Major Alden P Rigby
 | Major Alden P Rigby
Major Al Rigby was born in Fairview, Utah, on 4th January 1923 and attended Brigham Young University. He joined the Army Air Forces in January 1943 and graduated from Cadets at Spence Field, Georgia, that December. He graduated from P-51 transition training at Bartow, Florida, in April 1944, then served as an instructor pilot for two months. Alden Rigby deployed to England in 1944 and was assigned to the 487th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group from July 1944 until March 1945. During this time, he took part in 76 combat missions in P-51s, for a total of 272 combat hours, destroying 5 enemy aircraft in aerial combat. Four of those kills came in just 25 minutes on one day, 1st January 1945, over his forward airstrip near Asch, Belgium, during the Battle of the Bulge, during the German attack of Operation Bodenplatte. He is also credited with destroying many enemy trains and barges, as well as at least one aircraft on the ground during strafing missions, including several on 1st January 1945. Major Rigby received the Silver Star, the Air Medal with 7 oak leaf clusters, and the Distinguished Unit Citation. During the Peiod of the Korean War, Rigby served three years active duty in the US with the 33rd Air Division of Air Defense Command. He served 25 years in the Utah Air National Guard, retiring in 1979 with the rank of Major. He also worked for 25 years as an air traffic control supervisor at the Federal Aviation Administrations Salt Lake Center. |