Douglas Robert Wight was born on November 2, 1917 in New York. He resided in Union County, New Jersey prior to the war. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps on January 13, 1942 in Newark, New Jersey. He was noted, at the time of his enlistment, as being employed as a Accountants and auditor and also as Single, without dependents. Douglas served as a Captain and Pilot on C-46 #41-24688, India-China Wing, Air Transport Command, U.S. Army Air Force during World War II.

On March 27, 1944, a C-46 crewed by four airmen departed a base in Kunming, China, on route to Sookerating, India, as part of the massive allied resupply missions over the Himalayan Mountains, referred to as the "Hump." En route one of the crewmen called out for a bearing, suggesting the aircraft was lost. There was no further communication with the crew. The aircraft never reached its destination, and searches during and following World War II failed to locate the crash site.

Douglas was declared "Missing In Action" in China during the war, thus, his name is commemorated on the Walls of the Missing, Manila American Cemetery, Taguig City, Philippines. After his remains were recovered his status was changed to "Killed In Action" The "Rosette" in front of his name at Manila signifies that his remains were recovered.

Captain Wight's remains were found in 2001 and recovered in 2002. He is now interred in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia. He was one of over 2000 Americans who lost their lives defending China from their Japanese invaders from 1941-1945. He is also commemorated on the The Monument to the Aviation Martyrs in the War of Resistance Against Japan in Nanjing, China and ranked as a First Lieutenant.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov