Pierce Winningham McKennon (November 30, 1919 – June 18, 1947) was an American

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

with 12 aerial victories and 9.83 ground victories.

Early life

Pierce McKennon was born in Clarksville, Johnson County, Arkansas, on November 30, 1919. He was a gifted musician and entered the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

in 1938 but performed poorly and left a year later. He later returned to the university but never graduated.

World War II

McKennon entered the

U.S. Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

in early 1941 hoping to become a pilot but was refused because of his insufficient aptitudes. He then enrolled in the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

where he successfully underwent pilot training and became a sergeant pilot by the end of 1941. He was sent to England and became a member of the famous

Eagle Squadron The Eagle Squadrons were three fighter squadrons of the Royal Air Force (RAF) formed with volunteer pilots from the United States during the early days of World War II (circa 1940), prior to America's entry into the war in December 1941. Wit ...

, training with the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

throughout 1942. In November 1942, he was transferred back to the United States Army Air Force with the rank of second lieutenant. He was assigned to the

335th Fighter Squadron The 335th Fighter Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 4th Operations Group and stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina. The 335th was constituted on 22 August 1942 as an incorporation of the ...

of the

4th Fighter Group The 4th Fighter Group was an American element of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force during World War II. The group was known as the Debden Eagles because it was created from the three Eagle Squadrons of the Royal Air Force: ...

based at Debden near

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. McKennon quickly proved his worth as a fighter pilot, shooting down four enemy aircraft while flying the

P-47 Thunderbolt The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II-era fighter aircraft produced by the American company Republic Aviation from 1941 through 1945. It was a successful high-altitude fighter and it also served as the foremost American fighter-bombe ...

. His group then transitioned to the

P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...

, in which in 1944, he downed a fifth enemy plane and earned his designation as an ace. McKennon subsequently served as flight commander and destroyed several other enemy aircraft. After a promotion to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, McKennon became took command of the 335th Fighter Squadron. He was shot down by flak on August 28, 1944, near

Niederbronn Niederbronn-les-Bains () is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It is positioned between Bitche and Wissembourg, close to the current frontier with Germany. Niederbronn-les-Bains is part of the Northern V ...

, France, and bailed out safely. With the help of the

French resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

, he evaded capture and safely returned to his unit on September 24, 1944. This time a

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

, he was shot down again while attacking ground targets near Berlin on March 8, 1945. His wingman, Lt. George Green, landed in a nearby field to pick him up. The two pilots disposed of their parachutes to make room, and McKennon flew back to Debden sitting on Green's lap. During the strafing/escort mission on April 16, 1945, his aircraft was once again hit by enemy AA fire and wounded. When the war ended, McKennon was credited with 12 aerial victories and 9.83 ground victories. This odd fraction is explained by the fact that McKennon shared one victory with another pilot (1/2 victory = .50) and another one with two other pilots (1/3 = .33).

Post war

McKennon stayed in Europe until April 1946, and returned to the United States to become a flight instructor. He married Beulah Irene Sawyer on May 13, 1946, and the couple had one son. McKennon and a student pilot were killed in a training accident on June 18, 1947, when their airplane, AT-6D-NT, ''44-81417'', of the 2532d AAF Base Unit,

Randolph Field Randolph Air Force Base was an United States Air Force base located at Universal City, Texas ( east-northeast of Downtown San Antonio). Opened in 1931, Randolph has been a flying training facility for the United States Army Air Corps, the Uni ...

, Texas, crashed 2 mile W of

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, Texas, near San Antonio. The Arkansas Aviation Historical Society inducted McKennon into the Arkansas Aviation Hall of Fame in 1985.

Awards and decorations

Army Presidential Unit Citation

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McKennon, Pierce 1919 births 1947 deaths American World War II flying aces Aviators from Arkansas Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) United States Air Force officers Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II Recipients of the Air Medal People from Clarksville, Arkansas Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States