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Kenneth Thomas [2006]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps
  • Unit of Service: 88th Fighter Squadron, 80th Fighter Group, 10th Air Force
  • Location of Service: China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater; India; Myitkyina, Burma; England
  • Highest Rank: Captain
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/46253

View full service history

"The Merrill's Marauders, we were over their heads from their origin to their, God help us, demise." (Video Interview, 48:44)

Less heralded than their compatriots flying over Europe and the Pacific, the Army Air Force crews who served in World War II's China-Burma-India Theater encountered their own risks and challenges. In the CBI, Kenneth Thomas ran bombing and strafing runs in support of Office of Strategic Services operations and provided cover for the fabled Merrill's Marauders. Along the way, he ran into tangled politics involving America's British and Indian allies, who were about to go to war with each other. His collection includes four minutes of home movie footage shot from the gun camera of Thomas's plane while in action.

Interview / Recording

More Resources

Gun camera footage

About this Item

Title

  • Kenneth Wilbur Thomas Collection

Names

  • Lupo, Tony P.
  • Thomas, Kenneth Wilbur

Home State

  • Oklahoma

Headings

  • -  Thomas, Kenneth Wilbur
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army Air Forces/Corps.

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps
    • Unit of Service: 88th Fighter Squadron, 80th Fighter Group, 10th Air Force
    • Location of Service: China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater; India; Myitkyina, Burma; England
    • Highest Rank: Captain
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1947
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran flew missions in support of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and Merrill's Marauders.

Materials

  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2006; 2006-04-18)
  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Home movie footage (collected 1944-1945; 2006-04-16)
  • Photograph: Digital print [12 items] -- Photograph (collected 2006-04-12)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 2006-04-18)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/46253

Cite as

  • Kenneth Wilbur Thomas Collection (AFC/2001/001/46253), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Lupo, Tony P, and Kenneth Wilbur Thomas. Kenneth Wilbur Thomas Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.46253/.

APA citation style:

Lupo, T. P. & Thomas, K. W. (1942) Kenneth Wilbur Thomas Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.46253/.

MLA citation style:

Lupo, Tony P, and Kenneth Wilbur Thomas. Kenneth Wilbur Thomas Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.46253/>.