Scrappy: Memoir of a U.S. Fighter Pilot in Korea and Vietnam

by Howard C. "Scrappy" Johnson, Ian A. O'Connor

Overview

From World War II to high above the Earth to Vietnam, this memoir tells the story of fighter pilot Howard C. "Scrappy" Johnson. Beginning with his early years in Knoxville, Tennessee, the book follows Johnson through his career at the University of Louisville and his enlistment as an Air Force cadet at the onset of World War II. After World War II, Johnson served a tour of duty in the skies over Korea and in 1958 broke the world's altitude record by over 14,000 feet, soaring at 91,249 feet in his F-104A Starfighter. For this remarkable feat he was awarded the Collier Trophy, aviation's highest honor. In Vietnam, he was director of operations for the 388th Tactical Fighter Wing and was instrumental in founding the Red River Valley Fighter Pilots, a group dedicated to the remembrance of fallen and captured airmen. Written with panache, this work records the bigger-than-life adventures of one of America's finest.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786454983
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Publication date:	10/01/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	280
File size:	6 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

The late Colonel Howard C. “Scrappy” Johnson was a retired command pilot who flew over 7,000 hours in fifteen fighter planes. He was an inductee in the Kentucky Aviation Hall of Fame and lived in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Writer Ian A. O’Connor is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of America and lives in South Florida.
The late Colonel Howard C. "Scrappy" Johnson was a retired command pilot who flew over 7,000 hours in fifteen fighter planes. He was an inductee in the Kentucky Aviation Hall of Fame and lived in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Writer Ian A. O'Connor is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of America and lives in South Florida.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments      
Preface     
Prologue     

1. River Rats     
2. Growing Up     
3. “Louavall”     
4. The Army Air Corps     
5. Laredo     
6. The Big Bang     
7. The Philippines     
8. The Police Action     
9. Back to the Philippines     
10. Cape Cod     
11. Way Up North     
12. California     
13. Starfighter     
14. The Collier Trophy     
15. The Luftwaffe     
16. The Tactical Air Command     
17. Hell     
18. Thailand     
19. In the Beginning     
20. Korat Confidential     
21. Stateside Again     
22. Punchin’ Cattle     
23. Scalawag     
24. Finis     

Biographical Summaries     
Index     

Editorial Reviews

Scrappy—a living aviation legend. A must read.”—Robert J. Gilliland, Chief Test Pilot, SR-71 Blackbird; “He’s a fighter pilot’s fighter pilot”—Ronald Fogleman, General, USAF (Ret.), Chief of Staff, USAF, 1994–1997; “Our country is fortunate to have patriots like Colonel Johnson, who are the guardians at the gates of our freedom!”—Ross Perot.

From the Publisher