Powerful Memories

About the Book

POWerful Memories recounts one man’s experiences in World War II as an officer in the United States Army Air Corps – training, missions, capture and life in a German prison camp. These memoirs also stand as a testimonial to the gallantry, the esprit de corps and the indomitable spirit of the thousands of prisoners of Stalag Luft 1, some of whom endured captivity for years. They proved themselves, in the words of Tom Brokaw, renowned author and news analyst, worthy to be called men of the “Greatest Generation.”

About the Author

Augustine Fernandez was born in Ybor City, a community comprised of Hispanic, Italian and Greek residents, in Tampa, Florida. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor which coincided with his graduation from high school, he entered the United States Army Air Corps Cadet Program where he earned bombardier wings. After he also earned gunnery wings at Laredo Army Air Base Instructor Gunnery School, he was assigned as a B-17 bombardier with the original 457th Bomb Group based at Glatton, England, joining in the bombing raids over Germany. On his sixth mission, for which he was not scheduled but called upon to replace the regular crew bombardier, his plane was shot down over Brunswick, Germany. He was captured and spent the rest of the war imprisoned at Stalag Luft 1. Upon his return home he entered college and graduated from Florida State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Science. He subsequently earned a Master’s degree from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. He remained in the Reserves and was recalled by SAC, Strategic Air Command, during the Korean War. He served as a flight and ground school instructor and finally as a triple-rated select combat crew member during the Cold War. After serving twenty years as an officer in the United States Air Force, he retired and began a second career as an educator. He has now retired from both careers and currently resides with his wife, Esther, in Miami, Florida.