James W. Walker-Historian

In Memory of James W. Walker Historian, 376th Heavy Bombardment Group Veterans Association

James W. Walker, born in Delaware, Ohio in 1928, enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1946, following graduation from high school. After a one-year assignment to the Japanese War Crimes Tribunal in Tokyo, he returned to the United States and obtained a bachelor's degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Purdue University in 1952.

While working as a thermodynamicist for the North American Aviation Company on jet aircraft, he obtained a direct commission and his pilot rating in the U.S. Air Force Reserve in 1955 and later flew P-51, F-84 and F-86 aircraft with the Ohio Air National Guard. In 1959 he joined the McDonnell-Douglas Company in St. Louis as a F-4 Phantom flight test engineer and over the next fifteen years, participated in the development of various spacecraft projects.

It was here that his interest became focused on the discovery of the B-24 "Lady Be Good" in the Sahara Desert. Intrigued by the remarkably well-preserved condition of the aircraft, he became directly involved in the recovery of major components to study environmental aging effects on aerospace materials. This research effort brought him in contact with several former members of the 376th Bombardment Group to which the "Lady Be Good" had been assigned during World War II. Desiring to learn more about this famous Bomb Group he volunteered to join with its veteran members and reconstruct the history of its World War II activities. His sister Anna L. Ota preceded him in death. James is survived by his wife Karen Walker, an aunt Louise Thursby, Hamden, CT; brother-in-law Roy T. Ota, Honolulu, Hawaii; sister Mary C. Smith, Newark, Delaware; nephews Jeffrey W. Smith, Emory P. Smith, niece Carolyn R. Toth, and nephew Steven H. Willey. Graveside services will be on Wednesday, November 13, 2002 at 10:00 AM at Green Acres Gardens, 401 N. Hayden Road, Scottsdale, Arizona with 1 hour prior visitation at the mortuary.

Jim is the author of the 376th Heavy Bombardment Group history book: The Liberandos - A World War II history of the 376th Bomb Group (H) and its Founding Units by James W. Walker. The ISBN number of the book is 0-918837-12-X.