Rank Lieutenant Battles/wars World War I | Name William Ponder Battles and wars World War I | |
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Buried at Riverside Cemetery, Mangum, Oklaholma Allegiance United States of America Awards Distinguished Service Cross, French Croix de Guerre Died February 27, 1947, Amarillo, Texas, United States Service/branch United States Army Air Service Unit Escadrille 67, Lafayette Escadrille | ||
Lieutenant William Thomas Ponder was a World War I flying ace credited with six aerial victories.
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World War I
"Bill" Ponder joined the French air service in the fall of 1917. Of (1/4) Cherokee descent, he was originally assigned to Escadrille SPA 67, then Escadrille SPA 163. While with this unit, he used a Spad to down three German planes between 28 May and 11 August 1918; one of these victories was shared with Thomas Cassady. Ponder then transferred to an American unit, the 103rd Aero Squadron, and scored three more times in the month of October to become a flying ace; one of these was shared with Frank O'Driscoll Hunter. His brother, Elmer Ponder, who played major league baseball as a pitcher for the Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates, served with him as an airline mechanic, taking 18 months off from the Pittsburgh Pirates mound to join the war effort. The day-long ticker tape parade the brothers enjoyed when returning to Reed, OK as war heroes, is still talked about today.
Between the World Wars
Like many pilots of his day, in ideological dispute with prohibition, Ponder once took orders from dying servicemen to fly in beverages from Mexico into Texas in May 1932, - a feat which earned him added hero bonus points, especially from the servicemen dying in hospitals who were in need of a last beverage of their choice. Due to his war hero status, the misstep was quickly overlooked and he lived his life in service of returning veterans.
World War II and beyond
Ponder worked for Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation in Fort Worth. The young entrepreneur then founded the Ponder Aircraft Sales Company. He was on a sales trip for his company when he died of a heart attack in a hotel room in Amarillo on 27 February 1947.