Robert Ira Bjerk

Second Lieutenant Bjerk took his Prepatory Training at Cal-Aero Academy in Santa Ana, California where he received a gold star merit award for a perfect flying record. On Oct. 30, 1942, he received his wings and a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant for completing his training at Victorville Airfield, California. He received furlough, which he took to visit his family in Madison. Soon after, he was sent to India where he flew transport aircraft with the 6th Air Corps Ferry Squadron of the 1st Ferrying Group. He and his crew lived on a tea plantation, and he wrote home about how difficult life was there. Disease was rampant, they rarely got rest, and never had any comfortable utilities. Nonetheless, they continued their missions. He flew dangerous missions out of India and China during his service. On March 8, 1943, Bjerk's plane went missing while flying a mission to bring refugees to safety. No remains were ever recovered, and he is memorialized at Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines. He is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing American Cemetery Manila.