Kenneth R. Strunk was born on December 26, 1923 to Leslie and Lillian Strunk of North Coventry Township, Pennsylvania. His father was a machinist at an auto parts company, and his mother worked as an operator at a silk mill. Kenneth had one sibling.

Kenneth graduated from the North Coventry High School in 1942. He was a member of the Cedarville Methodist Church and worked for Bethlehem Steel after graduating high school.

After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Kenneth joined the Army on December 12, 1942. After completing flight training, he was assigned to the 7th Bombardment Group, 493rd Squadron. 

The 493rd squadron joined the Pacific THeater of Operations, moving to Australia an  flying B-17’s. Later they were stationed on Java and flew missions against the Japanese primarily in Burma. In May, 1942 they move to India.

Second Lieutenant Kenneth R. Strunk was killed in action on November 5, 1944. The loss of his aircraft is described below:

2nd Lt Strunk was the bombardier on B-24L #44-41440, assigned to the 10th Air Force, 7th Bombardment Group, 493rd Bombardment Squadron. They were part of a six plane formation that departed Pandaveswar India to search the Bay of Bengal for a B-29 that had not returned from a bombing mission. The B-24 was seen to veer away from the course the rest of the planes were flying and it did not return to base. Subsequent searches found that Strunk's plane had crashed on top of the Banjhikusam Mountain Range about twenty miles west southwest of Udala Burma. 

Kenneth is buried Arlington National Cemetery.

Credits

Reseach by Don Wambold, WCMSC