939, having never seen a bus or train outside the movies. Saylor saw a poster that promised $78 per month to be a mechanic and offered peacetime pay. This persuaded him to join the U.S. Army Air Corps out of high school.

Military career

Saylor enlisted on December 7, 1939, at

Fort George Wright Fort George Wright is a land area in the northwest United States, located in Spokane, Washington's West Hills neighborhood. It is named after General George Wright, who had been stationed in the area. History In 1895, local residents purchased ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

. Afterwards, he was enrolled in the Air Corps Training School at

Chanute Field Chanute may refer to: *Chanute, Kansas, United States **Chanute High School *Octave Chanute (1832–1910), American civil engineer and aviation pioneer *Chanute Air Force Base, Illinois, United States *Octave Chanute Award, awarded by the Western S ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. When Saylor completed his training, he served as the flight engineer at bases in

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, and

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. At the age of 22, he was assigned to the 89th Bomb Squadron in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

Doolittle Raid

In February 1942, Saylor volunteered for a "secret mission", even though he did not know what duties were involved or any other details. This mission ended up being the critical Doolittle Raid. Saylor was the flight engineer for Crew#15 of the

Doolittle Raiders The Doolittle Raid, also known as the Tokyo Raid, was an air raid on 18 April 1942 by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on Honshu during World War II. It was the first American air operation to strike the Japan ...

. He was credited with ensuring that this crew would be able to participate in the raid after an engine malfunction derailed their mission. James Doolittle personally asked Saylor to fix the problem. He had to dismantle and repair the engine on the deck of the aircraft carrier. Despite the fact that this work would normally be done in a depot, Saylor was able to rebuild the engine successfully. Saylor remained in the U.S. military following the end of World War II and served the remainder of the war in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. He received battlefield commission on March 4, 1945. He remained in the U.S. Army Air Forces until it became a separate branch, the United States Air Force.

Post War

Saylor served as an aircraft maintenance officer until leaving active duty on March 29, 1946, serving in the

Air Force Reserve The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a MAJCOM, major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of ...

until returning to active duty beginning October 25, 1947. His next assignment was as an aircraft maintenance officer with the 140th Air Force Base Unit and the 2470th Air Force Reserve Training Center at

Sioux City, Iowa Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Iowa. The bulk of the city is in Woodbury County, ...

, from October 1947 to June 1949, followed by service as an aircraft maintenance officer with the

325th Fighter Wing The 325th Fighter Wing (325 FW) is a wing of the United States Air Force based in Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Mission The 325th Fighter Wing's primary mission is to provide air dominance training for F-22 Raptor pilots and maintenance per ...

and the 318th Fighter Squadron at

Moses Lake Air Force Base Larson Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located five miles (8 km) northwest of the central business district (CBD) of Moses Lake, in Grant County, Washington. After its closure in 1966, the airport facility became G ...

and then at McChord Air Force Base, from July 1949 to June 1952. Saylor next served as assistant base maintenance officer with the 86th Air Base Squadron and the 529th Material Squadron at

Paine Air Force Base Paine Field , also known as Snohomish County Airport, is a commercial and general aviation airport serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is located in unincorporated Snohomish County, Washington, between th ...

from July 1952 to October 1953, and then as an aircraft maintenance officer with the 59th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at

Goose Air Force Base Canadian Forces Base Goose Bay , commonly referred to as CFB Goose Bay, is a Canadian Forces Base located in the municipality of Happy Valley-Goose Bay in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is operated as an air force base by ...

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

, Canada, from October 1953 to July 1955. His next assignment was as an aircraft maintenance officer with the 530th Air Defense Group, the

84th Fighter Group Area codes 084 and 086 are Nigerian telephone area codes serving the cities of Port Harcourt and Ahoada in Rivers State. They fall under the Southeast Zone in the National Numbering Plan (NNP) restructured in 2003. When in Port Harcourt or Ahoa ...

, and then the 84th Material Squadron at Geiger Field from July 1955 to October 1958. Saylor served as an aircraft maintenance officer with the

25th Air Division The 25th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force intermediate echelon command and control organization. It was last assigned to First Air Force, Tactical Air Command (ADTAC). It was inactivated on 30 September 1990 at McChord Air ...

at McChord Air Force Base from October 1958 to December 1961, followed by service as an exchange officer with the British

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

at RAF Coltishall,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, where he served as a Senior Technical Officer with the Air Fighting Development Squadron from December 1961 to January 1964. Saylor next served as chief of maintenance of the 337th Fighter Group and 337th Consolidated Aircraft Maintenance Squadron with

Air Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command (military formation), command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was est ...

Portland International Airport Portland International Airport is a joint civil–military airport and the largest airport in the U.S. state of Oregon, accounting for 90% of the state's passenger air travel and more than 95% of its air cargo. It is within Portland's city li ...

from January 1964 to March 1966, and then as chief of maintenance of the

328th Fighter Wing 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base from March 1966 until his retirement from the Air Force on October 1, 1967. Saylor later pursued ventures in construction and real estate within the

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The ...

. He also owned a restaurant with his wife. Saylor was a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross and other awards for his service during the war. In 2014, Saylor and the other Doolittle Raiders were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. He was also honored as the sixth person to receive

Enumclaw Enumclaw ( ) is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 12,543 at the 2020 census. The Enumclaw Plateau, on which the city resides, was formed by a volcanic mudflow (lahar) from Mount Rainier approximately 5,700 ye ...

's Walk of Fame in 2013.

Decorations

Saylor's military decorations and awards include:

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

Medal of the Armed Forces

War Memorial Medal

Personal life

Saylor was married to Lorraine Saylor for 69 years, until her death in 2011. They had three children. Edward Saylor died at an assisted living center in

Sumner, Washington Sumner is a city in northern Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,621 at the 2020 census. Nearby cities include Puyallup to the west, Auburn to the north, and Bonney Lake to the east. History Sumner was founde ...

, on January 28, 2015, at the age of 94. Members of his family revealed he died from natural causes. His death leaves just two surviving Doolittle Raiders.