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| Captain Raymond Moraga flew P-47 Thunderbolts for the 365th Fighter Group in France. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/162092410/raymond-noriega-moraga https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:365th_Fighter_Group_P-47D_Astra.jpg |
Raymond Noriega Moraga never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.
He was born on December 24, 1919 in Tempe, Arizona. His parents Carmen and Carmen (yes, original census records show they shared the same name) were also both born in Arizona. All of his grandparents were from Mexico. His father worked as a grain mill truck driver and later as a watchman. Raymond had two older brothers, three younger brothers, and two younger sisters. By 1940 Raymond had completed four years of high school and was still living at home. He attended Arizona State University and found work as a driver.
He enlisted in the army's field artillery via the National Guard in September 1940. Two years later he transferred to the Army Air Forces and was trained as a fighter pilot. He reached the rank of captain in the 386th Fighter Squadron, 365th Fighter Group which was equipped with P-47 Thunderbolts. The 365th FG, known as the Hell Hawks, arrived in England in December 1943. It flew tactical missions to weaken the German ability to stop the planned invasion of France.
He was killed on June 10, 1944 flying a mission near Le Havre, France.
His grave is at St. Francis Cemetery in Phoenix, Arizona.
Last year on this date I profiled Bronze Star hero Thomas Kouns, 38th Infantry Division, and his brother Robert. You can read about the Kouns brothers here.
On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!
I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100
RIP CAPTAIN
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