Kenneth Harry Dahlberg

Military
media-51797.jpeg UPL 51797 Capt Kenneth Harry Dahlberg, 354FG

Object Number - UPL 51797 - Capt Kenneth Harry Dahlberg, 354FG

Kenneth Dahlberg 354th Fighter Group. P-51 Mustang Pilot.



Ken Dahlberg's extraordinary life (he was a triple ace (15) during WWII, was shot down 3 times, became a POW, and after the war founded Dahlberg Electronics (Miracle Ear)) has been well recorded in his biography "One Step Forward: The Life of Ken Dahlberg".



He also appears in a Wikipedia article, an article by Al Zdon on the American Legion website, the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame website, and many other excellent articles.



Dahlberg, Kenneth H. Aviator, Ken grew up on a 120-acre farm near Wilson, Wisconsin. While the Federal Land Bank was busy fore-closing on the family farm, Ken graduated from Harding High School in 1935 and went to work washing pots and pans in the Lowry Hotel in St. Paul. Promotions came fast and furious and so did a draft notice from President Roosevelt. On June 2, 1944, four days before D-Day, Ken arrived in England to join the 354th Fighter Group flying P-51 Mustangs to support the invasion. Flying from steel mats hastily laid down above Omaha Beach, Ken became a rare Triple Ace by amassing 15 air-to-air victories over the Luftwaffe in both Mustangs and Thunderbolts. He was shot down three times beyond enemy lines, escaped twice and sat out the last few months of the war as a POW in Stalag 7-A in Moosburg, a suburb of Munich. Ken called it his "first experience in suburban living." While a POW, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. Returning to the Twin Cities after the war, he married Betty Jayne Segerstrom and completed the "Greatest Generation" arc by founding the Miracle Ear Hearing Aid Company. Entrepreneur and patriot, he passed away at age 94.



For more information see his 8th AFHS-MN webpage at

https://sites.google.com/site/8thafhsmn/pictures/ken-dahlberg-fighter-p…

Connections

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Units served with

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: P-47 Thunderbolt
  • Unit: 354th Fighter Group 353rd Fighter Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: P-51 Mustang
  • Nicknames: The Shillelagh
  • Unit: 354th Fighter Group 353rd Fighter Squadron

Places

  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Dulag Luft Grosstychow Dulag 12
  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Stalag Luft III, Sagan, Germany
  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Stalag 7a, Moosburg

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

Wilson, WI 30 June 1917 Son of Harry and Mamie Dahlberg.

Other

Force landed

51300 Orconte, France 19 September 1944 Landing Accident Orconte/A-66 Cat 3 damage Capt Kenneth H Dahlberg, 19-Sep-44. P-51D 44-13550 - 353FS 354FG 9AF

Other

Failed to Return (FTR)

Prum, Germany 14 February 1945 Failed to Return (FTR) Prum in P-47 42-29336 14-Feb-45; abandoned A/C POW MACR 12523

Other

Prisoner of War (POW)

Zagan, Poland 14 February 1945 Prisoner of War (POW). Stalag Luft III, later Stalag VIIa

Died

4 October 2011

Buried

7 October 2011 Arlington National Cemetery Arlington, Virginia Columbarium 7 G-17-4

Based

Rosieres en Haye 14 February 1945 Assigned to 353FS, 354FG, 9AF USAAF.

Revisions

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Capitalized the words in the "Role/job" field to aid readability.

 

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added punctuation in the "Summary biography" to aid readability.

Kenneth Harry Dahlberg: Gallery (2 items)