Memorial

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1st Lt Arthur C. Bergeron Jr. graduated from Curry High School. He studied commercial subjects and did a year's college work in night school in the Greensboro city vocational education school, working in the daytime at the Auto Supply company.

He joined the Air Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve in Charlotte, North Carolina, on 12 May 1942. He received his wings on 30 August 1943 at Spence Field, Georgia. He took his operational training at Dale Mabry Field, Florida and went overseas in December 1943.

Although he had flown enough missions to go home on leave, he chose to remain to make his 1,000 hours of combat duty.

Statement of 2nd Lt Edwin H. Peters, who flew the same mission: "While returning from a bomber escort mission, we went down in the deck in search of targets of opportunity. I was flying Lt Bergeron's wing position in yellow 4, and we were flying at an altitude of three to four hundred feet. We came upon a military installation, believed to be an airdrome, when we were again fired upon by small caliber guns and light flak. I saw hits in the tail of Bergeron's ship, so I called him and told him to hit the deck as they were shooting his tail off. As I pulled up over a grove of trees, I glanced over to look for Lt Bergeron and saw a big cloud of smoke and fire. Lt Bergeron had gone down and did not get out."