George Austin Wright, Lt. Col., United States Air Force (Retired) passed away February 21, 2016 at the Air Force Village retirement home in San Antonio. Colonel Wright had celebrated his 100th birthday with his family a few weeks earlier.
A graveside service with military honors will be held at 10:30 a.m. Monday, February 29, at Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery.
Colonel Wright epitomized what has been labeled “the Greatest Generation” because of the optimism and resilience this generation showed in the face of the Great Depression, World War II, the Korean War and incredibly rapid technological changes. Colonel Wright faced all of these challenges during his life with an unwavering commitment to God, the country and his family.
Colonel Wright was born in Waynoka, Oklahoma on January 27, 1916. He helped with his family businesses, a steam powered saw mill and wheat thrashing machine, from the time he could walk, carrying water and fetching tools. His father died two years into the Great Depression, when Colonel Wright was 15. Despite the death of his father, the loss of the family businesses and the severe impact of the depression on Oklahoma, George and his mother, Rosa Bell (Taul) Wright, and three sisters (Arbutus Casper, Florence “Babe” Guess, and Bonnie Heavilin) were able to remain in their home in Waynoka, Oklahoma until 1936, when the family moved to Alva, Oklahoma.
Colonel Wright joined the Army Air Corps in June, 1941, six months before the attack on Pearl Harbor. He married Virginia Lee Newlin, at the Stockton Army Airfield on January 16, 1941. Colonel Wright flew combat missions in a P-47 Thunderbolt in France and Germany during World War II. During the Korean War, Colonel Wright served as a weather reconnaissance pilot and was awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross and a special commendation by the South Korean government for his actions in the rescue of American Pilots downed in enemy territory. Colonel Wright retired as a Lieutenant Colonel after 20 years of service in the Air Force in Fort Worth, where he continued to work in and around aviation. Colonel Wright loved to fly, and was proud to have witnessed the creation and incredible growth of the aviation industry during his lifetime.
Colonel Wright was a Mason, an avid fisherman, gardener, and master barbeque chef. At 100 years old, Colonel Wright was clear headed, inquisitive, and feisty – he kept his fighter pilot mentality to the end.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Virginia, after 62 years of marriage, and by his son, Ira Kent Wright of Fort Worth.
Colonel Wright is survived by his two sons, Michael G. Wright of Friendswood and Bill D. Wright of Fairfield, California; three daughters, Sandra Kay Baker of San Diego, California, Janet R. Geisz of Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Patricia L. Wright of Boulder, Colorado; 14 grandchildren; 10 great grandchildren.
