Walter McNeil served in the U.S. Navy as a Lieutenant on the USS Yorktown during World War II. A Fighter Pilot, he was killed in the Asiatic Theater on January 3, 1945. He was awarded the Air Medal for action as a fighter pilot during the seizure and occupation of Attu Island. He executed repeated strafing and glide bombing missions at extremely low altitudes while being subjected to heavy anti-aircraft fire and the hazards of flights during low visibility over mountainous Aleutian territory.
