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name
HILTUNEN, Ray Jacob - Date of
birth
20 December 1914 -
Age
29 -
Place of birth
Vermilion Lake Township, St. Louis County, Minnesota -
Hometown
Hennepin County, Minnesota -
Ethnicity
White
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O1103214 -
Rank
First Lieutenant -
Function
unknown -
Unit
B Company,
326th Airborne Engineer Battalion,
101st Airborne Division
-
Awards
Purple Heart
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
18 September 1944 - Place of
death
Oisterwijk, the Netherlands
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| K | 6 | 16 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Peter Hiltunen (father)
Hilja S. (Lempia) Hiltunen (mother)
Victor T. Hiltunen (brother)
Leo P. Hiltunen (brother)
Arvid M. Hiltunen (brother)
Mabel Hiltunen (sister)
George R. Hiltunen (brother)
Elizabeth M. Hiltunen (sister)
John T. Hiltunen (brother)
Ingrid S. (Kainula) Hiltunen (wife)
Ray J. Hiltunen (son)
More information
1st Lt Hiltunen was on board a Waco CG-4A glider, nicknamed "Queen-City" with serial number 42-79151. The glider was loaded with a Willys Jeep and two other men of B Company, Pvt Raymond L. Carson and T/5 Robert J. Le May who had both taken place in the jeep, ready to exit the glider as soon as they had landed. Their destination was Landing Zone W, northeast of Son, the Netherlands.Lt Hiltunen was seated in the co-pilot seat although he wasn't a real co-pilot. Due to the sortage of co-pilots during this stage of the war, he was instructed as a so-called 'on the job' co-pilot. He was tasked to keep an eye on the gages in the cockpit with the pilot and in an emergency assist him in flying the glider.
While approaching the landing zone, enemy ground fire shot off the left wing and it crashed in the vicinity of Oisterwijk, the Netherlands.
All men on board were killed and initially buried at the cemetery of the St. Petrus Banden in Oisterwijk.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, WWIIMemorial.com, Fold3.com, Oisterwijk-marketgarden.com, www.ancestry.com, World War Pictures
Photo source: Oisterwijk-marketgarden.com, www.ancestry.com