Rear Admiral Edward Lewis Feightner (October 14, 1919 – April 1, 2020) was a United States Navy officer who fought in a number of significant battles in the World War II Pacific Theater of Operations. During two combat tours, he shot down nine enemy aircraft to become a flying ace.

He was an early member of the Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron and flew the lead "solo" position. His work as a test pilot included aircraft, electronic systems, and operational tactics such as developing techniques for delivering nuclear weapons from small fighter aircraft. He commanded increasingly larger air units including VF-11 and Carrier Air Group Ten as well as training organizations that helped the Navy transition from propeller to jet aircraft. He commanded two Navy ships, served as the head of Navy Fighter Design, and was a key contributor to fighter studies that resulted in the development of jet aircraft that are still in active service.

Feightner was the only pilot to land the dash-1 variant of the Vought F7U Cutlass aboard a carrier. He led VF-11 to become the first Atlantic fleet unit in which every pilot received the coveted "E" award (excellent) in a single exercise. After retiring from the Navy, Feightner promoted aviation and shared his experiences with others.

Early life Feightner was born on October 14, 1919, in Lima, Ohio, a small town in the northwest part of the state, to Amos Evan and Mary Story (Roths) Feightner. He attended the University of Findlay in Findlay, Ohio and learned to fly in the Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP). The CPTP was a flight training program sponsored by the United States government to increase the number of civilian pilots and thereby create a pool of trained aviators from which the military could draw. By 1940, Feightner received his private pilot license. He graduated from Findlay College in 1941.

World War II service With war approaching and because of his strong desire to fly, Feightner attempted to sign up with the United States Army Air Corps. But he faced an eight-month delay before acceptance since the Army flight program could not cope with the large influx of people. When Feightner found that the Navy would accept him immediately, he made up his mind to pursue naval aviation. On June 16, 1941, Feightner enlisted in the United States Navy Reserve and entered the Naval Aviation Cadet Training Program. He completed flight training at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas on April 3, 1942, thereby earning his commission as an ensign and designation as a naval aviator. He finished advanced carrier training at Naval Air Station Norfolk and received orders to VF-5 aboard . Yorktown, however, was sunk by the Japanese at the Battle of Midway before Feightner could arrive. Feightner was reassigned to VF-3 at Naval Air Station Pu'unene on Maui, Hawaii. VF-3's commanding officer was Edward "Butch" O'Hare who had recently returned from a combat tour in the Pacific as the Navy's first fighter ace. O'Hare gave Feightner the nickname "Whitey" for his inability to tan despite hours in the sun during the squadron's many spearfishing trips.

VF-10 Grim Reapers

In October 1942, Feightner was assigned to VF-10, the Grim Reapers, aboard flying the Grumman F4F Wildcat. The commanding officer of VF-10 was James H. Flatley whom Feightner described as "a true leader [who] epitomizes what you think of as a squadron commander". Enterprise left Pearl Harbor on October 16, 1942, for the South Pacific as part of Task Force King. Less than ten days later, Feightner performed his first night carrier landing after the search and attack group for which he provided cover became lost and did not return to the carrier until after dark. On October 26, 1942, during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, Feightner shot down his first enemy aircraft—an Aichi D3A dive bomber that was attacking Enterprise. He was also credited with a probable kill of another aircraft. Feightner was awarded an Air Medal and gold award star for his actions that day.

After several weeks of repair, Enterprise sortied to oppose an Imperial Japanese battle fleet that was threatening the Solomon Islands. The Japanese convoy included eleven transports with over seven thousand soldiers headed down the "Slot" to Guadalcanal to retake Henderson Field. On November 14, 1942, Feightner protected U.S. dive bombers and strafed enemy vessels during the strikes that destroyed seven of the troop carriers—a significant event in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. After the attacks, VF-10 remained at Henderson Field on Guadalcanal to reinforce the 1st Marine Division and deal with the Japanese ships and troops from the remaining transports that had intentionally beached themselves. Conditions on the island were primitive and dangerous for pilots of the Cactus Air Force. Many of the servicemen came down with malaria. Japanese soldiers hid in trees and waited to ambush the Americans. Sleep was disrupted by night bombardment. Fortunately, Feightner had to endure the hazardous conditions on Guadalcanal less than a week, as VF-10 left their old aircraft at Henderson Field and returned to Enterprise on November 25, 1942, where they received new F4Fs.

On January 30, 1943, the second day of the Battle of Rennell Island, Feightner shot down three Mitsubishi G4M "Betty" torpedo bombers in a single engagement. In this engagement, a force of twelve Bettys approaching Enterprise were intercepted by VF-10 aircraft. The Bettys turned away from Enterprise and went after , a heavy cruiser that had been disabled the night before. VF-10 destroyed six of the Bettys before they could reach the cruiser, but the remaining aircraft released their torpedoes with devastating effect—Chicago sank within minutes. Two more of the Bettys were dispatched by the pursuing VF-10 Wildcats as they passed the ring of destroyers that had been protecting the cruiser. Flatley shot down another and the remaining three fell to his wingman, Feightner, who had been delayed due to a balky engine but arrived at just the right time. Feightner was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and an air medal for downing three aircraft on that day and ended his first combat tour with four confirmed kills.

VF-8

In May 1943, Feightner received orders to VF-8 flying the Grumman F6F Hellcat at Naval Auxiliary Air Station Pungo—a satellite airfield near Naval Station Norfolk. This second squadron to be designated VF-8 was established on June 1, 1943, and led by Lt Cdr William M. Collins Jr. who would himself become a nine-victory ace. Fighting Eight was initially assigned to the new carrier that had been launched just weeks prior. During Intrepids sea trials in the fall of 1943, Feightner performed initial takeoffs, landings, and catapult shots flying the F6F.

In March 1944, Carrier Air Wing Eight began operations from . Part of the Fast Carrier Task Force TF 58 commanded by Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher, Bunker Hill participated in a series of attacks against Japanese positions in the Pacific Theater of Operations. VF-8 saw their first combat during a two-day strike on Palau. On the first day of the raid, March 30, 1944, Feightner became an ace when he shot down a Mitsubishi A6M "Zeke" over the island of Peleliu. The Palau battle also marked the first combat use of the 'Berger' Gradient Pressure Suit—an air inflatable G-suit that allowed a pilot to maneuver his aircraft more aggressively without blacking out. The "Z-suit" proved so successful that all but three of the VF-8 pilots chose to wear the equipment.

As TF 58 followed the U.S. strategy of leapfrogging toward Japan, Feightner participated in strikes at the Yap coral atoll of Woleai helping to isolate the Japanese garrison there. At the end of April, the task force returned to Truk in the Caroline Islands. Once a major Japanese stronghold, Truk had been badly damaged during Operation Hailstone earlier that year, but the Japanese had since reinforced the island with aircraft from Rabaul. On April 29, 1944, Feightner shot down a Zeke over Truk, raising his total to six aircraft destroyed.

In June 1944, the U.S. initiated the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign. Feightner flew during the Battle of the Philippine Sea that was better known to American pilots as the 'Great Marianas Turkey Shoot' due to the overwhelming losses inflicted upon the naval air forces of Japan. He fought in a series of actions over the next few months including the Battle of Saipan, the Battle of Guam, strikes on Okinawa, and the Battle of Tinian.

As U.S. forces pushed toward the Philippines, the fast carriers of Task Force 38 (TF 38) moved to subdue Japanese air power on the island of Formosa—known today as Taiwan. During the Aerial Battle of Taiwan–Okinawa, VF-8 destroyed thirty aircraft near Taien Airfield. Flying in this battle on October 12, 1944, Feightner shot down three Zekes (although at least one source states the aircraft were "Oscars") bringing his total to nine aircraft destroyed. Feightner continued to fly missions with VF-8 until Bunker Hill returned to the United States for an overhaul in November 1944.

Fighter Instructor Upon returning to the United States in November 1944, Feightner was assigned as a fighter instructor with VF-98 at NAS Los Alamitos in Orange County, California, and later at Naval Air Facility (NAF) Thermal in Thermal, California. Near the end of World War II in 1945, Feightner was assigned as gunnery officer to VF-21 at NAS San Diego in California.

Victory credits The following table summarizes Feightner's aerial victories and provides the date, number of aircraft destroyed, types of aircraft destroyed, and the battle at which the victory occurred. In total, he was assessed with 9 destroyed and 4 probables. However, another source claims two probable kills for Feightner.

Date No Type Battle/Location Aircraft flown UnitOctober 26, 19421D3A "Val"Battle of the Santa Cruz IslandsF4F WildcatVF-10January 30, 19433G4M "Betty"Battle of Rennell IslandF4F WildcatVF-10March 30, 19441A6M "Zeke"Raid on PeleliuF6F HellcatVF-8April 29, 19441A6M "Zeke"Raid on TrukF6F HellcatVF-8October 12, 19443A6M "Zeke"Aerial Battle of Taiwan–OkinawaF6F HellcatVF-89

Post-war service

Flight test

After serving for several years in staff assignments, Feightner received orders to attend the U.S. Navy Test Pilot School at NAS Patuxent River in Maryland. He graduated in July 1949 with the school's second class and served with the Flight Test Division at the Naval Air Test Center where he flew a variety of aircraft including helicopters and the Navy's largest transport, the Lockheed R6V Constitution. Feightner also tested the Grumman F8F Bearcat, the Vought F4U Corsair, and the Grumman F7F Tigercat. When Colonel Charles Lindbergh came to evaluate the Tigercat, Feightner, as F7F project pilot, provided the pre-flight instruction.