The Wilmington morning star., 1943-07-16
MOORESVlLLE MAN
BAGS SIX GERMANS
Fighter Pilot Knocks Down
Enemy Waplanes In
Tunisian Skies


his home during thirty days leave
spent with his parents there but
has now nnoved on to the AAF
School of Applied Tactics. Orlan-
do, Fla, to train new fighter pilots
for combat duty.
He is Capt. Johnston Overcast,
native of Mooresville, and son of
Mr. and Mrs. R. S. Overcast, of
the w. G. Farmer cottage at Caro-
bna Beach. His family moved to
the beach after he entered the
Army.
The English have credited this
23-year-old P40 pilot with destroy
ing six aircraft, although he be-
lieves he has downed nine Mes
serschmidts 109's. He explained
the difference in the count is due
to the English system of confir-
nation which gives credit only
when the pilot has seen the plane
'hit the deck" and burned up or
destroyed completely. This must
generally be verified by two or
more pilots.
His "best' was two downed over
Tunis in one flight.
| This fighting Carolinian, who de-
spite his enjoyment of good food
and entertainment on this side"
is anxious ito get back on the
other side'' and hopes he spends
only few months in Florida
training other pilots who will face
the Axis.
He had plenty to say about the
Germans planes and told his in
terviewer you might put some
thing in about the enemy fight
ers."
Describing the action with
sweeping movements of his hands,
the youthful captain explained that
in our fighters we hardly ever
fought ABOVE $4,000 feet due to
The low ceiling of our airplanes,
wi,'le the enemy fighters were al
weys above US and in the sun
which put us at great disadvant-
age because of the fact that they
could fight when they wanted to
dnd leave when they wanted to.
/ 1T is impossible to engage either
the Messerschmitt-109 or the Focke-
Wolfe unless you sneak up on
them or they want to mix it.
I've taken a thousand shots at
those babies and I've never yet
had one when I wasn't shooting
ur hill. They have supercharg-
er and tail construction that per-
| mlts them to climb straight up at
terrific speed. There's no use 60
ing after them. The German pilot
ius' gives you the high sign and
goes on up, grinning.
"Get the idea?" he asked, US
ing his hands again. 'They could
nip down on us and there was
nothing we could do
Modest about his individual
score, this pilot who left a textile
engineering course in his third
wear at N. c. State college to en-
ter the Army Air Corps in August,
i941, frightened when he told about
his fighter groups battle the week
ht.fore the African campaign end
ed. which the Army termed one
of the turning points in the war.
In single battle which lasted
only Is minutes the 57th Pursuit
Group. to which he was attached,
shot down IA enemy planes-6l
transports and 13 fighters. up
10 that time. | think it was GER
tainly one of the biggest air bat
ties in history" i.
His last assignment before re-
turning to the United States was
dive bombing ships and small YES
sells off the coast of Tunls and
Bizerte. At that time he was with
the 64th Squadron (the Black Scor-
pions), attached to the Raj with
the Eighth Army.
His pilot training was complet-
ed at Kelly Field on March Z.
1912. when he was commissioned
second lieutenant. In June ne
was shipped out by aircraft car
rier to Accra on the Gold Coast.
There he took off in his P-4O and
| followed the air route to Pales-
tine. where a week was spent
readying the planes.
Then the group returned to
Cairo for its first fighting and the
move into the desert.
Explaining why he didn't get
"bumped off, the first day, he
said "they sandWiched us in with
experienced South African flyers.
In a formation of four, for in
stance, l would have two season
ed pilots on my left and one OH
my right. They saved my life
plenty of times
After the battle at El Alamein
I'VE started the push. The Engi-
neers would move in and take an
airfield and we'd move in that
afternoon"
The captain hasn't received
scratch" for all his fighting but
he had "the life nearly scared out
of me" one night when the Ger
mans dropped a 500-pound bomb
II yards from his tent and shrap-
mel blasted through his blanket
pillow dangerously near. Two of
his four tent mates were killed
by flying shrapnel,
He has been awarded the Dis
tinguished Flying Cross, bar for
it, an air medal and II clusters,
equivalent to IA medals.
"Yeah." he admitted. Il have