Fred F. Ohr (July 15, 1919 – September 6, 2015) was an American

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 opposing ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

, credited with the destruction of six aircraft in the air and 17 on the ground. Ohr was born on July 15, 1919 in Oregon to Korean immigrants Wanda and Wan Ju, and grew up on a farm in the

Boise, Idaho Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown ar ...

basin. Out of high school he joined the military in 1938 but was not on the path to becoming a pilot until inadvertently participating in a pilot examination in 1940. In fall 1942 he deployed with the 68th Material Service Squadron to Britain. He served as a ground crew member in Tunisia, seeing action as his airbase was overrun. Afterwards, Ohr flew until November 1944 with the 2nd Fighter Squadron, 52nd Fighter Group, ending his tour as the squadron's commanding officer. He received numerous decorations including the Silver Star with one Oak Leaf Cluster, the Distinguished Flying Cross with one Oak Leaf Cluster, the Bronze Star Medal and the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

with 18 Oak Leaf Clusters. He received a citation for his escort action during

Operation Tidal Wave Operation Tidal Wave was an air attack by bombers of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) based in Libya on nine oil refineries around Ploiești, Romania on 1 August 1943, during World War II. It was a strategic bombing mission and part of ...

in 1943, when he and his unit intercepted three enemy fighters preparing to attack Allied bombers over a target area. He shot down one aircraft during the mission. After the war, Ohr became a dental surgeon in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. He practiced dentistry until his retirement in 2005.

References

External links

Stateline Spotlight: WWII Veteran Shares War Tales, profile of Fred Ohr on WIFR.com, Nov 19, 2013
* 1919 births American military personnel of Korean descent American World War II flying aces Aviators from Idaho 2015 deaths Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II People from Boise, Idaho Military personnel from Idaho {{US-mil-bio-stub