Clark, Albert Patton 1913- (A.P. Clark)

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Clark, Albert Patton 1913- (A.P. Clark)

PERSONAL:

Born August 27, 1913, at Schofield Barracks, HI. Education: United States Military Academy at West Point, graduated, 1936; also graduated from National War College.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Colorado Springs, CO.

CAREER:

U.S. Air Force officer and writer. U.S. Air Force, retired lieutenant general. Served as fighter pilot during World War II; 48th Fighter Bomber Wing, Chaumont Air Base, France, commander, 1955-56; U.S. Air Force Headquarters, director of military personnel, 1959-63; Tactical Air Command, vice commander, beginning 1965; Air University, commander, beginning 1968; U.S. Air Force Academy, superintendent, 1970-74. Also served at Selfridge Field, MI; second in command of the 31st Fighter Group (first American fighter unit in the European Theater of Operations during World War II); various staff assignments with Tactical Air Command, Continental Air Command, and Air Defense Command; on assignments at the Headquarters U.S. Air Force; chief of staff, U.S. Air Forces in Europe; chief, U.S. Military Training Mission to Saudi Arabia; commander, 313th Air Division, Okinawa.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster, Air Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal, and the Purple Heart.

WRITINGS:

(As A.P. Clark) Falconry at the United States Air Force Academy: The Story of the Cadets' Unique Performing Mascot, Fulcrum Publishing (Golden, CO), 2003.

33 Months as a POW in Stalag Luft III: A World War II Airman Tells His Story (memoir), Fulcrum Publishing (Golden, CO), 2005.

SIDELIGHTS:

Albert Patton Clark is a distinguished retiree of the U.S. Air Force. He attained the rank of lieutenant general and also headed the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs in the early 1970s. During World War II, Clark served as second in command of the first American fighter unit in Europe during the war. However, he was in Europe only one month when he was shot down over Abbeville, France, and became a prisoner of war. He would spend nearly the next three years at the German prison camp Stalag Luft III.

Clark's memoir, 33 Months as a POW in Stalag Luft III: A World War II Airman Tells His Story, tells of his time at the camp, where he ended up overseeing plans for escapes by American prisoners. Surprisingly, Clark also had a secret pinhole camera to clandestinely document his time at the camp, and the book includes numerous photos taken by Clark and other prisoners of war (POWs).

The author begins with a brief description of his arrival in England in 1942. He recounts how he was shot down and captured and then moves on to the bulk of the book, which is about his time at the notorious Stalag Luft III. This allied airmen POW camp was the setting for the movie The Great Escape. In fact, as director of escape attempts by U.S. airmen at the camp, the author played a role in the escape depicted in the film. Clark was moved just prior to the escape attempt, which was both unfortunate and fortunate. He lost the chance to win his freedom, but the escape was largely a failure, with only three out of seventy-six airmen making their way to freedom. The rest were captured, and fifty were executed. The author also recounts his experiences meeting both his fellow POWs and former guards at the camp years later.

"This conversational-style book is an interesting view of one man's experiences," wrote Braxton Eisel for Air Power History, who pointed out that the book does not provide an overall picture of the war or issues associated with the war. Eisel went on to note later in the same review that the author "relates his thoughts and emotions in a no-nonsense way." A Reference & Research Book News contributor commented on the author's use of "a direct and colloquial prose" to relate his tale.