THE ACE of ACES

The Pacific theater of operations produced the two highest scoring aces in American history, Major Richard I. Bong and Major Thomas B. McGuire, Jr. Both men flew P-38 Lightnings in the Southwest Pacific and each received the Medal of Honor in recognition of his courage and accomplishments.

In the air over Hollandia on April 12, 1944, he scored his 26th and 27th victories to break the previous record of 26 set by Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker in WWI. Bong scored 28 air-to-air victories. When he returned to the Pacific for his second tour, he was assigned as a gunnery instructor. He voluntarily flew numerous combat missions and in "self defense" scored 12 more victories to bring his total to 40, making him the highest scoring ace in American history. He lost his life in the crash of a P-80 jet aircraft in August 1945 at Burbank, California.

Richard Bong was America’s all-time leading fighter ace. He held the US record of forty victories in combat. In San Francisco Richard Bong looped-the-loop around the Golden Gate Bridge. He then buzzed Market Street in his Lightning and waved at the stenographers staring in astonishment out of office windows. Though General Kenney had given him a stiff talking to, he knew that Dick Bong had the makings of a first-rate fighter pilot. At the age of 24, Major Richard I. Bong lost his life in the fiery crash of a P-80 jet he was testing for the Air Force On August 6, 1945 (the day the B-29 Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima.)

Major Thomas B. McGuire scored 38 aerial victories in a P-38 making him USA's second highest scoring ace. Among his many decorations was the Medal of Honor awarded for his actions on December 25-26, 1944 when he shot down seven enemy aircraft. On January 7, 1945, he crashed to his death on Los Negros Island in the Philippines while risking an extremely hazardous maneuver at low altitude in an attempt to save the life of a comrade. McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey is named in his honor.

PHOTOGRAPHS AND TEXT COURTESY OF THE AIR FORCE MUSEUM

Name	Kills	Medals	Theatre/AF	Unit	Plane
Richard I. Bong	40.0	MH	PTO/5AF	49FG	*Marge*
Thomas McGuire	38.0	MH	PTO/5AF	475FG	*Pudgy V*
Charles MacDonald	27.0	DSC	PTO/5AF	475FG	*Putt Putt Maru*
Gerald R. Johnson	22.0	DSC	PTO/5AF	49FG	*Barbara*
Jay T. Robbins	22.0	DSC	PTO/5AF	8FG	*Jandina*
Robert Westbrook	20.0	-	PTO/13AF	18FG	P-38
Thomas J. Lynch	20.0	DSC	PTO/5AF	35FG	P-38
Bill Harris	16.0	-	PTO/13AF	18FG	P-38
George S. Welch	16.0	DSC	PTO/5AF	8FG	-
Edward "Porky" Cragg	15.0	-	PTO/5AF	8FG	*Porky II*
Cyril F. Homer	15.0	-	PTO/5AF	8FG	*Uncle Cy's Angel*
Daniel T. Roberts Jr.	14.0	DSC	PTO/5AF	475FG	P-38
Cotesworth B. Head Jr.	12.0	-	PTO/13AF	18FG	P-38
Kenneth G. Ladd	12.0	-	PTO/5AF	8FG	*Windy City Ruthie*
James A. Watkins	12.0	-	PTO/5AF	49FG	P-38
Richard L. West	12.0	-	PTO/5AF	8FG	-
Francis J. Lent	11.0	SS	PTO/5AF	475FG	*T.Rigor Mortis*
John S. Loisel	11.0	SS	PTO/5AF	475FG	*Screamin' Kid*
John W. Mitchell	11.0	-	PTO/13AF	18FG	P-38
Murray "Jim" Shubin	11.0	DSC	PTO/13AF	347FG	*Oriole*
Cornelius Smith	11.0	-	PTO/5AF	8FG	*Corky III*
Ken Sparks	11.0	35FG	PTO/5AF	-	-
William Giroux	10.0	-	PTO/5AF	8FG	Whilma II/ Dead Eye Daisy
Paul Stanch	10.0	-	PTO/5AF	-	*Regina I*
Elliot Summer	10.0	-	PTO/5AF	-	-
Fredric Champlin	9.0	-	PTO/5AF	-	*Eileen-Anne*
Tom Lanphier	4.5	NC	PTO/13AF	347FG	P-38
Rex Barber	5.0	NC	PTO/13AF	347FG	P-38

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Maj. Richard I. Bong The Ace Of Aces

Capt. Gerald R. Johnson

Capt. Charles W. King	Capt. Walter Duke	Capt. William Haning Jr>

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Bong & McGuire Together	Jandina IV (Maj. J.T. Robbins - 22Victories)