|
Pappy Boyington
Gregory "Pappy" Boyington (December 4, 1912 – January 11, 1988) was an American combat pilot who was a United States Marine Corps fighter ace during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross. A Marine aviator with the Pacific fleet in 1941, Boyington joined the "Flying Tigers" (1st American Volunteer Group) of the Republic of China Air Force and saw combat in Burma in late 1941 and 1942 during the Second Sino-Japanese War. In September 1942, Boyington rejoined the Marine Corps. In early 1943, he deployed to the South Pacific and began flying combat missions in the F4U Corsair fighter. On August 14, 1943, he took command of Marine fighter squadron VMF-214 ("Black Sheep"). In January 1944, Boyington, outnumbered by Japanese "Zero" planes, was shot down into the Pacific Ocean after downing one of the enemy planes. He was captured by a Japanese submarine crew and was held as a prisoner of war for more than a year and a half. He was released shortly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coeur D'Alene, Idaho
Coeur d'Alene ( ; ) is a city and the county seat of Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. It is the most populous city in North Idaho and the principal city of the Coeur d'Alene Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 54,628 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Coeur d'Alene is located about to the east of Spokane Washington. The two cities are the key components of the Spokane–Coeur d'Alene Combined Statistical Area, of which Coeur d'Alene is the third-largest city (after Spokane and its largest suburb, Spokane Valley, Washington, Spokane Valley). The city is situated on the north shore of the long Lake Coeur d'Alene and to the west of the Coeur d'Alene Mountains. Locally, Coeur d'Alene is known as the "Lake City", or simply called by its initials, "CDA". The city is named after the Coeur d'Alene people, a federally recognized tribe of Native Americans who live along the rivers and lakes of the region, in a territory of from eastern Washington to Mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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, which took the form of a heart made of purple cloth, the Purple Heart is the oldest military award still given to U.S. military members. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York. History The original Purple Heart, designated as the Badge of Military Merit, was established by George Washington – then the commander-in-chief of the Continental Army – by order from his Newburgh, New York, headquarters on 7 August 1782. The Badge of Military Merit was only awarded to three Revolutionary War soldiers by Washington himself. Washington authorized his subordinate officers to issue Badges of Merit as appropriate. Although never abolished, the award of the badge was not proposed again officially ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mitsubishi A6M Zero
The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-capable fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 1940 to 1945. The A6M was designated as the , or the Mitsubishi A6M Rei-sen. The A6M was usually referred to by its pilots as the ''Reisen'' (, zero fighter), "0" being the last digit of the imperial year 2600 (1940) when it entered service with the IJN. The official Allied reporting name was "Zeke", although the name "Zero" was used more commonly. The Zero is considered to have been the most capable carrier-based fighter in the world when it was introduced early in World War II, combining excellent maneuverability, high airspeed, strong firepower and very long range.Hawks, Chuck"The Best Fighter Planes of World War II" chuckhawks.com. Retrieved: 18 January 2007. The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service also frequently used it as a land-based fighter. In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
VMA-214
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 214 (VMFA-214) is a United States Marine Corps fighter attack squadron that currently flies the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II. The squadron's home field is Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, and it is assigned to Marine Aircraft Group 13 (MAG-13) of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW). The squadron is known as the Black Sheep. Its World War II exploits and the memoirs of commanding officer Colonel Gregory "Pappy" Boyington inspired the 1970s television show ''Baa Baa Black Sheep,'' later syndicated as ''Black Sheep Squadron''. Mission Locate, attack and destroy surface targets; intercept and destroy enemy aircraft; and provide electronic warfare support. History World War II The unit was commissioned as Marine Fighter Squadron 214 (VMF-214) on 1 July 1942, at Marine Corps Air Station Ewa on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Initially called the "Swashbucklers," the squadron was moved to Turtle Bay Airfield on Espiritu Santo in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vought F4U Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft that saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Vought, Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contracts were given to Goodyear Aerospace, Goodyear, whose Corsairs were designated FG, and Brewster Aeronautical Corporation, Brewster, designated F3A. The Corsair was designed and principally operated as a carrier-based aircraft, and entered service in large numbers with the U.S. Navy and Marines in World War II. It quickly became one of the most capable carrier-based fighter-bombers of the war. Some Japanese pilots regarded it as the most formidable American fighter and U.S. naval aviators achieved an 11:1 kill ratio. Early problems with carrier landings and logistics led to it being eclipsed as the dominant carrier-based fighter by the Grumman F6F Hellcat, powered by the same Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp, Double Wasp engine first f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Pacific Area
The South Pacific Area (SOPAC) was a multinational U.S.-led military command active during World War II. It was a part of the U.S. Pacific Ocean Areas under Admiral Chester Nimitz. The delineation and establishment of the Pacific Ocean Areas was negotiated by the Allied governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and the Kingdom of the Netherlands in March–April 1942 in response to the Japanese attacks in Southeast Asia and the Pacific. The South Pacific Area was bounded on the west by the Southwest Pacific Area, on the north by the Central Pacific Area, and on the east by the Southeast Pacific Area. It originally encompassed the Ellice, Phoenix, Marquesas, Tuamotu, Samoa, Fiji, and New Hebrides island groups plus New Caledonia and New Zealand. Its western boundary was shifted to just west of Guadalcanal on 1 August 1942 to facilitate operations against that island. Background The assignment orders for Major General Millard Harmon as the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Myanmar
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has a population of about 55 million. It is bordered by India and Bangladesh to its northwest, China to its northeast, Laos and Thailand to its east and southeast, and the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal to its south and southwest. The country's capital city is Naypyidaw, and its largest city is Yangon (formerly Rangoon). Early civilisations in the area included the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu city-states in Upper Myanmar and the Mon kingdoms in Lower Myanmar. In the 9th century, the Bamar people entered the upper Irrawaddy River, Irrawaddy valley, and following the establishment of the Pagan Kingdom in the 1050s, the Burmese language and Culture of Myanmar, culture and Buddhism in Myanmar, Theravada Buddhism slowly became dominant in the co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Volunteer Group
The American Volunteer Groups were Military volunteer, volunteer air units organized by the United States government to aid the Kuomintang, Nationalist government of China against Empire of Japan, Japan in the Second Sino-Japanese War. The only unit to actually see combat was the 1st AVG, popularly known as the Flying Tigers. To aid the Nationalist government of China and to put pressure on Japan, President Franklin Roosevelt in April 1941 authorized the creation of a clandestine "Special Air Unit" consisting of three combat groups equipped with American aircraft and staffed by aviators and technicians to be recruited from the United States Army, U.S. Army, United States Navy, Navy and United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps for service in China. The program was fleshed out in the winter of 1940–1941 by Claire Lee Chennault, then an air advisor to the Chinese Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek, and Lauchlin Currie, a young economist in the Roosevelt White House. They envisione ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 Army Air Corps (USAAC), United States Navy, Navy (USN), and United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps (USMC), and was commanded by Claire Lee Chennault. Their Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, Curtiss P-40B Warhawk aircraft, marked with Chinese colors, flew under American control. Recruited under President Franklin Roosevelt's authority before Attack on Pearl Harbor, Pearl Harbor, their mission was to bomb Japan and defend the Republic of China, but many delays meant the AVG first flew in combat after the US and Japan declared war. The group consisted of three fighter aircraft, fighter Squadron (aviation), squadrons of around 30 aircraft each that trained in Burma before the American entry into World War II to defend the Republic of China against Empire ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 ace varies, but is usually considered to be five or more. The concept of the "Ace (military), ace" emerged in 1915 during World War I, at the same time as aerial dogfighting. It was a propaganda term intended to provide the home front with a cult of the hero in what was otherwise a Attrition warfare, war of attrition. The individual actions of aces were widely reported and the image was disseminated of the ace as a chivalrous knight reminiscent of a bygone era. For a brief early period when air-to-air combat was just being invented, the exceptionally skilled pilot could shape the battle in the skies. For most of the war, however, the image of the ace had little to do with the reality of air warfare, in which fighters fought in formation an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fighter Aircraft
Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air supremacy, air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield permits bombers and attack aircraft to engage in tactical bombing, tactical and strategic bombing of enemy targets, and helps prevent the enemy from doing the same. The key performance features of a fighter include not only its firepower but also its high speed and maneuverability relative to the target aircraft. The success or failure of a combatant's efforts to gain air superiority hinges on several factors including the skill of its pilots, the tactical soundness of its doctrine for deploying its fighters, and the numbers and performance of those fighters. Many modern fighter aircraft also have secondary capabilities such as ground-attack aircraft, ground attack and some types, such as fighter-b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fighter Pilot
A fighter pilot or combat pilot is a Military aviation, military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, Air-to-ground weaponry, air-to-ground combat and sometimes Electronic-warfare aircraft, electronic warfare while in the cockpit of a fighter aircraft. Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and dogfighting (close range aerial combat). A fighter pilot with at least five air-to-air kills becomes known as an flying ace, ace. Recruitment Fighter pilots are one of the most highly regarded and desirable positions of any air force. Selection processes only accept the elite out of all the potential candidates. An individual who possesses an exceptional academic record, physical fitness, healthy well-being, and a strong mental drive will have a higher chance of being selected for pilot training. Candidates are also expected to exhibit strong leadership and teamwork abilities. In nearly all air forces, fighter pilots are Officer (armed forces), commis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
