On this day in 1922, a hero is born. Joseph C. McConnell, Jr. would go on to become the leading American ace of the Korean War, with 16 total aerial victories. Shockingly, he achieved all those victories in the span of just four months.
“Capt. Joseph Christopher McConnell Jr. was more than just another fighter pilot,” one veteran writes for Aerotech News, “he was one of the all-time greats. He was the only Triple Ace to come out of the Korean War and the only Triple Ace of the jet age, as all his victories were against jet aircraft.”
McConnell joined the Army in 1940, but he wasn’t permitted to take flying lessons at first. Instead, he was assigned to the Medical Corps. He was later transferred to aviation, but he met with more disappointment there: The Army trained him to be a navigator, not a pilot.
It wasn’t until 1948 that McConnell finally got the pilot’s wings that he’d wanted for so long. Finally, he was a U.S. Air Force pilot, doing what he wanted to do.
McConnell was soon in Korea, flying planes that he’d named “Beauteous Butch,” in honor of his wife, whom he called the “butcher of my heart.”
Oddly, McConnell didn’t get any aerial victories during his first year in Korea, but a mission on January 14, 1953, changed all that. He was on a tear after that, getting 16 total victories between January 14 and May 18.
The 8th victory nearly ended in disaster when a MiG mortally wounded McConnell’s plane. Eyewitness First Lt. Harold Chitwood remembers McConnell’s stunning victory when he turned and took out the MiG that had just shot him. “When the MiG closed,” Chitwood remembers, “he fired, hitting Mac. Mac immediately broke and the MiG slid past, Mac reversed and fired on the MiG shooting it down.”
McConnell ejected into enemy-held waters but was fortunately retrieved by American helicopters after just a few minutes. He was back in the skies the next day, quickly earning a 9th victory.
McConnell’s last day of combat was May 18, 1953. He shot down three enemy fighters and damaged five others that day, despite being badly outnumbered. He also saved his wingman, a move that would earn him a Distinguished Service Cross.
“Several enemy aircraft were then firing at him,” his Cross citation describes, “but, seeing that the other Sabre in his flight was also being fired upon, he completely ignored enemy cannon fire directed at himself and destroyed the MiG that was pursuing his wingman.”
By then, McConnell had flown 106 missions, and the Air Force was ready to send him home. He was disappointed to leave “while I was going so good” and asked to fly 25 more missions. “It’s the best kind of flying I’ve ever done,” he said. “I could do this for several years yet.”
His request fell on deaf ears. “He is more valuable to the Air Force alive than dead,” Colonel Edward Szaniawski explained.
Unfortunately, tragedy intervened after McConnell had been home for just over a year. On August 25, 1954, McConnell was flying what should have been a routine test flight when he ran into flight control problems. He at first attempted an emergency landing, then attempted to bail out. His parachute failed to open, though, and he was killed.
It was later determined that two bolts in the plane’s horizontal stabilizer control system had not been properly fastened.
McConnell was just 32 years old at the time of his death. “Flying was his life, and I never tried to stop him,” his widow said.
But maybe he’s better remembered by what she told reporters when he came home in 1953?
“All through the years he kept telling anyone who would listen that he was a natural-born pilot,” she concluded. “I’m thrilled that he’s had the chance to prove it to the world.”
Primary Sources:
Bob Alvis, High Desert Hangar Stories—Test pilot Joseph C. McConnell: the story behind F-86 Sabre “Beauteous Butch” (Aerotech News; October 29, 2021)
Coming Home After 16 Kills: Air Force Grounds Top Ace: ‘Worth More to Us Alive’ (Atlanta Journal; May 19, 1953) (p. 1)
Distinguished Service Cross citation (Joseph C. McConnell; Korean War) (reprinted HERE)
Howard E. Halvorsen, Air Force History: Capt. Joseph McConnell Jr., Triple Ace of the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing (Tinker Air Force Base; May 8, 2017)
Leading U.S. Jet Ace Grounded; Air Force Wants Him Alive (Sacramento Union; May 20, 1953) (p. 1)
“Lucky Jet Jockey,” Triple Ace, is Grounded (Palladium-Item; May 21, 1953) (p. 7)
Philip Farris, Jet War (Air Force Mag.; June 1, 1990) (reprinted HERE)
Triple Ace Tried 12 Years for Pilot Duty (Evening Sun; May 19, 1953) (p. 2)
World’s Top Jet Ace Killed in Test (Star-Ledger; Aug. 26, 1954) (p. 1)
World’s Top Jet Ace Killed in Test Flight (Philadelphia Inquirer; Aug. 26, 1954) (p. 1)
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