WWII Flying Ace Passes

Soon, there will be no WWII veterans left. God bless them. God bless their sacrifices.

Walter "Bud" Mahurin passed away on Sunday, May 16th, at the age of 91. Please note this:

Doug Lantry, a historian at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Ohio, said Mahurin's name is familiar to all in the Air Force.

"Bud Mahurin was the only Air Force pilot to shoot down enemy aircraft in the European theater of operations and the Pacific and in Korea," Lantry told the Los Angeles Times. "He was known as a very courageous, skilled and tenacious fighter pilot."

Mahurin was shot down himself, twice during World War II and once in the Korean War, which led to his capture and 16 traumatic months in a prison camp.

"I was brought up in an age when flying was the only thing," Mahurin told the Air Force magazine Airman in 2003, when he was a retired colonel. "We knew the value of being an ace, but you just didn't try to go out and become an ace. Mostly because, in my case, I was scared to death to begin with. I thought if I just get to meet an ace while on active duty, I'd be happy."

Mahurin shot down 24 planes in two wars.

God bless this warrior. You've more than earned your rest now, sir. Every person in this nation owes you.

BZ

P.S.

More information here on "Bud" Mahurin.