Robert Wayne Aschenbrener (November 22, 1920 – July 2, 2009) was an American fighter pilot and

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 ...

Early life

He was raised on the Indian reservation at

Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin Lac du Flambeau is a town in Vilas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,004 at the 2000 census. The land base of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa is located within the town and also consists of a large portion ...

. He attended

Loras College Loras College is a private Catholic college in Dubuque, Iowa. It has an enrollment of approximately 1,600 students and is the oldest post-secondary institution in the state of Iowa. The school offers both undergraduate and graduate degree pr ...

Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Il ...

for two years before enlisting in the

Army Air Corps Army Air Corps may refer to the following army aviation corps: * Army Air Corps (United Kingdom), the army aviation element of the British Army * Philippine Army Air Corps (1935–1941) * United States Army Air Corps (1926–1942), or its p ...

in September 1941.

World War II

Aschenbrener received flight training at Kelly, Ballinger, San Angelo, and Moore Fields in Texas, and graduated with the class of 42H. Lieutenant Aschenbrener was assigned to the

8th Fighter Squadron The 8th Fighter Squadron is an active United States Air Force squadron, assigned to the 54th Fighter Group Air Education and Training Command, stationed at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. It currently operates the General Dynamics F-16 ...

(Black Sheep Squadron),

49th Fighter Group The 49th Fighter Group was a fighter aircraft unit of the Fifth Air Force that was located in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater during World War II. Activation and training The group was constituted as 49th Pursuit Group (Interceptor) on 20 November 194 ...

, then based in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

. Flying the

Curtiss P-40 Warhawk The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground-attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time an ...

, he scored his first two victories on November 15, 1943, followed by another on February 15, 1944. Promoted to captain, he became operations officer and flew 272 combat missions before returning to the United States in the summer of 1944 to instruct other pilots in fighter tactics. Wishing to return to combat, "Asch" (as he was nicknamed) wrangled a trip back to his old unit, now in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

flying the

Lockheed P-38 Lightning The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twi ...

. Serving again as operations officer, he became an ace on November 24, 1944, when he downed three

Kawasaki Ki-61 The Kawasaki Ki-61 ''Hien'' (飛燕, "flying swallow") is a Japanese World War II fighter aircraft. Used by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service, it was designated the "Army Type 3 Fighter" (三式戦闘機). Allied intelligence initially b ...

s ("Tony"s) and one

Mitsubishi A6M Zero The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-based aircraft, carrier-based fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 19 ...

("Zeke") in one day. On December 11 and 14, 1944, he was credited with his ninth and tenth victories. On Christmas Day 1944, during a strafing run on enemy occupied

Clark Field Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educate ...

, Aschenbrener's

P-38 The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twi ...

was hit by 20mm ground fire, and he crashed into a rice paddy barely from the end of the runway. Picked up by

Hukbalahap The Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon (), better known by the acronym Hukbalahap, was a Communism, communist Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla movement formed by the farmers of Central Luzon. They were originally formed to Philippine resistance against Ja ...

guerrillas, he hid in the jungle for nearly a month evading enemy troops on the lookout for him. He was joined by the crew of a Navy torpedo plane, as well as downed F-6F Hellcat ace

Alexander Vraciu Alexander Vraciu (November 2, 1918 – January 29, 2015) was a United States Navy fighter ace, Navy Cross recipient, and Medal of Honor nominee during World War II. At the end of the war, Vraciu ranked fourth among the U.S. Navy's flying aces, wit ...

. Making it back to safety after 27 days, he returned to his unit, where he was promoted to major and assumed command of the

7th Fighter Squadron The 7th Fighter Squadron is an active United States Air Force unit, assigned to the 1st Operations Group. It is stationed at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. Overview The 7th Fighter Squadron is an active United States Air Force unit, assign ...

, 49th Fighter Group. At this time, he met his soon to be wife, Laura Ann Middleton. They were married on recaptured

Clark Air Base Clark Air Base is a Philippine Air Force base on Luzon Island in the Philippines, located west of Angeles City, about northwest of Metro Manila. Clark Air Base was previously a United States military facility, operated by the U.S. Air Forc ...

on August 20, 1945 in the shadow of

Mount Pinatubo Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano in the Zambales Mountains, located on the tripoint boundary of the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga, all in Central Luzon on the northern island of Luzon. Its eruptive history w ...

(a volcano which eventually destroyed the base) just a few miles from where his plane went down. Before leaving the Army Air Force, Major Aschenbrener flew 345 combat missions and over 850 combat hours flying the P-40,

P-47 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-bomber ...

, and P-38 fighter aircraft.

Post-war

Major Aschenbrener returned to the United States in September 1945 and left the service to pursue a degree in journalism at the University of Missouri. After retiring from the ''Los Angeles Valley News'', he and Ann moved to Cameron Park in northern California. Aschenbrener died July 2, 2009 at the age of 88 in Sacramento, California, leaving behind eight children and over 30 grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Honors and awards

Major Aschenbrener earned the title "double ace" and received a total of 21 medals and citations, including: USAAF Wings

USAAF Pilot Badge His Distinguished Service Cross Citation reads:

Early life

World War II

Post-war

Honors and awards

References

Further reading