[Donald S. Bryan oral history interview (Part 1 of 2)]

In this two-part oral history, fighter ace Donald S. Bryan discusses his military service with the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. In part one, he describes his wartime experiences as a fighter pilot, including his time with the 79th and 304th Fighter Squadrons while stationed stateside and his time in Europe with the 328th Fighter Squadron of the 352nd Fighter Group. Special focus on four combat missions that took place on September 9, 1943, November 2, 1944, December 23, 1944, and March 11, 1945.

Donald S. Bryan was born on August 15, 1921 in Hollister, California. He joined the United States Army Air Forces in January 1942 and attended flight school at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. Bryan served with the 79th Fighter Squadron and 304th Fighter Squadron while stationed stateside and with the 328th Fighter Squadron in Europe from 1943 to 1945. Bryan remained in the military after World War II, retiring from the Air Force as a lieutenant colonel in 1964. He then started a second career as an inspector for an engineering firm and retired again in 1981. Bryan passed away in 2012.

Biographical information courtesy of: Boyce, Ward J., ed., American fighter aces album. Mesa, Ariz: American Fighter Aces Association, 1996.