Foil: 54 Panel: 1 Column: 2 Line: 24

Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Sponsor

Honored by:
David A. Tyler

Kenneth Ungerman was my uncle, my mother's youngest brother. His middle name, also mine, was Armistead, his mother's maiden name. He was born in Birmingham, AL. on October 23, 1916 and died a resident of St. Augustine FL. October 11, 2008. Kenneth belonged to the Armistead family of Virginia, a celebrated military family in the 1800's. Gen. George Armistead was commander of Fort McHenry on Baltimore Harbor, in the War of 1812, when Fransis Scott Key was inspired to write the Star Bangled Banner. His nephew, Gen. Lewis Armistead was a leader and part of Pickett's charge, dying at the Battle of Gettysburg, in July, 1863. In 1940, Kenneth volunteered for the American Field Service in Egypt, before the U.S. became involved in WW II, as an ambulance driver, in keeping with his strong moral convictions of right and wrong. He served there with his close friend, Evan Thomas II, who wrote a book detailing their adventures. Soon after the attack on Pearl Harbor, in his early 20's, he enlisted in the US Army, and qualified for flight training. Kenneth served as pilot-in-command of B-17G's, in the 8th Air Force, then under command of Gen. "Jimmy" Doolittle, being based in England, at AAF Station Chorley, with the 546th Bombardment Squadron. He flew his required 30 bombing missions in combat over Germany and occupied France, and was most proud of having never lost a crew member on any of his missions, although two individuals who once served on his crew, later died in action in other B-17 aircraft during combat. Several of his crew were wounded by enemy fire on the missions he commanded. He flew in support of the ground forces during D-Day. My favorite story of his was of the single day he "totaled" two B-17's, separately, with no lives lost! After completing his required missions, he then volunteered to fly 3 more missions as a formation Group Commander. He was awarded several medals, including the Distinguished Flying Cross, which he gave to me, along with his leather flight jacket, all of which are treasured family artifacts. After the War, Kenneth became a newspaperman with the International News Service (INS was later merged into the AP), in Paris, where he covered General Dwight Eisenhower, who was then newly installed as the commander of SHAPE, in the formative years of NATO. Ungerman also covered the 1952 Presidential campaign with Eisenhower, and post-election, was assigned a beat at the State Department. He later homesteaded with his young family in Alaska, just prior to statehood. While there, he researched and wrote the book, published in 1963, "The Race To Nome", about the January, 1925 Diphtheria Epidemic, and delivery of the life-saving serum by a chain of drivers and dogsled-teams, which saved that isolated, snowbound community on the Bering Sea. Ungerman's book inspired the famous, annual, Iditarod Dog Sled competition.

(submitted by Kenneth's nephew, David A. Tyler)