David McCampbell
| David McCampbell | |
|---|---|
David McCampbell
|
|
| Born |
January 16, 1910 Bessemer, Alabama |
| Died | June 30, 1996 (aged 86) |
| Place of burial | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Allegiance |
 United States of America
|
| Service/branch |
 United States Navy
|
| Years of service | 1933–64 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Commands held | VF-15 Carrier Air Group 15 USS Bon Homme Richard |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards |
Medal of Honor Navy Cross Silver Star Legion of Merit with Combat “V” Distinguished Flying Cross (3) Air Medal (2) |
Captain David McCampbell (January 16, 1910 – June 30, 1996) was a United States Navy captain, fighter pilot, and a Medal of Honor recipient. He retired from the Navy in 1964 with 31 years of service.
McCampbell is the U.S. Navy's all-time leading flying ace with 34 aerial victories and the third-highest American scoring ace of World War II and the highest-scoring American ace to survive the war. He also set a world single mission aerial combat record of shooting down nine enemy planes in one mission, on October 24, 1944.
McCampbell was born in Bessemer, Alabama, and raised in West Palm Beach, Florida. He attended the Staunton Military Academy and one year at the Georgia School of Technology before his appointment to the United States Naval Academy in 1929, where he graduated with the class of 1933 with a degree in marine engineering.
McCampbell's naval career actually began with a dismissal. Graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in depression-era 1933, he was rewarded with an honorable discharge from a Navy without funds. But in June 1934 McCampbell was called back and commissioned as an ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve on June 1, 1933. He went on active duty on June 14, 1934, and served aboard the heavy cruiser USS Portland from June 1934 to June 1937 before he started flight training at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. He received his "wings of gold" on April 21, 1938 and was assigned to Fighting Squadron Four (VF-4) on the aircraft carrier USS Ranger to May 1940.
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