Adair Franks

HALTOM CITY -- Adair L. Franks departed this life Friday, April 24, 2009. Graveside service: 3 p.m. Saturday in Flower Mound Cemetery, Flower Mound. Visitation: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at Lucas Funeral Home in Hurst. Memorials: VFW, ASPCA or local animal shelter, in lieu of flowers. Adair Franks was born Dec. 11, 1916, in Canton, Van Zandt County. He graduated in June 1934 from North Side High School, where he participated in ROTC. During high school, he worked as a delivery boy for the Western Union, Fort Worth Press, and Fort Worth Star-Telegram. In December 1941, he was inducted into the U.S. Army at Fort Sill, Okla. He was assigned to the 8th Air Force, 413th Bomber Squadron, where he served on a B-17 as a first lieutenant and became the lead group navigator. During World War 2, he flew 35 missions out of England. After World War 2, he resigned from the Air Force and re-enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in 1947. He served as an air traffic controller from 1950 to his retirement in 1963. Also in...