406th Fighter Squadron
Capt. Uno A. Salmi, 406th Fighter Squadron, smiled for the camera in his flying gear next to a P-47 Thunderbolt. He was one of the 406th senior pilots who conducted experimental takeoffs on a new advanced landing ground-style runway in England before the unit deployed forward to France. Two takeoffs were safely made, each with a belly tank and two bombs; two 240-lb bombs the first time and two 500-lb bombs the second time, to make sure the new surface was safe for the group’s flight operations. He went MIA on 16 June 1944.