Quentin Aanenson served as a pilot with the 391st Fighter Squadron of the 366th Fighter Group, flying 75 missions in Europe.



Aanenson was one of the veterans whose story was told in Ken Burns' documentary series 'The War'. The text that follows is from the PBS website:



'Quentin Aanenson, the 5th of 6 children, was born on April 21, 1921, on a 160 acre farm five miles from Luverne. His grandparents had come to America from Norway and both of his parents grew up speaking Norwegian at home. He graduated from high school in 1939 attended the University of Minnesota for two years. In the summer of 1941 he moved to Seattle, where he got a job at Boeing and attended the University of Washington and was there when Pearl Harbor was attacked.'



'Although Aanenson hoped to become a pilot, colorblindness disqualified him -- until he took the eye test enough times to memorize it. He was accepted into the Army Air Corps in February 1943 and by early 1944 had graduated from flight school and been selected for fighter pilot training at Harding Field in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Two weeks after he got there, Aanenson met a local girl, Jacqueline Greer, at a dance. They began to date and quickly fell in love. They promised to write to each other every day while he was overseas, and she agreed not to date any other man more than three times. In mid-May of 1944 Aanenson arrived in England and in June was assigned to the 366th Fighter Group, 391st Fighter Squadron.'



'Aanenson's first combat mission was D-Day, June 6, 1944; he flew his P-47 Thunderbolt over the English Channel and dropped his bombs on German positions behind Pointe du Hoc in advance of the Allies' landing. On June 16th his squadron relocated to Normandy, and from there he flew bombing and strafing missions aimed at enemy troops and strong points. On July 25, 1944 Aanenson and his fighter group were among the 3,000 planes that bombed the German lines as part of Operation Cobra.'



'On August 3, 1944, on a mission over Vire, France, Aanenson's plane was hit by flak and caught on fire. When he tried to bail out but couldn't, he put his plane into a steep dive, trying to crash as quickly as possible. The change in air pressure extinguished the cockpit fire, and Aanenson managed to fly back to his base and crash-land, suffering a concussion, dislocated shoulder, and burns. As soon as he recovered, he was back in the air again.'



'November 17, 1944 was one of the most devastating days for Aanenson and his squadron. They flew in low under the clouds in order to attack German artillery and tanks just behind the front lines. German anti-aircraft gunners hit most of the 12 planes in his squadron. Aanenson's own plane was hit twice. Two of his three tent mates were killed.'



'By mid-December 1944, Aanenson had been in intense combat for almost six months. He had been caught in three cockpit fires; his planes were hit by flak on 20 missions; he had to crash land his plane twice; once his plane was hit by an 88mm cannon shell and nearly destroyed. (Aanenson's fighter group - consisting of 125 pilots at any given time - would lose 90 pilots over the course of the European war.)'



'When the Battle of the Bulge began, Aanenson was stationed in Belgium, and he was given a new assignment coordinating the close air support in front of the VII Corps. For 36 hours during the Bulge, he and his radio man were trapped behind enemy lines in the Ardennes.'



'In early 1945, Aanenson was promoted to captain, and in March was given a leave to go home. He went straight to Louisiana to see Jackie Greer and they were married three weeks later. When the war with Japan ended Aanenson was still in the United States, stationed in Atlantic City. After his discharge, he and Jackie moved to Baton Rouge, where he attended Louisiana State University and then embarked upon a successful career in the insurance business. He and Jackie have three children and eight grandchildren.'