Roger William Mehle (October 16, 1915August 30, 1997) was a
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
Rear admiral
Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral.
Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
.
Early life and education
Mehle was born in
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
, Ohio, and attended Walnut Hills High School.
Career
Mehle graduated from the
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...
in June 1937 and he spent two years serving on the . He graduated from flight training at
Naval Air Station 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 Sta ...
in June 1939, then joined
VF-3 and carrier-qualified in July 1939. He was then transferred to
VF-6
Fighting Squadron 6 or VF-6 was an aviation unit of the United States Navy. Originally established as Combat Squadron 4 on 23 September 1921, it was redesignated VF-2 on 1 July 1922, redesignated VF-2B on 19 March 1923, redesignated VF-6B on 1 Jan ...
flying the
Grumman F4F Wildcat
The Grumman F4F Wildcat is an American carrier-based
A carrier-based aircraft (also known as carrier-capable aircraft, carrier-borne aircraft, carrier aircraft or aeronaval aircraft) is a naval aircraft designed for operations from aircra ...
as part of the 's air group.
World War II
On 1 February, ''Enterprise''s
Task Force 8 raided Kwajalein,
Wotje
Wotje Atoll ( Marshallese: , ) is a coral atoll of 75 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands.
Geography
Wotje's land area of is one of the largest in the Marshall Islands, and ...
, and
Maloelap in the
Marshall Islands
The Marshall Islands, officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands, is an island country west of the International Date Line and north of the equator in the Micronesia region of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean.
The territory consists of 29 c ...
, sinking three ships, damaging eight, and destroying numerous airplanes and ground facilities. That afternoon, the Japanese attempted a counterstrike against the ''Enterprise'', Mehle took off and shot down a Japanese
Aichi E13A
The Aichi E13A (World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft, Allied reporting name: "Jake") is a long-range reconnaissance seaplane used by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 1941-45. Numerically the most important floatplane of the IJN, i ...
seaplane and later with two other VF-6 fighters shot down a
Mitsubishi G3M
The was a Japanese bomber and transport aircraft used by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during World War II.
The Yokosuka L3Y (Allied reporting name "Tina"), was a transport variant of the aircraft manufactured by the Yokosu ...
bomber. For his actions Mehle was awarded the
Distinguished Flying Cross.
On 24 February Mehle and two other VF-6 fighters shot down a
Kawanishi H6K
The Kawanishi H6K was an Imperial Japanese Navy flying boat produced by the Kawanishi Aircraft Company and used during World War II for maritime patrol duties. The Allied reporting name for the type was Mavis; the Navy designation was .
Develo ...
near
Wake Island
Wake Island (), also known as Wake Atoll, is a coral atoll in the Micronesia subregion of the Pacific Ocean. The atoll is composed of three islets – Wake, Wilkes, and Peale Islands – surrounding a lagoon encircled by a coral reef. The neare ...
.
[
In March 1942 Mehle became the ]executive officer
An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.
In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer ...
of VF-6.[
By 1944 Mehle was commander of Light Carrier Air Group 28 aboard the . On 11 June 1944 Mehle shot down two ]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 ...
fighters near the Mariana Islands
The Mariana Islands ( ; ), also simply the Marianas, are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, between the 12th and 21st pa ...
. On 19 June, Mehle achieved ace
An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or a club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the ...
status by shooting down two Nakajima B6N
The was the Imperial Japanese Navy's standard carrier-borne torpedo bomber during the final years of World War II and the successor to the B5N "Kate". Due to its protracted development, a shortage of experienced pilots and the United States N ...
torpedo-bombers in the aerial battles that became known as the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot.[
On 28 December 1944 Mehle was awarded the ]Silver Star
The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...
for gallantry for the period from 15 May to 26 December 1944.[
]
Vietnam War
From January 1965 to December 1966, Mehle served as Director, Strike Warfare Division, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations
The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the highest-ranking officer of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an Admiral (United States), admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the United States Secretary ...
and received his first Legion of Merit
The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...
for this service.[
From February to May 1967, Mehle was Commander Attack Carrier Striking Force, ]Seventh Fleet
The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of th ...
and from May to September 1967 he was Commander Carrier Division Five.[
From July 1968 to June 1970, Mehle served as Commander, Naval Safety Center.
Mehle retired from active service in 1970.
]
Personal life
Mehle married Aileen Elder in 1939 and they had a son Roger Jr in 1941. They later divorced and Aileen Mehle became famous as a society columnist.
Mehle married model Dorian Leigh
Dorian Elizabeth Leigh Parker (April 23, 1917 – July 7, 2008), known professionally as Dorian Leigh, was an American model and one of the earliest modeling icons of the fashion industry. She is considered one of the first supermodels, and was w ...
in August 1948. Their daughter Young Eve Mehle was born on March 27, 1949. Mehle and Leigh divorced on November 24, 1954.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehle, Roger
1915 births
1997 deaths
American World War II flying aces
Recipients of the Silver Star
Recipients of the Legion of Merit
Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)
United States Navy admirals
Military personnel from Cincinnati