Her life ended in the flames of a plane crash half-way around the world from her home in Syracuse, New York. She was never found and is considered missing in action (MIA) forever more.

Arriving around Thanksgiving, November 22, 1916, Rita Florence Erard was born to Nicholas “Nicky” Erard and Florence Anne Kelley Erard. She had two older sisters, Mary Theresa Erard Wright and Helen Elizabeth Erard Benz. A younger brother arrived when she was five and he was named Nicholas Simon Erard.[i]

Before Rita was born, her father, Nicky, was supporting the family as a fireman in a car barn, a building that holds railway cars. By 1920, he’s still a fireman for the railroad and the family of five is living in a rental house in Syracuse.[ii]

During the Great Depression years, the family lived in a home they owned on Hunter Avenue in Syracuse. The oldest sibling, Mary, is out of the house now but Helen, Rita and Nicholas are attending school. Nicky is still a fireman but at a public building.[iii]

Quite busy during her school years, Rita played basketball and sang in the choir.[iv] She also performed a monologue for her classmates as well as worked on committees, such as putting on the Junior Class Halloween Party.[v] Rita also sang in the St. John’s Church Choir.[vi] In 1937, she was the maid of honor for her high school friend, Helen Jeanette Rudeau.

For her 16th birthday, her parents hosted a surprise birthday party for her.[vii]

Rita graduated from St. John’s Evangelist High School.

HER LIFE BEFORE MILITARY

As the war dawns, Rita is living in Queens, New York and is a student nurse.[viii]

Rita graduated from St. John’s School of Nursing in Long Island City in 1940.

According to a newspaper article, she was held in high esteem by both classmates and faculty. After nursing school, she worked for the Onondaga Sanatorium from the fall of 1940 to the fall of 1941, then at [ix] Syracuse Memorial Hospital[x] and the Visiting Nurses’ Association of [xi] Syracuse. At the Onondaga Sanatorium, she was the assistant supervisor in the treatment room.[xii] During her time at the Visiting Nurses’ Association, she worked alongside her dear friend from Syracuse, Kathryn McCarthy, who later went overseas with her.[xiii]

During the time she was nursing, Rita lost her mother in June of 1942.[xiv]

During these years, Rita was a member of the House of Providence Auxiliary. The House of Providence, began in 1872, was a home for orphaned and homeless boys. A newspaper article mentions Rita helping with a Christmas party for the boys and another talks about her helping put on a fundraising dance.[xv]

One of her last acts as a civilian was to donate a pint of blood to the Red Cross. She arranged to make this act on January 3, 1944 and the next day, she was off to the army.[xvi]

HER MILITARY STORY

On January 4th 1944, Rita, N-789913, joined the Army Nurse Corps, along with her friend and nurse, Kathryn McCarthy. They trained at Drew Field in Tampa, Florida then were stationed at Dale Mabry Field in Tallahassee, Florida. The friends were then separated as Rita went to Fort Sill, Oklahoma and Kathryn to Temple, Texas.

The two Syracuse friends came together again at the 172nd General Hospital in Brigham City, Utah. It was part of the 803rd Medical Air Evacuation Squadron.[xvii] From there they headed back to Florida and then to the Far East. They traveled to South America, Africa and then India.[xviii] It was there that they took care of both wounded Americans and Chinese soldiers.[xix] They were serving with the 69th General hospital in Margherita Assam, India.[xx]

As flight nurses providing care in the air on dangerous missions, they flew between the military base in Dinjan, India and hospitals in China. On the journey back to India, they flew wounded soldiers over the Himalayan Mountains.

Rita had written home to her family describing her patients.

“These allies she described as pitifully young and deeply appreciative of medical aid from American nurses. The slightest concerns or the most simple gadget please the young Chinese soldiers as toys please little children,” she wrote in her letter.

Within the same letter, she noted that she “would give anything to be back in Syracuse for a visit home, to enjoy the safety of the States.”[xxi]

In addition to her nursing duties, Rita was also a member of a medical task force that was scheduled to open an advanced Army Hospital near Calcutta, India.[xxii]

HER LAST DAY- March 4, 1945

On her last flight, Second Lieutenant Rita F. Erard was in route from a hospital along the Ledo road to a new assignment[xxiii] in the India-Burma Theater to care for wounded in Imphal.[xxiv] Her Douglas C-47 Skytrain (#41-18554), assigned to Air transport Command, 11th Combat Cargo Squadron,[xxv] took off from Dinjan Army Airfield in Assam, India on a mission to ferry passengers. The plane came in too low during the last turn in the process of landing and crashed. Twenty-five passengers, including Rita, plus the crew of two were killed. Most of the passengers were Army nurses and medical personnel.[xxvi]

She was 29.

COMMENDATIONS

World War II Victory Medal

Purple Heart

Nurse Corps Badge

American Campaign Medal

Army Presidential Unit Citation

Army Good Conduct Medal

Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal[xxvii]

A posthumous presentation of the American Red Cross Bronze Medal, the highest award of the agency was presented to Lt. Rita F. Erard.[xxviii]

MEMORIALS

2nd Lt. Rita Erard is remembered at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial In Manila Philippines.[xxix]

In 1974, she was remembered in the Syracuse Herald Journal newspaper as part of Memorial Day special page that read “In memory of our dearly beloved war heroes on this Memorial Day.”[xxx]

HER FUNERAL AND GRAVE

2nd Lt. Rita Florence Erard’s body was never found. She is memorialized at Tablets of the Missing at Manila American Cemetery, Manila, Philippines.

LIST OF THOSE KILLED IN THE MARCH 4, 1945, LEDO, INDIA AIR CRASH

Capt. John J. Lukaszczyk, Co-Pilot
Capt. Nicholas J. Mandoukos, Pilot
1st Lt. Walter S. Amsler, Jr.
2nd Lt. Francis W. Blalock
2nd Lt. Julia S. Barnes
2nd Lt. Jane M. Blevins
2nd Lt. Evelyn M. Bruton
2nd Lt. Thomas E. Dellinger
2nd Lt. Rita F. Erard
2nd Lt. Evelyn M. Gerdrum
2nd Lt. Lyndell A. Glisson
1st Lt. Henry D. Hammack, Jr.
2nd Lt. Eathel L. Harris
2nd Lt. Helen J. Henley
1st Lt. Catherine M. Larkin
2nd Lt. Joseph R. Launier
1st Lt. Kathryn L.Lloyd
Capt. Charles W. Loucks
1st Lt. Grady A. Masters
2nd Lt. Kathryn L. McCarthy
2nd Lt. Ann L. Merrill
2nd Lt. Genevieve R. Monahan
Capt. Edward R. Moore
2nd Lt. Mayo C. Onken
Lt. Col. Jack P. Scott
Leona A. Thomey, Civilian, Red Cross
1st Lt. Robert W. Tibbetts

ABOUT THIS STORY

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (see www.storiesbehindthestars.org). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen saved on Together We Served and Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smartphone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.

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