Robert Lee Scott Jr. (12 April 1908 – 27 February 2006) was a brigadier general in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

and a

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, credited with shooting down 13 Japanese aircraft. Scott is best known for his memoir, ''God is My Co-Pilot'' (1943), about his exploits in World War II with the

Flying Tigers The First American Volunteer Group (AVG) of the Republic of China Air Force, nicknamed the Flying Tigers, was formed to help oppose the Japanese invasion of China. Operating in 1941–1942, it was composed of pilots from the United States Ar ...

and the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

in China and Burma. The book was adapted as a film of the same name, which was released in 1945.

Early years

Scott was born in Waynesboro, near

Augusta, Georgia Augusta is a city on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies directly across the Savannah River from North Augusta, South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Augusta, the third mos ...

, the oldest of three children born to Ola and Robert Scott. As a youth, Scott was educated in Macon and became an Eagle Scout, earning the

Distinguished Eagle Scout Award The Distinguished Eagle Scout Award (DESA) is a distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). It is awarded to an Eagle Scout who has achieved extraordinary national-level recognition, fame, or eminence within their profession ...

.Townley 2006, pp. 20–30.
"Distinguished Eagle Scouts." ''Scouting.org.'' Retrieved: 4 November 2010. At the age of five, he witnessed the fatal aircraft crash of pioneer aviator

Eugene Ely Eugene Burton Ely (October 21, 1886 – October 19, 1911) was an American aviation pioneer, credited with the first shipboard aircraft takeoff and landing. Background Ely was born in Williamsburg, Iowa, and raised in Davenport, Iowa. Having co ...

. He received endorsement to attend West Point.

Military career

Upon graduation from the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

at West Point in 1932, Scott completed pilot training at

Kelly Field Kelly Field (formerly Kelly Air Force Base) is a Joint-use airport, Joint-Use facility located in San Antonio, Texas. It was originally named after George E. M. Kelly, the first member of the U.S. military killed in the crash of an airplane he ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. In October 1933, he was assigned to Mitchel Field,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. Scott flew

air mail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be the ...

in 1934, commanded a pursuit squadron in

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

, and helped instruct other pilots at bases in Texas and

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

World War II

After

began, Scott joined Task Force Aquila in February 1942 to fly a group of

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is an American four-engined heavy bomber aircraft developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). A fast and high-flying bomber, the B-17 dropped more bombs than any other aircraft during ...

bombers to the China Burma India Theater, initially as a scheme to bomb Japan. Anxious to join the mission, which was to bomb Japan from China, he professed to be an experienced B-17 pilot. He learned to fly the plane en route to Africa. Upon arrival in India, he found the mission had been cancelled, so he became stuck in India. Wanting to be on the frontline in flying combat, within a month, he was assigned as executive and operations officer of the Assam-Burma-China (Ferry) Command. This was the forerunner of the famous

Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies a ...

, which flew "

The Hump The Hump was the name given by Allies of World War II, Allied pilots in the Second World War to the eastern end of the Himalayan Mountains over which they flew military transport aircraft from British Raj, India to Republic of China (1912- ...

" from

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

to supply the Kuomintang government. When the commanding officer left for China on 17 June, Scott was assigned command of the operation for several days. Still anxious to get into combat and wishing to learn the

' tactics, he obtained the use of a Republic P-43 Lancer, assigned to the Flying Tigers by

Claire Chennault Claire Lee Chennault (September 6, 1893 – July 27, 1958) was an American military aviator best known for his leadership of the "Flying Tigers" and the Chinese Nationalist Air Force in World War II. Chennault was a fierce advocate of "pursuit ...

. He flew at least one high–altitude mission over

Mount Everest Mount Everest (), known locally as Sagarmatha in Nepal and Qomolangma in Tibet, is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at it ...

, as he described in the opening pages of his 1943 memoir ''God Is My Co-Pilot''. Scott began flying missions with the Flying Tigers, piloting a P-40 as a single ship escort for the transports and on ground attack missions. During this period, he frequently repainted the propeller spinner in different colors to create the illusion of a much larger fighter force in the area than a single aircraft, becoming in effect a "one-man air force."Belden, Jack

"Chennault Fights to Hold the China Front." ''Life,'' 20 August 1942, p. 70. Retrieved: 19 November 2011. In July 1942, at the request of

Generalissimo ''Generalissimo'' ( ), also generalissimus, is a military rank of the highest degree, superior to field marshal and other five-star ranks in the states where they are used. Usage The word (), an Italian term, is the absolute superlative ...

Chiang Kai-shek, Scott was named commander of the

23rd Fighter Group The 23rd Fighter Group (23 FG) is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 23rd Wing and stationed at Moody Air Force Base, Georgia. The 23rd Fighter Group was established in World War II as the 23rd Pursuit Group of the United ...

, newly formed by General Chennault when the Flying Tigers were incorporated into the

. Popular accounts said that Scott inherited command of the Flying Tigers, but that group had disbanded at the conclusion of the pilots' contracts on 30 June. The 23rd Fighter Group later became part of the 14th Air Force.

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Scott flew 388 combat missions in 925 hours from July 1942 to October 1943, shooting down 13 Japanese aircraft, and is noted as one of America's earliest

s of the war. Scott was ordered back to the U.S. in October 1943 to become deputy for operations at the Army Air Force School of Applied Tactics at Orlando Army Air Base, Florida. He had completed his memoir about his combat experience in the Far East, and his book, ''God Is My Co-Pilot'', was published in 1943. The book was adapted as a

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

by the same name, released in 1945. He returned to China in 1944 to fly fighter aircraft equipped with experimental rockets directed against Japanese supply locomotives in eastern China. He was transferred to

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

to direct the same type of strikes against enemy shipping as the war ended. Besides his book ''God Is My Co-Pilot'', he also published ''Damned to Glory'' in 1944, a collection of World War II yarns. One story was that of a pilot named Corn Sherrill who, after the fall of the Philippines in 1941, escaped to the island of Mindanao where he flew a rebuilt P-40 aircraft against the Japanese until he was shot down over China by members of the Flying Tigers. This particular tale was reprinted in ''Reader's Digest'' in January 1945 as "Ghost Ship." However, Scott himself admitted he and another pilot had made up the tale as a joke; despite this, it still occasionally turns up as a true story.

Postwar

Scott returned to the U.S. for staff duty in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

and other stations until 1947, when he was given command of the Jet Fighter School at

Williams Air Force Base Williams Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force (USAF) base, located in Maricopa County, Arizona, east of Chandler, Arizona, Chandler, and about southeast of Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix. It is a designated Superfund site due to a num ...

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. In 1951, he was reassigned to

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

as commander of the 36th Fighter-Bomber Wing at

Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base ( German: "Fliegerhorst Fürstenfeldbruck" or "Flugplatz Fürstenfeldbruck") is a former German Air Force airfield near the town of Fürstenfeldbruck in Bavaria, near Munich, Germany. Fürstenfeldbruck became famous fir ...

. Scott graduated from the

National War College In the United States, the National War College (NWC) is a school within the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active. History The National ...

in 1954 and was assigned as Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans at Headquarters U.S. Air Force, and then to the position of Director of Information under the

Secretary of the Air Force The secretary of the Air Force, sometimes referred to as the secretary of the Department of the Air Force, (SecAF, or SAF/OS) is the head of the Department of the Air Force and the service secretary for the United States Air Force and United Sta ...

. In October 1956, he was assigned to

Luke Air Force Base Luke Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States., effective 20 December 2007 It is located west of the central business district of Glendale, Arizona, Glendale, and west of Phoenix, Arizona, P ...

, Arizona, as base commander.

Retirement

Scott retired from the United States Air Force as a brigadier general on 30 September 1957, and remained in Arizona until the 1980s. He lived in

Warner Robins, Georgia Warner Robins (WRB; typically ) is a city in Houston County, Georgia, Houston and Peach County, Georgia, Peach Counties in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the state's Georgia (U.S. state)#Major cities, 11th-largest incorpo ...

, until his death in 2006. In total, General Scott wrote about a dozen books including ''God Is My Co-Pilot'' and ''The Day I Owned the Sky''. Scott continued to be active well into his retirement. In 1980, he gained national attention by hiking the length of the

Great Wall of China The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand ''li'' long wall") is a series of fortifications in China. They were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against vario ...

. He had seen portions of the Wall during his 1944 flights near

Peking Beijing, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's most populous national capital city as well as China's second largest city by urban area after Shanghai. It is l ...

. By 1980 he obtained Chinese government permission to make the 1,900-mile (3050 km) trek, which took 94 days. In 1984, after passing a flight physical at Luke Air Force Base, Scott was taken up in a General Dynamics F-16C Fighting Falcon from the 310th TFTS. The F-16C was piloted by Col. Richard P. High (Squadron Commander of the 310th TFTS). Scott also flew a

McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is an American twin-engine, all-weather fighter aircraft designed by McDonnell Douglas (now part of Boeing). Following reviews of proposals, the United States Air Force (USAF) selected McDonnell Douglas's desi ...

. On his 89th birthday in 1997, Scott flew in a

B-1B Lancer The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It has been nicknamed the "Bone" (from "B-One"). , it is one of the United States Air Force's three strategic bombers, along with t ...

bomber. Scott died on February 28, 2006, at Warner Robins, Georgia; he was buried with full military honors at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Awards and honors

For his combat record in World War II, Scott received: During the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, Scott carried the

Olympic Flame The Olympic flame is a Olympic symbols, symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. The Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece, several months before the Olympic Games. This ceremony s ...

along a section of Georgia State Route 247, which had been named in his honor. In 1989 he was in the first class of inductees to the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame.

Books written by Scott

* ''God is my Co-Pilot''. New York: Blue Ribbon Books, 1943. * ''Damned to Glory''. New York: Blue Ribbon Books, 1944. * ''Runway to the Sun''. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1945. * ''Between the Elephant's Eyes''. New York: Dodd Mead, 1954. Reissued Ballantine Books, 1954. * ''Look of the Eagle''. New York: Dodd Mead, 1955. * ''Samburu the Elephant''. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1957. * ''Tiger in the Sky''. New York: Ballantine Books, 1959. * ''Boring a Hole in the Sky: Six Million Miles with a Fighter Pilot''. New York: Random House, 1961. * ''God is Still My Co-Pilot''. Garden City, N.Y., Blue Ribbon Books, 1947. Periodically reissued by other publishers. * ''Flying Tiger: Chennault of China''. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1973. Previously issued in 1959 by Doubleday. * "To Walk the Great Wall". ''Reader's Digest,'' April 1983 * ''The Day I Owned the Sky''. New York: Bantam Books, 1989.

Images

File:20-02-268-scott.jpg, Plaque of Scott at the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame File:21-11-001-scott.jpg, Painting of Scott at the Museum of Aviation File:General Robert L. Scott in 1997.jpg, Brigadier General Scott after his B-1 flight in 1997 File:Back Cover of God is my Co-pilot.jpg, Inscription and photo on the back cover of the God is My Co-Pilot and a photo of Bob Scott in his P-40 after his 11, 12, and 13 kills. File:Letter from Brig. Gen. Bob Scott.jpg, Letter of appreciation to Lt. Col. Richard High Squadron Commander of the 310th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron, after a flight in an F-16C on 19 July 1984. File:Inside Cover of God is my Co-pilot.jpg, Inscription on the inside cover of God is My Co-Pilot to Lt. Col. Richard High.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Loomis, Robert D. ''Great American Fighter Pilots of World War II.'' New York: Random House, 1961. * Scott, Robert Lee Jr. ''The Day I Owned the Sky''. New York: Bantam Books, 1989. * Scott, Robert Lee Jr. ''God is my Co-Pilot''. New York: Blue Ribbon Books, 1943. * Townley, Alvin. ''Legacy of Honor: The Values and Influence of America's Eagle Scouts''. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2006. * Coram, Robert. ''Double Ace: The Life of Robert Lee Scott Jr., Pilot, Hero, and Teller of Tall Tales''. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2016.

External links

Ace Pilots Biography *

Biography in The New Georgia Encyclopedia

CNN "WWII fighter ace Scott dies at 97"

Annals of the Flying Tigers

Interview with Retired Brig. General Robert L. Scott – American World War II Ace Pilot and Hero by Jamie H. Cockfield

Burma Is No Paradise, article by Col. Robert Scott, ''Popular Science'', February 1944 {{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Robert Lee Jr. 1908 births 2006 deaths American World War II flying aces Aviators from Georgia (U.S. state) People from Waynesboro, Georgia Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Order of the Sacred Tripod United States Air Force generals United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II United States Military Academy alumni Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Military personnel from Georgia (U.S. state) Writers from Georgia (U.S. state) 20th-century American writers United States Army Air Forces colonels