Tag Archives: Distinguished Flying Cross

29 December 1944

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Flight Lieutenant Richard Joseph Audet, Royal Canadian Air Force, with his Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk.IX, MK950, assigned to No. 411 Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force.

29 December 1944: Flying Officer Richard Joseph Audet, Royal Canadian Air Force, was a section leader of No. 411 Squadron, an RCAF squadron under the control of the Second Tactical Air Force, Royal Air Force. The squadron was based at an advanced airfield in The Netherlands.

In the early afternoon, Audet’s Yellow Section engaged a flight of twelve Luftwaffe fighters, four Messerchmitt Bf 109s and eight Focke-Wulf Fw 190s, near Rheine, in northwestern Germany.

Flying a Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk.IX .5, RR201, Flying Officer Audet led his section into the attack. He later reported:

I was leading Yellow section of 411 Squadron in the Rheine/Osnabruck area when Control reported Huns at Rheine and the squadron turned in that direction. An Me 262 was sighted and just at that time I spotted 12 e/a on our starboard side at 2 o’clock. These turned out to be a mixture of approximately 4 Me 109’s and 8 FW 190’s.

1) I attacked an Me 109 which was the last a/c in the formation of about twelve all flying line astern. At approximately 200 yds and 30° to starboard at 10,000 feet I opened fire and saw strikes all over the fuselage and wing roots. The 109 burst into flames on the starboard side of the fuselage only, and trailed intense black smoke. I then broke off my attack.

2) After the first attack I went around in a defensive circle at about 8500 feet until I spotted an FW 190 which I immediately attacked from 250 yards down to 100 yards and from 30° to line astern. I saw strikes over cockpit and to the rear of the fuselage. It burst into flames from the engine back, and as I passed very close over top of it I saw the pilot slumped over in his cockpit, which was also in flames.

3) My third attack followed immediately on the 2nd. I followed what I believed was an Me 109 in a slight dive. He then climbed sharply and his coupe top flew off at about 3 to 4,000 feet. I then gave a very short burst from about 300 yards and line astern and his aircraft whipped downwards in a dive. The pilot attempted or did bale out. I saw a black object on the edge of the cockpit but his ‘chute ripped to shreds. I then took cine shots of his a/c going to the ground and bits of parachute floating around. I saw this aircraft hit and smash into many flaming pieces on the ground. I do not remember any strikes on this aircraft. The Browning button only may have been pressed.

4) I spotted a FW 190 being pursued at about 5,000′ by a Spitfire which was in turn pursued by an FW 190. I called this Yellow section pilot to break and attacked the 190 up his rear. The fight went downwards in a steep dive. When I was about 250 yards and line astern of this 190 I opened fire. There were many strikes on the length of the fuselage and it immediately burst into flames. I saw this FW 190 go straight into the ground and burn.

5) Several minutes later while attempting to form my section up again I spotted an FW 190 from 4000 feet. He was at about 2000 feet. I dived down on him and he turned in to me from the right. Then he flipped around in a left hand turn and attempted a head-on attack. I slowed down to wait for the 190 to flypast in range. At about 200 yds and 20° I gave a very short burst, but couldn’t see any strikes. This a/c flicked violently, and continued to do so until he crashed into the ground. The remainder of my section saw this encounter and Yellow 4 (F/O McCracken) saw it crash in flames.

—Post Mission Report of Flying Officer R. J. Audet, 29 December 1944

This air battle had been Flying Officer Audet’s first engagement with enemy aircraft. It was over within a matter of minutes. For his actions of 29 December 1944, Richard Audet was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Air Ministry, 16th February, 1945.

The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the following awards in recognition of gallantry and devotion to duty in the execution of air operations:—

Distinguished Flying Cross.

Flying Officer Richard Joseph Audet (Can/J.20136), R.C.A.F., 411 (R.C.A.F.) Sqn.

This officer has proved himself to be a highly skilled and courageous fighter. In December, 1944, the squadron was involved in an engagement against 12 enemy fighters in the Rheine/Osnabrück area. In a most spirited action, Flying Officer Audet achieved outstanding success by destroying 5 enemy aircraft. This feat is a splendid tribute to his brilliant shooting, great gallantry and tenacity.

Flight Lieutenant Richard Joseph Audet in the cockpit of a Supermarine Spitfire. (RCAF)

Richard Joseph Audet was born 13 March 1922 at Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. He was the sixth child of Paul Audet, a rancher, and Ediwisca Marcoux Audet. “Dickie” Audet rode a horse to school at the age of ten years, traveling about 18 miles (29 kilometers) every morning.

Audet studied at Garbutt Business College in Lethbridge, and worked as a stenographer and bookkeeper at RCAF Air Station High River.

Dick Audet enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force at Calgary, Alberta, 28 August 1941. He was trained as a fighter pilot and was commissioned as a Pilot Officer, 24 October 1942. His pilot’s wings were presented to him by The Right Honourable William Lyon MacKenzie King, tenth Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada.

R.C.A.F. Form R. 100, enlistment document of Richard Joseph Audet. (Royal Canadian Air Force)

Pilot Officer Audet was sent to England, crossing the North Atlantic aboard ship and arriving 6 December 1942. He was assigned to the No. 6 Elementary Flying School at RAF Little Rissington, Gloucestershire, and then No. 17 Advanced Flying Unit at RAF Calvely, Nantwich, Cheshire. He was promoted to Flying Officer 23 April 1943, and transferred to No. 53 Operational Training Unit at RAF Heston, west of London, where he transitioned to the Supermarine Spitfire fighter.

Flying Officer Richard J. Audet married Miss Iris Christina Gibbons of Pinner, a village in the London Borough of Harrow, at Northhampton, Northamptonshire, England, 9 July 1944.

Audet joined No. 411 Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force, 14 September 1944. He was promoted to the rank of Flight Lieutenant, 23 October 1944.

During January 1945, Flight Lieutenant Audet was credited with destroying another 6.5 enemy aircraft: 4.5 Focke-Wulf FW-190s (one shared) and two Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighters (one on the ground), and a third Me 262, damaged.

Distinguished Flying Cross and Bar

On 3 March 1945, Flight Lieutenant Audet was strafing railway trains near Coesfeld, Coesfelder Landkreis, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany, when his Spitfire LF Mk.IXE, MK950, was shot down. The Spitfire was seen to crash in flames and explode. Audet was listed as missing in action, and was presumed to have been killed. His remains were not recovered.

On 9 March 1945, Flight Lieutenant Richard Joseph Audet was posthumously awarded a Bar to his Distinguished Flying Cross (a second award).

There is no grave for Dick Audet. His name appears with those of 20,287 others on the Runnymede Memorial, Surrey, England, and among the nearly 400 on the Lethbridge Cenotaph at Lethbridge, Alberta. Audet Lake, north of Fort McMurray, Alberta, and Rue Richard Joseph Audet in Saugenay, Quebec, were named in his honor.

A Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk.IX .5 of No. 412 Squadron, RCAF, taxiing at an advanced landing field, Volkel, Holland, 27 October 1944. This is the same type Spitfire as flown by Dick Audet. Note the position of the .50-caliber machine guns, just inboard of the 20 mm cannon. Photograph by Flight Lieutenant T. Lea, RAF. © IWM (CL 1451)

The aircraft flown by Dick Audet on 29 December 1944, was a Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk.IX .5 (redesignated LF Mk.IXe in 1945), Royal Air Force serial number RR201. The identification letters on the fuselage were DB-G. It was built at built at the Castle Bromwich Aircraft Factory, at Warwickshire, West Midlands, in late summer or early fall 1944.

The Supermarine Spitfire was a single-place, single-engine low-wing monoplane of all-metal construction with retractable landing gear. The fighter had been designed by Reginald Joseph Mitchell CBE. The prototype first flew 5 March 1936.

The Spitfire LF Mk.IXe was optimized for low-altitude operations. The Spitfire F Mk.Vb was 29 feet, 11 inches (9.119 meters) long with a wingspan of 36 feet, 10 inches (11.227 meters) and overall height of 11 feet, 5 inches (3.480 meters). The exact dimensions of the LF Mk.IXe are not known but are presumably similar. Some Mk.IXe fighters had “clipped” wings, while others did not.

The LF Mk.IXe had an empty weight of 5,749 pounds (2,608 kilograms) and gross weight of 7,450 pounds (3,379 kilograms).

The Spitfire LF Mk.IXe was powered a liquid-cooled, supercharged, 1,648.959-cubic-inch-displacement (27.022 liters) Rolls-Royce Merlin 66 single overhead camshaft (SOHC) 60° V-12 engine with a compression ratio of 6.00:1. It was equipped with a two-speed, two-stage supercharger. The Merlin 66 was rated at 1,315 horsepower at 3,000 r.p.m. and 12 pounds per square inch boost (0.83 Bar), for Take Off; 1,705 horsepower at 3,000 r.p.m. at 5,750 feet (1,753 meters) and 1,580 horsepower at 3,000 r.p.m. at 16,000 feet (4,877 meters), with 18 pounds boost (1.24 Bar). These power ratings were obtained with 130-octane aviation gasoline. When 150-octane gasoline became available, the Merlin 66 was cleared to use 25 pounds of boost (1.72 Bar). The Merlin 66 had a propeller gear reduction ratio of 0.477:1 and drove a four-bladed Rotol Hydulignum (compressed laminated wood) propeller with a diameter of 10 feet, 9 inches (3.277 meters). The engine weighed 1,645 pounds (746 kilograms).

The Spitfire LF Mk.IXe had  cruise speed of 220 miles per hour (354 kilometers per hour) at 20,000 feet (6,096 meters); a maximum speed of 384 miles per hour (618 kilometers per hour) at 10,500 feet (3,200 meters), and 404 miles per hour (650 kilometers per hour) at 21,000 feet (6,401 meters). Diving speed was restricted to 450 miles per hour (724 kilometers per hour) below 20,000 feet (6,096 meters). The airplane’s service ceiling was 42,500 feet (12,954 meters).

The Spitfire LF Mk.IXe was armed with two 20-milimeter Hispano Mk.II autocannon, with 135 rounds of ammunition per gun, and two Browning AN-M2 .50-caliber machine guns, with 260 rounds per gun. The .50-caliber machine guns were mounted in the wings, just inboard of the 20 mm cannon.

This photograph of a Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk.IXe shows the position of the .50-caliber machine guns, inboard of the 20 mm cannon.

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

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15 December 1959

Aviation, , , , , , , , , , ,
Major Joseph W. Rogers, U.S. Air Force, in the cockpit of Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467, at Edwards AFB, 15 December 1956. (U.S. Air Force)
Major Joseph W. Rogers, U.S. Air Force, in the cockpit of Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467, at Edwards AFB, 15 December 1959. (U.S. Air Force)

15 December 1959: At Edwards Air Force Base, California, Major Joseph William Rogers, United States Air Force, flew a Convair F-106A Delta Dart all-weather interceptor, serial number 56-0467, to a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed over a 15 Kilometer-to-25 Kilometer Straight Course, breaking the record set two years earlier by Major Adrian E. Drew with a modified McDonnell F-101A Voodoo.¹

At an altitude of 40,000 feet (12,192 meters), Rogers made two passes over the straight 11 mile (17.7 kilometers) course, once in each direction, for an average speed of 2,455.736 kilometers per hour (1,525.924 miles per hour)—Mach 2.31. For his accomplishment, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the FAI’s Henry De La Vaulx Medal, and the Thompson Trophy.

Convair F-106A Delta dart 56-0467, FAI World Speed Record holder, parked on Rogers Dry lake at Edwards AFB. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467, FAI World Speed Record holder, parked on Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards AFB. Note the jettisonable external fuel tanks. (U.S. Air Force)
A copy of Joseph W. Rogers Diplôme de Record from the FAI. NOTE: The signature of LE PRESIDENT DE LA F.A.I. at the lower right of the document. (F-106DeltaDart.com)
A copy of Joseph W. Rogers’ Diplôme de Record from the FAI. NOTE: The signature of LE PRÉSIDENT DE LA F.A.I. at the lower right of the document. (f-106deltadart.com)
The Thompson Trophy
The Thompson Trophy

Major Rogers was the Air Force F-106 project officer assigned to Convair. He first attempted the record with another F-106A, 56-0459, but when that Delta Dart developed uncontrollable compressor stalls, 56-0467 was substituted. (This has led to confusion over which aircraft actually set the record, but in an interview, Colonel Rogers confirmed that it was 467.)

Joseph William Rogers was born at Chillicothe, Ohio, 28 May 1924. He grew up on a farm, and attended West High School, graduating in 1942. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1943 and trained as a pilot. From 1944 he was assigned as a flight instructor in California. Rogers remained in the Air Force after World War II.

During the Korean War, Joe Rogers got the nickname “Whistlin’ Joe” when he put whistles on the wings of his North American Aviation F-51D Mustang in an effort to frighten enemy troops. 1st Lieutenant Rogers was awarded the Silver Star for his actions of 8 October 1950, in close support of a British infantry unit, which was surrounded on a hilltop by the enemy.

Though not officially credited, it is widely accepted that on 8 November 1950, with his Mustang Buckeye Blitz VI, he shot down an enemy Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 jet fighter. An aerial victory of a piston-engine fighter over a jet fighter was a very rare occurrence. Rogers was one of a group of “The American Fighting Man” named Man of the Year by TIME Magazine. He flew 170 combat missions in the F-51 and another 30 in the Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star.

Captain Joseph W. Rogers, U.S. Air Force, in teh cocpt of BUCKEY BLITZ VI, Korea, 1950. (U.S. Air Force)
Captain Joseph W. Rogers in the cockpit of his North American F-51D Mustang, Buckeye Blitz VI, assigned to the 36th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Group, Korea, 1950. Note the red dive bombing stripes on the upper surface of the Mustang’s left wing. (Photograph by Lieutenant Colonel William J. O’Donnell, commanding officer, 36th FBS, via ww2color.com)

Rogers was a 1954 graduate of the Air Force Test Pilot School and worked as a test pilot on the North American Aviation F-86D Sabre radar-equipped interceptor, and then the Convair F-102 Delta Dagger and F-106 Delta Dart.

From 1960 to 1964 Rogers commanded the 317th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, which was, at that time, the largest squadron in the United States Air Force. In 1963, he flew a F-102 in the annual William Tell competition at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, which he won, and was named the Air Force’s “Top Gun.”

Colonel Joseph W. Rogers with a Lockheed SR-71A. (U.S. Air Force)

Next, Rogers he commanded the Lockheed SR-71A and F-12A Test Force at Edwards Air Force Base. He is one of the few pilots to have ejected from an SR-71A, when 61-7953 went out of control, 18 December 1969. Both he and Radar Intercept Officer Lieutenant Colonel Gary Heidelbaugh safely escaped the doomed Blackbird.

Colonel Rogers was Vice Commander of the 3d Fighter Wing, flying the McDonnell F-4 Phantom II during the Vietnam War. After serving as Assistant Deputy Commander of the 7th and 13th Air Forces, he was appointed Chief of Staff for Operations at the Aerospace Defense Command Headquarters, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. Rogers retired from the Air Force in 1975 after 32 years of service.

Joe Rogers worked for Northrop Aerospace for the next 13 years, marketing the company’s F-5 and F-20 fighters.

During his service in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, Colonel Rogers was awarded the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit with two Oak Leaf Clusters, Distinguished Flying Cross with two Oak Leaf Clusters, and Air Medal with thirteen Oak Leaf Clusters.

Joe Rogers was married to the former Charis Tate. They had three children. Mrs. Rogers passed away in 2003.

Colonel Joseph W. Rogers died at Healdsburg, California, 6 August 2005, at the age of 81 years. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, alongside his wife.

Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 after setting World Speed Record. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 after setting World Speed Record. Note the missing paint on vertical fin as a result of the high speed flight. (U.S. Air Force)

The Convair F-106A Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor of the United States Air Force from 1959 to 1988, when it was withdrawn from service with the Air National Guard. It was a single-seat, single engine delta-winged aircraft capable of speeds above Mach 2. The airplane was a development of the earlier F-102A Delta Dagger, and was initially designated F-102B. However, so many changes were made that it is considered to be a new aircraft.

The F-106A is 70 feet, 8¾ inches (21.558 meters) long with a wingspan of 38 feet, 4 inches (11.684 meters). The total area of the delta wing is 697.83 square feet (64.83 square meters). The angle of incidence was 0° and there was no dihedral. The leading edges were swept aft 60°. The top of the vertical fin was 20 feet, 3¼ inches (6.179 meters) high. The Delta Dart weighs 23,646 pounds (10,726 kilograms) empty, and has a maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 38,729 pounds (17,567 kilograms).

The F-106 was powered by a Pratt & Whitney J75-P-17 afterburning turbojet engine. The J75-P-17 was a two-spool axial-flow turbojet engine with afterburner. It used a 15-stage compressor section (8 high- and 7 low-pressure stages) and a 3-stage turbine section (1 high- and 2-low pressure stages. The J75-P-17 had a maximum continuous power rating of 14,100 pounds of thrust (62.72 kilonewtons), and military power rating of 16,100 pounds (71.62 kilonewtons) (30-minute limit). It produced a maximum of 24,500 pounds (108.98 kilonewtons) with afterburner (5-minute limit). The engine was 3 feet, 8.25 inches (1.124 meters) in diameter, 19 feet, 9.6 inches long (6.035 meters), and weighed 5,875 pounds (2,665 kilograms)

The interceptor has a cruise speed of 530 knots (610 miles per hour/982 kilometers per hour). and a maximum speed of 1,153 knots 1,327 miles per hour/2,135 kilometers per hour) at 35,000 feet (10,668 meters). The F-106A had a service ceiling is 53,800 feet (16,398 meters) and a rate of climb of 48,900 feet per minute (248 meters per second). Its combat radius was 530 nautical miles (610 statute miles/982 kilometers) and the maximum ferry range was 1,843 nautical miles (2,121 statute miles/3,413 kilometers).

The Delta Dart was armed with four GAR-3A radar-homing, or -4A (AIM-4F, -4G) infrared-homing Falcon air-to-air guided missiles, and one MB-1 (AIM-2A) Genie unguided rocket with a 1.5 kiloton W-25 nuclear warhead. The missiles were carried in an internal weapons bay. In 1972, the General Electric M61A1 Vulcan 20mm cannon was added to the rear weapons bay with 650 round of ammunition. (The number of gun-equipped Delta Darts is uncertain.)

Convair built 342 F-106 interceptors. 277 were F-106As and the remainder were F-106B two-seat trainers.

Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 in flight. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 in flight. Because of the filter used by the photographer, areas that are actually painted bright “day-glow” orange appear to be  white. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 in flight, seen from left rear quarter. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 in flight, seen from left rear quarter. (U.S. Air Force)

F-106A 56-0467 was built in April 1958 and was the eighteenth production aircraft. After being used for flight testing at Edwards Air Force Base it was converted back to an operational interceptor and assigned to the 329th Tactical Fighter Squadron at nearby George Air Force Base.

Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 on display at at Edwards AFB, May 1961.
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 on display at Edwards AFB, May 1961. (Gary Abel from Marty Isham Collection via f-106deltadart.com)

On 14 August 1961, while taking off from George Air Force Base, Victorville, California, on a routine training mission, 56-0467’s right tire blew out. The pilot, James Wilkinson, flew until most of the airplane’s fuel had been exhausted, and then landed at Edwards Air Force Base because of its longer runway and available emergency equipment. After touching down, the right wheel and brake assembly caught fire. The flames quickly spread to the wing and fuselage. The aircraft slid to a stop and the pilot safely escaped. 467 was totally destroyed.

56-0459, which had been scheduled to make the speed record flights, is on display at the McChord Air Force Base Museum.

Major Joe Rogers with Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0459 at Edwards Air Force Base before a speed record attempt. (U.S. Air Force)
Major Joe Rogers with Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0459 at Edwards Air Force Base before a speed record attempt. This airplane was originally scheduled for the speed record attempt. (U.S. Air Force)
U.S. Air Force public relations photograph.
U.S. Air Force public relations photograph.

¹ FAI Record File Number 9064

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

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13 December 1960

Aviation, , , , , , , , , ,
Lieutenant Henry L. (“Larry”) Monroe, USN, (left) and Commander Leroy Anthony Heath, USN, with a North American Aviation A3J-1 Vigilante, a carrier-based supersonic attack bomber. The two aviators are wearing B.F. Goodrich Mark IV full-pressure suits for protection at very high altitudes. (U.S. Navy)

13 December 1960: Commander Leroy Anthony Heath and Lieutenant Henry L. (“Larry”) Monroe, set a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) with an early production North American A3J-1 Vigilante supersonic attack bomber. A 1,000-kilogram payload was carried in the bomber’s tubular weapons bay.

Over Edwards Air Force Base, in the high desert of southern California, the Vigilante accelerated to approximately 1,400 miles per hour (2,253 kilometers per hour), then pulled up into a steep climb. The Vigilante zoom-climbed in a nearly ballistic trajectory and reached an altitude of 27,874 meters (91,450 feet).¹ As the aircraft went “over the top,” it had slowed to about 400 miles per hour (644 kilometers per hour). They were momentarily “weightless,” which Commander Heath described as a “pleasant sensation.”

Their new record broke the previous record by 7,418 meters (24,337 feet).²

According to an article by Greg Goebel on the web site Air Vectors,

“. . . At that altitude, the aircraft was no longer aerodynamic and tumbled onto its back as it fell down the far side of the arc, with the engines flaming out in the thin atmosphere. However, such problems had been encountered in practice flights leading up to the attempt, and the flight crew knew what to expect. Heath simply neutralized the controls; once the Vigilante reached thicker air halfway through its fall, it naturally adopted a nose-down attitude, and Heath was able to relight the engines.”

— http://www.airvectors.net/ava5.html

North American Aviation A3J Vigilante. (SDASM Archives Catalog #: 00001959)

For their achievement, the Secretary of the Navy, William B. Franke, awarded Commander Heath the Distinguished Flying Cross, and Lieutenant Monroe, the Air Medal. Also present at the 16 December 1960 presentation were Admiral Arleigh Burke, Chief of Naval Operations, and Admiral James Russell, Vice Chief of Naval Operations.

Lieutenant Larry Monroe and Commander Leroy Heath in the cockpits of a North American Aviation A3J-1 Vigilante supersonic attack bomber. (Detail & Scale)

Navy Jet Breaks Russ World Altitude Mark

Vigilante Attack Bomber Carries More Thank 2,000 Lb. Payload to 91,450.8 Ft.

     A Navy Vigilante attack bomber has carried a payload of more than 2,000 lb. to an altitude of 91,045.8 ft. to break Russia’s international record of 67,096 ft., it was disclosed Thursday.

The flight was made last Tuesday from Edwards Air Force Base by a North American twin-jet A3J aircraft piloted by Comdr. Leroy A. Heath of the Naval Air Test Center, Patuxent, Md.

     It was observed officially by representatives of the National Aeronautic Assn. headed by Bertrand Rhine, chief West Coast timer.

     A U.S. claim for a world record altitude for a land-based jet aircraft carrying a 1,000 kilogram (2,204.62 lbs.) payload has been filed with the Federation Aeronautique Internationale, world record agency in Paris.

Awarded Medal

     Comdr. Heath was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for the record achievement. His navigator, Lt. Larry Monroe, was awarded the Air Medal. The presentations were made in Washington Thursday by Navy Secretary Franke.

     Following a carefully controlled flight pattern, teh Vigilante’s high climb was tracked by altitude registering radars monitored by NAA representatives on the ground. The record altitude also was calibrated by a sealed barograph carried in the plane to measure and record air pressures from which height can be determined.

     The flight marked the first time the United States has competed for this particular class record which requires that the aircraft carry its payload in a compartment measuring at least 141 cubic ft.

     The Vigilante is a double sonic, all-weather attack plane built by North American Aviation’s Colombus (O.) division. Designed for carrier operation, it can deliver both nuclear and conventional weapons by a unique tail ejection system from very high altitude or on deck-level attack missions.

     Powered by two General Electric J79 engines developing approximately 15,000 lbs. of thrust each, the Vigilante is 70 ft. long and has a wing span of 50 ft.

     The previous Russian record was set July 13, 1959, by Vladimir Smirnov, flying a twin-jet RVmonoplane over Bykova Aerodrome near Moscow.

—Los Angeles Times, 16 December 1960, Page 2, Column 6, and Page 32, Column 2.

The prototype North American Aviation YA3J-1 Vigilante. (Boeing)

The North American Aviation A3J-1 Vigilante is a carrier-based, twin-engine, supersonic bomber designed for high-altitude nuclear attacks. It is crewed by a pilot and navigator. The airplane has a high-mounted swept wing and tricycle landing gear. There are no ailerons, elevators or rudder. Control is provided by spoilers, a large moveable vertical fin and independent horizontal stabilizers.

The A3J-1 is 76.547 feet (23.332 meters) long with a wing span of 53.02 feet (16.16 meters), and overall height of 19.366 feet (5.90 meters). The wings are swept 37.5° at 25% chord. The wing area is 700 square feet (65 square meters). The bomber has an empty weight of 32,714 pounds (14,839 kilograms) and Maximum Takeoff Weight (MTOW) of 56,293 pounds (25,534 kilograms).

Three-view illustration with dimensions. (U.S. Navy)

The A3J-1 Vigilante is powered by two General Electric J79-GE-8  turbojet engines with afterburner. The J79 is a single-spool axial-flow turbojet with a 17 stage compressor and 3-stage turbine. It is 17 feet, 4.inches (5.625 meters) long, with a diameter of 2 feet, 7.6 inches (0.803 meters). The J79-GE-8 produced a maximum 17,000 pounds of thrust (23.049 kilonewtons) at 7,685 r.p.m.

A North American Aviation A3J-1 Vigilante,  circa 1958. (U.S. Navy 1039888)

The A3J-1 had a maximum speed of 1,147 knots (1,320 miles per hour/2,124 kilometers per hour) at 40,000 feet (12,192 meters). Its combat ceiling was 52,100 feet (15,880 meters).

The Vigilante had a tubular bomb bay between the engines. Weapons were ejected rearward. It could carry a Mk 28, Mk 27 or Mk 43 thermonuclear bomb in the weapons bay, or conventional or nuclear bombs mounted on underwing hardpoints. The A3J carried no defensive weapons.

In 1962, the A3J was designated as A-5. North American Aviation built a total of 167 Vigilantes, in both attack and reconnaissance (RA-5C) variants.

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVAN-65) launches a North American Aviation A3J Vigilante from a forward catapult. (U.S. Navy)

Leroy Anthony Heath was born in Detroit, Michigan, 20 November 1922. He was the first of seven children of Leroy Vincent Heath, a firefighter, and Catherine Crumley Heath. He graduated from high school in 1941 then went to work for the Cadillac Motor Car Division, General Motors Corporation.

Heath enlisted in the United States Navy 7 August 1942. He had brown hair and eyes, a light complexion, was 6 feet (1.83 meters) tall and weighing 190 pounds (86 kilograms), he was selected as an aviation cadet through the V-5 Program, 3 January 1943. After completion of flight training, on 1 July 1944 Aviation Cadet Heath was designated a Naval Aviator and commissioned as an ensign, United States Naval Reserve (U.S.N.R.). Sent to the Pacific Theater, Ensign Heath flew Chance Vought F4U Corsairs from USS Lexington (CV-16). Following the end of World War II, Heath was transferred to the Regular Navy (U.S.N.). He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant, junior grade, 1 January 1946.

On 9 November 1946, Lieutenant (j.g.) Heath married his long-time girlfriend, Miss Mary Helen Garver in Detroit. They would have seven children.

Heath graduated with Class 9 of the U.S. Navy’s test pilot school at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. He served two tours as a project officer in the Service Test Division at the Naval Air Test Center.

He was promoted to lieutenant, 5 July 1951, and to lieutenant commander, 1 November 1955.

CDR Leroy A. Heath, USN, commanding officer, Heavy Attack Squadron SEVEN (VAH-7), USS Enterprise (CVAN 65), 1963. (U.S. Navy)

In 1962, Commander Heath as commanding officer of VAH-7, a heavy attack squadron, flying the new A3J-1 Vigilante from USS Enterprise (CVAN-65). He later served as operations officer of USS Independence (CVA-62).

On 1 January 1965, Heath was promoted to the rank of captain. From September 1968 to December 1969, he was in command of the attack transport, USS Cambria (APA-36). (Naval aviators were often assigned as commanding officers of “deep draft” ships prior to serving as captain of an aircraft carrier.)

USS Cambria (APA-36), at Valetta, Malta, 1968. Capatin Heath commanded the attack transport 25 Sept 1968–December 1969. (U.S. Navy)

After a tour as Executive Director, Material Acquisitions Group, Naval Air Systems Command, Captain Heath retired from the U.S. Navy in March 1972.

After earning a bachelor’s and masters degree in education from the University of Central Florida, Heath served as an assistant professor of mathematics at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, 1976 through 1985.

Mary Helen Heath died 28 Oct 1985. Professor Heath then married his second wife, Ms. Tamara Sue Sundbo, 20 June 1987 at Volusia, Florida.

Captain Heath died 21 February 2003.

¹ FAI Record File Number 4568

² FAI Record File Number 14658: Vladimir Smirnov, 13 July 1959. Air craft RV w/ 37V engine

© 2021, Bryan R. Swopes

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13 December 1958

Aviation, , , , , , , , , , ,
NASA test pilot Einar K. Enevoldson in the cockpit of a NASA/Lockheed F-104N, N811NA, in 1984. (NASA)
NASA test pilot Einar K. Enevoldson in the cockpit of a NASA/Lockheed F-104N, N811NA, in 1984. (NASA)

13 December 1958: First Lieutenant Einar Knute Enevoldson, U.S. Air Force, set seven Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) time-to-climb records in a Lockheed F-104A-10-LO Starfighter, serial number 56-762,¹ at Naval Air Station Point Mugu (NTD) (located on the shore of southern California), including Sea Level to 3,000 meters (9,843 feet) in 41.85 seconds; 6,000 meters (19,685 feet) in 58.41 seconds; 9,000 meters (29,528 feet) in 1 minute, 21.14 seconds; 12,000 meters (39,370 feet) in 1 minute, 39.90 seconds; 15,000 meters (49,213 feet) in 2 minutes, 11.1 seconds; 20,000 meters (65,617 feet) in 3 minutes, 42.99 seconds; and 25,000 meters (82,021 feet) in 4 minutes, 26.03 seconds.

Lockheed F-104A Starfighter 56-762 being prepared for a record attempt at NAS Point Mugu. (F-104 Society)
Lockheed F-104A-10-LO Starfighter 56-762 being prepared for a record attempt at NAS Point Mugu, California. (International F-104 Society)

Lieutenant Enevoldson was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for these accomplishments.

The Distinguished Flying Cross
The Distinguished Flying Cross

FAI Record File Num #9107 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Time to climb to a height of 3 000 m
Performance: 41.85s
Date: 1958-12-13
Course/Location: Point Mugu, CA (USA)
Claimant Einar Enevoldson (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed F-104A “Starfighter”
Engine: 1 G E J79

FAI Record File Num #9106 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Time to climb to a height of 6 000 m
Performance: 58.41s
Date: 1958-12-13
Course/Location: Point Mugu, CA (USA)
Claimant Einar Enevoldson (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed F-104A “Starfighter”
Engine: 1 G E J79

FAI Record File Num #9105 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Time to climb to a height of 9 000 m
Performance: 1 min 21.14s
Date: 1958-12-13
Course/Location: Point Mugu, CA (USA)
Claimant Einar Enevoldson (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed F-104A “Starfighter”
Engine: 1 G E J79

FAI Record File Num #9104 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Time to climb to a height of 12 000 m
Performance: 1 min 39.90s
Date: 1958-12-13
Course/Location: Point Mugu, CA (USA)
Claimant Einar Enevoldson (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed F-104A “Starfighter”
Engine: 1 G E J79

FAI Record File Num #9103 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Time to climb to a height of 15 000 m
Performance: 2 min 11.1s
Date: 1958-12-13
Course/Location: Point Mugu, CA (USA)
Claimant Einar Enevoldson (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed F-104A “Starfighter”
Engine: 1 G E J79

FAI Record File Num #9102 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Time to climb to a height of 20 000 m
Performance: 3 min 42.99s
Date: 1958-12-13
Course/Location: Point Mugu, CA (USA)
Claimant Einar Enevoldson (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed F-104A “Starfighter”
Engine: 1 G E J79

FAI Record File Num #9080 [Direct Link]
Status: ratified – retired by changes of the sporting code
Region: World
Class: C (Powered Aeroplanes)
Sub-Class: C-1 (Landplanes)
Category: Not applicable
Group: 3 : turbo-jet
Type of record: Time to climb to a height of 25 000 m
Performance: 4 min 26.03s
Date: 1958-12-13
Course/Location: Point Mugu, CA (USA)
Claimant Einar Enevoldson (USA)
Aeroplane: Lockheed F-104A “Starfighter”
Engine: 1 G E J79

U.S. Air Force Lockheed F-104A-10-LO Starfighter 56-762 on the runaway at Naval Air Station Point Mugu, December 1958. (International F-104 Society)
U.S. Air Force Lockheed F-104A-10-LO Starfighter 56-762 on the runaway at Naval Air Station Point Mugu, December 1958. (International F-104 Society)

Einar Enevoldson later flew as a civilian test pilot for NASA from 1968 to 1986 and was awarded the NASA Exceptional Service Medal. He holds numerous FAI world records.

Lockheed F-104A-10-LO Starfighter 56-762 climbing under Southern California's overcast coastal skies. (International F-104 Society)
Lockheed F-104A-10-LO Starfighter 56-762 climbing under Southern California’s overcast coastal skies. (International F-104 Society)

The Lockheed F-104A Starfighter was a single-place, single-engine supersonic interceptor. It was designed by a team lead by the legendary Clarence L. “Kelly” Johnson. The F-104A was 54 feet, 8 inches (16.662 meters) long with a wingspan of 21 feet, 9 inches (6.629 meters) and overall height of 13 feet, 5 inches (4.089 meters). It had an empty weight of 13,184 pounds (5,980.2 kilograms), combat weight of 17,988 pounds (8,159.2 kilograms), gross weight of 22,614 pounds (10,257.5 kilograms) and a maximum takeoff weight of 25,840 pounds (11,720.8 kilograms). Internal fuel capacity was 897 gallons (3,395.5 liters).

The F-104A was powered by a single General Electric J79-GE-3A engine, a single-spool axial-flow afterburning turbojet, which used a 17-stage compressor and 3-stage turbine. The J79-GE-3A is rated at 9,600 pounds of thrust (42.70 kilonewtons), and 15,000 pounds (66.72 kilonewtons) with afterburner. The engine is 17 feet, 3.5 inches (5.271 meters) long, 3 feet, 2.3 inches (0.973 meters) in diameter, and weighs 3,325 pounds (1,508 kilograms).

The F-104A had a maximum speed of 1,037 miles per hour (1,669 kilometers per hour) at 50,000 feet (15,240 meters). Its stall speed was 198 miles per hour (319 kilometers per hour). The Starfighter’s initial rate of climb was 60,395 feet per minute (306.8 meters per second) and its service ceiling was 64,795 feet (19,750 meters).

Armament was one General Electric M61 Vulcan six-barreled revolving cannon with 725 rounds of 20 mm ammunition. An AIM-9B Sidewinder heat-seeking air-to-air missile could be carried on each wing tip, or a jettisonable fuel tank with a capacity of 141.5 gallons (535.6 liters).

Lockheed built 153 of the F-104A Starfighter initial production version. A total of 2,578 F-104s of all variants were produced by Lockheed and its licensees, Canadair, Fiat, Fokker, MBB, Messerschmitt,  Mitsubishi and SABCA. By 1969, the F-104A had been retired from service. The last Starfighter, an Aeritalia-built F-104S ASA/M of the  Aeronautica Militare Italiana, was retired in October 2004.

The same type aircraft as that flown by Einar K. Enevoldson, this is a Lockheed F-104A-10-LO Starfighter, 56-761. It is carrying both wingtip and underwing fuel tanks. (U.S. Air Force)
The same type aircraft as that flown by Einar K. Enevoldson, this is a Lockheed F-104A-10-LO Starfighter, 56-761. It is carrying both wingtip and underwing fuel tanks. (U.S. Air Force)

¹ 56-762 was one of three F-104As later converted to an NF-104A rocket/turbojet Advanced Aerospace Trainer. It is the same Starfighter that crashed when Chuck Yeager had to eject after it went into an uncontrolled spin during a zoom-climb altitude record attempt, 10 December 1963.

© 2016, Bryan R. Swopes

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10 December 1947

Aviation, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Jackie Cochran with her P-51B Mustang, NX28388. (FAI)
Jackie Cochran with her record-setting North American Aviation P-51B Mustang, NX28388. (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale)

10 December 1947: Near the Santa Rosa Summit in the Coachella Valley of southeastern California, Jackie Cochran flew her green North American Aviation P-51B Mustang, NX28388, over a 100-kilometer (62 miles) closed circuit, averaging 755.668 kilometers per hour (469.549 miles per hour). She set both a U.S. National and a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record.¹

This record still stands.

Jackie Cochran's green North American Aviation P-51B-15-NA Mustang, NX28388. (FAI)
Jackie Cochran’s green North American Aviation P-51B-15-NA Mustang, NX28388. (FAI)
National Aeronautic Association Certificate of Record in the San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive. (Bryan R. Swopes)
National Aeronautic Association Certificate of Record in the San Diego Air & Space Museum Archive. (Bryan R. Swopes)

Screen Shot 2015-01-02 at 09.58.53

Distinguished Flying Cross

For a series of six records set in her P-51, Jackie Cochran, who held a commission as a colonel in the United States Air Force, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Colonel Jacqueline Cochran, United States Air Force, for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight from 1947 to 1951. During this period, Colonel Cochran piloted an F-51 aircraft in which she established six world speed records. At Coachella Valley, California, flying a closed-circuit 100-kilometer course, Colonel Cochran established a new speed record of 469.549 miles per hour. In other flights from Thermal, Indio, and Palm Springs, CA, Colonel Cochran established world speed records for the 3-, 15-, 500-, 1000-, and 2000-kilometer courses. The professional competence, aerial skill, and devotion to duty displayed by Colonel Cochran reflect great credit upon herself and the United States Air Force.

NX28388 was the first of three P-51 Mustangs owned by Jackie Cochran. It was a North American Aviation P-51B-15-NA Mustang built at Inglewood, California in 1944. It was assigned NAA internal number 104-25789 and U.S. Army Air Corps serial number 43-24760.

Cochran bought it from North American Aviation, Inc., 6 August 1946. The airplane was registered to Jacqueline Cochran Cosmetics, Inc., 142 Miller Street, Newark, New Jersey, but was based at Jackie’s C-O Ranch at Indio, California. The Mustang was painted “Lucky Strike Green” and carried the number 13 on each side of the fuselage, on the upper surface of the left wing and lower surface of the right wing.

NX28388 was powered by Packard V-1650-7 Merlin V-12, serial number V332415.

Jackie Cochran flew NX28388 in the 1946 Bendix Trophy Race and finished second to Paul Mantz in his P-51C Mustang, Blaze of Noon. Cochran asked Bruce Gimbel to fly the Mustang for her in the 1947 Bendix. There was trouble with the propeller governor and he finished in fourth place. In May 1948, Jackie set two more speed records with NX28388. Jackie and her green Mustang finished in third place in the 1948 Bendix race. She asked another pilot, Lockheed test pilot Sampson Held, to ferry the fighter back to California from Cleveland, Ohio after the race, but,

“. . . my plane crashed, carrying my associate, Sam Held, with it to his death.” —The Stars At Noon, by Jacqueline Cochran, Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1954, Chapter IV at Page 79.

NX28388 had crashed six miles south of Sayre, Oklahoma, 8 September 1948, killing Sam Held. Two witnesses saw a wing come off of the Mustang, followed by an explosion.

Jackie Cochran's North American Aviation P-51B Mustang, NX28388. (San Diego Air and Space Museum Archives)
Jackie Cochran’s North American Aviation P-51B Mustang, NX28388, on the flight line at the Cleveland National Air Races, 1948. The airplane behind the Mustang is Tex Johnston’s Bell P-39Q, “Cobra II.” (San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives)

The P-51B was the first production Mustang to be built with the famous Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, and was virtually identical to the P-51C variant. (The P-51Bs were built by North American Aviation, Inc., at Inglewood, California. P-51Cs were built at North American’s Dallas, Texas plant.) They were 32 feet, 2.97 inches (9.829 meters) long, with a wingspan of 37 feet, 0.31-inch (11.282 meters) and overall height of 13 feet, 8 inches (4.167 meters) high. The fighter had an empty weight of 6,985 pounds (3,168 kilograms) and a maximum gross weight of 11,800 pounds (5,352 kilograms).

P-51Bs and Cs were powered by a liquid-cooled, supercharged, 1,649-cubic-inch-displacement (27.04-liter) Packard V-1650-3 or -7 Merlin single overhead cam (SOHC) 60° V-12 engine which produced 1,380 horsepower at Sea Level, turning 3,000 r.p.m and 60 inches of manifold pressure (V-1650-3) or 1,490 horsepower at Sea Level, turning at 3,000 r.p.m. with 61 inches of manifold pressure (V-1650-7). These were license-built versions of the Rolls-Royce Merlin 63 and 66. The engine drove a four-bladed Hamilton-Standard Hydromatic constant speed propeller with a diameter of 11 feet, 2 inches (3.404 meters).

The P-51B/C had a cruise speed of 362 miles per hour (583 kilometers per hour) and the maximum speed was 439 miles per hour (707 kilometers per hour) at 25,000 feet (7,620 meters). The service ceiling was 41,900 feet (12,771 meters). With internal fuel, the combat range was 755 miles (1,215 kilometers).

In military service, armament consisted of four Browning AN/M2 .50-caliber machine guns, mounted two in each wing, with 350 rounds per gun for the inboard guns and 280 rounds per gun for the outboard.

1,988 P-51B Mustangs were built at North American’s Inglewood, California plant and another 1,750 P-51Cs were produced at Dallas, Texas. This was nearly 23% of the total P-51 production.

Jackie Cochran with her “Lucky Strike Green” North American Aviation P-51B-15-NA Mustang, NX28388, circa 1948. (Library of Congress)

¹ FAI Record File Number 4478

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

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