Posted on 02/25/2026 11:09:05 AM PST by Jacquerie
Retired Navy Capt. E. Royce Williams has been keeping a secret for more than 50 years.
To his friends, family, and others he served with, Williams was known as a decorated fighter pilot, who led a successful career in the Navy, where he served for more than 30 years and flew more than 220 missions in Korea and Vietnam. However, even his wife wasn’t aware of what he’d done on Nov. 18, 1952.
That morning, Williams was continuing what had become a daily routine for him as a young Navy pilot stationed onboard the USS Oriskany off the coast of Korea during the Korean War; flying his F9F-5 Panther fighter aircraft over the skies of North Korea to attack targets in support of operations on the ground. On this particular morning, the only difference was the targets were further north than usual – close to the country’s border with the Soviet Union.
Despite a blizzard sweeping in with heavy winds and snow, Williams said the mission began successfully, with minor amounts of anti-aircraft fire. However, they hadn’t counted on the nearby Soviet base to notice their presence. Within minutes, the Soviets went to general quarters and scrambled seven MiG-15 fighters to react to the situation.
“Our combat information center notified us that there were inbound bogeys,” said Williams. “I spotted seven contrails coming from the north, and identified them as MiGs.”
Once the MiGs passed over Williams and his wingman, they circled around and split into two groups – four to the right, and three to the left. Williams lost sight of the aircraft, and was ordered to move closer to the strike group to protect it in case the Soviets attacked.
That’s when they dropped back in on Williams.
“They dropped back in and started shooting,” said Williams. “Since they started the fight, I shot back.”
Williams quickly locked on to one of the aircraft and hit it, watching as it caught fire and billowed smoke on its way down. His wingman followed it, leaving Williams alone with the remaining MiGs. In another intense moment, Williams was able to dodge the weapons fire and shoot back, downing another MiG, leaving two of the original four in the fight.
“I’m on the defensive – I’m not really declaring war on them,” said Williams.
As he kept maneuvering to avoid being hit by the hundreds of bullets being fired, one of the Soviet pilots made a grave mistake, putting his aircraft directly in Williams’ sights. He took the opportunity and opened fire, downing a third MiG.
On another turn, Williams felt his aircraft shake violently as it was hit by a MiG’s 37mm cannon – ripping holes in his fuselage and exploding, leaving his aircraft severely damaged.
As he struggles to stay in the fight, something else goes wrong – Williams runs out of ammunition.
The remaining MiGs followed Williams as he turned his damaged aircraft into the storm, using the high winds to shield himself from the incoming rounds as he headed full speed back towards his task force. “I could see the bullets coming over me, and under me,” said Williams.
As he approached the task force, the remaining MiGs quickly retreated, assuming Williams probably wouldn’t make it back to the Oriskany due to severe damage regardless. Williams knew if he ejected, he’d end up freezing to death before he could be rescued, and his communications were now severed due to the damage done to his aircraft. He had no choice but to attempt a landing.
To make matters worse, the task force had gone to general quarters with orders to open fire on any unidentified aircraft; since Williams couldn’t communicate with them, they opened fire on his aircraft – luckily stopping once he got close enough to identify.
His Panther was unable to slow down or it would stall, which forced Williams to make his landing at 200 miles per hour. Somehow, he was still able to catch a wire on the flight deck and emerged unscathed. The next day, the crew inspected his Panther and found 263 holes in the aircraft.
“You’d be surprised, it was almost like a training mission,” said Williams, recounting the story. “I was pretty stable.”
Soon after returning, Williams was ordered into a meeting with his Admiral and a representative of a brand new government agency – the National Security Agency. The NSA had been testing new communications equipment that was intercepting radio chatter from the Soviets, and they knew if any details from Williams’ mission went public, the Soviets would know the United States could hear their communications. Therefore, Williams was ordered not to tell a soul about his mission – it was classified as Top Secret.
For the rest of his accomplished Navy career, and for decades after retirement, the details of Williams’ dogfight with Soviet MiGs over North Korea remained a secret. When he was finally contacted by the government and told his mission was declassified, the first person Williams said he told was his wife.
Tell me you’re a mindless groupthinking moron tied to “fashionable” nonsense programmed into that mush you have in place of a brain ...
without actually using those words.
Soviet pilots were flying MIG-15’s from Chinese bases across the Yalu River in China. MIG-15’s did not have much range. Soviet and Chinese pilots were also flying the MIGs against us in Vietnam.
And he met Eisenhower who told him to keep it secret. He didn’t tell his wife, didn’t tell his brother who was also a pilot... I mean NOBODY.
He kept it secret until the Russians opened their archives and told the story! I’ve never heard of a man who kept a secret until the ENEMY told the story. And btw... the Russians said of the 7 MiGs, only one made it home.
Royce is a fine man.
Soviet pilots were flying MIG-15’s from Chinese bases across the Yalu River in China. MIG-15’s did not have much range. Soviet and Chinese pilots were also flying the MIGs against us in Vietnam.
“”Williams quickly locked on to one of the aircraft and hit it, watching as it caught fire and billowed smoke on its way down. His wingman followed it, leaving Williams alone with the remaining MiGs.””
I’m with you - it does leave us wondering....the enemy plane WENT DOWN and does “followed it” mean “followed it down”?
Wikihahahahahahapedia, in its list of air-to-air victories in Viet Nam, does not contain any by Royce Williams ... the only “Williams” was a COL D. Williams, USAF.
He went down smoking, and my wingman then followed him, leaving me alone.
At that point, my wingman chose to follow him instead of sticking with me.
SGT.YORK AND THE IRS! (HOW THE IRS TREATED A HERO!) HOW DO THEY TREAT US? (UNDER 5 MINUTES)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDrBWPI1Ctk&t=10s
Thanks! Facts are, of course, always welcome. By me, at least.
I always thought the the F9F Panther was significantly inferior to the Mig 15. If so here must be a good US pilot against poor Russian ones.
Same for F-80s and F-94s. We just had better pilots.
I thank you for that reply.
I have no doubt that, specifically during Korea, the MIG aircraft were largely flown by Soviets. Jet aircraft were new, and so was China.
The Yalu River is not that far north and mostly separates Korea from China. The Tumen river does separate Korea from the Soviet Union, near Vladovostok.
There seems, to me, a “cloud” of history of the Cold War that protects China from its actions in killing Americans in Korea and Vietnam that, frankly, bothers me. I am sure that China was aided and supplied by the Soviet Union, but they in turn were the entirety of the cause of the Korean war and the killing of Americans, there.
For some reason, China gets a complete pass and is never even mentioned in the article.
It’s like reading about Ukraine.
Thank you for the reply.
So, the Soviets were supplying the MIGs, but they were flown by the Chinese in Korea? Or, were they known to be flown by Soviets?
I know that in one of these wars, the Soviets were surreptitiously piloting planes for experience against Americans.
There was an interview long ago with a retired Soviet pilot who admitted they secretly flew missions against us in Korea.
The pilots of today that you mention are all college graduates. Then, you must become an officer through the Air Force Academy (USAFA), Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC), or Officer Training School (OTS) . and must undergo 18 months of flight training.
There is a major difference between today's fighter pilots and the pilots of WW-II.
To become a US military pilot in WWII, candidates generally needed to be male, aged 19–27, with 20/20 uncorrected vision, high physical fitness, and intelligence. Requirements included at least a high school diploma, though college was preferred, and a willingness to undergo intensive training that evolved from 9 months to shorter, accelerated programs.
In other words, if you were old enough, could see and were willing to put your life on the line for the US, they made you a pilot.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.