Herschel "Herky" Green was gone west...
Mon Aug 21, 2006 7:42 am
World War II flying ace from Rancho Palos Verdes dies
Pilot's wingman called him a "tiger" and "a great man to emulate."
By Nick Green
Daily Breeze
One of the top U.S. fighter pilots during World War II, Col. Herschel "Herky" Green of Rancho Palos Verdes, who was credited with destroying 18 enemy aircraft, died Wednesday at Torrance Memorial Medical Center of cancer. He was 86.
He was the leading ace of the 15th Air Force until headquarters decided he'd flown enough missions and grounded him, said Art Fiedler of Oxnard, Green's wingman.
"He was a tiger," Fiedler said. "He was a great man to emulate."
Green was a fighter pilot in Europe and Africa from 1943-1944, flying three different aircraft and winning numerous military decorations including the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star and two Distinguished Flying Crosses.
It didn't take long for the young airman from Hickory, Ky., to show his combat skills.
Green shot down his first airplane on his initial combat mission in May 1943 off the Italian coast, despite sustaining heavy damage to his own aircraft in a melee with enemy fighters. He was promoted to captain a few days later.
In his 1996 memoir, Herky! The memoirs of a Checkertail Ace, Green recalled leading 60 P-47s on an "extremely hazardous" mission in January 1944 that entailed flying 300 miles up the Adriatic Sea at an altitude no higher than 50 feet above the waves to avoid detection.
During an attack on German bombers, Green single-handedly destroyed six aircraft and his squadron was credited with an unprecedented 37 kills. The unit received a Distinguished Unit Citation and Green earned his DSC medal.
Later that year, Green became convinced that after a half-dozen close calls during aerial combat he wasn't going to be killed in the war. Despite realizing the irrationality of that revelation, it nevertheless unleashed his skill as a fighter pilot to the fullest.
"Many times after that, I would tear into large gaggles of Luftwaffe fighters with just a wingman, and my only thought was how many we could get before they got away," he wrote. "I know that sounds crazy. Maybe it was."
Green was grounded later that year after flying 100 combat missions, amassing 402 combat hours in the air and destroying a total of 18 aircraft, plus 10 on the ground.
"He felt fortunate that he came out of it," said his wife of 60 years, Jeanne Green, whom he married on June 16, 1946 in Paducah, Ky. "He really felt humbled that people were interested (in his war exploits)."
Green retired from the U.S. Air Force in 1964 and joined the international sales division of Culver City-based Hughes Aircraft Co. Green retired in 1982.
He and his wife lived in the Miraleste neighborhood of Rancho Palos Verdes for 42 years, raising two daughters.
He was born in Hickory, Ky., on July 3, 1920.
At age 5, Green took his first flight on a World War I-era open cockpit biplane that made an emergency landing next to his rural schoolhouse. From then on, he was hooked on flying.
While studying at Nashville's Vanderbilt University in 1940, Green enrolled in the U.S. Government Civilian Pilot Training Program.
The following year, with the American entry into the war imminent and having clocked more than 200 hours in the air, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps.
In addition to his wife, survivors include daughters, Anita Green of Gualala, Calif., and Debra Green of Winchester, Va.
Visitation is scheduled for 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday at Green Hills Memorial Park, 27501 Western Ave., Rancho Palos Verdes.
Funeral services are set for 1 p.m. Tuesday at Green Hills' mortuary chapel, with interment to follow.
Found it here:
http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/articles/3597986.html
Pilot's wingman called him a "tiger" and "a great man to emulate."
By Nick Green
Daily Breeze
One of the top U.S. fighter pilots during World War II, Col. Herschel "Herky" Green of Rancho Palos Verdes, who was credited with destroying 18 enemy aircraft, died Wednesday at Torrance Memorial Medical Center of cancer. He was 86.
He was the leading ace of the 15th Air Force until headquarters decided he'd flown enough missions and grounded him, said Art Fiedler of Oxnard, Green's wingman.
"He was a tiger," Fiedler said. "He was a great man to emulate."
Green was a fighter pilot in Europe and Africa from 1943-1944, flying three different aircraft and winning numerous military decorations including the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star and two Distinguished Flying Crosses.
It didn't take long for the young airman from Hickory, Ky., to show his combat skills.
Green shot down his first airplane on his initial combat mission in May 1943 off the Italian coast, despite sustaining heavy damage to his own aircraft in a melee with enemy fighters. He was promoted to captain a few days later.
In his 1996 memoir, Herky! The memoirs of a Checkertail Ace, Green recalled leading 60 P-47s on an "extremely hazardous" mission in January 1944 that entailed flying 300 miles up the Adriatic Sea at an altitude no higher than 50 feet above the waves to avoid detection.
During an attack on German bombers, Green single-handedly destroyed six aircraft and his squadron was credited with an unprecedented 37 kills. The unit received a Distinguished Unit Citation and Green earned his DSC medal.
Later that year, Green became convinced that after a half-dozen close calls during aerial combat he wasn't going to be killed in the war. Despite realizing the irrationality of that revelation, it nevertheless unleashed his skill as a fighter pilot to the fullest.
"Many times after that, I would tear into large gaggles of Luftwaffe fighters with just a wingman, and my only thought was how many we could get before they got away," he wrote. "I know that sounds crazy. Maybe it was."
Green was grounded later that year after flying 100 combat missions, amassing 402 combat hours in the air and destroying a total of 18 aircraft, plus 10 on the ground.
"He felt fortunate that he came out of it," said his wife of 60 years, Jeanne Green, whom he married on June 16, 1946 in Paducah, Ky. "He really felt humbled that people were interested (in his war exploits)."
Green retired from the U.S. Air Force in 1964 and joined the international sales division of Culver City-based Hughes Aircraft Co. Green retired in 1982.
He and his wife lived in the Miraleste neighborhood of Rancho Palos Verdes for 42 years, raising two daughters.
He was born in Hickory, Ky., on July 3, 1920.
At age 5, Green took his first flight on a World War I-era open cockpit biplane that made an emergency landing next to his rural schoolhouse. From then on, he was hooked on flying.
While studying at Nashville's Vanderbilt University in 1940, Green enrolled in the U.S. Government Civilian Pilot Training Program.
The following year, with the American entry into the war imminent and having clocked more than 200 hours in the air, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps.
In addition to his wife, survivors include daughters, Anita Green of Gualala, Calif., and Debra Green of Winchester, Va.
Visitation is scheduled for 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday at Green Hills Memorial Park, 27501 Western Ave., Rancho Palos Verdes.
Funeral services are set for 1 p.m. Tuesday at Green Hills' mortuary chapel, with interment to follow.
Found it here:
http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/articles/3597986.html
Mon Aug 21, 2006 9:23 am
We've made it a practice at YAM that when a new computer is rolled out it is given a name from one of three classes, and that name is placed on a very visable part of the machine.
Servers get names of operations. Our backup domain controller is "linebacker", one of the file servers is "overlord." Always-on systems that aren't really servers but are still important machines get aircraft designations. Our gateway / firewall is "mustang", its hot-spare is "corsair"
All PC's are assigned the name of an American WW2 fighter ace. The technology office called dibs on "richard-bong" (which leads to the occasional funny look from a non-techie when we make reference to "bong"), the machine that mike or kevin usually check in from is "gerald-johnson." other lucky folks have gabby-gabreski or pappy-boyington.
"Herky-green" is currently in service somewhere on the network. Had we not chosen that method of naming our machines, I doubt I'd have recognized the name.
God speed Herky.
Servers get names of operations. Our backup domain controller is "linebacker", one of the file servers is "overlord." Always-on systems that aren't really servers but are still important machines get aircraft designations. Our gateway / firewall is "mustang", its hot-spare is "corsair"
All PC's are assigned the name of an American WW2 fighter ace. The technology office called dibs on "richard-bong" (which leads to the occasional funny look from a non-techie when we make reference to "bong"), the machine that mike or kevin usually check in from is "gerald-johnson." other lucky folks have gabby-gabreski or pappy-boyington.
"Herky-green" is currently in service somewhere on the network. Had we not chosen that method of naming our machines, I doubt I'd have recognized the name.
God speed Herky.
Mon Aug 21, 2006 9:50 am
Hi Phil--
Fittingly, Herky's P-51 was gloriously beating-up Willow Run during Thunder just a couple weeks back! Nathan Davis' beautiful polished Mustang wears Maj. Green's 325FG livery and was performing close support over the reenactors along with the Melton and Shoffner Jugs...
Godspeed Herschel Green.
S.
Fittingly, Herky's P-51 was gloriously beating-up Willow Run during Thunder just a couple weeks back! Nathan Davis' beautiful polished Mustang wears Maj. Green's 325FG livery and was performing close support over the reenactors along with the Melton and Shoffner Jugs...
Godspeed Herschel Green.
S.
Mon Aug 21, 2006 10:35 am
Mon Aug 21, 2006 11:27 am
RIP and Godspeed Mr. Green.
Mon Aug 21, 2006 12:02 pm
Thank you for your service Major Green. Godspeed, and see you on the other side.
Mon Aug 21, 2006 8:44 pm
Herky and his wife Jeanne treated me as one of "the Clan", "The Checkertail Clan", that is, at the 325th FG reunion in Ashville a few years ago.
It was a wonderful and moving event, and I really felt as though I was one of them.
We had great conversations and spoke about my uncle's short time with the group before he was KIA.
I will never forget the Green's.
Thank you, and Godspeed Herky.
Jerry O'Neill
nephew of Lt. John Frederick Lynch, 325 FG, 318 FS, KIA 9/15/44
It was a wonderful and moving event, and I really felt as though I was one of them.
We had great conversations and spoke about my uncle's short time with the group before he was KIA.
I will never forget the Green's.
Thank you, and Godspeed Herky.
Jerry O'Neill
nephew of Lt. John Frederick Lynch, 325 FG, 318 FS, KIA 9/15/44
Mon Aug 21, 2006 9:11 pm
Herky, may you rest in peace and thank you for your efforts during WWII.
Lynn
Lynn
sacrifice not forgotten
Mon Aug 21, 2006 10:26 pm
The passage of time is taking it's toll on these aviation greats. His sacrifices and courage were an example for all generations. His service will never be forgotten.
God speed Colonel Green, Thanks for being a class act.
Gary
God speed Colonel Green, Thanks for being a class act.
Gary
Tue Aug 22, 2006 7:15 am
The greatest generation gets smaller. Lest we forget.
not that it's important...
Tue Aug 22, 2006 2:32 pm
herky-green.yafhq.org is assigned to the B-25 maint. crew.
I wonder how many of our other machines names belong to surviving vets?
I wonder how many of our other machines names belong to surviving vets?