Shot down by Russian fighters 18 March 1945 on mission to Berlin in P-51 44-15137 'Baby Duck' . Flew 103 combat missions in P-51s in Korea. Two tours in Vietnam commanding the 12th TFW. Retired Aug 1969. Text of James Sherrill's e-mail to General Shuler:'I've recently received, via a publisher in England, a 675 page, 5 pound book, concerning the history of the 353rd FG, of which Uncle Darrell was a member'I knew Darrell was shot down by a Russian pilot (by mistake?) and was Missing in Action (MIA) in March, 1945. I even have the War Department's letter to my grandmother, but I was never able to get any details of the experience. Hero that he always was to me, I, of course, imagined his frantic scramble to evade the Germans after his crash landing; his concealment with the aid of the underground; his camel trek across the desert with blackened face, and his smuggled trip back across the Elnglish Channel. The whole Hollywood scenario seemed quite appropriate for MY UNCLE. 'Upon receipt of the book, I found Darrell's name in the index, and was directed to the story of his Missing in Action (MIA) experience. ''After downing Lt. Page the aircraft (the Russian) also made firing passes at a B-17 that Page's flight was escorting, an act that could hardly be construed as a mistaken identity. For Lt. Page, who thought he's been hit by fire from an Fw190 but later stated it could have been a Russian aircraft, 18th March was the beginning of a fantastic journey halfway around the world. After belly-landing behind Russian lines he was rescued by a Russian infantry officer who took him to field headquarters and provided him with everything he could imagine from food, candy, cigarettes, a bath and even an orderly. He was then sent to Soviet Divisional Headquarters and was the guest of honor at a banquet at which toasts to Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin were drunk. He then traveled to Lublin, Poland, and stayed at the famous Mal Europa Hotel where he lived as a civilian eating steaks, chops, and fresh eggs, washed down with wine and beer. From there he was sent to Poltava, home to a huge American Bomber base used for shuttle missions. From Poltava he was flown to Tehran and thence to Cairo, crossing the Baghdad, the river Jordan and the Holy Land. After a stay at the Sheperd's Hotel in Cairo he flew on to Athens, Naples, Rome, and then to Marseille. Finally he arrived back to the 353rd at Raydon, finally arriving back to a warm welcome and party on 30 April'''Had to share this with someone, because I found it so funny'



ETM; AFCM (2); UNM; AM 11 Oak Leaf Cluster; BS; Vietnam; Legion of Merit; Korean; PH; DFC