"It's amazing at what the human body can do to survive; there's a real education there, because you get a greater respect for a lot of things." (Video Interview 38:15)

Robert E. Derrington

Robert Derrington in flight gear War: World War, 1939-1945 Branch: Army Air Forces/Corps Unit: 40th Bomb Group, 58th Air Wing, 20th Air Force Service Location: United States; India Rank: Captain POW: Yes Place of Birth: IL

Growing up in Depression-era Detroit, Robert Derrington developed a fascination for airplanes. After he graduated from high school, he took flying lessons and on December 7, 1941, he was on his way to the airport for a flight when he heard the news about Pearl Harbor. In March 1942, he enlisted in an aviation cadet program and eventually his prewar experience qualified him as a pilot with enough flight time to fly bombing missions over Burma. In December 1944, on his first flight, serving only as an observer, his dangerously loaded plane went down over Burma, and he became a prisoner of the Japanese for the duration of the war. Held in Rangoon, he learned survival techniques from longtime POWs. Abandoned by their guards on a forced march outside the city as the British approached, he and his fellow prisoners were mistaken for enemy soldiers and were strafed from the air by friendly fire.