Born in East Chicago, Indiana, Alexander Vraciu became the Navy’s fourth ranking ace during World War II by shooting down 19 Japanese aircraft and destroying 21 more on the ground. After graduation from DePauw University in 1941, he entered naval flight training...
Stanley W. “Swede” Vejtasa was the only World War II carrier pilot to receive Navy Crosses for both dive bombing and aerial combat. Born in Montana in 1914, Vejtasa attended both Montana State College and the University of Montana. He enlisted in the Navy...
Colonel (ret) Spiro N. “Steve” Pisanos flew 110 combat missions in Spitfires, P-47 Thunderbolts, and P-51 Mustangs during World War II, becoming a double-ace. He was born in Athens, Greece, in 1919, the son of a subway driver. At the age of 11, he heard the humming...
Ralph Sherman Parr is a jet fighter ace whose unique combination of flying ability, significant achievement, and heroic service span three wars and five combat tours. Born in Portsmouth, Virginia, on 1 July 1924, the son of a Navy pilot, he received his wings and was...
Melvin A. McKenzie played a critical role during America’s fighting retreat in the Pacific in the opening days of World War II. As a member of the 19th Bombardment Group, McKenzie was a part of the pioneering mission that ferried Army Air Corps front-line B-17...
In August 1960, Lieutenant General Forrest McCartney took the first photographs of the USSR recovered from outer space, ushering in a revolution in intelligence gathering. McCartney was born 23 March 1931 in Fort Payne, Alabama. He received a bachelor of science...
Eugene F. “Gene” Kranz is one of America’s great space exploration pioneers. He was born on 17 August 1933 in Toledo, Ohio. As a child he always had a strong fascination with flight and the possibilities of space travel. After studying math, science...
Joseph W. Kittinger, Jr., commanded the 555th Triple Nickel Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) in Vietnam, was a POW in the Hanoi Hilton, and is the current world record holder for highest manned balloon flight, longest parachute jump, and longest freefall. Born in...
Gordon M. Graham fought in three wars, logging 9,000 hours in 78 types of aircraft, including 73 combat missions in Europe and 149 in Southeast Asia, and was decorated 55 times in a US Air Force career that took him from cadet to lieutenant general, from biplanes to...
Always a volunteer for the toughest tasks, it was volunteering for a mission many thought would be suicide that led Ed Freeman to receive the Medal of Honor. Freeman is a veteran Master Army Aviator in both fixed wing and helicopters with over 18,000 hours and more...
Brigadier General George E. “Bud” Day was first selected as an Eagle by Air Command and Staff College’s Gathering of Eagles in 1992 and subsequently honored in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, and 2013 respectively. He was born in Iowa in...
Navy Lieutenant Randy Cunningham was Americas first pilot ace of the Vietnam War. Born on 8 December 1941, he was commissioned in the US Navy in 1967. Receiving his gold wings the following year, he soon joined VF-96 flying F-4J Phantoms. Assigned to the...
Richard “Dick” Cole was Jimmy Doolittle’s copilot on the first bomber to launch from the USS Hornet, during the famous Tokyo Raid. Born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1915, Dick Cole enlisted in the Army on 22 November 1940. He was accepted into the Army Air...
Captain Roscoe C. Brown, Jr. commanded the 100th Fighter Squadron of the 332nd Fighter Group and downed the most advanced enemy aircraft of World War II, the Me-262. After his graduation from Springfield College in 1943, Brown enlisted in the Army Air Corps as an...
A highly decorated combat ace of World War II and veteran of the Korean War, Major General John R. Alison was credited with the first night victory in the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater. Born in Florida in 1912, Alison graduated from the University of Florida, School...
