| Frank Luke |
Article Index for Frank |
Website Links For Frank |
Information AboutFrank Luke |
|
Frank Luke Jr. ( May 19 , 1897 in Phoenix, Arizona – September 29 , 1918 near Murvaux, France ) was an American World War I fighter pilot, ranking second only to Eddie Rickenbacker in number of enemy aircraft shot down during the war. BIOGRAPHY Luke, like Rickenbacker, was born to immigrants. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on September 25 , 1917 and received his flight training in January 1918. Commissioned a Second Lieutenant , he went to France, where he was assigned to the 27th Aero Squadron. He was simultaneously admired and disliked for his tendency to fly alone. A fellow pilot warned Luke that German Observation Balloon s were a difficult and dangerous target. Luke took that as a challenge and became known as the "Arizona Balloon Buster ." Between September 12 and September 29, Luke was credited with shooting down 14 German balloons and four airplanes. Luke met his fate in the Battle Of Meuse-Argonne . Under threat of arrest for going AWOL, Luke took off in a SPAD XIII fighter without authorization and flew to the front. He shot down three observation balloons but was wounded by Antiaircraft Fire . Short on fuel, he had no choice but to land in enemy territory. Surrounded, Luke pulled out a pistol and fired at several Germans before they killed him. He was awarded a posthumous Medal Of Honor . Rickenbacker said of Luke: "He was the most daring aviator and greatest fighter pilot of the entire war. His life is one of the brightest glories of our Air Service. He went on a rampage and shot down fourteen enemy aircraft, including ten balloons, in eight days. No other ace...even the dreaded Richthofen had ever come close to that." Luke Air Force Base , located west of Phoenix, Arizona, is named in his honor. EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|