Pappy Boyington

Colonel Gregory "Pappy" Boyington (December 4, 1912 - January 11, 1988) was an American fighter pilot who flew with the American Volunteer Group (the Flying Tigers) in China and became a US Marine Corps ace in World War II.

AVG victory claims

There is some controversy surrounding Boyington's AVG victory claims. His official CAMCO account showed 3.5 for enemy aircraft destroyed, of which only 1 was an air-to-air victory. However, AVG records suggest that Boyington was short-changed of an air-to-air victory during his tour of duty at Mingaladon airport in Rangoon, and that his total should have been 4.5.

Related Topics:
CAMCO - Mingaladon - Rangoon

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According to Bruce Gamble, Boyington also felt that the AVG staff overlooked claims from a raid on Chiang Mai, Thailand. Six pilots were involved in a raid that supposedly destroyed 15 Japanese aircraft on the ground, giving each man 2.5 victory credits for the raid. Boyington apparently decided that the two pilots who flew top cover should not have shared in the bounty, and that his score should have been calculated this way:

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• Confirmed air to air victories: 2 (this is what the US military officially acknowledges normally)
• Chiang Mai Raid: 3.75 (15 aircraft destroyed divided by 4 shooters)
• Total: 5.75

He then rounded it up to 6, and convinced the Corps to officially acknowledge it. This was probably good for the Corps' image during the final days of the tour as Boyington neared the record of 26 victories held at the time by Joe Foss and Eddie Rickenbacker. He ultimately tied the record on the same mission in which he was shot down.

Related Topics:
Joe Foss - Eddie Rickenbacker

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After the war, Boyington insisted on the term "victories" rather than "kills", and was known to lose his temper over the issue.

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