P-38 Lightning was a plane that is iconic in its design, performance, firepower and esthetics. Overshadowed by later designs.. the plane was a great achievement and the pilots were the cherry on top. As an Aussie we don't really appreciate the sacrifice and legacy of US for Australias prosperity. Thanks to our US allies for past, present and future support. Lest We Forget.

I think we should all take a moment and recognize the epicness of Dick Bong's name. That's an All-Time name right there, and it deserves to be remembered.

My dad witnessed Maj. Bong shoot down a Japanese Zero in the Philippines. As my dad would say, "he blew him out of the sky." Bong flew back over the US Base, upside down, after the shooting down the Zero, saluting the soldiers on the ground, then pulled up and performed several 360's as he climbed in his P-38. My dad never forgot that moment and referred to it often during his life. He never met Maj. Bong but talked about him often. My dad kept a model of the P-38 on his desk.

I grew up in Bong's hometown (Poplar, WI). We were taught his story from a young age. Such a fantastic and tragic story for a simple farm boy from Northern Wisco. I was always disappointed to never see him featured in a documentary or on the History Channel so I greatly appreciate you making this video.

My father was a forward observer in New Guinea. He knew Major Bong and told me stories of how he used to call him in for the airstrikes and how they would talk to one another on the radio while on missions. I had no idea how famous he was until I visited the Dayton Air Museum and found a display there of him. Like many war veterans, my dad rarely spoke of the war, but this was one of the things he told me about. Thanks for the video.

It hasn’t even started yet and this man is my hero.

I'm a bit perplexed at how they wanted to keep him alive, so they took him out of combat and he ended up in one of the only non-combat jobs that probably had a higher chance of killing him.

My family and I lived in Duluth, Minnesota 1957-1962. When we drove to Michigan for summer vacation, we passed through Poplar, Wisconsin. My father stopped our car so we could see the P-38 mounted on a pedestal in honor of Major Dick Bong. I read the tribute to America's ace of aces. I marveled at the streamlined beauty of the twin engined fighter plane. The Lockheed P-38 Lightning became my all time favorite WWII fighter aircraft. I have read that the day he died, Major Bong was scheduled to either eat lunch or play golf with Bob Hope. Not sure if that is true or not. Dick Bong deserves to be remembered. Thank you History Guy! This is your best episode ever!

This channel constantly reminds me that we walk in the footsteps of giants.

We have a bridge in Townsville Australia named after Richard Bong. He spent a bit of time there in WW2

As a warbird fan as well as a fan of the blokes that flew them, thank you for another great bit of history. Suggestion ; Try looking into Clive Caldwell, an Australian WWII fighter pilot who was an Ace five or six times over. He served in the Middle East and later in the South Pacific against the Japanese and because he traded whisky and gin with the yanks for ammo, fuel, and other necessities to carry on the fight he was demoted back to a Flight Lieutenant and received no recognition for his efforts.

He's an Ace in my books, just because of his Name.

I am truly floored by the sheer volume of HIGH QUALITY contact you're able to produce. This channel is an extremely valuable body of work, every single one of your videos is fascinating and thought-provoking

I live on Minnesota's North Shore, forty miles from Superior, WI and this is the most I have ever heard anyone speak about this great man's life. Thank you!

My mother lived on a farm near Poplar, WI. She went to school with him and knew him quite well. He loved to race cars back in those days.

Thank you for posting this video, Major Richard Bong is my cousin three times removed. As a child, my grandpa met Richard and took a photo with him because my great grandma used to babysit Richard when he was little. I feel as though Richard isn't really talked about often due to his unfortunate early death, so he never had the opportunity to tell his tales and legacy like many other aces who overshadow him. It really is a privilege to be related to him, even if I am just a distant cousin. Richard has always been someone I look up to.

There is a "Bong" street on most USAF bases. Nice to know the back story.

The parallels of Maj. Bong and GySgt Basilone are uncanny. Men who have given every measure of themselves and come out on top. Chosen to spread their immense knowledge and experience to keep others alive in a training environment….but they feel they must do it themselves. Truly the greatest generation.

My mom worked with Maj Bong while he was assigned to Lockheed flying the P-80. She was a secretary for the commander of the USAAF office at the Burbank plant. She said Maj Bong was always friendly and modest, you'd never think he was America's greatest ace by talking with him, just an all American farm boy. The office was devastated by his crash in the P-80. Like everyone working at Lockheed Burbank, she also had great respect for Milo Burcham, another terrible loss. With today's highly reliable FADEC controlled engines, it's hard to remember just how temperamental those early jet engines were.

As a retired USAF pilot I first got interested in flying from my dad who was in the Army Air Corp during WWII…..as a small child I remember him telling me about Major Bong and how brave he was……but in my 30 years in the AF I don’t recall anyone talking about him.

What a brave young man. He died younger than three of my five children. I can’t imagine the loss of such a person. Of all the honors he received, the best we can give is to keep him alive in history lessons. Thank you, THG for doing that!

Dick Bong was indeed a hero, but please do not forget his rival Tommy McGuire who had 38 kills at the time of his death over the Philippines

I read about Richard Bong in the early '70's while in Junior High. I recall one account of his flying skill where He would pull power back on one engine and goose the other to facilitate tighter turns in a Dog Fight. Driving it like a tractor (braking one wheel) must've worked.

When I was a hippie kid back in the 70s, we used to laugh about the Bong Recreation Area off I-94 between Chicago and Milwaukee. But when I actually stopped there once, I discovered why it had this unusual name. I was already a total history nut by that point, but this chance discovery led to many more over the years, and not just in books, not just in America. Some of these discoveries were not so uplifting or nice, either. One time, off on a hike outside the sleepy little town in Germany where I lived for a while (Balingen), I came across a small plaque on a stone that I had passed by many times without noticing. Clearing the dirt off to read the inscription, I was horrified to learn that this beautiful, quiet little town with less than 30,000 inhabitants when I lived there, 40 years after the war, was a very busy place during all 12 years of the 3rd Reich. It was part of Unternehmen „Wüste“ (Operation Desert), the synthetic fuel project that used shale deposits to help run the German war machine. It was also part of the massive project to "resettle" the Slavic lands invaded by the Wehrmacht, from Czechoslovakia to Russia. Its third infamous activity was the building of a defensive wall along the nearby French border (a project obviated by the conquest of France in 1940.) All of these projects used slave labor, initially German Jews, intellectuals and other such undesirables, but after September of 1939 a steady stream of unfortunates from all over Nazi-controlled Europe were consumed by these various projects. The number of victims who died there is unknown to this day, an unusual phenomenon considering the German penchant for record-keeping. One historian I spoke with speculated that this might be because a) some of these projects were either top secret and/or of a "sensitive" nature and b) because it was one of the first areas that the newly reconstituted French Army rolled into in 1945, only to discover that in addition to all the other activities, there was also an internment camp for French soldiers captured in the 1940 invasion, and in the process of hastily converting it into an internment camp for local Germans who had worked especially enthusiastically with the various Nazi projects, much was destroyed, either out of rage or accidentally. When I asked my friends who had grown up and lived in the area their whole lives how it was possible that so much evil had been perpetrated in one small town, one of them, a guy I was particularly close to and a fellow history buff told me the following: "You know that history is beneath your feet wherever you go, right? Well, maybe this will put what happened in Balingen in some perspective for you. Even at its zenith, Greater Germany was still only about the size of Texas. Well, there weren't just the massive, notorious concentration camps, most of which were in the East. In Germany alone there were something like 10,000 smaller camps and forced labor operations, etc, some of which were quite small. If you know where to look, you can't go 10 miles on any direction without stumbling across some sort of installation or camp. In many ways, all of Germany was one giant concentration camp. That's why I hate it whenever I hear another German say we didn't know what the Nazis were doing--those bastards were everywhere in this country, in every town and village, in every field and forest." What a contrast to me pulling over to check out the Bong Recreation Area, eh?

Bong is the literal embodiment of "Live fast die young."

I've known of Richard Bong since I was a kid.. that's a long time...Brave skilled man in a wicked bad plane ..my all time favorite P-38 Lightning

As a Wisconsinite, an air force Vet, and a history enthusiast, I love seeing this kinda stuff

What an amazing story and such a sad ending. RIP

One can only image what he might have done had he lived to 30. So much in such a short life.

The pride of Wisconsin. There is a park named in his honor outside of LaCrosse. Sadly the signs for the park are constantly being stolen as the park is named Bong Recreation Area.

I'm an Infantry Veteran but when I heard you state all his awards I must admit I teared up!! The man was the most modest of Legends!! May he RIP, what an absolute hero!!

Thank you for honoring Major Richard Ira Bong on your channel. A true WWII war hero.

I knew of Major Bong but never heard the story of him picking off that alligator with a 20mm round. No wonder he needed to fly a fighter with two engines...needed the extra horsepower to carry those huge brass balls of his :)

Race of Aces is an Excellent book and highlights the numerous challenges the pilots in the SW Pacific theater faced. Great profiles of Bong, Tommy Lynch, Neal Kirby, Tommy McGuire & Charles MacDonald. I highly recommend it.

Dick Bong deserves to be remembered for more than a chuckle when you see a sign on the highway in NW Wisconsin.

Hats off to Major Bong. I didn't realize he was so young and would never live to raise a family and have grandkids. Or to enjoy the freedom that he so bravely contributed to. RIP 🙏♥

Finally, this one has been over due. Thank you for this one.

Freedom is NOT Free. Sometimes it costs Everything.

9:45 I really hope Dick Bong painted a silhouette of that crocodile on his P-38

When i was a kid guys like Bong, Boyington, Chenault and countless others were taught in school starting in about 4th grade. too bad this "History" is no longer taught as a legit part of U.S. and American History in general. Thanks History Guy for reminding us of the sacrifice's of theses Heroes.

What a glorious biography. Absolutely astounding. The crocodile part was awesomeness. Thank you for this.

My dad, who grew up on Minnesota's Iron Range, considered Richard Bong a real hero, so thanks for this episode! 😎✌🏼

Expat Pom living in Australia remembers reading of Dick Bong in Wings magazine of the 1970s, his story stuck in my mind. Thank you for taking the time to remind people of this marvelous pilot.

The American Spirit at it's finest. God Bless all those who sacrifice so much.

Another great story you may consider covering is that of “Butch” O’Hare, whom Chicago’s airport is named after. I read his story to my extended family when we got together on Memorial Day and was surprised when they all said they had never heard of him before

I live in Maple wi, 5 miles east of poplar where Bong was from. One of the planes used to be behind the bank on a stand but now is in superior, 25miles west of me. He is our local legend Also a bridge that spans between Superior WI and Duluth MN is named after him

With a name like that he was destined for nothing but greatness

As a Wisconsinite born and raised, love and appreciate this episode. Thank you so much. Truly exceptional individual. His contributions to our country and those he served with can’t be overstated!

The museum about him and the local war effort in Superior, WI is excellent! Don't miss it if you're in the area. My wife is not a war buff, but she was just mezzmerised with the place. Great displays about all sorts of WWII topics.

We always stopped in Poplar to see his plane when Going to Duluth as a kid. The cockpit was painted over. My dad always said they did that because of military secrets. I have not seen his plane since it moved. We have driven the bridge named after him many times.

When the enemy puts a price on your head and names you specifically, you know greatness.

That's an amazing part of WW11 that I've never heard and all he accomplished by the age of 24 . Thank you for that glimpse into a young hero's short but impactful dedication and drive that would fill a life time

Ironically he may have survived the war if they'd kept him flying combat missions.

I knew this story, but it has been a long time since I have thought about it. It is good to be reminded of folks like this.

Wow! What a legacy. Everytime I hear these tales of 'The Greatest Generation' I am humbled by their example - and beaming with pride.

I’ve known about Dick Bong since I was 12 hrs old and read all I could about him. My favorite tv show of course was Baa Baa Black Sheep. Watched every episode. I do remember one episode where they paid homage to Bong and the P-38. I still loved the corsair more of course. I never knew he was only 24 when he died. Just think, he could have easily been a Yeager or Glenn. You have surpassed these great men in importance by being one to keep their memories and achievements alive. Please keep it up. 24 years old. I had no clue. Never thought about that. Salute to you and all of the men and women that came before us.

My dad enlisted in the Army Air corp in 43. They didn't want to take him because he had a wife and child and was "too old" (28). He flew the beautiful B-25 Mitchell. The guys in his squadron called him "Pops". :)

When I was a kid, my hero's weren't ball players, or actors. They were fighter pilots. Richard Bong was the biggest hero of them all. Actually, they still are.

My father was a TBM pilot…he was underage and my grandfather signed for him…my grandmother was furious. He was asked to join the Blue Nigel’s after the war but my mother was done with fearing fir his life. I always found it weird, as he crop dusted, flew disaster relief, etc, but hey, that was their issue. Eventually he became a meteorologist at a time when you could still apprentice. Eventually he became a research scientist fir the military…the only one without a PhD. I miss him so much…he raised me to believe I could do anything a man could do…wanted to teach me to fly but Mom vetoed. My next life!

Having a passion for military aviation history, I knew well about Dick Bong, as well as numerous other aces from WW1 and WWII. Thanks for featuring him on this great video. We must never forget the brave eagles that fought in the skies to preserve our freedoms.

This has to be my favorite episode of the History Guy: I have tears streaming down my cheeks. Richard Bong State Recreation Area is near by and a favorite place. Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center is worth the visit.

The statistic about the contribution of aces is facinating; Mr. Churchill's words 'Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few' are apt to describe the contribution of fighter pilots across that war.

Can we just appreciate this guys name

Wow! That’s incredible! As I recall the Red Baron also got in very close before he shot. He wasn’t a great flyer, but a great marksman with excellent eyesight. Bong apparently wasn’t a great shot, but a great pilot. Getting in close was apparently the key to success in pre-rocket days.

Wisconsin legend! When you drive to Milwaukee from Chicago you will inevitably encounter the Bong Recreational Area, and people are always floored to find out that the guy with, objectively, the funniest name in American military history is also a bona fide national hero.

He truly was a great pilot and man and hero....We miss him.....Thanks

They used to have Dick Bongs P-38 at the school in Poplar, Wisconsin. They don't have it there anymore, but they named Superior, WI airport in honor of Richard Ira Bong.

When I was a kid I lived for a while on Misawa Air Base in Japan. Every week we went to watch movies at the Richard Bong Theater. All we knew about him at the time is that he flew under the Golden Gate and got in trouble for it. Movies were a quarter, with popcorn and a drink another quarter.

My grandfather was a pilot in the CBI theater flying supply over the hump. In a DC-3. I would love to learn more about it. History that deserves to be remembered.

The Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center in Superior, WI is a great museum. Truly does both Major Bong, and Veteran's, justice. The P38 on display is beautiful. The surrounding details of the display are great. With displays on not just Mr. Bong or WW2 alone. The museum is truly a wonderful Veteran's Memorial in it's own right.

Signing up as a test pilot was extremely dangerous that day and age, jets were still so new, tons of pilots crashed and died in badly designed planes. The man must've had an appetite for extreme danger like some do.

Maybe my most favorite History Guy episode yet! What an unbelievable story and life.

My great uncle Jimmy’s was an ace . He joined the RAF before the US entered WWII. He flew over Africa . He did not talk much about his combat. The history about WWII especially is really interesting to me- it helps me to appreciate the sacrifice of our military through the generations in keeping America free .

Brave man , sad story . So much life ahead for the young married couple . True definition of giving life for country . Those early P 38's were "widow makers " I read a story were Mr. Bong himself lost control of his Lighting and luckily he was able to recover the plane as it was in an uncontrollable dive . A lot of P 38 pilots lost their life when that plane did that . Later versions were modified to get rid of that and other "bugs" the Lighting had . Good thing Charles Lindbergh took an intrest in making it better .

Absolutely great story told by one of the greatest historians! Thank you!

"A light that burns twice as bright burns half as long." 24 is too young to die.

It's absolutely amazing how much this young man accomplished in so short a span of time. Thank you Mr. Bong for your service and sacrifice for your country, and thank you History Guy for memorializing the story of Dick Bong.

WoW! Only 25 years old and achieved all those decorations. He was truly the Audie Murphy of the sky! Thanks for another great history lesson.

Thank you for sharing this. Bong is my great uncle and I am always keen to learn more about his legacy.

A real hero! I’m sick of hearing how lesser humans who do things like stand in front of a camera are heroes. That’s a hero.

My father was a 31st Fighter Group Army Air Corps pilot and served in England and North Africa (trained on P-40 and P-39s, but then Spitfires in England and North Africa. The group changed to P-51s during the Italian invasion). By then, dad had been sent to Fort Meyers, Florida, to train new pilots. At some point, Major Bong showed up to do a little gunnery demonstration. His four 50cals were loaded up with one round each. A small plane was sent aloft over the airfield towing a new target sock. Major Bong approached the target at a very difficult angle and fired. The planes landed and the target sock was then examined - four holes. That's what you call, with apologies to Alvin York, 'some serious shootin' '.

I have committed on your channel before. But sometimes one must speak up. When I was 24 …. I was still acting like a child. I had heard a Little of Bong but my god. What a Hero. Giving away credit, coming back from such of what had to be hard times. Then still giving up his life doing incredible work. Thank you for your time and my continuing education when I watch and listen to you.

Died at 24....show me one image of Bong during wartime where he looks ANYTHING like a 24 year old of today. 20-somethings were truly men back then...not just in their actions but in their looks, today they just look like high schoolers

Stories like this, while they make me proud of my fellow countrymen also come with a tinge of sadness for how far we have fallen. The skill and more aptly, the guts of men like this are inspiring to a person like myself who wallowed in his early 20s. Stuff like this makes me realize whatever I have to do, it ain't that hard/bad and to just do it.

Definitely History that deserves to be remembered, and more importantly I had NEVER heard of this amazing pilot before this. The P-38 Lightning was a simply incredible aircraft, like the P-51, true heroes. I loved the General telling him that if he didn't fly down Market Street, he would not want him in his air force, but not to do it again..naughty, naughty; and go help the lady whose laundry you knocked down. Brilliant.

I did a report on Dick Bong when I was in middle school and it's nice to see a History Guy episode about him. He does deserve to be remembered!

It brought tears to my eyes....his poor wife!

If you ever find yourself in the area of Superior, Wisconsin stop by the Bong Museum, well worth the stop. We found it by accident in 2017 and were very surprised on how the museum spans multiple military eras.

There was a period during the New Guinea campaign when Bong (Ace #1) teamed up unofficially with Tommy McGuire (Ace #2) while flying out of Nichols Field (I think.) My Dad was ground echelon (armorer and fuel) and was one of those who serviced the planes of both men. He had photos of both planes in his album and him with Bong. I got the feeling he liked both Bong and McGuire. The Smithsonian has one of the planes Bong flew as a test pilot, a modified P-38. Something went badly wrong during one flight but both he and the plane survived.

Dick Bong was certainly one of the finest and most talented of fighter pilots and killers of enemy aircraft… But simply because one has the gifts and talents of combat…does not make one a great “test” pilot… a job with considerably different skill set requirements. We may have endangered a great man and hero …thinking we were utilizing talents he did not possess ….and requiring skills and training he had not been provided. It is US (thru our agencies) who are to blame for his untimely death. Thank you, Richard Bong! May you Fly West with our Greatest Gratitude.

“Oh, I have slipped the surely bonds of earth and danced on laughter’s silvered wings. First line of “High Flight”

Killing a crocodile has to be the most impressive feat. Great video!

I have not heard of mr Bong till now. A very talented individual and a young adult when the sad end came. Your service in making us aware of important history hopefully will be remembered and honored. Thanks

There was a small Air Force base built outside my home town of Kenosha Wisconsin named after Richard Bong. It was only active for a couple years in the late 1950s. They then turned it into a campsite and named it "Richard Bong State Recreation Area" -- consequently the sign for it on nearby I-94 is the most stolen sign in Wisconsin.

I read somewhere that the dogfighting principles taught at the Top Gun academy are, in part, based upon techniques used by Bong.

Absolutely incredible. The astonishing feats of this man are very much highlighted by your enthusiasm. Thank you.

Thanks for covering Bong. I love these WW2 stories. My father was a Marine Corpsman in the Pacific war, never talked about it.

A wonderful tribute to the Ace of Aces.

Why have I heard and read about Maj. “Pappy” Boyington but never Maj. Bong??!! Fantastic story! Thank you!!

My curiosity was always peaked, when I saw the second coming headlines of the New York Times of the "First Atomic Bomb Dropped On Japan," and below was a smaller first page headline, "Major Bong Killed in Jet Crash." I wondered who this "Major Bong" was and now I know the rest of the story. Good commentary.