Posted on 12/20/2005 5:38:44 PM PST by SandRat
The Flying Tigers of World War II
Americans have not always waited for their country to enter a war formally to fight for causes they supported. The tradition continued during the early days of World War II before the United States officially became a combatant. Some Americans joined the Royal Air Force, forming the Eagle Squadrons and fighting alongside English pilots in the Battle of Britain and other early conflicts. But it was another group of Americans, the American Volunteer Group (AVG) in China, that gained the most fame and notoriety in the early months of the war. On Dec. 20, 1941, the AVG 'Flying Tigers'entered combat for the first time.
From Volunteers to Regulars
The great value of the Flying Tigers was psychological and diplomatic. Amerians and Chinese hailed them as heroes during the early period of World War II when Japan had the upper hand. The Flying Tigers raised public hopes for eventual victory.
Additional Information
(Excerpt) Read more at defenselink.mil ...
WWII Heros remembered on today their Anniversary
Earlier this year I had the priveledge to meet Tex Hill; Flying Tiger ace. It was an honor to speak to him for awhile and buy his book from him.
Give me some men who are stout hearted men and I'll soon give you ten thousand more, shoulder to shoulder......
Photo personally signed by Tex Hill.FLYING TIGERS ACE "TEX HILL"
David Lee Hill was born on 13 July 1915 in Kwangju, Korea, the son of a missionary who moved to Texas when he was six. After finishing Austin College in 1938, "Tex" completed naval flight school and served in a torpedo squadron on the USS Saratoga and in a dive-bomber squadron on the USS Ranger. Hill was among the first Americans to see combat in World War II. He volunteered to join the American Volunteer Group in China in 1941. The AVG would soon be known as the Flying Tigers.
Hill became a triple "Ace" during his time with the AVG and its Army Air Corps successor, the 23rd Fighter Group. He destroyed more than 18 enemy aircraft, including what is believed to be the first Japanese Zero shot down by a P-51 Mustang. His heroics were so legendary that he was portrayed by John Wayne in the movie "Flying Tigers".
But it was for his actions at the stick of a P-40 Tomahawk on October 25, 1942, that he was recently honored. The citation accompanying the DSC reads, in part"….while performing bomber escort duty in a P-40 aircraft over enemy held territory in the China Theatre….Major Hill attacked superior numbers of enemy aircraft rising to intercept the U.S. B-24 bombers.
 P-40 Tomahawk |
Without hesitation, he turned his aircraft on its back for a high speed dive and placed his aircraft between the enemy fighters and the B-24 bombers". It goes on to read, "With exceptional flying ability, Major Hill forced the enemy to turn from the attack and dive away. With skillful marksmanship, he destroyed one aircraft and severely damaged three others resulting in their probable destruction".
On Thanksgiving Day 1943, he led a force of 12 B-25s, 10 P-38s, and 8 new P-51 Mustangs from Saichwan, China, on the first strike against Formosa. The Japanese had 100 bombers and 100 fighters located at Shimchiku Airfield, and the bombers were landing as "Tex" Hill's force arrived. The enemy managed to get seven fighters airborne, but they were promptly shot down. Forty-two Japanese airplanes were destroyed and 12 more were probably destroyed in the attack. The Americans returned home with no casualties.
President George W. Bush praised Hill's patriotism, writing: "During these extraordinary times we have been reminded that our achievements in peace and war have been built on the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform. Your devotion to duty and your legendary battles in World War II have earned you the respect and admiration of all Americans…. Your bravery in battle continues to be an inspiration as we face the challenges of a new era".
During the closing months of World War II "Tex" Hill commanded the 412th Fighter Group, the first jet unit in the Army Air Forces. The group flew the Bell XP-59 and later the Lockheed P-80.
In July 1946 Hill resigned his commission and left active duty. Shortly thereafter, he joined the Air National Guard and became the youngest Brigadier General in the history of that service. He Retired from the military in 1968.
Colonel Hills honors include: The DSC, Nationalist Chinese Order of the Cloud Banner, Chinese Victory Medal, British Distinguished Flying Cross, U.S. Distinguished Flying Cross, two Air Medals, Silver Star, and Legion of Merit.
Source U.S. Air Force Archives
Found on the internet here! More photos at source!
I wonder if the Chicoms remember...
Their shoulders held the sky suspended.
They stood, and Earth's foundations stay.
What God abandoned, these defended,
And saved the sum of things for pay.
Thanks Sand Rat. When I was a kid, our atate fair (Michigan) had a Warhawk on display and I had the opportunity to sit with the pilot as he cranked up that awesome engine. It was scary:)
Actually, I just read somewhere lately that the Chinese honored the Tigers not to long ago. I'll see if I can find the link.
I remember it making me very happy, but the other details escape me. :)
And if you didn't know, one of the 'Flying Tigers',
was Gregg Boynton, weho after being conscripted
back into the Marine Corps, bacame the leader of
the VMF 214 known as the 'Black Sheep' Squadron.
I read a good book years ago about Erich Hartmann, the German all time ace of aces with 352 kills. He was also the son of a Missionary Doctor, born in China.
Really courteous and friendly. He also had that charisma which many old Southerners seem to have. After the event I noticed he got into his Cadillac with his daughter and drove himself back to Macon, Georgia.
Scot was technically not in the AVG although he did fly with them unofficially before joining the successor organization.
My dad was the flight engineer on General Tunner's personal plane in the CBI; Military Channel just showed a short documentary on Tunner, which was sort of boring, just interviewed Tunner's son; wish they'd talked to my Dad, he'd have had some actual interesting stories about the guy that broke his neck because he didn't wear his seatbelt in a storm, the plane they had that actually had the wings bent by extreme updrafts and downdrafts, etc.
There were a dozen civilians in my dad's Hump pilot outfit based in India, a few flyers with shady pasts and a few that liked living in Asia and just didn't want to go home. Many of these moved into DAC jobs related to Korea, as did my dad. He worked for the Army/State Department's Japan Procurement Agency in Tokyo and retired in the early 60s.
My dad was actually a little too old to step forward in 1942, since he was born in 1906. He had been a pilot with China National Airlines Company (owned at that time by American Airlines) and the move to flying the Hump was a natural. He made 25 missions, suffered burns in a crash landing and was treated at the Army burn center in San Antonio. When he was released, he got a handshake and goodbye. Since he was a civilian, he never received Vet's recognition.
Yeah, the merchant mariners in the Atlantic (who I think had a higher death rate from being torpedoed than any of the armed forces) have the same problem.
The other weird story was either the Indians or Chinese (I think it was the Chinese) who would try to run across the runway right in front of a plane taking off so the plane would hit and kill the invisible evil spirit following them; some of them mis-timed their runs.
Also he had an unfortunate experience flying Chinese troops to India for them to be trained; none had flown in an airplane before, and they all got airsick...
My Dad served with the 14th Air Force in China under Chenault's command.
If you haven't joined yet, you may want to consider joining the 14tth Air Force Association as associate members. Tex Hill and many other pilots were regular members and you can only imagine how the ranks of those regular members are fading lately. Direct descendants are entitled to join and it's a great organization.
The following link is a site made by a man who served with my father and it contains quite a bit of info with some great photos. On the opening page is a photo of the Blood Chit my dad wore on the back of a flight jacket he wore on the many trips he made over the "Hump". He was a Tech Sergeant, and one of his fondest memories was the day one of the pilots let him jump into the left seat up front for awhile on one of those trips from China to India.
http://community-2.webtv.net/HaoBooHao/CHINADAYS19441945/
My Dad is a member of the Hump Pilots Association and went to a couple of their conventions; unfortunately they stopped having them because so few of them were left alive.
My Dad still has the cool flag back patch from his flight jacket, and also has a separate blood chit. Somehow he lost track of the actual jacket which is a shame, wish we still had that.
I note in passing though that the picture labled P-40 Tomahawk is not a Tomahawk. The Tomahawk was the P-40B/C and had 4 machine guns in the wings. The pictured aircraft has six wing mounted machine guns, making it a P-40E (Kittyhawk) or later P-40K (Warhawk)
Yep, you're right about that.
Though the subject of what EXACTLY the AVG was flying has been a source of endless controversy, as they were flying aircraft originally meant for the RAF I think...
There's also a lot of mythology around them, including the basic myth that they were fighting before Pearl Harbor which is false...
The other weird thing that surprises people is that they weren't fighting Zeros at all; they were up against the Japanese Army, who never had Zeros (a Navy Aircraft). There were some Zeros fighting in China for a brief period of time, in a Navy detachment, but they never went up against the AVG. In fact most AVG kills were bombers and obselete fixed-landing gear fighters.
Greg Boyington wasn't conscripted back into the Marine Corps. Due to his age, as well as other factors,it took quite a bit of effort to get the Marine Corps to reappoint him. Boyington commanded VMF-122 before he took command of VMF-214.
Yes, i know..but many of the Tigers were "cajoled"
back into the US Miltary proper, when the US joned
the war. I agree that the word conscripted is not
completely accurate, but then neither is re-enlisted...
nor seconded...
BTTT
I have four CBI patches from Dad's uniforms, some pretty ragged with age. He was issued officers clothing and was addressed as "captain," but wore no rank insignia.
Amen and Ged Bless them
Not really. The first load of aircraft that they used were p-40Bs destined for the RAF which they received after the North Africa mission for which they were intended was canceled.
Just prior to the AVG being folded back into the army air corp, a number of pilots received the P40E Kittyhawks, which had 6 wing mounted 50s, as opposed to 2 nose mounted 50's and 4 wing mounted 30's (or in some cases, only 4 wing mounted 30's) of the P-40B
A very good general overview of the career of the AVG can be found in Martain Caidin's history of the early air war in the Pacific 'The Ragged Rugged Warriors'
Good follow up post on the other myths of the AVG, by the way
Forgive my cynicism. I'm sure that Chinese 'nationalists' remember and appreciate the courage and dedication of the Flying Tigers, almost as well as they remember their country before the scourge of Maoism took it under. However, most of the Chinese nationalists these days are dead or living in Taiwan. I doubt the Communists who rule the mainland today value or respect the contribution those Americans made toward defending their country pre-1949. As evidence I would simply offer the American spy plane downing incident with China in the earliest days of the GWB administration.
I am sure the fact that Japan has never offered a formal apology for the atrocities committed in China has a bit to do with their feelings. I realize relations between the two have not been good for decades, but the Japanese at the very least owe an apology to them.
I knew Pappy in his last years and attended his memorial service. He had mellowed in his old age, but when with a fellow drivers he could tell some great stories. Truly an American Hero.
I would've loved to have been able to listen to
those stories....(sigh)
Thanks for your service...
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