Hamilton McWhorter III

Commander Hamilton McWhorter III (February 8, 1921April 12, 2008) was a United States Navy aviator and a flying ace of World War II, credited with shooting down twelve Japanese aircraft. He was the first Hellcat ace, first USN carrier-based double ace, and the first Grumman F6F Hellcat pilot to achieve double ace status. He flew 89 combat missions during World War II while flying with the VF-9 and VF-12 units. On May 23, 2014, he was also posthumously awarded the American Fighter Aces Congressional Gold Medal, when the United States Congress collectively awarded the gold medal to all flying aces: a navy pilot is depicted on the medal in the upper right. Early life and education Hamilton McWhorter III was born in 1921 to a middle-class family. The family lived on a farm. When he was nine years old, his father got him on his first flight, which was in a Ford Tri-Motor. He was enrolled at the University of Georgia from 1939 to 1941. He attended Civilian Pilot Training in 1939 and entered the Navy flight program in August 1941. Navy career McWhorter was selected for fighter training and arrived for training in Miami on December 24, 1941. He graduated from flight school on January 28, 1942, and was commissioned as an ensign on February 9. Advancing to carrier training on the F4F Wildcat at Naval Air Station Norfolk, McWhorter joined Fighting Squadron 9 (VF-9), based at East Field on NAS Norfolk, after completing the program in late April. In early October he and the squadron embarked aboard the USS Ranger for Operation Torch, the Allied invasion of Vichy French North Africa. McWhorter flew in an airstrike against Casablanca when the invasion began on November 8. After Vichy French resistance ceased, the Ranger returned to Norfolk. Based at nearby NAS Oceana from December, VF-9 converted to the new F6F-3 Hellcat in early 1943, among the first squadrons to receive them. McWhorter found the Hellcat a "dream to fly" and much superior to the Wildcat. During this period at Norfolk McWhorter met Louise Edel, the daughter of a Navy chaplain, and they married on January 16.