Lieutenant Paul McLaughlin

Paul McLaughlin was born in Hatch NM on August 7, 1919 to Mr. and Mrs. JH McLaughlin. Upon graduation from Hatch HS in 1936 he first enrolled at UNM later transferring to NMAMC for the 40-41 school year where he studied in the College of Arts and Sciences. Shortly after the outbreak of the war he joined the USAAF and was sent to Navigator training. He completed his training and was commissioned in March 1943. He was then assigned to the 47th Bomb Squadron assembling in Portland OR flying B-25’s. In December of 1943 the unit was deployed to Tarawa in the Central Pacific Theater as part of the 41st Bomb Group. Tarawa had only recently been taken when they arrived. The invasion of Tarawa had occurred on November 20th with the atoll declared in US hands on November 27th. The air group arrived on December 17th but it was the December 27th before the air strip could be repaired enough to stage offensive actions against Japanese positions in the Marshalls. On January 22, 1944 Lt McLaughlin was serving as navigator aboard B-25 #42-64948 in a sortie directed against a significant Japanese air field located on Taroa Island in the Maloelap atoll.