Lieutenant Junior Grade Tetsuzō Iwamoto was one of the top scoring aces among Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) fighter pilots. He joined the Imperial Navy in 1934 and completed pilot training in December 1936. His first combat occurred over China in early 1938. He emerged as one of the top aces of the Imperial Japan during WWII, credited with at least 94Continue reading “Japanese “Zero” Fighter Air Ace Tetsuzō Iwamoto “Tiger Tetsu”- 94 Aerial Victories – Greatest Japanese Fighter Ace of All Time”
Category Archives: Air Aces
Air Ace Ivan Kozhedub the Highest Scoring Allied and Soviet fighter pilot of World War II
Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub was a Soviet World War II fighter ace. Credited with over 62 victories. He was the highest scoring Soviet and Allied fighter pilot of World War II. He is one of the few pilots to have shot down a Messerschmitt Me 262 jet. He was made a Hero of the Soviet Union on three occasions (4 February 1944, 19 AugustContinue reading “Air Ace Ivan Kozhedub the Highest Scoring Allied and Soviet fighter pilot of World War II”
Vietnamese Fighter Ace Nguyễn Văn Cốc – The Highest Scoring Pilot in Vietnam War
Nguyễn Văn Cốc is a former North Vietnamese MiG-21 fighter ace of the Vietnamese People’s Air Force’s (VPAF) 921st Fighter Regiment. Van Coc was shot down before scoring his first kill on Jan. 2, 1967 in Operation Bolo, a U.S. aerial ambush. He ejected and survived, and then went on to destroy an F-105 in an attack out of theContinue reading “Vietnamese Fighter Ace Nguyễn Văn Cốc – The Highest Scoring Pilot in Vietnam War”
German Ace – Hans-Ulrich Rudel – Eagle of the Eastern Front – Greatest Fighter Pilot and Most Decorated German in WW II
Hans-Ulrich Rudel was a German ground-attack pilot, and the most decorated German serviceman of World War II, being the sole recipient of the Knight’s Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds. Post-war, he was a prominent neo-Nazi activist in Latin America and West Germany. During the war, Rudel was credited with the destruction of 519 tanks, as well as one battleship, one cruiser,Continue reading “German Ace – Hans-Ulrich Rudel – Eagle of the Eastern Front – Greatest Fighter Pilot and Most Decorated German in WW II”
Gabby Gabreski: America’s Two-War Ace – WW II and Korea
Francis Stanley “Gabby” Gabreski was a Polish-American career pilot in the United States Air Force (USAF). He was the top American and United States Army Air Force (USAAF) fighter ace over Europe during World War II and a jet fighter ace with the Air Force in the Korean War. Although best known for his credited destructionContinue reading “Gabby Gabreski: America’s Two-War Ace – WW II and Korea”
Lieutenant Indra Lal Roy, DFC – The First and the Only Indian Air Ace
World War I had about 1.5 million Indians fighting in every theatre of the battle. Among the handful of Indians who fought in the air was a gifted combat pilot who would go on to become India’s first and only fighter ace, Indra Lal ‘Laddie’ Roy. Yet few Indians know about the story of this incredibleContinue reading “Lieutenant Indra Lal Roy, DFC – The First and the Only Indian Air Ace”
Charles B. DeBellevue – Top American Ace of the Vietnam War – A Non-Pilot – First Weapon Systems Officer (WSO) Ace
While aces are generally thought of exclusively as fighter pilots, but such status has been also accorded to gunners on bombers or reconnaissance aircraft, and to observers in two-seater fighters such as the early Bristol F-2b, and Navigators/weapons officers in aircraft like the F-4 Phantom. Because pilots often teamed with different air crew members, anContinue reading “Charles B. DeBellevue – Top American Ace of the Vietnam War – A Non-Pilot – First Weapon Systems Officer (WSO) Ace”
“Triple Ace” Shot 17 aircraft in a Day – Hans-Joachim Marseille – Most Amazing and Ingenious Combat Pilot
To be a Triple-ace in a day, the pilot must have destroyed 15 enemy aircraft in a single day. This has been achieved by only five pilots ever. All from the Luftwaffe. Hans-Joachim Marseille, also called “Stern von Afrika” (Star of Africa) by the Germans, shot down 17 Allied fighters in three sorties over North AfricaContinue reading ““Triple Ace” Shot 17 aircraft in a Day – Hans-Joachim Marseille – Most Amazing and Ingenious Combat Pilot”
“Triple Ace” American Fighter Pilot “Robin Olds” – World War II and Vietnam War
Robin Olds was a “triple ace” American fighter pilot with a combined total of 17 victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. He retired in 1973 as a Brigadier General of the United States Air Force (USAF) after 30 years of service. The son of Army Air Force Major General Robert Olds, he wasContinue reading ““Triple Ace” American Fighter Pilot “Robin Olds” – World War II and Vietnam War”
Fighter Ace Lydia Litvyak “White Lily” – Highest Aerial Victories by a Female Fighter Pilot
Lydia Vladimirovna Litvyak also known as Lilya, was a fighter pilot in the Soviet air Force during World War II. Historians’ estimates for her total solo victories from five to twelve, and two to four shared kills in her 66 combat sorties. In about two years of operations, she was the first female fighter pilot toContinue reading “Fighter Ace Lydia Litvyak “White Lily” – Highest Aerial Victories by a Female Fighter Pilot”
Air Power Asia 