Glenn Eagleston

Glenn Todd Eagleston (March 12, 1921 – May 7, 1991) was a career officer in the United States Air Force and the leading ace of Ninth Air Force in Europe in World War II. Eagleston was credited with 18 1/2 victories, two probable victories, and seven damaged German aircraft. He also destroyed at least five enemy aircraft on the ground, while flying P-51 Mustangs with the 354th Fighter Group.

Eagleston was known as a "fighter pilot's fighter pilot." He flew almost 100 combat missions in the P-51 Mustangs and P-47 Thunderbolts in Europe, some as a 22-year-old Squadron Commander. He also flew in Korea; he was assigned there as Squadron and Group Commander, flying F-86s for 84 combat missions and being credited with two MiG-15s destroyed, one probable, and seven damaged.

Early life He was born in Farmington, Utah on March 12, 1921, and joined the US Army Air Corps as an enlisted man in 1940. He became an aviation cadet in 1942, graduating at Luke Field in September and assigned as a second lieutenant.

Military career World War II After a brief stint with the 79th Fighter Squadron of the 20th Fighter Group flying the P-39 Airacobra from September 1942 to January 1943, he was transferred to the 353rd Fighter Squadron of the 354th Fighter Group and deployed with that group to England in October 1943, flying P-51 Mustangs.

The 354th Fighter Group, dubbed "Pioneers," were equipped with the P-51B Mustangs in November 1943 and was loaned to the Eighth Air Force for bomber escort duty, where Donald Blakeslee served as the temporary commanding officer of the group. On December, the 354th FG began flying missions over France. The 354th flew through the bad winter weather of 1943–44, typically dividing its three squadrons into four color-coded flights of four planes each.

On January 5, 1944, the 354th was covering bomber withdrawal from Kiel when they engaged a formation of Luftwaffe fighters. Eagleston shot down an Fw 190 with a short burst, at 45 degrees of deflection. The aircraft crashed into the ground, crediting Eagleston with his first aerial victory. On the same mission, the 354th FG shot down 18 enemy aircraft. Eagleston flew escort missions regularly, and his score increased: a Bf 110 on January 30, single Bf 110's on both February 21 and 22, and a Bf 109 on March 6, making him a flying ace.

The 354th resumed its original tactical role in Spring 1944, in preparation for D-Day. In mid-June, following the Allied invasion of Normandy, the 354th FG moved to Cricqueville-en-Bessin, an advanced base in Normandy and simultaneously returned to the Ninth Air Force command. By this time Eagleston had kills and had been promoted to captain. Finishing his first combat, he was sent for back to the US for shore leave and returned to active duty in the fall 1944. His biggest day was on October 29, 1944, when he destroyed three Bf 109s in a half-hour dogfight, for which he received the Distinguished Service Cross.

Eagleston's F-86A was badly damaged by a MiG-15 flown by Sergei Kramarenko on June 17, 1951, and he belly-landed at Kimpo Air Base. The jet was damaged beyond repair and was written off. The leader of the two Sabres who came to assist Eagleston was also a notable combat pilot: Lt.Col. Bruce Hinton, the first Sabre pilot to shoot down a MiG-15 on December 17, 1950. Eagleston returned to the United States in September 1951.