I was the only one to return homeWhen I tested the stall characteristics of my wounded bird over our home airfield, I found it quit flying at a little over 175mph (282km/h) indicated and rolled violently into the dead wing (note: the right flap had been blown away and two large holes knocked in the same wing). Beside the case was a fire ax beneath a sign reading: In case of war, break glass.. Olds., National War College, P-38J aircraft, P-51 Mustang, P-51 pilots, P-51D's, P-80 Shooting Star, Palm Springs, Robert Olds, Robin Olds, Royal Canadian Air Force, SR-71 Blackbird, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Air Force-Royal Air Force, U.S. Army Air Forces, United States, United States Air Force, US Air Force Academy, USAF, World War II. In early 1944 he became part of the cadre assigned to build up the newly activated 434th Fighter Squadron and its parent 479th Fighter Group, based at Lomita, California. His father died of pneumonia on April 28, 1943, after hospitalization for constrictive pericarditis and Libman-Sacks endocarditis,[108][109] at the age of 46, just prior to Olds' graduation from West Point.[110]. Ralph Wetterhahn, a future MiG killer. U.S. Air Force fighter pilot who served in both World War II and the Vietnam War. (1936), born from his father's third marriage to Helen Post Sterling and an older maternal half-brother, Carter Nott (19191998), born from his mother's first marriage to Frederick Dickson Nott. Over the next few months, Olds continued to personally lead his men into combat. In a sea of blonde bombshells, Welch broke the mold of what it meant to be a celebrity. The loss to the midshipmen was followed eight days later by the attack on Pearl Harbor. Olds was aggressive, even mean, as a player, and received offers to attend Virginia Military Institute and Dartmouth College on football scholarships. Brigadier General Robin Olds passed away 14 June 2007 at the age of 84 years. By this time I was traveling in excess of 500mph (800km/h). Show more. As the second plane pulled a full 360 turn, Olds stayed with him. Sitting in the audience was Capt. Olds achieved the bulk of his strafing credits the following week in attacks on Lbeck Blankensee and Tarnewitz airdromes on April 13, and Reichersberg airfield in Austria on April 16, when he destroyed six German planes on the ground. He is also remembered for his extravagantly waxed and non-regulation handlebar moustache he wore during his tour in Southeast Asia,. Olds toured USAF bases in Thailand (flying several unauthorized combat missions in the process) and brought back a blunt assessment. Arriving in Britain in May 1944, Olds squadron quickly entered combat as part of the Allied air offensive before the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Five P-51s made a pass on the airdrome that April day. [71] As his Deputy Commander of Operations Olds brought with him Colonel Daniel "Chappie" James Jr., whom he had met during his Pentagon assignment and who would go on to become the first African-American 4-star Air Force general. Poor weather caused a 24-hour delay, but even then, a solid overcast covered the North Vietnamese airbases at Phc Yn, Gia Lam, Kp, and Cat Bai when the bogus strike force began arriving over the target area, five-minute intervals separating the flights of F-4s. Navy and Marine Corps fighters, reaping the benefits of their TOPGUN program, immediately enjoyed considerable success. He was active in public speaking, making 21 events as late in his life as 2005 and 13 in 2006. During his visits to Ubon over the past year he had never referred to my breach of military standards, just seemed rather amused at the variety of 'staches sported by many of the troops. The couple started dating in 2005. Olds himself shot down one of the seven, for which he and the other aircrew were awarded Silver Stars. Good Morning Americ a star Robin Roberts and her partner, Amber Raign, appear to be as happy as ever. with Robin McGraw," the 66-year-old admitted that she did have a cosmetic procedure a few years back, just not a face-lift. and a leading advocate of strategic bombing in the Air Corps. Ella Raines died on May 30, 1988, Sherman Oaks, California from throat cancer. [52] He completed his first combat tour on November 9, 1944, accruing 270 hours of combat time and six kills. Olds took to the air war over North Vietnam in an F-4C Phantom he nicknamed "Scat XXVII", in keeping with his previous combat aircraft that all carried the "Scat" name.[87]. The New York Times that May called him everybodys choice as the hottest pilot of the Vietnam War, and last year the History Channel televised a computer animation, complete with his commentary, of his big Vietnam battle. [3] He retired in 1973 as a brigadier general, after 30 years of service. Welcome to the official Robin Olds website. You can download the book in thee-book format of your choice at AmazonorSmashwords. U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFPN) -- Retired Brig. Olds left the 81st in 1965 after forming an aerial demonstration team without command authorization. The remainder of his career was spent in non-operational positions, as Commandant of Cadets at the United States Air Force Academy and as an official in the Air Force Inspector General's Office. Tags: 434th Fighter Squadron, 56th Fighter Group, Bf-109, Col. Zemke, College Football Hall of Fame, Colonel Robin Olds, Eighth Air Force, European Theater of Operations, Focke Wulf, Henry "Hap" Arnold, Maj. Implemented in January 1967, the operation saw American aircraft down seven MiG-21s, with Olds shooting down one. [60] He flew his final combat mission over North Vietnam on September 23, 1967. This required some adjustment on Olds part as the single-engine Mustang handled differently than the twin-engine Lightning. Your email address will not be published. Near the end of the war, he was one of six P-51 pilots who attacked a German airdrome and found himself the lone survivor. He passed right over me and I slipped over in an Immelmann. [53], After returning to the United States for a two-month leave, Olds began a full second tour at Wattisham on January 15, 1945. As I straightened out at the top, I saw the pilot bail out. The Focke Wulf zoomed up and the pilot bailed out. Despite intense, accurately directed fire, multiple surface-to-air missile attacks on his force, and continuous harassment by MiG fighters defending the target, Colonel Olds, with undaunted determination, indomitable courage, and professional skill, led his force through to help destroy this significant bridge. Olds with his trademark mustache, conducting a pre-combat mission walk around inspection of his F-4 fighter, at, 1971 inspector general tour and 1973 retirement, A private site asserts that this was a derogatory comment, and that they were usually referred to as ". Robin first flew at age 8 in an open-cockpit biplane operated by his father. The old ways were not only out, they were deceased. OLDS ROBIN: (1922-2007) American fighter pilot, a 'triple ace' with a combined total of 17 victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. At first on the command staff of the 86th Fighter-Interceptor Wing at Landstuhl Air Base, West Germany, Olds then commanded its Sabre-equipped 86th Fighter-Interceptor Group from October 8, 1955, to August 10, 1956. [54] Promoted to major on February 9, 1945, Olds claimed his seventh victory southeast of Magdeburg, Germany the same day, downing another Bf 109. The canopy came open, followed by General Olds helmet in a high, lofting arc. Dressed in a child-size air service uniform, he watched his father testify on Mitchells behalf. In contrast, by June, as Olds had predicted, the Air Forces fighter community was struggling with a nearly 1:1 kill-loss ratio. "[26], He walked punishment tours until the day of his graduation in June. Olds returned to the game and reportedly was cheered by the Navy Third and Fourth Classes, which were assigned as the Army cheering section when wartime travel restrictions prevented the Corps of Cadets from attending. He became an instructor at the Air Corps Tactical School between 1928 and 1931, the crucial period when the theory of strategic bombardment achieved ascendancy within the Air Corps as the most effective use of airpower. The man was bigger than life and reading his memoir will confirm all the amazing stories about this legendary fighter pilot. Rising to the command of two fighter wings, Olds is regarded among aviation historians, and his peers, as the best wing commander of the Vietnam War, for both his air-fighting skills, and his reputation as a combat leader. The mustache became my silent last word in the verbal battleswith higher headquarters on rules, targets, and fighting the war. What to do? Made Deputy Chief, Air Defense Division at the Pentagon in 1958, Olds produced as series of prophetic papers calling for improved air-to-air combat training and the increased production of conventional munitions. In his first two dogfights, he was alone with his wingman, having left formation to hunt on his own. [27] During his Academy years Olds also acquired a strong contempt for alumni networking, commonly called "ring knocking",[28] to the degree that he went out of his way to conceal his West Point background. Army's record in 1941 was 531, with wins over The Citadel, VMI, Yale, Columbia, and West Virginia, a scoreless tie with Notre Dame, and losses to Harvard, Penn and Navy. Like so many other pilots and WSOs, he was energized by the new COs press-on attitude. Robin Olds was an American fighter pilot and general officer in the United States Air Force. Most of their 29-year marriage, marked by frequently extended separations and difficult homecomings, was turbulent because of a clash of lifestyles, particularly her refusal to ever live in government housing on base. [69] Discouraged and at odds with the Air Force, in which he was seen as an iconoclast, Olds reportedly was in the process of resigning when he was talked out of it by a mentor, Maj Gen Frederic H. Smith Jr., who brought him to work at Eastern Air Defense Command headquarters at Stewart AFB, New York. After downing a Bf 109 over Berlin on Oct. 6, Olds completed his initial combat tour in November and was given two months leave in the United States. This called for 8th TFW F-4s to mimic F-105 operations in an effort to draw enemy aircraft into combat. I rolled over on my back, following him and gave him an ineffective burst at long range. Zemke was forced to bail out over enemy territory and was captured. On February 14, he claimed three victories, two Bf 109s and an Fw 190, but one of the former was credited only as a "probable". In contrast by June, as Olds had predicted, the Air Force's fighter community was struggling with a nearly 1:1kill-loss ratio. Piloting P-38 Lightnings and P-51 Mustangs, he shot down 12 planes during World War II. 208 cadets including Olds completed the course, while five classmates died in accidents. Some of the movies and films that made him famous and well-known in the movie industry are when he played a role as Oswald Cobblepot in the Fox TV series Gotham in 2016, Another Earth in 2011, Would You Rather in 2012, s Accepted in 2006, You in 2019 and also in the same year 2019 he did play . [107], Olds was briefly a stepbrother of author Gore Vidal after Olds' father married for the fourth time in June 1942, to Nina Gore Auchincloss. Born on July 14, 1922 in Honolulu, Olds was the son of Robert Olds, a fighter pilot in World War I and later an aide to Billy Mitchell. Olds is best known today as the father of Brig. Christina Olds is the daughter of Robin Olds, an American fighter pilot and general officer in the U.S. Air Force. [21] Olds completed Millard Prep and applied for admission to the United States Military Academy at West Point. [74] From November 1959 to March 1960, his section worked intensely to develop a program reducing the entire structure of the ADC with the purpose of generating $6.5 billion for classified funding to develop the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird.reconnaissance aircraft. Robin married Abigail Morgan Sellers Barnett in January 1978, and they divorced after fifteen years of marriage. Col. Robin Olds of the Eighth Tactical Fighter Wing with subordinate officers on returning from his 100th mission over North Vietnam. ", David Hartman, Aviation writer and original host of Good Morning America. 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