 |
North
High School Wall of Honor
Joseph Andrew Billings
Class of June, 1939
|
 |
 |
|
Research done by Claradell Shedd, class of 1953. |
| Joseph
Andrew Billings |
| Joseph
Andrew Billings graduated in the North High June, 1939 class. Following
graduation, Joe attended Iowa State. Shortly after Pearl Harbor, in
1942, Joe made his way to the Polk County Court House and enlisted in
the Army Air Corps. His service number was 0700898. His next of kin
shown as 2620 35th Street, Des Moines, IA. |
| Joseph Andrew Billings |
|
| Year |
x |
Rank/Event |
x |
Status |
|
| June, 1939 |
x |
Graduated |
x |
North Des Moines High School, Des
Moines, IA |
| 1939-41 |
x |
 |
x |
Iowa State University; Ames, IA |
| 1942 |
x |
US Army
Air Corps |
x |
Enlisted in Army Air Corps at Polk
County Courthouse, Des Moines |
| x |
x |
boot camp |
x |
San Antonio, Texas |
| x |
x |
primary |
x |
Ballinger, Texas for flight training
|
| x |
x |
BT-13s |
x |
Goodfellow Field, San
Angelo, Texas |
| 1943 |
x |
advanced |
x |
Reese Field, Lubbock, Texas; AT-9/Curtiss;
BT-19/Fairchild |
| x |
x |
C-47s |
x |
Bergstrom Field, Austin, Texas; C-47s |
| |
x |
x |
x |
Alliance Army Airfield, Alliance,
NE |
| late summer, 1944 |
x |
C-47s |
x |
MacKall Air Force Base, MacKall,
NC |
| |
x |
B-46s |
x |
To India via South America, Africa.
To Sylhet, India |
| |
x |
x |
x |
Comilla |
| |
x |
x |
x |
Imphal, India. |
| Nov/Dec 1944 |
x |
x |
x |
Myitkyina, Burma. From Nov/Dec 1944-Spring
1945. |
| x |
x |
x |
x |
Hauling Chinese 330th Division back
to China. Dropped paratroopers. |
| x |
x |
C-47s |
x |
Meiktila, Mandalay. 4 or 5-man crew |
| x |
x |
C-46s |
x |
Stationed at Ledo, India when bombs
were dropped on Japan. |
| late August, 1945 |
x |
x |
x |
To China to haul dignitaries |
| x |
x |
x |
x |
Liangshan |
| x |
x |
x |
x |
Xian (terra cotta figures discovered) |
| September, 1945 |
x |
US Air Corps/Captain |
x |
Homeward bound. Discharged as Captain. |
| 1949 |
x |
x |
x |
Enrolled in law school at Drake.
Graduated 1949. |
| Following WWII |
x |
President |
x |
Organized 317th WWII Air Commandos |
| 1949-1989 |
|
Employment |
|
Practiced law in Des Moines, IA |
| August 11, 2009 |
x |
 |
x |
Hy-Vee Honor Flight to Washington,
DC |
| February 5, 2012 |
x |
Deceased |
x |
Died February 5, 2012 in Johnston,
IA. |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
WWII Air
Commando Assn.;
(right) Joe in
Bhamo, Burma; Fall, 1944
***
Left above: Dayton Reunion
Left (right): Hurlburt Field,
Fort Walton Beach, FL; 1990 |
|
 |
 |
| Above:
BT-13. Below: C-47 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
| August 11, 2009;
Hy-Vee Honor Flight; Washington, DC |
|
|
|
| References |
| The
comprehensive list of names from North High's 1893-2018 graduation
classes are from Claradell Shedd's North Des Moines High School
website. The names of North High School graduates can be found
online at: http://ndmhs.com/.
Joseph Andrew Billings's 1939 class page is: http://ndmhs.com/pages/yearclass1939(2005.66).html. |
|
| 01/16/10.
Died 02/05/12. Johnston, IA |
| Music:
"Wind Beneath My Wings" |
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