Captain Karl W Augenstein USAF (1924-1954) was a German immigrant from Cranston who, as a teenager, made the decision to fight for his adopted country. He became a WWII B-24 bomber pilot, flying 11 combat missions before German capitulation in May 1945.
As a civilian, he was the corporate pilot for Bulova Watch Company. He returned to the military in 1948 as a 1/LT in the RI Air National Guard. He transitioned to fighters and qualified in the F-51 Mustang, seeing stateside service during the Korean conflict. After qualifying in the F84D Thunderjet, he was killed when he crashed after takeoff from Bradley Field in Connecticut in August 1954 while on a training flight for the Guard.
This photo of Augenstein and crew appears as the cover spread in the volume of the Time-Life History of World War II entitled “Air War in Europe”.
More in 2016:
More in RI National Guard:
126th Aviation Regiment, RIANG
CAPT Karl Augenstein
Richard Warren Blackman Alabama-born Richard Warren Blackman (1939—2013) made a major contribution to aviation in RI through
his lengthy service with the Civil Air Patrol (CAP).
More in Special Recognition Award:
- 126th Aviation Regiment, RIANG
2/LT William P. Armstrong William P. Armstrong (1924- 1945) was a Tuskegee Airman/Fighter Pilot, shot down in action on April 1, 1945.
- CAPT Karl Augenstein
More in US Army:
- 2/LT William P. Armstrong
William P. Armstrong (1924- 1945) was a Tuskegee Airman/Fighter Pilot, shot down in action on April 1, 1945.
- CAPT Karl Augenstein
Lt. Col. Horace LeRoy Borden, USAF
