Richard Bong

Richard "Dick" Ira Bong (September 24, 1920 – August 6, 1945), a pilot in the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF), is the United States' all time fighter ace, having shot down 40 enemy aircraft during World War II.

Biography

Bong grew up on a farm near Poplar, Wisconsin. In May 1941, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps where one of his flight instructors was Barry Goldwater, the unsuccessful 1964 presidential candidate against Lyndon Johnson.

Lieutenant Bong received his wings and commission in January 1942. He gained a swashbuckling reputation with stunts such as "looping the loop" around the center span of the Golden Gate Bridge in his P-38, and waving to stenographers in office buildings as he flew along Market Street. In October he was flying combat missions in the Southwest Pacific Theater. Flying the Lockheed P-38 "Marge" with the 49th Fighter Group, he scored his first "kills" in late December.

By April 1944, Captain Bong had shot down 27 aircraft, surpassing Eddie Rickenbacker's American record of 26 credited victories during World War I. After extended leave in the U.S. Major Bong returned to New Guinea in September 1944 and continued flying during the Philippine campaign. There he ran his string to 40 victories in December 1944, the same month he received the Medal of Honor.

Bong's Medal of Honor citation stated that he flew combat missions despite his status as an "instructor". In fact, he was the P-38 standardization officer for 5th Fighter Command, there being no position for instructors in a war zone. His rank of major would have qualified him for a squadron but he always flew as a flight (four-plane) or element (two-plane) leader.

In January 1945, the Allied air commander in the South West Pacific Area, General George Kenney sent the ace of aces home for good. Bong married his fiance' and participated in numerous PR activities, such as promoting the sale of war bonds. He then became a test pilot for jet fighters. On August 6, 1945, the same day the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Bong was killed in the crash of his P-80 Shooting Star shortly after takeoff from Lockheed Burbank airport. Ironically, Bong's death, which would likely have been front-page news, was greatly overshadowed by the atomic bomb's use in the very theater he fought in.

Among Bong's decorations were the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, two Silver Stars, seven Distinguished Flying Crosses, and 15 Air Medals.

Marjorie Bong

Major Bong's widow, Marjorie Bong, remarried two more times, but her last and most successful marriage to Murray Drucker, allowed her to become a successful publisher of a magazine devoted to boxer dogs. After the death of her last husband, she sold her home in Hollywood, California and had a new one built in Poplar, Wisconsin, where she was the driving force in creating the Bong WWII Heritage Center. During that time she also authored the book titled Memories (1995 Drucker publications) that documented her life. She died of cancer in September 2003 and had her ashes interred next to her first husband Richard Bong; she is survived by two daughters.

WWII historical center

On September 24, 2002, which would have been Dick Bong's 82nd birthday, the Richard I. Bong WWII Heritage Center opened to the public in Superior, Wisconsin. The converted aircraft hangar contains a museum, a film screening room, and his fully restored P-38 Lightning. The work on the aircraft, begun in 1994 and coordinated by volunteers from the Duluth, Minnesota Air National Guard, required more than 16,000 hours of labor.

Namesakes

Namesake of Bong Recreational Area in Southeastern Wisconsin, the Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge in the Twin Ports of Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin, The Bong Barracks of the Aviation Challenge program, and the Richard I. Bong Bridge in Townsville, Australia.

Full list of kills

Date	Kills! Location/Comment
December 27 1942	2	over Buna
January 7 1943	2	Oscars over Lae
January 8	1	over Lae Harbor, made 'ace'
February 3		back with 9th FS, at Schwimmer
March 3	1	Zero during Battle of the Bismarck Sea
March 11	2	Zeroes
March 29	1	Betty? bomber; promoted to 1st Lt.
April 14	1	bomber, defending against Japanese attack on Milne Bay. 'Double Ace'. Awarded Air Medal
June 12	1	Zero, over Bena Bena
July 26	4	fighters, on escort over Lae; awarded DSC
July 28	1	Oscar, on B-25 escort over New Britain. Bong's plane damaged.
August 24		promoted to Captain, R&R in Australia
September 6	0	claimed two bombers, but wins were not confirmed; crash-landed at Mailinan airstrip
October 2	1	Dinah, while leading Green Flight over Gasmata
October 29	2	Zeros, over enemy airfield at Rabaul
November 5	2	Zeros, over enemy airfield at Rabaul; total of 21 kills
Dec. 1943 - Jan. 1944   - On leave at home in Wisconsin, met Marge Vattendahl
Feb. 1944 -   assigned to V Fighter Command HQ, allowed to 'free-lance'
February 15	1	Tony off Cape Hoskins, New Britain, first victory in Marge
February 28	0	destroyed a Japanese transport full of officers on the runway at Wewak
March 3	2	Sally bombers, over Tadji, New Guinea
March 8		Friend & mentor Tom Lynch killed
April 3	1	fighter over Hollandia, 25th win
April 12	3	surpassed Rickenbacker's WWI record of 26
May-July, 1944   - On leave in U.S., made publicity tours
October 27	1	The 9th FS had set up at Tacloban, in support of the Leyte landings. Bong successfully lobbied to get back in action for this crucial phase. During this time, the other high-scoring P-38 ace, Thomas McGuire began to approach Bong's combat record.
October 28	2	Oscars off Leyte, total of 33
November 10	1	Oscar over Ormoc Bay
November 11	2	Bong recommended for Medal of Honor.
December 7	2	Sally and Tojo, while covering American landings at Ormoc
December 15	1	Oscar
December 16?	1	Oscar over Mindoro. Total of 40 wins; finally grounded and sent home by General Kenney.

External links

* Richard Bong Historical Center
* AcePilots.com: USAF Bong
*248th Hiko Sentai: A Japanese "Hard Luck" Fighter unit {Copyrighted-for reference only}