John C. Herbst, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

John C. Herbst

American ace fighter pilot

Date of Birth: 25-Sep-1909

Place of Birth: North County, San Diego, California, United States

Date of Death: 04-Jul-1946

Profession: engineer

Nationality: United States

Zodiac Sign: Libra

John C.
"Pappy" Herbst (September 25, 1909 – July 4, 1946) was an American flying ace of World War II who was officially the second highest-scoring fighter pilot in the China Burma India Theater with 18 confirmed victories scored during 7 months with the 23d Fighter Group.
The group commander, David Lee "Tex" Hill, called Herbst "one of the greatest fighter pilots I ever saw."Often described as "colorful", Herbst was one of the more successful aces of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF).
Herbst first fought with the Royal Canadian Air Force in Europe against German aircraft, possibly downing one.
He joined the USAAF as an instructor training fighter pilots stateside.
After two years of teaching and intelligence duties, Herbst was sent to China to fight the Japanese.
For seven months he led the 74th Fighter Squadron on far-ranging independent missions, operating from advance airfields under crude conditions and in the face of Operation Ichi-Go; a successful Japanese pincer movement.
Herbst scored the majority of his kills during so-called "administrative" flights after he had already completed the theater requirement of 100 combat missions.
After the war, Herbst toured in an aerobatic demonstration team flying jets.
One day after marrying his second wife he crashed during an aerobatic maneuver and died.