William R. Wales
Capt. William R. Wales
Yes, there is another hero who died at Marcouray… in its sky. OPERATION REPULSE: Resupply mission to Marcouray. Hit after passing the DZ, the cockpit on fire, the situation becomes very critical for aircraft C-47 BP-485346. But the pilot, Captain William R. Wales, had made his choice…
To avoid the danger of a possible explosion that could have impacted neighboring aircraft, he decides to climb to maximum altitude to give his crew a chance to jump out of the aircraft. Captain Adonis, who was in another aircraft of the formation, stated: 'After passing the DZ, he pulled his plane to one side and above the formation… I saw 3 or 4 parachutes… It was obvious this was a desperate attempt to clear the formation so as not to endanger the other aircraft and at the same time give his crew a chance to parachute…'
His entire crew was able to jump and no other aircraft was damaged by his. William would not jump…. This is the story of Captain Wales' last flight, December 23, 1944.
