Robert Lee Scott Jr.

Robert Lee Scott Jr. (12 April 1908 – 27 February 2006) was a brigadier general in the United States Air Force and a flying ace of World War II, credited with shooting down 13 Japanese aircraft.Scott is best known for his memoir, God is My Co-Pilot (1943), about his exploits in World War II with the Flying Tigers and the United States Army Air Forces in China and Burma.Scott flew air mail in 1934, commanded a pursuit squadron in Panama, and helped instruct other pilots at bases in Texas and California."[8] In July 1942, at the request of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, Scott was named commander of the 23rd Fighter Group, newly formed by General Chennault when the Flying Tigers were incorporated into the United States Army Air Forces.[9] Colonel Scott flew 388 combat missions in 925 hours from July 1942 to October 1943, shooting down 13 Japanese aircraft, and is noted as one of America's earliest flying aces of the war.One story was that of a pilot named Corn Sherrill who, after the fall of the Philippines in 1941, escaped to the island of Mindanao where he flew a rebuilt P-40 aircraft against the Japanese until he was shot down over China by members of the Flying Tigers.[11] Scott returned to the U.S. for staff duty in Washington, D.C. and other stations until 1947, when he was given command of the Jet Fighter School at Williams Air Force Base, Arizona.
Colonel Robert Lee Scott Jr. in his P-40 Warhawk , 1943
Scott with an oil painting of himself at the Museum of Aviation in Georgia (1994)
Robert Scott (disambiguation)Waynesboro, GeorgiaWarner Robins, GeorgiaArlington National CemeteryUnited States Army Air CorpsUnited States Army Air ForcesUnited States Air ForceBrigadier General23rd Fighter Group36th Fighter-Bomber WingLuke Air Force BaseWorld War IISilver StarDistinguished Flying CrossAir MedalArmy Commendation Medalflying aceFlying Tigerssame nameAugusta, GeorgiaEagle ScoutDistinguished Eagle Scout AwardEugene ElyUnited States Military AcademyKelly FieldMitchel FieldNew Yorkair mailPanamaCaliforniaP-40 WarhawkBoeing B-17 Flying FortressChina Burma India TheaterAir Transport CommandThe HumpRepublic P-43 LancerClaire ChennaultMount EverestGeneralissimoChiang Kai-shek14th Air ForceColonelJapaneseflying acesArmy Air Force School of Applied TacticsOrlando Army Air BaseOkinawaWashington, D.C.Williams Air Force BaseArizonaWest GermanyFürstenfeldbruck Air BaseNational War CollegeSecretary of the Air ForceMuseum of AviationGeorgiaGreat Wall of ChinaPekingGeneral Dynamics F-16C Fighting Falcon310th TFTSMcDonnell Douglas F-15 EagleB-1B Lanceroak leaf clusterAmerican Defense Service MedalAmerican Campaign MedalAsiatic-Pacific Campaign Medalcampaign starWorld War II Victory MedalArmy of Occupation MedalNational Defense Service MedalAir Force Longevity Service AwardOrder of the Sacred TripodOrder of the Cloud and BannerChina War Memorial Medal1996 Summer OlympicsAtlanta, GeorgiaOlympic FlameGeorgia State Route 247Georgia Aviation Hall of FameWayback Machine