Frank Glasgow Tinker Frank Glasgow Tinker ( July 14 , 1909 – June 13 , 1939 ) was an American mercenary fighter pilot for the Spanish Republican Air Force , during the Spanish Civil War . He was the top American ace during the Spanish Civil War . Early years . Frank " Salty " Tinker was born in Kaplan , Louisiana , and grew up in DeWitt , Arkansas . In 1926 , he joined the US Navy hoping to become a naval aviator . In 1933 , he graduated from the US Naval Academy . In 1934 , he was assigned to US Navy aviation and became a pilot of a reconnaissance floatplane of the USS " San Francisco " cruiser . Because of problems with alcohol and brawls , he was dismissed from the Navy . Later in 1935 , Tinker joined the crew of a Standard Oil tanker running from New York to Baton Rouge , Louisiana , as a third mate . By July 1936 , he left his job with Standard Oil , and looked for a job as a pilot . Spanish Civil War . After the start of the Spanish Civil War , Tinker offered his service to a Republican side , reportedly because of his aversion to fascist regime of Benito Mussolini , who was helping the Spanish Nationalists . He negotiated a high salary of $ 1 , 500 monthly , and a premium of $ 1 , 000 for any aircraft he shot down . Under nom de guerre Francisco Gómez Trejo , he went to Spain via France . For a short time , from January 6 , 1937 , Tinker served in a light bomber squadron , flying obsolete Breguet 19 bombers . From January 23 , he , along with some other American pilots , was assigned to a fighter unit , 1st " Escuadrilla de Chatos " commanded by Andrés García La Calle , flying Soviet Polikarpov I - 15 " Chato " biplanes . In 1937 , he flew many combat missions against the Fascist Falange air forces , generally duelling Germans and Italians . The squadron first entered action on February 10 , and took part in a Battle of Guadalajara . On March 14 , Tinker shot down his first aircraft , an Italian Fiat CR . 32 fighter , followed by another CR . 32 on March 20 . On April 17 , he shot down a German Heinkel He 51 fighter from Legion Condor over Teruel . On May 3 , 1937 , Tinker was assigned to 1st " Escuadrilla de Moscas " , commanded by the Russian , Ivan Lakyeyev , flying the faster Polikarpov I - 16 " Mosca " monoplane fighters . On June 2 and June 16 , he shot down another CR . 32 . On July 13 , he became the first pilot to shoot down one of the most modern German fighters , a Messerschmitt Bf 109 A , near Madrid . It was piloted by " Unteroffizier " ( Sergeant ) Guido Honess of 2 . / J 88 , flying a Bf 109A believed to be marked 6 - 4 . Honess , who was killed in the ensuing crash , was the first German pilot to achieve three victories with this new type of aircraft . On July 17 , Tinker shot down another Bf 109A . This first version of the Bf 109 was not a " good climber " and Tinker caught it from behind while the German pilot tried to gain altitude after a dive on him – a lethal mistake according to Tinker . The scene is described in detail in his book " Some Still Live " . His final victory was over a Fiat CR . 32 on July 18 , 1937 . Tinker flew his last missions on July 29 , 1937 , then returned to the US . While in Spain , Tinker socialized with Ernest Hemingway , Robert Hale Merriman , the leader of the American Volunteers of the Lincoln Brigade and his successor Milton Wolff , who led the 15th International Brigade during the Battle of the Ebro . Legacy . In total , Tinker shot down eight enemy aircraft , surviving many close calls with gunners as well as malfunctioning equipment . In his official flight logbook there are claims for 19 victories . He should have shared a number of kills against Ju 52 bombers with the 1st " La Calle " . However , due to the complex Spanish system of verifying air kills and the consequent extra fees paid to mercenaries , many of them were often not credited , either because the enemy aircraft crashed over the opponent ' s territory or as a means to avoid payment by the Spaniards . Later years and death . Eventually , Tinker fell victim to combat stress reaction due to the constant combat . After the war , Tinker was a guest speaker in New York on the radio program “ We the People , ” discussing his feats in the Spanish Civil War . He wrote a number of articles including a series for the " Arkansas Gazette " Magazine describing his voyage from St . Charles ( Arkansas County ) down the White and Mississippi rivers to New Orleans with his fox terrier . Tinker also wrote a series of serial articles for the Saturday Evening Post titled “ Some Still Live . ” These articles detailing his war experiences , were published in book form with the same name in 1938 . Ernest Hemingway was notably a fan , lauding it to Maxwell Perkins . Hemingway ' s influence on the style is rather evident ; the language is simple but full of human emotion while the war scenes are full of life and the text creates colorful images for the reader . However , soon after the book was published , Tinker died , a purported suicide by a gunshot to his head in a Little Rock hotel . The reasons for his death are still controversial and may relate to the harsh treatment he received from the , due to his support of the Republican cause . Tinker asked to return to the US Navy or US Army as a pilot but he was rejected . He even threatened to return to Spain to continue fighting . At the end , he was haunted by the thought he had betrayed his comrades and himself . His colleague Albert John Baumler , nicknamed " Ajax " ( from his name acronym A . J . ) , proposed joining the American and other foreign pilots then flying for the Chinese Nationalist Air Force . His signed request was found next to his death bed with an empty bottle of whiskey . On his tombstone , the local priest engraved the phrase in Spanish : " ¿ Quién Sabe ? " , meaning " Who knows ? " On July 11 , 2009 , near the centennial of his birth , relatives , admirers and the Grand Prairie Historical Society participated in an observance and toast at Tinker ' s gravesite in DeWitt , Arkansas .