Rudolph Villarreal

Arizona's Hispanic Flyboys 1941-1945 Rudolph Villarreal First Printing edition

World War II remains probably the most significant historical event of the 20th Century. It has been well documented in print and film over the last sixty years. Not much, however, has been written about Hispanics who served in uniform from 1941 through 1945. This is especially true of those who served in the so-called "glamorous" air corps of the US Army and Navy. This is documentary of Hispanic young men from Arizona who served as pilots, navigators, bombardiers, flight engineers, gunners, and radio operators. Hispanics make up the largest ethnic minority in Arizona. Many of Arizona's Hispanics served valiantly in ground and sea forces during WWII, and today, in the Hispanic community as elsewhere, their service is remembered proudly. Less well known, however, is the contribution made by those young men in the elite volunteer services that fought the war from above.