October 26, 2009

Between 1940 and 1970, Greene County native Paul Douglas was one of the most decorated fighter pilots in U.S. military history. During World War II, he flew 136 missions and helped develop the P-47 Thunderbolt into one of the war’s most efficient fighter planes. He flew an additional 101 missions in the Vietnam War. By the time he retired at the rank of brigadier general in 1970, he had received more than sixty decorations. He is shown here in 1995 wearing the Third Order of the Sacred Treasure of Japan.