George Andrew Davis Jr. (December 1, 1920 – February 10, 1952) was a highly decorated fighter pilot and flying ace of the United States Army Air Forces in World War II, and later of the United States Air Force during the Korean War. He was killed in action during a combat mission in northwestern Korea, in an area nicknamed "MiG Alley". For his actions during the Korean War, Davis was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor and promoted from major to lieutenant colonel.
Born in Dublin, Texas, Davis joined the United States Army Air Corps in early 1942. He was sent to the Pacific Theater after pilot training and flew in the New Guinea and Philippine campaigns, scoring seven victories over Japanese aircraft. He quickly gained a reputation as a skilled pilot and accurate gunner whose "daredevil" flying style contrasted with his reserved personality.
Davis did not see action in Korea until late 1951. Despite this, he achieved considerable success flying the F-86 Sabre fighter jet, quickly rising to become the war's ace of aces and downing fourteen North Korean, Chinese, and Soviet aircraft before his death in February 1952. During his final combat mission in northwestern Korea, Davis surprised and attacked twelve Chinese MiG-15 fighter jets, downing two of the MiG-15s before he was shot down and killed. Davis was the only flying ace of the United States to be killed in action in Korea. Controversies remain surrounding the circumstances of his death.
Davis is the fourth-highest US scoring ace of the Korean War, with a total of 14 victories added to the 7 he scored in World War II. He is one of seven US military pilots to become an ace in two wars, and one of 31 US pilots to be credited with more than 20 victories.
Early life Davis was born in Dublin, Texas, on December 1, 1920. He was the seventh of nine children born to George Davis Sr. and Pearl Love Davis. During his childhood, Davis also briefly lived in Maple, Texas. Davis attended Morton High School in Morton, Texas. Davis then attended Harding College in Searcy, Arkansas. After obtaining a degree, he returned to Texas. He took up farming for a time with his family before eventually deciding to join the military.
Friends and colleagues would later describe Davis as quiet, calm, and reserved as well as a natural leader. When flying, he would become "cool and calculating" in combat. He did not drink alcohol or smoke tobacco, unlike many other pilots, and he had a subdued personality despite his "daredevil" flying style.
Davis married Doris Lynn Forgason. They had children Mary Margaret Davis (born 1944) and George Davis III (born 1950). His wife was six months pregnant with their third child, Charles Lynn Davis, at the time of his death in 1952.
Military career World War II
On March 21, 1942, Davis enlisted in the United States Army in Lubbock, Texas, just after the US entry into World War II. On June 3, he was appointed an aviation cadet in the Army Air Corps. He was moved to Kelly Field in San Antonio, Texas, for pre-flight training, which he completed in August. He was then moved to Jones Field in Bonham, Texas, for primary flight training. During this training, he got his first 60 hours of flight time aboard a Fairchild PT-19 trainer aircraft. Then he flew for another 74 hours during Basic Flight Training in Waco, Texas, and underwent a final stint of training aboard the T-6 Texan at Aloe Field in Victoria, Texas. On February 16, 1943, Davis completed his training, was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the US Army Reserve, and was immediately ordered into active duty with the Army Air Forces. By this time he had accrued 314 hours of flight time.
Davis's first assignment was to join the 312th Bombardment Group based at Bowman Field in Louisville, Kentucky, where he became qualified to fly the P-40 Warhawk fighter plane. He continued training there until August 1943, when the group was ordered to the Pacific Theater of Operations.
New Guinea Davis was flown to Port Moresby, New Guinea, where he was quickly reassigned to the 342nd Fighter Squadron, 348th Fighter Group of the Fifth United States Air Force. The group flew the P-47 Thunderbolt fighter plane. By December, his unit moved to Finschhafen, where it was able to operate over the Solomon Sea against the air forces of the Empire of Japan, and he quickly earned the ironic nickname "Curly" because of his straight black hair. Davis was known among the pilots to be particularly confident. Davis served under the command of Colonel Neel E. Kearby, who himself would later receive the Medal of Honor. Many of the other pilots in the unit would quickly become aces as they participated in the conflict.
Davis's first combat experience came when his unit was sent on a patrol to Cape Gloucester on December 31, 1943, in support of the New Britain campaign as the Battle of Cape Gloucester began. However, the 15 aircraft were diverted to Arawe to the southwest to counterattack Japanese aircraft that were targeting Allied convoys during the Battle of Arawe. En route, they encountered 11 Japanese D3A Val and A6M Zero aircraft attacking an Allied convoy from to . They immediately ambushed the Japanese planes. Davis quickly attacked a disorganized formation of the aircraft, downing a D3A Val as it completed a bombing run. By the end of the short battle, eight Japanese aircraft had been shot down and only one American plane had been damaged.
The next combat mission was on February 3, 1944. Sixteen P-47s were escorting a flight of B-24 Liberators on a bombing mission over Wewak. When they were west of the target area, they were ambushed by a flight of Nakajima Ki-43 Oscars and Kawasaki Ki-61 Tony aircraft at . As the American aircraft rushed to the defense of the bombers, Davis managed to attack and shoot down a Ki-61 that had been attacking another P-47. In all, seven Japanese aircraft were destroyed in the attack. The next day, Davis was promoted to first lieutenant.
For the next several months, Davis's unit undertook patrol and escort missions in the Cape Gloucester area and around the islands of Saidor, Manus, and Momote. Through May, these actions were relatively uneventful, except for one fighter sweep mission from Wewak. From May to August, Davis flew 69 missions, including several dive-bombing attacks on Japanese positions on Hansa Bay. From September to November, Davis flew another 40 missions, including six patrols between Wakde Island and Hollandia. On November 14, Davis was promoted to the temporary rank of captain.
Philippines Around December 1944, the unit began supporting missions in the Philippines and was moved to Tacloban Airport on Leyte Island. On December 10, after five uneventful weather-probing missions, Davis and the unit were assigned an escort mission. The aircraft were instructed to cover a flotilla of troop transports that were moving from Baybay to Oromoc Bay. En route, they were attacked by four Ki-61 Tony aircraft at . After a series of quick maneuvers, Davis climbed to and took advantage of the sun's glare to ambush two aircraft below him. He pursued them as far as Cebu Island. He closed to within of the pair before destroying the first with his machine guns, and then the second near Negros Island as it attempted to dive for cover in a cloud.
The unit undertook eight more patrol missions over Mindoro, covering Allied convoys.
On December 20, Davis was in one of twelve Thunderbolts patrolling Mindoro when eight A6M Zeroes were spotted attempting to ambush the flight from behind. Davis managed to rake the cockpit of one Zero and kill the pilot, earning him his fifth victory and the status of flying ace. Immediately after this, however, Davis's P-47 was struck by machine-gun fire from another aircraft, damaging the propeller and left wing components. On December 24, on a mission to escort several B-24s on a bombing mission of the Japanese-held Clark Field at Luzon, Davis shot down two more Zeroes that were part of a group of Japanese aircraft attempting to harass the bombers. Davis was awarded a Silver Star for this action.
Between the date of this action and February 19, 1945, Davis flew another 47 missions, most of them entailing the escorting of bombers or ships, and a few of them consisting of ground-attacks, but he saw little or no aerial combat during that time. On February 19, he was withdrawn from the front to begin certification on the P-51 Mustang, logging 45 hours of training time on the aircraft through the end of March. He returned to combat duty only briefly in April, flying in three combat missions as a copilot aboard a B-25 Mitchell bomber. On May 3, 1945, he was reassigned to Goodfellow Field at San Angelo, Texas, helping to train new pilots and serving as an operations officer for the base until the end of the war.
During his World War II service, Davis flew 266 missions, accruing a total of 705 combat hours and destroying seven Japanese aircraft. For these exploits, he was awarded the Silver Star, two Distinguished Flying Crosses and nine Air Medals. By the end of this war, Davis had over 2,200 hours of flight time.
Postwar After the war's end, Davis served in several administrative positions in the United States. On August 10, 1945, he was assigned to the 556th Air Base Unit at Long Beach, California. On August 24, 1946, he was offered a commission as a first lieutenant in the active duty Army Air Corps, demoting him from his temporary rank but effectively allowing him to stay in the military despite the demobilization and downsizing of the US military. Several weeks later, on September 7, Davis was ordered to the 554th Air Base Unit in Memphis, Tennessee, where he served on one of the Army Air Corps aerobatic demonstration teams, the predecessors to the United States Air Force Thunderbirds.
Davis returned to front-line units on January 6, 1947, when he was moved to the 71st Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 1st Fighter Group. He remained with this formation for most of the year. On September 18, 1947, the United States Air Force was created as a separate branch of the US Military. Davis was commissioned as a captain in the new branch. During his time with the 71st Squadron, Davis attended Air Tactical School and Tyndall Air Force Base. He was also a flight commander and air inspector while with the unit.
Korean War
Upon the outbreak of the Korean War, Davis continued to serve in the 71st Squadron and did not see combat in the initial phase of the war. As it progressed, however, Davis began training on the F-86 Sabre (Sabrejet), the latest jet engine-powered fighter. On February 15, 1951, he was promoted to major and in October 1951 he was assigned to the headquarters of the 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing, which was based in Japan and operating aircraft throughout Korea. Davis was thus sent to the conflict as a fighter pilot.
Command and success During a patrol on November 4, 1951, Davis was credited with a "probable" victory over a Russian-made MiG-15 fighter jet of the Soviet Air Force or Chinese Air Force, giving him his first victory of the Korean War. On November 10, Davis was given command of the 334th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, a unit of the 4th Wing. Davis and his squadron were relocated to Kimpo Airfield to allow them the best access to "MiG Alley" in North Korea, where much of the air-to-air combat took place. Of his leadership, subordinates often praised the quality of his training; Davis spent a great deal of time training new and younger pilots in tactics during his command. Commanders noted he often led by example, and Davis was known to be greatly respected, even among his rival ace pilots. He gained the nickname "One Burst Davis" for his extremely accurate shooting.