ACE!
A Marine Night-Fighter Pilot in World War II
Colonel R. Bruce Porter, with Eric Hammel
VG/VG. Hardcover with dust jacket. SIGNED BY
MARINE CORPS ACES R. BRUCE PORTER, MARION E. CARL AND JAMES SWETT.
(Pacifica Press, 1987). Photographs, 285 pages.
Ace! is bruce Porter's life a Marine combat fighter pilot -- from his earliest days as a naval avaiation cadet before WWII, to his adventures guarding America's forwardmost defense line in the South Pacific, to his aerial combat over the Solomons. Follow Bruce Porter through his exacting night-fighter training and fly with him on his rare double-kill night mission over Okinawa.
EXCERPT: "My first time at the controls of the N3N was a nightmare of jerky, uncoordinated movements, over-corrections, needless exertions, and red-faced certainty that I did not, in fact, have the right stuff. The instructor calmly got me -- and myself -- out of trouble and never uttered a sound of dismay. Until we were safely on the ground. Then he looked at me -- a wet rag, sweating fear and embarrassment into my bulky flight suit -- and said just the thing to make my day: "Porter, you will never solo. You are the dumbest cadet I have ever laid eyes on."
Regarding the other two autographs in this book:
~~~ Marion E. Carl was a U.S. Marine Corps pilot in World War II. He was a multi-ace
(18 confirmed kills, several more probables) and survived the battles of Midway
(where, as a member of the ill-fated VMF-221,
he led an
attack against a vastly superior number of Japanese
bombers and fighter aircraft),
and Guadalcanal, receiving two Navy Crosses for his actions during those
engagements.
~~~ James Elms Swett was awarded the Medal of Honor for actions while a division leader in
VMF-221 over the Solomon Islands on 7 April 1943 when his four plane division of F4F Wildcats
intercepted a formation of fifteen enemy bombers. He personally brought down seven of the enemy
planes within 15 minutes. This feat made the 22-year old Marine aviator an ace on his first combat
mission. He was shot down during the battle and rescued from the water. Subsequently he downed a
total of 15 ½ enemy aircraft during the war, earning two Distinguished Flying Crosses and four Air
Medals.
$175.00
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