ACE PILOT - OUTSTANDING AUTHOR George G Loving finished his combat tour with 101 sorties in Spitfires and 50 missions in the P-51, most of which were in leadership positions. He wrote two outstanding books relating his experiences in World War Two and the Korean War: Woodbine Red Leader a P-51 Mustang Ace in the Mediterranean Theater and Bully Able Leader The story of a fighter-bomber pilot in the Korean War. VICTORY 4 - Messerschmitt Bf 109G VICTORY 5 - Messerschmitt Bf 109G 26 FLYPAST FIGHTER ACES September 2012
B orn in Virginia, George G Loving entered the military aged 18½ shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He trained as a fighter pilot and by the time he was 21 he had reached the rank of captain and had flown 144 combat missions with the 31st Fighter Group. It was July 31, 1944 and Captain Loving was flying his 309th Fighter Squadron P-51 Mustang, one of 50 provided by the 31st Fighter Group, escorting more than 360 Consolidated B-24 Liberators detailed to attack the oil stores at the Prahova refinery in southern Romania. Initially equipped with Supermarine Spitfires and based in North Africa, the 31st had moved to Italy and converted to P-51s. The Mustangs made rendezvous with the bomber stream at 25,000ft (7,620m) over Rosiori de Verde, Romania. For Captain Loving, it was going to be a very eventful day. I was leading Woodbine Yellow section, made up of two flights of four. Once we hooked up with the B-24s, my 309th Squadron moved ahead to a position on the right flank of the lead bomber group. Suddenly, the radio came alive with a terse report: Bogeys eleven o clock, Victories four and five came thick and fast for George G Loving Warren E Thompson describes the intense combat GEORGE G LOVING slightly high, at five miles. There were vapour trails and specks in the distance toward Zimnicea. They were probably Fw 190s or Me 109s. At that point, we jettisoned our external tanks and I signalled my section to spread out and checked my gunsight, armed my guns and slid the throttle forward as the squadron leader began to climb. Altitude was the key factor at the beginning of any engagement. We passed through 26,000ft still climbing and I watched intently as the two formations moved closer together. INSTANT REACTIONS As the Mustangs of the 309th got close to the reported bogeys, Bottom left Captain Loving in his flight gear Main picture Captain Loving chasing down a German Bf 109 for his fifth victory. TIM O BRIEN September 2012 FIGHTER ACES FLYPAST 27
Below The 31st FG in Italy while transitioning from Spitfires to Mustangs. WILLIAM SKINNER MUSTANG VERSUS BF 109 north american p-51b mustang Max speed: 440mph (708km/h) Range: 1,600 miles (2,575km) with drop tanks Service ceiling: 41,800ft (12,740m) Rate of climb: 3,475ft per min (1,059m per min) Production: Of the 15,576 Mustangs produced, 1,988 were B variants Armament: Four or six 0.50in machine guns in wings. Provision for two 1,000lb (454kg) bombs messershmitt bf 109g Max speed: 386mph (621km/h) Range: 620 miles (998km/h) with drop tank Service ceiling: 37,890ft (11,550m) Rate of climb: 3,346ft per min (1,020m per min) Production: Of 34,000 Bf 109s built, around 23,500 were G models Armament: One 20mm cannon in propeller hub and two 7.9mm machine guns in cowling. G-6 had 13mm machine guns and two additional cannon under wings Hunched down with my stomach muscles tightened to forestall a grey-out, I reacted to every move of my quarry, intent on maintaining my advantageous position 28 FLYPAST FIGHTER ACES September 2012
they could see Messerschmitt Bf 109s in a clockwise Lufbery Circle with each positioned to protect the tail of the aircraft ahead. They were under attack from P-51s of the 325th FG which were bouncing them from above. George: I was astonished to see the Germans using a World War One defensive formation, but they maintained it as we closed in. My first thought was to get in some serious licks without getting zapped. It wouldn t have been smart to slide down into the circle and get nailed from behind. point overhead, we swung into a counter-clockwise circle and at that moment four AAA [antiaircraft artillery] shells exploded right in the middle of the Lufbery, leaving ugly clouds of black smoke to mark their detonation points. This caused the 109s to break out of the circle and head for the deck. I decided that my best chance was to latch onto a group of the fleeing fighters. We had completed a 180-degree turn when a flight of 109s exited the Lufbery in a wingover that At this point, there were 36 Mustangs and over 40 Me 109s, all crowded into a small piece of sky. Since most air battles have a way of ending as suddenly as they began, I knew we d have to act fast to be in on the action. As we reached a carried them directly away from me in an almost vertical dive. I reacted instantly by pushing the nose down sharply and shoving the throttle to the firewall. Simultaneously, I depressed the mike button and called: Woodbine Yellow, taking the four at 12 o clock. We had dove at least 5,000ft before they spotted us, with the two fighters that were in the rear breaking sharply right with me staying close to them while the other two continued toward the deck with my other element in pursuit. I held my position as the two 109s pulled up into a tight chandelle, continued around in a steep 180-degree turn and then sliced down into a sharp descending turn. Hunched down with my stomach muscles tightened to forestall a grey-out, I reacted to every move of my quarry, intent on maintaining my advantageous position. BRIEF AND CHAOTIC As the Me 109 pilots continued their desperate manoeuvres, I edged closer and finally got to within 75 yards when I started firing at the trailing fighter. I had a full load of 1,260 rounds of API [armourpiercing incendiary] and my Above George Loving relaxing on the wing of his Mustang. Left The 31st FG s mission briefing room at one of its Italian bases. September 2012 FIGHTER ACES FLYPAST 29
Above P-51D 44-13464 was assigned to Major Sam Brown. He was credited with 15.5 kills. BILL HESS Below Mustangs of the 309th buzzing their base. ALL GEORGE LOVING UNLESS NOTED aim was dead-on with strikes seen along his wing root and cockpit area. Seconds later, he slowed as I chopped back on the throttle and slid off to the side to avoid a collision. Another few seconds and the stricken fighter s canopy flew off and the pilot baled out. [Loving s fourth kill.] Moments later, I spotted another Messerschmitt 30 degrees off to my right and a thousand feet below me closing in on a single P-51. I glanced behind me to the left and right to clear my tail and then winged over sharply, pushing the throttle full forward, and dove straight down. As I did, I radioed: Lone Mustang at low altitude break right, break right! I repeated the warning and there was no response and he didn t break but continued on course. The Messerschmitt was descending on a straight path which was perfect for Captain Loving to set up from the rear. He closed to within 300ft and fired a long burst with his rounds hitting the left side of the fuselage and the left wing. He nosed over, plunging 1,000ft and hitting the ground and exploding in flames. The lone Mustang that the 109 was after was my wingman. The action had been brief and chaotic. Moments earlier there had been a lot of aircraft crammed into a tight space and now the sky was empty except for a few descending parachutes and a lot of burning wreckage on the ground. With his fifth kill confirmed, Loving was suddenly an ace. He joined up with his wingman and set a course for San Severo, 450 miles (724km) to the south west. We had a real workout and it was a great feeling when we were back over the Adriatic Sea and could remove our oxygen masks and suck in some fresh air. By the time we touched down, we had been in the air for five hours. At the debriefing, we learned that the 31st Group had shot down eleven Me 109s and one Fw 190. GLITTERING CAREER After his World War Two tour, George G Loving trained new pilots in P-47 Thunderbolt gunnery and bombing tactics. Once the war ended, he was sent to Japan as part of the occupation force and was later assigned as a squadron commander, flying P-51Ds. When the Korean War started he volunteered, joining an F-80C Shooting Star squadron, and flew 106 missions with the 9th Fighter Bomber Squadron. In the mid-1950s he was involved in suitability testing of the F-84F sweptwing jet fighter-bomber. A series of staff postings followed with promotion through to Lt General, Loving becoming Commander of NATO s Sixth Allied Tactical Air Force and, in the late 1970s, Commander of US Forces in Japan. He retired in 1979 after 37 years of service. His awards include the Air Medal with 24 oak leaf clusters, DFC with oak leaf cluster, Silver Star, Legion of Merit and numerous decorations from France, the Republic of Korea, the Republic of China and the USSR. According to Loving, some German records for that day indicated that their losses were very heavy. One of the German pilots had commented: A critical day. Today, July 31, out of 30 of our fighters that were on that defensive mission, 23 were shot down. It was terrible. It was very sad and now we must rest. We cannot fly next time even if attacks come! A critical day. Today, July 31, out of 30 of our fighters that were on that defensive mission, 23 were shot down. It was terrible 30 FLYPAST FIGHTER ACES September 2012