Kenneth Raymond “Ken” Bridges, aged 26, was born on August 23, 1918 in Luling, Caldwell County, Texas. He was the son of Roy R. Bridges and Nora McGraw. He enlisted on April 11, 1942 at Houston, Texas.

On 19 January 1945 while flying with the 491st Bombardment Squadron of the 341st Bombardment Group, 1st Lieutenant Bridges and co-pilot Emmons C. Williams took off from Yangki, China on a combat mission to bomb the railroad highway bridge at Dap-Cu, French Indo-China. The full crew consist of the two pilots as well as Navigator Clifford L. Barr, Bombardier Arthur J. White, Engineer / Gunner Thomas J. Mire, Radio Operator Robert W. Glazer, and Gunner David E. Williams.

While piloting "Niagara's Belle", B-25J tail number 43-3904, over the target they were hit by automatic weapons fire in the right engine causing it to stop. The ground fire also hit the left engine causing it to lose power as well as wounding Engineer / Gunner Sergeant Mire in the right leg. Bridges gave the order to bail out but quickly retracted the order, as they would later learn they were just flying over a large group of Japanese. For about one hour and fifteen minutes they were able to maintain about 132mph and 3000 feet altitude reaching the boarder of French Indo-China and 25 miles up the Nanshi-Ho river valley into free China and above the boarder of Mengtz, China. At this point the left engine finally stopped and at about 2100 feet they could not make it over the next mountain range. The order to bail out was given. All bailed out successfully with the co-pilot being the last to leave the front of the aircraft at about 800 feet. Navigator Cliff Barr, having climbed through the bomb bay to the less crowded rear exit, stating his chute opened with him at a 90 degree angle to the ground and as it swung back level he landed. Lieutenant Bridges remained at the controls to allow all the crew to bail out safely but was to low for he himself to get out.

The Chinese people recovered Lieutenant Bridges body from the crashed aircraft and he was carried back to Mengtz, China then flown by the Army to Kunming, China and buried in an American Cemetery. Kenneth is now buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Honolulu County, Hawaii, USA. He was one of over 2000 Americans who lost their lives defending China from their Japanese invaders from 1941-1945. He is commemorated on the The Monument to the Aviation Martyrs in the War of Resistance Against Japan in Nanjing, China.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com