Donald "Flash" Gordon (July 17, 1920 – January 4, 2010) was an American naval aviator and flying ace, having shot down at least seven Japanese aircraft during World War II. He was a fighter pilot in the United States Navy and a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross.
Biography Gordon's first recorded kill was during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands. Flying a Grumman F4F Wildcat and out of ammunition, he flew straight towards a Nakajima B5N that had just launched a torpedo towards , forcing it into the ocean. Enterprise, despite being damaged in earlier attacks, was able to dodge the torpedo. On January 30, 1943, again flying a Wildcat and heading the Enterprise fighter group, nicknamed the 'Grim Reapers', Gordon shot down at least two Mitsubishi G4Ms who were heading for Enterprise and the damaged cruiser . Although G4M torpedoes sunk Chicago, only two out of eleven G4Ms survived the encounter with the Grim Reapers; the rest were shot down.Battle 360: Bloody Santa Cruz, personal interview, circa 2008.
Quotation I never had a dogfight. I usually got head on or tail on. They never saw us coming. That's the way to fight a war.
See also
Battle 360° television series that aired on History (American TV channel) List of World War II aces from the United States Naval aviation
References