Destined to Live tells the true story of a Chicago man who:
          * Joined the United States Cavalry at age 15;
          * Learned to fly fighter planes in the Canadian Royal Air Force,
          * Shot down 7 confirmed Nazi fighters;
          * Flew tailgunner for Britain's Royal Air Force in such famous missions as the
                    Thousand Bomber Raid and the Battle of the Ruhr;
          * Rode as a B-17 replacement gunner in the United State's Eighth Air Force;
          * Survived bullet and shrapnel wounds to the jaw, leg, hand and head as he fell
                    into enemy territory Feb 8, 1944;
          * Escaped through the French Underground network back to England;
          * And repeatedly beat the odds of combat to return home alive.














Above left: An army publicity photo of Scanlon taken shortly after he returned from the French Underground. Above right: Scanlon poses in front of a British Stirling bomber while in the RAF.


Kristin Gilpatrick is the author of other books about World War II: The Hero Next Door and The Hero Next Door Returns and Footprints in Courage: A Bataan Death March Survivor's Story.
Destined to Live: The Incredible Story of WWII Airman Wild Bill Scanlon
By the time World War II airman William "Wild Bill" Scanlon was shot out of a B-17 and spirited to the safety of England by French Underground resistance fighters, the gutsy gunner had survived over 70 combat missions flown as a member of the air forces of three different countries.
                                                  To order, click here.
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The Hero Next Door®
Welcome to the Web site for the non-fiction books by war history
author Kristin Gilpatrick.


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The Hero Next Door®
P.O. Box 6132 Monona, WI 53716

Hero Next Door is a registered trademark owned by Kristin Gilpatrick.
Destined to Live: The Incredible Story of WWII Airman Wild Bill Scanlon
By the time World War II airman William "Wild Bill" Scanlon was shot out of a B-17 and spirited to the safety of England by French Underground resistance fighters, the gutsy gunner had survived over 70 combat missions flown as a member of the air forces of three different countries.
                                                  To order, click here.
Destined to Live tells the true story of a Chicago man who:
          * Joined the United States Cavalry at age 15;
          * Learned to fly fighter planes in the Canadian Royal Air Force,
          * Shot down 7 confirmed Nazi fighters;
          * Flew tailgunner for Britain's Royal Air Force in such famous missions as the
                    Thousand Bomber Raid and the Battle of the Ruhr;
          * Rode as a B-17 replacement gunner in the United State's Eighth Air Force;
          * Survived bullet and shrapnel wounds to the jaw, leg, hand and head as he fell
                    into enemy territory Feb 8, 1944;
          * Escaped through the French Underground network back to England;
          * And repeatedly beat the odds of combat to return home alive.














Above left: An army publicity photo of Scanlon taken shortly after he returned from the French Underground. Above right: Scanlon poses in front of a British Stirling bomber while in the RAF.


Kristin Gilpatrick is the author of other books about World War II: The Hero Next Door and The Hero Next Door Returns and Footprints in Courage: A Bataan Death March Survivor's Story.