Brigadier General (ret.) Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager was the first person to break the sound barrier and went on to become one of the most legendary figures in aeronautical history. Born in 1923 in Myra, West Virginia, Yeager joined the US Army Air Corps at...
Dora Dougherty Strother’s career in aviation has spanned more than 50 years and is unmatched for wide-ranging accomplishments. Her love of flying began as a child during family outings to a local airport. She earned her pilot’s certificate through the...
Bernard Adolph Schriever, the father of the Air Force Space and Missile Program, was born in Germany in 1910. At the age of six, Schriever came to the US and settled with his family in New Braunfels, Texas before becoming a naturalized citizen in 1923. He graduated...
Few aeronautical engineers can equal the contributions Bob Robbins made to the Boeing Company! As a boy, Robbins thrilled to Lindberghs ticker tape parade in New York. A few years later, following his hero into the air, he took wing in an Aeronca at his hometown...
The “Old Man” of MiG Killers over North Vietnam, Brigadier General Robin Olds is one of history’s most colorful aces. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1922, he is the son of Army Air Force Major General Robert Olds, a World War I combat pilot and aide to the...
Joe O’Grady led one of the most crucial USAF missions of the Cold War! O’Grady was born in Huntington, Arkansas in April 1921, but grew up in Amarillo, Texas. After one year of college, he joined the Army Air Corps as an aviation cadet in 1942. He first...
Known as the “Dean of the Dustoff Pilots”, Chief Warrant Officer Michael J. Novosel, at age 48, earned the United States’ highest award for valor, the Medal of Honor, by rescuing 29 soldiers during the Vietnam War. Born and raised in Etna, Pennsylvania, Novosel became...
During the initial days of Operation DESERT STORM, Major General (ret) Paul “PJ” Johnson heroically lead a bold search and rescue mission deep into enemy territory to locate a downed Navy crew. Born in 1958 in Gadsden, Alabama, Johnson spent his childhood...
Gerald W. “Jerry” Johnson’s military career began as a second lieutenant fighter pilot with the mighty Eighth Air Force–30 years later he was the commander. Born in 1919, he interrupted his college education in September 1941 to enter the...
David Lee “Tex” Hill was born on 13 July 1915, in Kwangju, Korea, the son of American missionaries. He grew up in Texas, but returned to the Far East years later as one of the first pilots in General Claire Chennault’s American Volunteer Group (AVG),...
Bruce Hinds made aviation history as the first man to fly the Northrop B-2 Spirit , an aircraft whose unusual design could be traced back 50 years! Hinds was born in 1939 and grew up in Denver, Colorado. A 1961 graduate of the Air Force Academy, he earned his wings at...
Paul Gillcrist’s pilot log documents over 6,000 flying hours in 71 different types of aircraft, many of which were flown from 16 different carriers! Gillcrist was born in 1929 in Chicago, Illinois. At 17, he entered Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington, but...
Joe Foss “the Flying Marine” was truly a Proud American! Born near Sioux Falls, South Dakota in 1915, he graduated from the University of South Dakota. He soon joined the Marine Corps, became a Naval Aviator and received his commission in March 1941. After a tour as...
Captain Joe H. Engle was first selected by Air Command and Staff College’s Gathering of Eagles in 1983 and subsequently honored in 1987, 1989, 1995, 1997, and 2001, respectively. Engle became America’s youngest astronaut on 29 June 1965, at age 32, after...
Jack Bolt is the only Marine Corps ace of the Korean War, and one of only seven Americans to become an ace in two wars! Born in Laurens, South Carolina in 1921, he studied at the University of Florida for 2 years. In the summer of 1941, he joined the Marine Corps...
Clarence “Bud” E. Anderson is a true aviator, triple ace, and test pilot. His military career spanned more than thirty years of distinguished service. He accumulated more than 7,000 flying hours, flying in two wars. Born in Oakland, California Bud learned to fly in...
