CDR Butch O'Hare, Naval Ace

[COPO 70 RS/Z28]

There's another place northwest of "The Numbers Guy" that gets some press because of the funny name

"Bong Recreational Area".

But what a lot of people dont know is where the name came from

Major Richard I. Bong
Top American Ace of World War Two
Shot down 40 Japanese Planes in the Pacific

After Bong scored his 40th victory, General Kenney sent him home, this time for good. He was America's "Ace of Aces," with 40 aerial victories, 200 combat missions, and over 500 combat hours behind him.

On August 6, 1945 (the day the Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima) Dick Bong was killed when the P-80 he was testing stalled on takeoff and he bailed out at low altitude. His body, partially wrapped in the shrouds of his parachute, was found 100 feet from the plane's jet engine. On 8 August 1945 he was burried in the Poplar cemetary, Poplar, Wisconsin



Richard Bong's decorations included the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star (with 1 OLC), the Distinguished Flying Cross (with 6 OLC's), the Air Medal (with 14 OLC's), and many other American and foreign medals.