Lawrence N. (Larry) Guarino

Larry Guarino enlisted in the Aviation Cadet Program of the U.S. Army Air Forces on March 12, 1942, and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant and awarded his pilot wings on February 16, 1943. Lieutenant Guarino flew with the 308th Fighter Squadron of the 31st Fighter Group in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations during WWII where he was credited with the destruction of 3 enemy Bf 109 fighters in aerial combat while flying British Spitfires. After service in the MTO, Guarino was transferred to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater of Operations where he flew combat missions over Southeast Asia, including present-day Vietnam. After the war, Guarino went into the Air Force Reserve and was reactivated in 1951 because of the Korean War. After the Korean War, Guarino served at England AFB, Louisiana. He then served with the 336th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Seymour Johnson AFB, North Carolina. After serving as an Instructor at Keesler AFB, Mississippi, Guarino was assigned as the Operations Officer for the 510th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Clark AB in the Philippines. He was next assigned to the 80th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Itazuke AB, Japan, from December 1962 to June 1964, when he was transferred to the 44th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Kadena AB, Okinawa. Major Guarino began flying combat missions in Southeast Asia in early 1965 and he was forced to eject over North Vietnam on June 14, 1965. He was captured and taken as a Prisoner of War.