Through the Eyes of the World's Fighter Aces by Robert Jackson

Author:Robert Jackson
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781783460885
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Published: 2013-05-28T16:00:00+00:00

US Marines tackle a burning F4F Wildcat at Henderson Field, Guadalcanal, after a Japanese air attack (US Navy)

They were the Wildcats of Marine Fighter Squadron VMF-223, led by Major John L. Smith, and they were followed by Major Robert E. Galer’s VMF-224 a few days later. The day after their arrival on Guadalcanal, the pilots of VMF-223 intercepted six Zeros at 14,000 feet over the island, and Major Smith shot down one of them to score the squadron’s first victory. The following afternoon the Japanese came again, this time with fifteen bombers escorted by twelve Zeros. All of VMF-223’s serviceable Wildcats took off to intercept the enemy, and in the course of a savage air battle they destroyed sixteen Japanese aircraft for the loss of three Wildcats. Joe Smith and one of his flight commanders, Captain Marion E. Carl, each shot down three.

Day after day, while the ground forces strove desperately to hold the thin perimeter around Henderson Field, the Marine pilots went into action against the Japanese squadrons that were making determined efforts to wipe out the primitive airstrip. At the same time, Japanese warships shelled the base every night, and individual enemy aircraft carried out nuisance raids to ensure that the American personnel got little rest. As the weeks went by, malaria, dysentery and fatigue began to have a telling effect, yet the Americans, flying to the limits of their physical endurance, somehow managed to retain air superiority. By the time VMF-223 was relieved in October 1942, the pilots had destroyed 110 enemy aircraft. John Smith’s score was nineteen, while his close rival Marion Carl had shot down sixteen. Major Robert E. Galer, of VMF-224, had chalked up thirteen victories; both he and Smith were awarded the Medal of Honor. All three survived the war.

The replacement squadrons of Guadalcanal were VMF-121 and VMF-212. One of the former’s pilots was Captain Joe Foss, a farm boy from South Dakota whose marksmanship, thanks to his father’s tuition with rifle and shotgun, was superb. Foss rose to fame with incredible speed over Guadalcanal; by the middle of October he was averaging one victory a day, and by the end of the month three a day. On 23 and 25 October he destroyed a total of nine enemy aircraft, all of them Zeros. By the time VMF-121 left Guadalcanal in January 1943 its pilots had destroyed 123 Japanese aircraft for the loss of fourteen Wildcats. Joe Foss’s personal score was twenty-six, which made him the first American to equal the personal score of Eddie Rickenbacker, the leading American ace of World War One. His outstanding combat record earned Joe Foss the Medal of Honor. He never flew in combat again (American policy being that outstanding combat pilots who had been awarded the Medal of Honor should not be required to risk their lives in action again) and, after the war, he became Governor of South Dakota. Brigadier-General Joseph J. Foss died in hospital on 1 January, 2003 at the age of 87, having suffered an apparent aneurism.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.