Fernando Hernández Vega (1914–1988) was a Mexican military aviator.Ruiz Romero, Manuel (July 30, 2004). Aviación Militar – Historia de la Fuerza Aérea y de la Aviación Naval. Ciudad de México: El Universal – newspaper. pp. 163. He was born in

Guadalajara, Jalisco Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, on 1 October 1914 and died in Mexico city on April 8, 1988.

Education

He was educated in

El Paso El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...

(Texas), where he started flight practice. He was second lieutenant interpreter when he entered the Military Aviation School in Mexico, where he graduated as second lieutenant aviator on July 15, 1941.

Career

Vega was selected to join the 201 Squadron.Dávila, Héctor (Septiembre de 2002). "Escuadron 201". Sistema Informativo Aeronautico Latinoamericano. Consultado el 25-01-2009. He received combat training in the United States and participated in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the reconquest of the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. Upon returning to Mexico he was an instructor of

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-bombe ...

aircraft and then was assistant military attache at the Mexican Embassy in Washington D. C., during which period he had the opportunity to fly

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

and F-80 fighter planes. He became the first Mexican pilot to man a jet plane. He graduated from the War College. He then commanded Fighting Squadron 200, was an English teacher at the Military School of Meteorology, organized the 5th Air Battalion and was commander of the Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron. In 1960 he received training in

de Havilland Vampire The de Havilland DH100 Vampire is a British jet fighter which was developed and manufactured by the de Havilland, de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the Royal Air Force, RAF, after the Gloster Meteo ...

jet and was later an instructor of these aircraft. For many years he made aerial photography flights for a specialized company and the Ministry of Public Works. On November 20, 1972 he was promoted to Wing General. He had a civilian pilot license in the category of Unlimited Public Transport (number 241) and accumulated nearly 20,000 flight hours. He translated several manuals from English into Spanish.

Awards and recognition

Vega received several national and international awards, among which include: ;Awards by the Congress of the Union *The Ignacio Comonfort Distinction *The War Cross *Mexican Legion of Honor *Multiple Perseverance decorations *The Emilio Carranza Medal for having accumulated more than twenty thousand hours of flight. ;Awards by the United States Congress * The Air Medal * Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal *

World War II Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal was a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. Histo ...

American Defense Service Medal The American Defense Service Medal was a United States service medals of the World Wars, military award of the United States Armed Forces, established by , by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, on June 28, 1941. The medal was intended to recogniz ...

;Awards by the Republic of Yugoslavia *

Knight Grand Cross A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez Vega, Fernando Mexican military personnel of World War II Mexican aviators 1914 births 1988 deaths Mexican expatriates in the United States