Neel E. Kearby

Neel Ernest Kearby (June 5, 1911 – March 5, 1944) was a United States Army Air Forces colonel and P-47 Thunderbolt pilot in World War II who received the Medal of Honor for his actions in combat. Kearby is the first United States Army Air Forces fighter pilot to have received the Medal of Honor. He scored 22 aerial victories and was the top-scoring P-47 pilot in the Pacific Theater.

Early life Kearby was born in Wichita Falls, Texas, on June 5, 1911, to John Gallatin and Bessie Lee (Stone) Kearby. He graduated from Arlington High School in 1928, and graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1936 (known then as North Texas Agricultural College) with a bachelor's degree in business administration.

Military career Kearby joined the Army Air Corps in 1937, and received flight training at Randolph and Kelly Air Fields.

World War II Kearby then served with the 94th and 40th Pursuit Squadrons of the 1st Pursuit Group at Selfridge Field in Michigan, until December 1940. Kearby commanded the 14th Pursuit Squadron in the Panama Canal Zone from December 1940 to August 1942, where he flew P-39 Airacobras.

He was transferred in October 1942 to Westover Field in Massachusetts to take command of the new 348th Fighter Group with the rank of major. In June 1943, now a lieutenant colonel, Kearby arrived in Australia with his fighter group after months of training on the P-47 Thunderbolt.

The 348th used the P-47's flight characteristics to their advantage. They used their turbo supercharged engines to fly at high altitude to the target and dove on the Japanese planes before firing their eight .50-caliber machine guns on the lightly armored enemy aircraft.

Kearby opened his score on September 4, 1943, with a Mitsubishi G4M bomber and a Nakajima Ki-43, and followed this up ten days later by shooting down another twin-engined bomber, a Mitsubishi Ki-46. On September 23, he was promoted to full colonel.

He flew an aircraft bearing the name "Fiery Ginger". There were several planes with this title in the 358th Fighter Group at that time. All of Kearby's P-47D's—bore the names, "Fiery Ginger", "Fiery Ginger II", "Fiery Ginger III" and "Fiery Ginger IV". They were all named after his wife Virginia.

Medal of Honor mission

On October 11, 1943, Kearby led four P-47s on a fighter sweep over the Japanese base at Wewak, and ran into 40 Japanese Army fighters. The ensuing combat lasted close to an hour, and when it was over, Kearby had shot down six enemy planes: four Nakajima Ki-43s and two Kawasaki Ki-61s.

Medal of Honor citation The citation for the Medal of Honor, which was awarded by General Douglas MacArthur, describes his combat heroism:

Legacy Colonel Kearby was one of two U.S. fighter pilots to be awarded the Medal of Honor for actions while flying the P-47. The other was Raymond L. Knight.

In 1959, a building was named for him at Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls. The city of Alexandria, Louisiana, named a street for him near England Air Force Base. In 2010, the Texas Historical Commission and the City of Arlington, Texas, unveiled a historical marker and statue at the city's public library.

Awards and decorations Kearby's military decorations and awards include the following:

BadgeArmy Air Forces Pilot Badge1st rowMedal of HonorSilver Star with oak leaf clusterDistinguished Flying Cross with three oak leaf clusters2nd rowPurple HeartAir Medal with four oak leaf clustersAmerican Defense Service Medal3rd rowAmerican Campaign MedalAsiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with six campaign starsWorld War II Victory MedalUnit awardsPresidential Unit Citation

Aerial victory credits SOURCES: Air Force Historical Study 85: USAF Credits for the Destruction of Enemy Aircraft, World War II