General
Perry Dahl, Who Downed Nine Planes During World War II, Dies at 101
His courage in battle brought him the Congressional Gold Medal, the Silver Star, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Legion of Merit.
Col. Perry Dahl, an Army Air Forces fighter pilot who shot down nine enemy aircraft in the Pacific during World War II while surviving emergency landings, a runway crash, a midair bailout and two days in a life raft, died on Dec. 2 at his home in Tampa, Fla. He was 101.
His death was confirmed by Chris Dahl, his grandson.
Colonel Dahl was only 5 feet 4 inches tall and needed extra seat cushions to reach the pedals of his plane. But his exploits brought him the Congressional Gold Medal, the Silver Star, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Legion of Merit.
Perry John Dahl was born on Feb. 18, 1923, in North Battleford, a city in Saskatchewan, Canada, but his family settled in Seattle when he was a boy. After high school, he enlisted in a U.S. National Guard unit that had been called to active duty.
He was selected for fighter pilot training in an early version of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, and he excelled in mock battles against Marine pilots flying Corsairs.
A lieutenant at the time, he was assigned after training in the P-38 to the 475th Fighter Group and was based in New Guinea.
He scored his first aerial victory in November 1943 when he shot down a Zero fighter plane while escorting bombers on a strike against a Japanese airfield.
