The Most Heroic Airmen of World War II

1. After His Escape, Bruce Carr Joined the “Ace in a Day” Club

Bruce Carr was promoted to first lieutenant, and given a well-deserved leave. However, his wartime exploits were not over. On April 2^nd, 1945, First Lieutenant Carr led three other American fighters on a reconnaissance mission, when they spotted sixty German fighters above them. Despite the 15:1 odds against his flight, the fighter ace immediately led an attack. Within minutes, Carr and his companions had downed fifteen Germans. Carr personally downed two Fw 190s, three Bf 109s, and damaged a sixth plane. His downing of five airplanes on that occasion made Carr the European Theater of Operations’ last “Ace in a Day”.

It also earned him a Distinguished Service Cross, the country’s second highest award for valor. By war’s end, Carr had flown 172 combat missions, scored fifteen confirmed air-to-air victories, several more unconfirmed victories, and numerous ground victories. He flew another 57 combat missions in the Korean War, and 286 more in Vietnam, earning a Legion of Merit and Three Distinguished Flying Crosses. He retired from the Air Force as a colonel in 1973, died of prostate cancer in 1998, and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

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Where Did We Find This Stuff? Some Sources and Further Reading

Air Force Magazine, February 1^st, 1995 – Valor: Thanks, Luftwaffe

Aviation Geek Club – The Story of Bruce Carr, the P-51D Pilot Who Left on a Mission Flying a Mustang and Returned to Base Flying a Luftwaffe FW190

Aviation History Magazine, May, 2001 – WWII Ace Pappy Boyington Recalls War, Prison and Flying

Baron, Scott – Valor of Many Stripes: Remarkable Americans in World War II (2019)

Birch, David – Rolls Royce and the Mustang (1987)

Boyington, Gregory – Baa Baa Black Sheep (1958)

Darling, Kev – Combat Legend: P-51 Mustang (2005)

Detroit Free Press, May 18th, 2018 – Tuskegee Airman Honored 73 Years After Being Lynched in Austria

Encyclopedia Britannica – Tuskegee Airmen

Fortitudine, Bulletin of the Marine Corps Historical Program, Volume 35, Number 1, 2010 – Boyington and Combat Leadership