John C . " Pappy " Herbst John C . " Pappy " Herbst ( September 25 , 1909 – July 4 , 1946 ) was an American flying ace who was officially the second highest - scoring fighter pilot in the China Burma India Theater with 18 confirmed victories made during 7 months with the 23d Fighter Group . 23d FG Commander David Lee " Tex " Hill said of Herbst that he was " one of the greatest fighter pilots I ever saw . " Often described as " colorful " , Herbst was one of the more successful aces of the United States Army Air Forces ( USAAF ) . Herbst first fought with the Royal Canadian Air Force in Europe against German aircraft , possibly downing one . He joined the USAAF as an instructor training fighter pilots stateside . After two years of teaching and intelligence duties , Herbst was sent to China to fight the Japanese . For seven months he led the 74th Fighter Squadron on far - ranging independent missions , operating from advance airfield s under crude conditions and in the face of Operation Ichi - Go ; a successful Japanese pincer movement . Herbst scored the majority of his kills during so - called " administrative " flights after he had already completed the theater requirement of 100 combat missions . After the war , Herbst toured in an aerobatic demonstration team flying jets . One day after marrying his second wife he crashed during an aerobatic maneuver and died . Early life . John Coleman Herbst was born in 1909 in San Diego County , California , in rural North County near Palomar Mountain , an area he described as " Rancho Palomar " . In his teens , he attended Huntington Park High School in Los Angeles , following which he graduated from the University of Southern California in 1932 with a degree in petroleum engineering . That same year he earned a private pilot ' s license . He was married in the 1930s and fathered a son named Tommy in 1933 . After graduating USC , Herbst studied law at night at Loyola Law School while working as a petroleum engineer during the day . As a flyer , he joined the Wings Club of New York City , and for business advancement he joined the California Club in Los Angeles . World War II . In 1941 , Herbst was working as a tax consultant for an American oil company when he left civilian life and joined the Royal Canadian Air Force ( RCAF ) to learn to fly fighters in combat . After training , Herbst was posted to the United Kingdom where he flew in one of the Eagle Squadrons . Herbst may have scored against a Messerschmitt Bf 109 in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations but the kill is unconfirmed . In early 1942 , Herbst returned to the U . S . and joined the USAAF as a flight instructor in the Sarasota , Florida , area . After eight months , he transferred to Eglin Field on the Florida coast to work as a test pilot and to solve air combat tactical problems . While Colonel David Lee " Tex " Hill was recuperating on the beach with his wife , he witnessed a daredevil pilot flying dangerous aerobatics very near the water . Hill ordered the unknown pilot grounded for 60 days ; the penalty fell on Herbst who was flying in the area at the time . After only 30 days Herbst came to Hill ' s office to apologize for his stunt flying and to ask for a reprieve from the rest of the punishment . He said , " I can ' t stand it any longer , Colonel ; I ' ve just got to fly . " Hill thought Herbst was an excellent candidate for air combat in the China Burma India Theater ( CBI ) , and determined to get the flyer transferred . However , Herbst was assigned to air combat intelligence duties in Washington , D . C . until February 1944 when Herbst ' s request for combat and Hill ' s request for Herbst were finally satisfied . Herbst shipped out on February 20 , 1944 , and disembarked onto Chinese soil on May 7 . Herbst was by this time divorced from his first wife . Upon his arrival in the CBI Theater , Herbst acquired the nickname " Pappy " because of his graying hair , his having a son in school , and his much greater age ( 34 ) relative to the other pilots . His ground crew painted a small swastika on his personal fighter aircraft in China , acknowledging his stated German kill though it was not verified . He named his aircraft " Tommy ' s Dad " in honor of his son . Herbst initially served with the 5th Fighter Group ( provisional ) without scoring any aerial victories but was transferred to the 76th Fighter Squadron on May 30 , 1944 , serving as the 23d FG Squadron Operations Officer . While flying a P - 51B Mustang gathering weather data north of Kiatow on June 17 , 1944 , Herbst shot down a lone Nakajima Ki - 43 fighter to make his first USAAF kill . Nine days later on June 26 , 1944 , Herbst was made commander of the 74th Fighter Squadron , a position he held until February 1945 . Herbst converted to P - 40N - 20 Warhawks as flown by the 74th and soon prevailed again in combat . On August 6 near Hengyang flying against Nakajima Ki - 43s , he scored two more USAAF aerial victories to become an ace . The 74th transitioned to P - 51C - 7 Mustangs in August , and on September 3 Herbst shot down two Japanese aircraft that he reported as Aichi D3A " Val " dive bombers but were probably Mitsubishi Ki - 51 " Sonia " models instead . These were the first P - 51 victories of the 74th FS . By September 16 , Herbst ' s USAAF tally reached nine victories , five in a Mustang . Herbst appreciated the ability of the P - 40 to absorb damage in low - level combat such as close support of infantry . For finer work such as dogfighting , dive bombing and skip bombing , he said , " I ' ll take the P - 51 every time " . Raised to the rank of major in July 1944 , Herbst was given free rein in his command of the 74th Squadron . Using the radio call sign " Guerrilla " , his squadron fought against Japanese forces conducting Operation Ichi - Go , a successful drive to consolidate communications along rail lines . In his first three months of combat , Herbst completed the required 100 combat sorties and was from that time forward officially restricted to administrative flights . However , Herbst ' s idea of " administrative " flights was very broad and aggressive , including weather assessment and new pilot training in areas where Japanese aircraft were known to be operating . He flew as an " observer " on combat missions in which he scored against enemy aircraft . Ten or eleven of Herbst ' s aerial victories were achieved during " administrative " flights . On one such flight on September 5 , 1944 , Herbst was ferrying his Mustang fighter to a more sophisticated airfield in Liuliang , China , because the ejector chutes of three of its six machine guns were not working properly and needed expert attention . Herbst encountered two groups of enemy fighters , one group at and another group at a lower altitude . Alone against the hostile force and with only half of his guns working , Herbst made a head - on attack against the top group , killing the leader . His aircraft was hit repeatedly by enemy rounds , shattering the canopy . More enemy aircraft joined the whirling battle against Herbst . With blood from deep scalp cuts partially blinding him , Herbst continued dogfighting , damaging other fighters and probably killing another flight leader . Finally , his last gun stopped working and he dived away to land safely at Kanchow Airfield . The performance earned him a Purple Heart and a Silver Star . Most accounts of this action describe Herbst fighting 32 aircraft total — 16 high and 16 low — but Luther " Luke " Kissick , the intelligence officer of Herbst ' s squadron , writes that there were two flights of 8 at 10 , 000 ft protecting an unknown number below . After racking up 18 victories and 2 probables over Japanese aircraft , Herbst was promoted to lieutenant colonel in February 1945 . He had personally flown 144 missions and had greatly increased the morale and effectiveness of his squadron . Under his command , the squadron achieved 64 aerial victories and destroyed 162 enemy aircraft on the ground — all without a squadron pilot being killed in aerial combat . Postwar . Herbst was made commander of Venice Army Airfield in Florida upon his return from China . Venice served as a training base and a prisoner of war camp . He told a reporter that he wanted to fly in the expected invasion of Japan . Instead , the Japanese surrendered and the war was over . During this time , Herbst teamed with Major Carl T . Sigman to write an article for " Popular Science " entitled " How Planes Fight the ' White Devil ' of the Air ' " , an explanation of the dangers of ice on aircraft , and how it is countered . On November 9 , 1945 , Herbst became the commander of 445th Flight Test Squadron based at March Field in Southern California . In April 1946 , Herbst and Robin Olds formed a jet aerobatics demonstration team , flying the Lockheed P - 80 Shooting Star under Herbst ' s leadership . The two pilots performed a coordinated routine that thrilled the crowds at every stop , including an appearance at Washington , D . C . Herbst named his P - 80 " Jeanne " in honor of his bride - to - be . At the age of 36 , Herbst married for the second time on July 3 , 1946 , to Jeanne Eve Murphy , an actress from New York City . The wedding was conducted at the Mission Inn in Riverside , California , near March Field . Herbst ' s best man was Phil Loofbourrow , who had served with him in China . On the same day , Herbst was assigned to command one of the squadrons in the first American all - jet fighter group — 1st Fighter Group — flying P - 80s . The next day Herbst was mortally injured in front of 30 , 000 people at the San Diego County Fair when his P - 80 jet crashed after failing to pull up in a dive just west of the Del Mar Fairgrounds . Herbst ' s new wife witnessed the accident , as did his 13 - year - old son Tommy . Both rushed to aid in the rescue , but Herbst died shortly thereafter in a nearby naval hospital .