Charles Woodrow McCook

Charles W. McCook - who was 23 when he died and went by the nickname Woody - was a member of the "Flying McCook Family" in Georgetown. He and his brothers learned to fly at Southwestern's aviation field. His father, I. J. McCook, was a Southwestern administrator who coordinated with the airport, which was also operated by a family member at the time.
He entered service in 1941 after graduating from Southwestern with a Bachelor of Business Administration. He earned his wings in early 1942, before being deployed.
In the armed forces, First Lt. McCook served as an armor-gunner with the 22nd Bombardment Squadron, 341st Bombardment Group, 10th Air Force, according to the agency. He received both the Air Medal and the Distinguished Flying Cross for his work dropping supplies for allied forces battling in the Pacific.
On August 3, 1943, his B-25C "Mitchell" aircraft crashed during a low-altitude bombing raid near Meiktila, Burma. Two of the six crew members survived and were captured by Japanese forces. Mr. McCook was among the four killed in the crash and was declared missing in action at the time.
One of the survivors, John Boyd, later credited his escape to First Lt. McCook, who was piloting the plane when it was shot. He said he was able to parachute from the plane because of the sacrifice made by Mr. McCook and his skills as a pilot.
"Boyd said he believed Pilot McCook had taken the stricken plane as high as possible after it was stuck, although its control cables were burning out," according to news clippings after Mr. Boyd escaped capture and returned home.
In 1947, U.S. recovery teams found four sets of remains in a common grave near the Burmese village of Kyunpobin. Witnesses said the remains came from an American crash. Lacking the technology to identify them at the time, the remains were buried as "Unknowns" at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu.
In 2022, the Defense Department approved the disinterment of the unidentified remains for further analysis. Scientists with the DPAA identified First Lt. McCook using mitochondrial DNA, dental records, and anthropological and isotope analysis.
His name is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines. A rosette will be placed next to his name to mark his identification.
On Thursday, July 31, 2025, First Lt. McCook will arrive home after nearly 82 years. He will lay in state at The Gabriels Funeral Chapel from around 1pm until he is finally laid to rest on Saturday, August 2, 2025.
On Saturday, August 2, a memorial procession will leave The Gabriels Funeral Chapel at 10 am, making our way to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8587, 1000 North College Street, at approximately 10:15 a.m. Traffic at intersections will be stopped as it proceeds to the cemetery. The procession will travel south on College Street, west on Eighth Street and around the Square. It will continue down Main Street, turn onto University Avenue and proceed through campus along Southwestern Boulevard before reaching IOOF cemetery where he will finally be laid to rest.
To send a flower arrangement in memory of
Charles Woodrow McCook, please click here to visit our sympathy store.