To Major Bong, as top scoring Ace in USAAF history, have gone the Nation's most honored awards, but he credits the men that keep 'em flying with half the honors, His 40 victories have earned for him the Congressional Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross with 6 Clusters, and the A. M. with 14 Clusters.

MAJOR RICHARD I. BONG 49th FIGHTER GROUP P-38

From experience I have gained in individual combat in this theatre against a number of different types of Japanese fighters and bombers these facts stand out.

Defense against Jap fighters is resolved around the superior speed of our fighters. If you are jumped from above, dive to pick up an indicated speed of at least 350 miles per hour, then level out and start a shallow climb at high airspeed. Generally speaking, a Jap fighter will not follow you in a high speed dive, but occasionally one does and if such happens, a turn to the right for 90° will throw the Jap behind. The controls stiffen up to excess in high speed dives, and he can not follow a sharp diving turn. A turn into the Jap is always effective because they have a healthy respect for the fire-power of our planes. An indicated airspeed never less than 250 miles per hour in combat is good life insurance.

Offensive measures go according to the number of the enemy, but they are always hit and run because the Jap can out-maneuver us about two to one. Any number of Nips can be safely attacked from above. Dive on the group, pick a definite plane as your target, and concentrate on him. Pull up in a shallow high speed climb and come back for another pass. Single enemy planes or small groups can be surprised from the rear and slightly below a large percentage of the time. He seems to be blind, or he does not look directly behind him enough to spot you, and your first pass should knock him down. Against bombers, it is quite safe to drive right up on the tail of any of them with two exceptions - the Betty and the Helen. These two planes have a 20 MM cannon which covers a 30° arc to the rear, and a beam attack broken off before you reach this cone is the best attack.

It is to be remembered that individual combat as mentioned here is a two plane element and not a single plane. A two ship element is our smallest fighting force and any man by himself is sticking his neck out.

Squadron tactics as I have experienced them are, generally speaking, the same as those of a single element. The leader of a squadron is the commander of the squadron for the period that it is in the air. In a squadron formation we have sixteen airplanes in four ship flights, and two ship elements within the flights. Number one man in the first flight is the leader. Should he snafu, the lead resolves to the flight leader of the second flight, and so on to the flight leader of the fourth flight. The squadron leader's element leader takes over his flight and takes it back to the number two flight position. The number two flight leader moves his flight up and takes over the squadron command. Control over the squadron is maintained by radio and the squadron acts as a single unit until the enemy has been engaged. Then each element leader becomes the leader of his unit until the engagement has been broken and squadron formation can again be resumed. It has been found that it is extremely difficult to maintain a squadron formation in any kind of scrap, and so squadron control is broken until the scrap is over.

Squadron defense against enemy fighters is comparatively simple, as enemy fighters will generally not attack if they are seen. However, if they attack, the formation within the squadron

Capt. Frederick E. Dick flying with the 7th Sq. knocked down the V Fighter Command's 2500th Nip in March, 1945.

is a defense. The four flights are staggered up and behind, each with about 1000 feet difference in altitude and 2000 feet behind one another. If one of the lower flights is attacked, the top flight can put it off and if the top flight is attacked, it can dive to the side and the lower flights can get on the tail of the attackers. Defense depends chiefly on seeing the enemy before he starts his attack and some means can be formulated on the spot to avoid it. Look around and you are safe.

Squadron offense works the same way. Depending on the number of Nips, the squadron leader designates so much high cover to remain up, and the rest of the squadron hit as a unit on the first pass, then resolves itself into combat elements until the Nips have been shot or dispersed.

Nip bomber formations will be taken on the same way with part of the squadron attacking the escorting fighters and the rest attacking the bombers as directed.

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