Pug Southerland James Julien " Pug " Southerland II ( October 28 , 1911 – October 12 , 1949 ) was a United States Navy fighter pilot during World War II . He is credited with scoring 5 victories ( some accounts say 7 ) , flying Grumman F4F Wildcats . He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross twice , the Silver Star , the Legion of Merit and the Purple Heart . Born in Narberth , Montgomery County , Pennsylvania , Southerland graduated from the U . S . Naval Academy at Annapolis , Maryland in 1936 . Rear Admiral David Richardson , who served with him , said Southerland gained the nickname " Pug " because he was such pugnacious boxer at the academy . Southerland became an aviator and meant to make the Navy his career . World War II dogfight at Guadalcanal . At the beginning of the Battle of Guadalcanal , August 7 , 1942 , United States forces shelled Guadalcanal and neighboring Tulagi in the Solomon Islands . Soon after the attack began , 27 Japanese bombers and an escort of 17 fighters took off from Rabaul , Japan ' s stronghold and strategic base in the South Pacific . Their mission was to bomb the ships that were supporting the American attack . Lieutenant Southerland commanded a group of 8 American Wildcats aboard the in Wildcat Battle Unit # 5192 . Due to planning errors and the loss of planes to a recent training exercise , these were the only fighter cover available to patrol the landing area . Southerland ' s flight took off to intercept the Japanese bombers before they could reach the American ships . Southerland shot down the first Japanese aircraft of the Guadalcanal campaign , a G4M1 " Betty " bomber of the 4th Kokutai , under the command of Shizuo Yamada . After shooting down a second bomber , Southerland was engaged in a dogfight with an A6M2 " Zero " of the Tainan Kokutai . He lined up the Zero in his sights only to find his guns would not fire , probably due to damage from fire by the tailgunner from the second bomber he had downed . Although he was now defenseless , Southerland had to stay in the fight . Two more Zeros engaged him , but he successfully outmaneuvered all three of them . The dogfight was spotted by Saburo Sakai who felt the deftly handled Wildcat was winning the engagement . Sakai described the duel in his autobiography : In desperation , I snapped out a burst . At once the Grumman snapped away in a roll to the right , clawed around in a tight turn , and ended up in a climb straight at my own plane . Never before had I seen an enemy plane move so quickly or gracefully before , and every second his guns were moving closer to the belly of my fighter . I snap - rolled in an effort to throw him off . He would not be shaken . He was using my favorite tactics , coming up from under . Southerland and Sakai were soon engaged in one of the most legendary dogfights in aviation history . After an extended battle in which both pilots gained and lost the upper hand , Sakai finally shot down Southerland ' s Wildcat , striking it below the left wing root with his 20mm cannon . As Southerland bailed out of his doomed Wildcat his . 45 caliber automatic pistol caught in the cockpit . He managed to free himself but lost his pistol , leaving him weaponless , wounded , and alone behind enemy lines . Suffering from eleven wounds , shock and exhaustion , Southerland struggled through the brush , carefully evading Japanese soldiers . He finally reached the coast , where he was found by some natives , who at the risk of their own lives fed him and treated his wounds . With their assistance , he eluded the Japanese ground forces and returned to American lines . Southerland was evacuated from Guadalcanal on the first patrol boat to land at Henderson Field , on August 20 . Both pilots survived the war to write their accounts , making it one of the best documented dogfights of World War II . On February 14 , 1998 the wreckage of Southerland ' s Wildcat was found , including Southerland ' s service . 45 caliber semi - automatic handgun . Investigation of the remains has confirmed both Southerland ' s and Sakai ' s accounts of the dogfight . Last years . Southerland later fought in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945 . By then a commander and leading VF - 83 aboard the , he shot down two Ki - 61 " Tonys " . He became a confirmed ace in April of that year when he downed an A6M " Zeke " while serving aboard the . Following the war , Southerland became a flight instructor at the U . S . Naval Academy . He was killed in a jet training accident in 1949 during takeoff from a carrier off the Florida coast .