Warbird Information Exchange

Dang it! Someone beat me to it!

Werner Voss is too often overshadowed by Richtoften as both flew the Fokker Dr.1.

Mike

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"So there I was, knee deep in a river I couldn't pronounce..."

Duke Cunningham

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There is no kill like a guns kill

Although not technically an ace, Adrian Warburton was for me one of the most interesting pilots of the Second World War. A truly great pilot and a very brave man. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrian_Warburton

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If the first casualty of war is innocence, the second is sobriety - Hawkeye.
Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws - Plato.
Lies get halfway round the world before the truth has a chance to get it's pants on - Churchill
If you are going through he11 - keep going - Churchill

Oswald Boelke,

His rules of dogfighting are still taught today. All the top aces lived Boelke's Dicta, and won. I feel he is truely the ace of aces for this reason.

Too difficult to pic the TOP ace. Too many variables; pilot, aircraft, era etc.

WWI:
Voss
Barker
Fonck

WWII:
Blackburn,
Blakeslee
Bader
Hartmann

Korea:
Blesse

Viet Nam:
Ritchie

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"Always remember that, when you enter the ocean or the forest, you are no longer at the top of the food chain."

maybe not an Ace, but how about Thatch .... the Thatch weave right?

My vote - Hub Zemke. One of the best group commanders of WWII - an inspiring leader and an ace to boot. Wish I could have met him.

Zack

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Volunteer Coordinator/Curator - Military Aviation Museum - Virginia Beach, VA
"America's Flying Museum"
http://www.militaryaviationmuseum.org

Good choices! IMHO Archie Donahue was one of the best CORSAIR pilots during WWII, being credited twice with "Ace in a Day" status, and 14 total kills!

Tim

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"If I had to fight the same war over again, I'd sure want to fight it from the cockpit of a Corsair."
-Archie Donahue

Ok,
I'm changing my vote.
Capt Don Cook Owen USMC 5 kills
2.5 with VMF-121 in F4F-4s Guadacanal
2.5 with VMF-112 F4U-1Ds USS Bennington
3 DFCs 5 Air Medals 2 Presidential Citiations
MIA May 1945 off Japan. He was my cousin.
Jack the proud!

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Don't touch my junk!!

Jack that is something to be proud of for sure.

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Chris Henry
EAA Aviation Museum Director

As for as top ace, the German pilots are way ahead. Hartmann had more than 10 times as many as the top American. So did the 2nd place (Barkhorn?) as well and Gunther Rall in 3rd at 275. The word ace means victories, it is a different definition than best leader or best pilot, etc. I am not sure what is meant by "your" ace. Of course I am using WWII as I don't know that much about I. Someone should write a summary of them.
As for Yeager, I believe his total is about 12, so Hartmann had 30 times as many. He would not be among the leaders soley on that scale. I don't believe he was thought of as a top ace until he gained fame for the test pilot and supersonic flights.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

Cdr David McCampbell CAG-15 on the USS Essex CV-9 the Navy's all-time leading ACE with 34 victories,alsow a record as all 34 in a single tour of combat. His 9 kills in a single mission is a record for all American and Allied fighter pilots of WW-ll. In the Navy until 1964 with a tour as Commanding officer of the USS Bon Homme Richard CVA-31.
He Lead by Example!!

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R H White

JUST FLY' EM! boomerang

Dave Schilling...and oh ya Tommy Hayes too.

Mike

Cannot believe nobody mentioned Joe Foss.

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the
CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR to


CAPTAIN JOSEPH J. FOSS
UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS RESERVE


for service as set forth in the following CITATION:

For outstanding heroism and courage above and beyond the call of duty
as Executive Officer of a Marine Fighting Squadron, at Guadalcanal,
Solomon Islands. Engaging in almost daily combat with the enemy from
October 9 to November 19, 1942, Captain Foss personally shot down
twenty-three Japanese planes and damaged others so severely that their
destruction was extremely probable. In addition, during this period, he
successfully led a large number of escort missions, skillfully covering
reconnaissance, bombing and photographic planes as well as surface
craft. On January 15, 1943, he added three more enemy planes to his
already brilliant successes for a record of aerial combat achievement
unsurpassed in this war. Boldly searching out an approaching enemy
force on January 25, Captain Foss led his eight F4F Marine planes and
four Army P-38s into action and, undaunted by tremendously superior
numbers, intercepted and struck with such force that four Japanese
fighters were shot down and the bombers were turned back without
releasing a single bomb. His remarkable flying skill, inspiring leadership
and indomitable fighting spirit were distinctive factors in the defense of
strategic American positions on Guadalcanal.


He did ok after the Marines also. Governor of South Dakota twice,
Comissioner of the then new American Football League and later President of the NRA.

He has my vote.

Bill

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Bill


Website

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Don't touch my junk!!