Paul Irvin "Pappy" Gunn (October 18, 1899 – October 11, 1957) was a United States naval aviator known mainly for his actions in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

as an officer in 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 ...

. He was known as "an expert in dare-devil low-level flying," and recognized for numerous feats of heroism and mechanical ingenuity, especially modifications to the

Douglas A-20 Havoc The Douglas A-20 Havoc (company designation DB-7) is an American medium bomber, attack aircraft, night intruder, night fighter, and reconnaissance aircraft of World War II. Designed to meet an Army Air Corps requirement for a bomber, it was o ...

light bomber and B-25 Mitchell medium bomber that turned them into attack aircraft. Born in Quitman, Arkansas, Gunn enlisted in the Navy prior to America's entry into the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and eventually served as an aircraft mechanic while learning to fly on his own time. Reenlisting in 1923, he was selected as a Naval Aviation Pilot- an enlisted

United States Naval Aviator A naval aviator is a commissioned officer or warrant officer qualified as a crewed aircraft pilot in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps. United States Coast Guard crewed aircraft pilots are officially designated as "Coast Guar ...

. He served in the Tophatters, one of the Navy's oldest fighter squadrons then known as VF-1B, and served as a flight instructor at

NAS Pensacola Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola (formerly NAS/KNAS until changed circa 1970 to allow Nassau International Airport, now Lynden Pindling International Airport, to have IATA code NAS), "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United State ...

before retiring from the Navy in December 1939 after 21 years' service. He then helped start Philippine Air Lines, using five privately owned Beechcraft planes. Gunn was operating a civilian air freight operation in the Philippines at the start of World War II. He flew evacuation missions for US military personnel out of Japanese-held territory on a volunteer basis before being directly commissioned into the US Army Air Forces. Gunn was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (US) in 1942 for flying an unarmed, unarmored airplane into hostile airspace to bring medical supplies to the besieged troops on

Bataan Bataan (), officially the Province of Bataan ( fil, Lalawigan ng Bataan ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the enti ...

. In April 1942 he flew a B-25 on the Royce Mission to the Philippines, a mission that was originally intended to bring relief to US forces on Bataan. General George C. Kenney, the new commander of the Allied air forces in the Southwest Pacific Theater, arrived in Australia in the summer of 1942. He found Gunn converting the A-20s of the 3d Bombardment Group (Light) into strafers by adding four .50-caliber machine guns to the Havocs' noses. When Gen Kenney learned that Gunn was using weapons from wrecked fighters, he was impressed by Gunn's innovative abilities and immediately made him a member of his personal staff, placing the old naval aviator in charge of special projects. When the A-20s proved highly successful in low-level strikes against Japanese shipping and ground targets, Gen Kenney gave Gunn the go-ahead to convert a squadron of B-25s into similar strafers. Gunn's converted A-20s and B-25s played the major role in the Allied victory in the 1943

Battle of the Bismarck Sea The Battle of the Bismarck Sea (2–4 March 1943) took place in the South West Pacific Area (SWPA) during World War II when aircraft of the U.S. Fifth Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) attacked a Japanese convoy carrying troop ...

. North American Aviation eventually began to incorporate variations of Gunn's armament innovations into later models of the B-25. These later model aircraft, including the heavily armed B-25G, B-25H, and some Js, with the gun version of the B-25J being equipped with no less than 18 .50-caliber machine guns. These aircraft continued to wreak devastation on Japanese targets in New Guinea, the Philippines, and Okinawa until the end of the war. In addition to the DFC and eventual second award, Gunn was also awarded the Silver Star, Legion of Merit,

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

, 9

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

s, and

WWII Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal is a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. The Wor ...

. After Japan's surrender in World War II, Gunn turned to rebuilding his Philippine Air Lines. The company provided flights across the south Pacific Ocean. Gunn died when his plane crashed in a storm over the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

on October 11, 1957. There were no survivors. Arkansas Aviation Historical Society inducted Gunn into the Arkansas Aviation Hall of Fame in 2008.

References

Bibliography

Bruning, John R. Indestructible: One man's rescue mission that changed the course of WWII. NY: Hachette, 2016.
(lccn link)
http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/967968062 (worldcat link)]

External links

Pappy Gunn in Australia

Paul "Pappy" Gunn , MacArthur Memorial, VA - Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunn, Paul 1957 deaths United States Navy pilots of World War II Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Air Medal 1899 births People from Cleburne County, Arkansas People from Faulkner County, Arkansas Aviators from Arkansas Military personnel from Arkansas American expatriates in the Philippines United States Army Air Forces bomber pilots of World War II 20th-century American businesspeople Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1957 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the Philippines