Best fighter pilots of all time

por | Oct 1, 2015 | Vuelos de combate, Aviación militar | 90 comentarios

We know this is a hard question and easy to criticise - as they flew at different times, had different material etc. We do compare apple and oranges here, and we know it. This list is more entertainment than science, so take it with a pinch of salt. One of the main differences in aerial battle score is that German pilots (as well as Japanese) kept flying and gaining experience until they were killed themselves, while successful Allied pilots where "rewarded" by sending them home where they took over the training of young pilots and passing their skills and experience over to them. So the list with top kills is actually extremely dominated by Nazi German fighter aces, with the top Allied pilot being Lev Shestakov with 66 kills ranks as 231. So the top 230 fighter pilot aces are ALL axis power pilots. Below the top 30 fighter aces of WWII, so you get an idea of the German scores. Top WWII Fighter Aces

The most remarkable Fighter Aces

However, we try to create the list of most remarkable fighter aces not solely based on kills, but also on fame, influence, and value the factor that it matters at what time one was active (WWI vs WWII).

1. Erich "Bubi" Hartmann

Erich Hartmann

Erich Hartmann

Erich Hartmann is the most successful fighter pilot of all times - with 352 kills. A number that will never be surpassed. His nickname "Bubi" means "little boy" - and it's easy to find out why he was called like that. He was also called "The black devil". Hartmann flew a Messerschmitt Bf 109. Hartmann flew a total of 1404 missions and wasn't not only never shot down in this huge number of aerial battles, but he also never lost a wingman. He was active as a flight teacher for the West German Luftwaffe after the War. Later on, he became a civilian flight instructor. Here is the last interview with Erich "Bubi" Hartmann in 1993 - it shows what an interesting personality Hartmann had.

2. The Red Baron

Fighter Ace Manfred from Richthofen

Manfred from Richthofen

The so-called "Red Baron" -  Manfred von Richthofen - is probably the best-known fighter pilot in general. Red Baron is a household name, even for non-aviation fans. The Red Baron scored 80 kills in WWI - with his Fokker Dr.I. triplane. Wonder where his name is coming from? His three-winged Fokker was painted in bright red - so he would scare the shit out of his enemies once they spotted him. He trained and flew with a unit called "The Flying Circus" - by far the most feared by Allied forces. The Red Baron was finally shot and injured, but still managed to land his plane before he died.

3. Douglas Bader

Douglas Bader

Douglas Bader

The British fighter ace Douglas Bader might surprise you a bit so high up this list. What is so remarkable about Bader? After all, he has only 20 aerial kills, along with 4 shared, 11 damaged and a probable. But Bader lost his legs when he crashed a plane in his earlier aviation career, 8 years before WWII. And he achieved all this kills later on, despite having no legs, before the Germans shot him down and captured him in 1941. Luckily, he was so respected that the Germans asked for his prosthesis to be sent over from the UK

4. Adolf Galland

Adolf Galland

Adolf Galland

German fighter ace Adolf Galland is not even in the top 30 list above. So why is he here? His achievement and battlefield bravery were so outstanding that he was promoted general after 104 aerial victories - and therefore banned from the flying service before he turned 30. Adolf Galland flew a total of 705 combat missions. As opposed to Erich Hartmann, Galland was shot done several times as he took a great risk. Galland was known for his fairness, he refused to shoot at pilots parachuting out of their planes once he hit them.  

5. Hans-Joachim Marseille

Fighter Ace Hans-Joachim Marseille

Fighter Ace Hans-Joachim Marseille

Marseille was nicknamed "Star of Africa" thanks to his aerial battles at the North African campaign. Marseille was a Bohème and often stayed out at night so long that he wasn't allowed to fly the next day. As a result, he was sent a unit heading to Africa. Only there, under his new commander, they (and he himself) discovered his huge talent - and he quickly developed his abilities and became a real ace. Hans-Joachim Marseille flew the Messerschmitt Bf 109 during his entire career and shot down the most Western Allied aircraft: 158 official kills. On September 1st 1942 alone, Marseille shot down 17 Allied aircraft. Marseille died at only 22 years old - when he had to leave his Messerschmitt after an engine failure, and hit the vertical stabiliser.  

6. Chuck Yeager

Fighter Ace Chuck YeagerThe American Yeager was "Ace in a Day" - despite two of the planes actually had a mid-air collision after Yeager went into shooting position behind them. A total of 11.5 scores, this outstanding pilots kills include the first air-to-air victory over a jet fighter, a German Messerschmitt Me-262 (the first jet-to-jet kill was in the Korean War, by a MiG-15). But the main reason he is so famous is that he was the first human to break the sound barrier in 1947, in a Bell X-1. Yeager is still alive and recently broke the sound barrier again, in an F-15, to mark the 65th anniversary of the first supersonic flight.

7. Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer

Fighter Ace Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer

Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer

Schnaufer, nicknamed "Spook of Sint-Truiden" makes the list for being the highest scoring night fighter ace in history. Sint-Truiden or St. Trond was the place where Schnaufer was based - in occupied Belgium. All his 121 aerial victories are at night, most of them against large British four-engine bombers. Schnaufer started to score not before 1942 - before he was in training and then in support of the breakout of German ships from Brest. Schnaufers crew was so successful that every member got the Knight's Cross.

8. Ernst Udet

Ernst Udet

Ernst Udet

Udet is the top German fighter Ace who survived WWI - with 62 confirmed victories. He was also the second highest overall ace - right after the Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen. Udet flew together with the Red Baron in his famous "Flying Circus". After the War he was an aircraft manufacturer, playboy and stunt pilot before joining the Nazis in 1933. He had an important role in building up the Luftwaffe - but finally ended tragically with alcoholism and finally suicide, during WWII.

9. René Fonck

Fighter Ace Rene Fonck

Rene Fonck

The French René Fonck was the Top Allied fighter ace in WWI and also he scored the most Allied kills in WWI and WWII combined. So he holds the title "All time Allied Ace of Aces". The official, confirmed number is 75 kills. Fonck was known as anti-social and 72 out of his 75 are solo kills. Fonck himself claimed not less than 142 kills - but even by his friends, Fonck was considered a braggart and shameless self-promoter. He seemed to overcompensate his shyness by constantly mentioning his (exaggerated) kills - which annoyed anyone around him. The actual number of Fonck's kills might be somewhere in between the official 75 and his claimed 142.

10. Adolphe Pégoud

Adolphe Pégoud

Adolphe Pégoud

The French Adolphe Pégoud makes the list as the first flying ace in history with a total of six aerial combat kills, and for being the first pilot who made a loop. The loop is an aerobatics manoeuvre very popular when doing MiGFlug flights with customers. Tragically, he was shot down by a German pilot who learned to fly with Pégoud during his time as an aviation instructor - before WWI started.  

11. Edward ‘Mick’ Mannock

Mick Mannock

Mick Mannock

The Irish-born Edward ‘Mick’ Mannock was not only known for being one of the best fighter aces of WWI, but also for his legendary hatred of the Germans and his delight of seeing them burn to death. He joined the Royal Flying Corps and became a flying ace during WWI. He scored at least 61 victories, but didn't care too much about it and didn't even count them. Mannock was one of the world's first theorists of aviation tactics. Over time, he had many phobias, including brning to death himself - which he finally did after flying too low and being exposed to ground fire.

12. James Doolittle

James H. Doolittle

James H. Doolittle

Doolittle is known for the "Dolittle Raid" (aka Tokyo Raid) in WWII. The Dolittle Raid was an air raid on Tokyo. It was to strike back after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour, but also the first attack on mainland Japan - an important psychological raid - to show the Japanese that they could be attacked.  Doolittle organized the strike, known from the Movie "Pearl Harbour". It was an important US propaganda victory - even though Doolittle himself saw it as a failure because of the losses.  

13. Anatoly Kvochur

Anatoly Kvochur

Anatoly Kvochur

We already write a recent blog post about The Russian fighter pilot Anatoly Kvochur. Kvochur is widely recognized as one of the best Russian fighter pilots ever, and for his stunning airshow performances including incredible low-level flying. In 1989, he had to eject from his MiG-29 Fulcrum in Paris after a bird strike - steering the Fulcrum away from the crowd and getting off the plane just seconds before impact. That's heroism. Kvochur is currently the Deputy Chief of the Gromov Flight Research Institute - where MiGFlug offered flights in Su-27 Flanker, MiG-25 Foxbat and MiG-29 Fulcrum - see here.

14. Robin Olds

Robin Olds

Robin Olds

Robin Olds was a triple ace, with a total of 16 victories in WWII and the Vietnam War. Olds is widely seen as the best wing commander in the Vietnam War - for his reputation of being a brilliant combat leader as well as for his air fighting skills. Olds was often at odds with the leadership, and his career was slowed down by his heavy drinking as well as his maverick views: "There are pilots and there are pilots; with the good ones, it is inborn. You can't teach it. If you are a fighter pilot, you have to be willing to take risks." Olds was a popular person and married to Hollywood actress Ella Raines - he was also well known for his trademark "bullet-proof moustache" that was often copied by other pilots.

Who else should be on this list?

Now it is your turn - we presented outstanding fighter pilots - for different reasons. Which fighter pilot would you like to be included in this list? Please write in comments below - at the bottom of this post.

Who had how many kills in WWII?

Below we have a list of all fighter aces from Second World War II. Name - Country - Air Force - WWII kills Erich "Bubi" Hartmann  Germany Luftwaffe 352 Gerhard Barkhorn  Germany Luftwaffe 301 Günther Rall  Germany Luftwaffe 275 Otto Kittel  Germany Luftwaffe 267 Walter "Nowi" Nowotny  Germany Luftwaffe 258 Wilhelm Batz  Germany Luftwaffe 237 Erich Rudorffer  Germany Luftwaffe 222 Heinz Bär  Germany Luftwaffe 220 Hermann Graf  Germany Luftwaffe 212 Heinrich Ehrler  Germany Luftwaffe 208 Theodor Weissenberger  Germany Luftwaffe 208 Hans Philipp  Germany Luftwaffe 206 Walter Schuck  Germany Luftwaffe 206 Anton Hafner  Germany Luftwaffe 204 Helmut Lipfert  Germany Luftwaffe 203 Walter Krupinski  Germany Luftwaffe 197 Anton Hackl  Germany Luftwaffe 192 Joachim Brendel  Germany Luftwaffe 189 Max Stotz  Germany Luftwaffe 189 Joachim Kirschner  Germany Luftwaffe 188 Kurt Brändle  Germany Luftwaffe 180 Günther Josten  Germany Luftwaffe 178 Johannes Steinhoff  Germany Luftwaffe 176 Ernst-Wilhelm Reinert  Germany Luftwaffe 174 Günther Schack  Germany Luftwaffe 174 Emil Lang  Germany Luftwaffe 173 Heinz Schmidt  Germany Luftwaffe 173 Horst Ademeit  Germany Luftwaffe 166 Wolf-Dietrich Wilcke  Germany Luftwaffe 162 Hans-Joachim Marseille  Germany Luftwaffe 158 Heinrich Sturm  Germany Luftwaffe 158 Gerhard Thyben  Germany Luftwaffe 157 Hans Beisswenger  Germany Luftwaffe 152 Peter Düttmann  Germany Luftwaffe 152 Gordon Gollob  Germany Luftwaffe 150 Fritz Tegtmeier  Germany Luftwaffe 146 Albin Wolf  Germany Luftwaffe 144 Kurt Tanzer  Germany Luftwaffe 143 Friedrich-Karl Müller  Germany Luftwaffe 140 Karl Gratz  Germany Luftwaffe 138 Heinrich Setz  Germany Luftwaffe 138 Rudolf Trenkel  Germany Luftwaffe 138 Franz Schall  Germany Luftwaffe 137 Walter Wolfrum  Germany Luftwaffe 137 Horst-Günther von Fassong  Germany Luftwaffe 136 Otto Fönnekold  Germany Luftwaffe 136 Karl-Heinz Weber  Germany Luftwaffe 136 Joachim Müncheberg  Germany Luftwaffe 135 Hans Waldmann  Germany Luftwaffe 134 Alfred Grislawski  Germany Luftwaffe 133 Johannes Wiese  Germany Luftwaffe 133 Adolf Borchers  Germany Luftwaffe 132 Adolf Dickfeld  Germany Luftwaffe 132 Erwin Clausen  Germany Luftwaffe 132 Wilhelm Lemke  Germany Luftwaffe 131 Gerhard Hoffmann  Germany Luftwaffe 130 Heinrich Sterr  Germany Luftwaffe 130 Franz Eisenach  Germany Luftwaffe 129 Walther Dahl  Germany Luftwaffe 128 Franz Dörr  Germany Luftwaffe 128 Rudolf Rademacher  Germany Luftwaffe 126 Josef Zwernemann  Germany Luftwaffe 126 Dietrich Hrabak  Germany Luftwaffe 125 Wolf-Udo Ettel  Germany Luftwaffe 124 Herbert Ihlefeld  Germany Luftwaffe 123 Wolfgang Tonne  Germany Luftwaffe 122 Heinz Marquardt  Germany Luftwaffe 121 Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer  Germany Luftwaffe 121 Robert Weiß  Germany Luftwaffe 121 Friedrich Obleser  Germany Luftwaffe 120 Friedrich Wachowiak  Germany Luftwaffe 120 Erich Leie  Germany Luftwaffe 118 Franz-Josef Beerenbrock  Germany Luftwaffe 117 Hans-Joachim Birkner  Germany Luftwaffe 117 Jakob Norz  Germany Luftwaffe 117 Walter Oesau  Germany Luftwaffe 117 Heinz Wernicke  Germany Luftwaffe 117 August Lambert  Germany Luftwaffe 116 Wilhelm Crinius  Germany Luftwaffe 114 Werner Schröer  Germany Luftwaffe 114 Hans Dammers  Germany Luftwaffe 113 Berthold Korts  Germany Luftwaffe 113 Kurt Bühligen  Germany Luftwaffe 112 Helmut Lent  Germany Luftwaffe 110 Kurt Ubben  Germany Luftwaffe 110 Franz Woidich  Germany Luftwaffe 110 Reinhard Seiler  Germany Luftwaffe 109 Emil Bitsch  Germany Luftwaffe 108 Hans Hahn  Germany Luftwaffe 108 Bernhard Vechtel  Germany Luftwaffe 108 Viktor Bauer  Germany Luftwaffe 106 Werner Lucas  Germany Luftwaffe 106 Günther Lützow  Germany Luftwaffe 105 Adolf Galland  Germany Luftwaffe 104 Eberhard von Boremski  Germany Luftwaffe 104 Heinz Sachsenberg  Germany Luftwaffe 104 Hartmann Grasser  Germany Luftwaffe 103 Siegfried Freytag  Germany Luftwaffe 102 Friedrich Geisshardt  Germany Luftwaffe 102 Egon Mayer  Germany Luftwaffe 102 Max-Hellmuth Ostermann  Germany Luftwaffe 102 Josef Wurmheller  Germany Luftwaffe 102 Herbert Rollwage  Germany Luftwaffe 102 Werner Mölders  Germany Luftwaffe 101 Rudolf Miethig  Germany Luftwaffe 101 Josef Priller  Germany Luftwaffe 101 Ulrich Wernitz  Germany Luftwaffe 101 Paul-Heinrich Dähne  Germany Luftwaffe 99 Leopold Steinbatz  Germany Luftwaffe 99 Wolfgang Späte  Germany Luftwaffe 99 Heinrich Bartels  Germany Luftwaffe 99 Hans Schleef  Germany Luftwaffe 99 Horst Hannig  Germany Luftwaffe 98 Gustav Rödel  Germany Luftwaffe 98 Helmut Rüffler  Germany Luftwaffe 98 Helmut Mertens  Germany Luftwaffe 97 Hermann Schleinhege  Germany Luftwaffe 97 Diethelm von Eichel-Streiber  Germany Luftwaffe 96 Heinrich Höfemeier  Germany Luftwaffe 96 Siegfried Lemke  Germany Luftwaffe 96 Leopold Münster  Germany Luftwaffe 95 Ilmari Juutilainen  Finland Finnish Air Force 94 Rudolf Müller  Germany Luftwaffe 94 Rudolf Resch  Germany Luftwaffe 93 Heinrich Klöpper  Germany Luftwaffe 93 Helmut Bennemann  Germany Luftwaffe 93 Edmund Roßmann  Germany Luftwaffe 93 Siegfried Schnell  Germany Luftwaffe 93 Gerhard Loos  Germany Luftwaffe 92 Oskar Romm  Germany Luftwaffe 92 Anton Resch  Germany Luftwaffe 91 Georg Schentke  Germany Luftwaffe 91 Heinz Kemethmüller  Germany Luftwaffe 89 Josef Jennewein  Germany Luftwaffe 86 Anton Mader  Germany Luftwaffe 86 Ulrich Wöhnert  Germany Luftwaffe 86 Gerhard Köppen  Germany Luftwaffe 85 Walter Zellot  Germany Luftwaffe 85 Heinz Ewald  Germany Luftwaffe 84 Peter Kalden  Germany Luftwaffe 84 Werner Quast  Germany Luftwaffe 84 Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein  Germany Luftwaffe 83 Otto Weßling  Germany Luftwaffe 83 Hans Grünberg  Germany Luftwaffe 82 Emil Darjes  Germany Luftwaffe 82 Hans Götz  Germany Luftwaffe 82 Helmut Missner  Germany Luftwaffe 82 Franz Beyer  Germany Luftwaffe 81 Hugo Broch  Germany Luftwaffe 81 Willi Nemitz  Germany Luftwaffe 81 Wilhelm Philipp  Germany Luftwaffe 81 Rudolf Wagner  Germany Luftwaffe 81 Tetsuzo Iwamoto  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 80 Herbert Bachnick  Germany Luftwaffe 80 Otto Würfel  Germany Luftwaffe 79 Georg-Peter Eder  Germany Luftwaffe 78 Wolfgang Ewald  Germany Luftwaffe 78 Heinrich Krafft  Germany Luftwaffe 78 Max-Hermann Lücke  Germany Luftwaffe 78 Johann-Hermann Meier  Germany Luftwaffe 78 Karl-Gottfried Nordmann  Germany Luftwaffe 78 Alexander Preinfalk  Germany Luftwaffe 78 Hubertus von Bonin  Germany Luftwaffe 77 Josef Haiböck  Germany Luftwaffe 77 Walter Ohlrogge  Germany Luftwaffe 77 Hans-Joachim Kroschinski  Germany Luftwaffe 76 Maximilian Mayerl  Germany Luftwaffe 76 Alfred Teumer  Germany Luftwaffe 76 Edwin Thiel  Germany Luftwaffe 76 Hans Wind  Finland Finnish Air Force 75 Johannes Bunzek  Germany Luftwaffe 75 Gustav Frielinghaus  Germany Luftwaffe 75 Helmuth Grollmus  Germany Luftwaffe 75 Johann Pichler  Germany Luftwaffe 75 Hans Röhrig  Germany Luftwaffe 75 Waldemar Semelka  Germany Luftwaffe 75 Joachim Wandel  Germany Luftwaffe 75 Otto Gaiser  Germany Luftwaffe 74 Friedrich Haas  Germany Luftwaffe 74 Karl-Heinz Meltzer  Germany Luftwaffe 74 Wilhelm Herget  Germany Luftwaffe 73 Anton Lindner  Germany Luftwaffe 73 Gerhard Michalski  Germany Luftwaffe 73 Otto Schultz  Germany Luftwaffe 73 Shigeo Fukumoto  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 72 Klaus Mietusch  Germany Luftwaffe 72 Wilhelm Mink  Germany Luftwaffe 72 Karl Heinz Schnell  Germany Luftwaffe 72 Hans Fuß  Germany Luftwaffe 71 Adolf Glunz  Germany Luftwaffe 71 Alfred Heckmann  Germany Luftwaffe 71 Günther Scheel  Germany Luftwaffe 71 Shoichi Sugita  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 70 Karl Hoffmann  Germany Luftwaffe 70 Hermann-Friedrich Joppien  Germany Luftwaffe 70 Heinz Lange  Germany Luftwaffe 70 Rudi Linz  Germany Luftwaffe 70 Emil Omert  Germany Luftwaffe 70 Lutz-Wilhelm Burckhardt  Germany Luftwaffe 69 Armin Köhler  Germany Luftwaffe 69 Ernst Weismann  Germany Luftwaffe 69 Eugen-Ludwig Zweigart  Germany Luftwaffe 69 Kurt Dombacher  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Walter Höckner  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Herbert Huppertz  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Heinrich Jung  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Herbert Kaiser  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Richard Leppla  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Fritz Losigkeit  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Günther Freiherr von Maltzahn  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Hans Strelow  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Ernst Süß  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Otto Tange  Germany Luftwaffe 68 Fritz Dinger  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Herbert Findeisen  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Karl Fuchs  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Heinrich Füllgrabe  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Karl Hammerl  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Reinhold Hoffmann  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Erbo Graf von Kageneck  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Franz Schieß  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Franz Schwaiger  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Hubert Strassl  Germany Luftwaffe 67 Erwin Fleig  Germany Luftwaffe 66 Werner Streib  Germany Luftwaffe 66 Berthold Graßmuck  Germany Luftwaffe 65 Karl Kempf  Germany Luftwaffe 65 Manfred Meurer  Germany Luftwaffe 65 Lev Shestakov  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 65 Ivan Kozhedub  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 66 Bernd Gallowitsch  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Jürgen Harder  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Rolf Hermichen  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Walter Lindner  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Viktor Petermann  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Erhard Peters  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Günther Radusch  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Heinz Rökker  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Rudolf Schoenert  Germany Luftwaffe 64 Franz Götz  Germany Luftwaffe 63 Heinrich Hoffmann  Germany Luftwaffe 63 Gerhard Homuth  Germany Luftwaffe 63 Wilhelm Schilling  Germany Luftwaffe 63 Hermann Staiger  Germany Luftwaffe 63 Kurt Welter  Germany Luftwaffe 63 Heino Cordes  Germany Luftwaffe 62 Wilhelm Hübner  Germany Luftwaffe 62 Helmut Neumann  Germany Luftwaffe 62 Gerhard Beutin  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Hans-Ekkehard Bob  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Horst Carganico  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Franz Czech  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Alfred Franke  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Franz Hrdlicka  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Kurt Kelter  Germany Luftwaffe 60 August Mors  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Karl Munz  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Alfred Rauch  Germany Luftwaffe 60 Aleksandr Ivanovich Pokryshkin  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 59 Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt  Germany Luftwaffe 59 Walter Borchers  Germany Luftwaffe 59 Franz Eckerle  Germany Luftwaffe 59 Karl Steffen  Germany Luftwaffe 59 Paul Zorner  Germany Luftwaffe 59 Hermann Buchner  Germany Luftwaffe 58 Martin Becker  Germany Luftwaffe 58 Herbert Broennle  Germany Luftwaffe 58 Siegfried Engfer  Germany Luftwaffe 58 Herbert Friebel  Germany Luftwaffe 58 Wilhelm Freuwörth  Germany Luftwaffe 58 Gerhard Raht  Germany Luftwaffe 58 Hannes Trautloft  Germany Luftwaffe 58 Hiromichi Shinohara  Japan Imperial Japanese Army 58 Grigoriy Andreevich Rechkalov  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 58 Nikolay Dmitrievich Gulayev  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 57 Heinrich-Wilhelm Ahnert  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Konrad Bauer  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Walter Brandt  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Hugo Dahmer  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Kurt Ebener  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Adolf Kalkum  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Herbert Puschmann  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Johannes Seifert  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Hermann Wolf  Germany Luftwaffe 57 Constantin Cantacuzino  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 56 Manfred Eberwein  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Gustav Francsi  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Horst Haase  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Heinz Hackler  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Erich Hohagen  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Helmuth Holtz  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Eduard Isken  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Kurt Knappe  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Josef Kraft  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Helmut Schönfelder  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Günther Seeger  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Heinz Strüning  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Edmund Wagner  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Helmut Wick  Germany Luftwaffe 56 Eino Luukkanen  Finland Finnish Air Force 56 Karl-Heinz Bendert  Germany Luftwaffe 55 Wilhelm-Ferdinand Galland  Germany Luftwaffe 55 Herbert Bareuther  Germany Luftwaffe 55 Hans-Dieter Frank  Germany Luftwaffe 55 Gabriel Tautscher  Germany Luftwaffe 55 Takeo Okumura  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 54 Johann Badum  Germany Luftwaffe 54 Hans Ehlers  Germany Luftwaffe 54 August Geiger  Germany Luftwaffe 54 Wilhelm Hauswirth  Germany Luftwaffe 54 Heinz Leber  Germany Luftwaffe 54 Siegfried Simsch  Germany Luftwaffe 54 Heinz Vinke  Germany Luftwaffe 54 Kirill A. Yevstigneyev  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 53 Albert Brunner  Germany Luftwaffe 53 Heinz-Edgar Berres  Germany Luftwaffe 53 Hans-Joachim Heyer  Germany Luftwaffe 53 Willy Kientsch  Germany Luftwaffe 53 Carl Sattig  Germany Luftwaffe 53 Julius Meimberg  Germany Luftwaffe 53 Franz Barten  Germany Luftwaffe 52 Martin Drewes  Germany Luftwaffe 52 Alfred Gross  Germany Luftwaffe 52 Ludwig Häfner  Germany Luftwaffe 52 Heinz Knoke  Germany Luftwaffe 52 Rudolf Pflanz  Germany Luftwaffe 52 Friedrich Rupp  Germany Luftwaffe 52 Heinrich Wefers  Germany Luftwaffe 52 Hermann Greiner  Germany Luftwaffe 51 Werner Hoffmann  Germany Luftwaffe 51 Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weißenfeld  Germany Luftwaffe 51 Fritz Lüddecke  Germany Luftwaffe 51 Otto Schulz  Germany Luftwaffe 51 Satoru Anabuki  Japan Imperial Japanese Army 51 Yasuhiko Kuroe  Japan Imperial Japanese Army 51 Dmitri Hlinka  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 50 Hans-Joachim Jabs  Germany Luftwaffe 50 Emil Knittel  Germany Luftwaffe 50 Frank Liesendahl  Germany Luftwaffe 50 Herbert Lütje  Germany Luftwaffe 50 Karl Willius  Germany Luftwaffe 50 Heinz Arnold  Germany Luftwaffe 49 Rudolf Ehrenberger  Germany Luftwaffe 49 Reinhard Kollak  Germany Luftwaffe 49 Klaus Quaet-Faslem  Germany Luftwaffe 49 Richard Quante  Germany Luftwaffe 49 Friedrich Beckh  Germany Luftwaffe 48 Paul Gildner  Germany Luftwaffe 48 Johannes Hager  Germany Luftwaffe 47 Werner Stumpf  Germany Luftwaffe 48 Franz Schwaiger  Germany Luftwaffe 48 Heinz-Gerhard Vogt  Germany Luftwaffe 48 Ernst-Georg Drünkler  Germany Luftwaffe 47 Heinz Golinski  Germany Luftwaffe 47 Eckhard Hübner  Germany Luftwaffe 47 Herbert Kutscha  Germany Luftwaffe 47 Erich Schmidt  Germany Luftwaffe 47 Georg Seidel  Germany Luftwaffe 47 Alexandru Şerbănescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 47 Arseniy Vasilievich Vorozheikin  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 46 Aleksandr Ivanovich Koldunov  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 46 Nikolay Mikhailovich Skomorohov  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 46 Hans-Heinz Augenstein  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Ludwig Becker  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Wolfgang Böwing-Treuding  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Günter Fink  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Erwin Laskowski  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Karl Rammelt  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Karl Schnörrer  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Franz Schulte  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Paul Semrau  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Alfred Surau  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Kurt Tangermann  Germany Luftwaffe 46 Ernst Düllberg  Germany Luftwaffe 45 Rudolf Frank  Germany Luftwaffe 45 Gerhard Schöpfel  Germany Luftwaffe 45 Franz Stigler  Germany Luftwaffe 45 Otto Vinzent  Germany Luftwaffe 45 Ion Milu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 45 Urho Lehtovaara  Finland Finnish Air Force 44½ Mato Dukovac  Croatia Croatian Air Force 44 Oiva Tuominen  Finland Finnish Air Force 44 Hans Frese  Germany Luftwaffe 44 Karl-Wilhelm Hofmann  Germany Luftwaffe 44 Reinhold Knacke  Germany Luftwaffe 44 Wilhelm Steinmann  Germany Luftwaffe 44 Walther Wever  Germany Luftwaffe 44 Vladimir Bobrov  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 43 Karl Borris  Germany Luftwaffe 43 Ludwig Franzisket  Germany Luftwaffe 43 Hubert Mütherich  Germany Luftwaffe 43 Josef Pöhs  Germany Luftwaffe 43 Dietrich Schmidt  Germany Luftwaffe 43 Olli Puhakka  Finland Finnish Air Force 42 Norbert Hannig  Germany Luftwaffe 42 Jürgen Brocke  Germany Luftwaffe 42 Tudor Greceanu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 42 Rudolf Schmidt  Germany Luftwaffe 42 Herbert Schramm  Germany Luftwaffe 42 Robert Olejnik  Germany Luftwaffe 41 Werner Baake  Germany Luftwaffe 41 Leopold Fellerer  Germany Luftwaffe 41 Wilhelm Balthasar  Germany Luftwaffe 40 Richard I. Bong  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 40 Rudolf Busch  Germany Luftwaffe 40 Peter Bremer  Germany Luftwaffe 40 Wolf-Dietrich Huy  Germany Luftwaffe 40 Hermann Neuhoff  Germany Luftwaffe 40 Günter Steinhausen  Germany Luftwaffe 40 Marmaduke 'Pat' Pattle  South Africa Royal Air Force 40 Iyozo Hujita  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 39 Eckart-Wilhelm von Bonin  Germany Luftwaffe 39 Cvitan Galić  Croatia Croatian Air Force 38 Ernst Borngen  Germany Luftwaffe 38 Detlev Rohwer  Germany Luftwaffe 38 Eduard Tratt  Germany Luftwaffe 38 James Edgar "Johnnie" Johnson  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 38 Thomas B. McGuire  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 38 Ivan Babak  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 37 Klaus Neumann  Germany Luftwaffe 37 Heinz Bretnutz  Germany Luftwaffe 37 Waldemar Radener  Germany Luftwaffe 37 Maximilian Volke  Germany Luftwaffe 37 Sergey Luganski  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 37 Hiroyoshi Nishizawa  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 36 Olavi Puro  Finland Finnish Air Force 36 Nils Katajainen  Finland Finnish Air Force 35½ Gunther Bertram  Germany Luftwaffe 35 Petr Hnido  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 34 Paul Brandt  Germany Luftwaffe 34 David McCampbell  United States U.S. Navy 34 Toshio Ota  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 34 Ivan Stepanenko  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 33 Pierre Clostermann  France Free French Air Force;Royal Air Force 33 Heinz Beyer  Germany Luftwaffe 33 Lauri Nissinen  Finland Finnish Air Force 32½ Brendan Eamon Fergus "Paddy" Finucane  Ireland Royal Air Force 32 Ján Režňák  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force[4] 32 Kyösti Karhila  Finland Finnish Air Force 32 Sugino Kazuo  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 32 Isami Kashiwade  Japan Imperial Japanese Army 32 Adolph 'Sailor' Malan  South Africa Royal Air Force 32 George F. "Buzz" Beurling  Canada Royal Air Force 31⅓ Hans-Karl Mayer  Germany Luftwaffe 31 Alexandr Kumanichkin  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 31 Jorma Karhunen  Finland Finnish Air Force 31 Dezső Szentgyörgyi  Hungary Royal Hungarian Air Force 30½ Amet-Han Sultan  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 30 William Vale  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 30 Franz Blazytko  Germany Luftwaffe 30 Max Bucholz  Germany Luftwaffe 30 Erich Bartz  Germany Luftwaffe 30 Friedrich-Karl "Nasen" Müller  Germany Luftwaffe 30 Kaneyoshi Mutoh  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 30 Tateo Kato  Japan Imperial Japanese Army 30? Ryotaro Jobou  Japan Imperial Japanese Army 30 Emil Vesa  Finland Finnish Air Force 29½ Walter Adolph  Germany Luftwaffe 29 Robert Roland Stanford Tuck  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 30 Dezső Szentgyörgyi  Hungary Hungarian Air Force 29 Bob Braham  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 29 Clive Caldwell  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 28½ Tapio Järvi  Finland Finnish Air Force 28½ Izidor Kovárik  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force 28 Hans-Heinrich Koenig  Germany Luftwaffe 28 Ernst Andres  Germany Luftwaffe 28 Alfred Burk  Germany Luftwaffe 28 Anton Benning  Germany Luftwaffe 28 "Ginger" Lacey  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 28 Francis "Gabby" Gabreski  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 28 Gregory "Pappy" Boyington  United States U.S. Marine Corps 28 Saburō Sakai  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 28 (including shared) Colin Falkland Gray  New Zealand Royal Air Force 27½ Neville Duke  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 27 Karl Beckmann  Germany Luftwaffe 27 Emil Clade  Germany Luftwaffe 27 Constantin Rozariu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 27 Robert S. Johnson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 27 Charles H. MacDonald  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 27 Junichi Sasai  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 27 Sadaaki Akamatsu  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 27 George E. Preddy, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 26.83 Eric Lock  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 26½ Nobuo Ogiya  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 26 Ján Gerthoffer  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force 26 Klaus Alakoski  Finland Finnish Air Force 26 Joseph J. Foss  United States U.S. Marine Corps 26 Lajos Tóth  Hungary Royal Hungarian Air Force 26 Russell Bannock  Canada RCAF 25½ Egon Albrecht  Germany Luftwaffe 25 Ludwig Bellof  Germany Luftwaffe 25 Wolfgang Lippert  Germany Luftwaffe 25 Robert M. Hanson  United States U.S. Marine Corps 25 Boris Safonov  Soviet Union Soviet Naval Aviation 25 Naoshi Kanno  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 25 Frank Reginald Carey  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 25 John C. Meyer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 24 Cecil E. Harris  United States U.S. Navy 24 Raymond H. Littge  United States U.S. Air Force 23½ Marcel Albert  France Free French Air Force 23 Douglas Bader  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 23 Eugene A. Valencia  United States U.S. Navy 23 Kalevi Tervo  Finland Finnish Air Force 23 Jorma Saarinen  Finland Finnish Air Force 23 Lance C. Wade  United States Royal Air Force 23 Horst Patuschka  Germany Luftwaffe 22 Eero Kinnunen  Finland Finnish Air Force 22½ David C. Schilling  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 22½ Rolf Pingel  Germany Luftwaffe 22 Teresio Vittorio Martinoli  Italy Regia Aeronautica 22 Leonardo Ferrulli  Italy Regia Aeronautica 22 Fritz Müller  Germany Luftwaffe 22 Artur Beese  Germany Luftwaffe 22 Edward F. Charles  Canada RCAF 22 Alan Christopher Deere  New Zealand Royal Air Force 22 Gerald R. Johnson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 22 Neel E. Kearby  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 22 Jay T. Robbins  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 22 Ion Mucenica  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 22 Dominic S. Gentile  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 21.83 Donald Kingaby  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 21 Antti Tani  Finland Finnish Air Force 21½ William V. Crawford-Crompton  New Zealand Royal Air Force 21½ Raymond Brown Hesselyn  New Zealand Royal New Zealand Air Force 21½ Fred J. Christensen  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 21½ Raymond S. Wetmore  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 21¼ Branse Burbridge  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 21 Archie McKellar  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 21 Jean Demozay  France Royal Air Force 21 Franco Lucchini  Italy Regia Aeronautica 21 Theodor Rossiwall  Germany Luftwaffe 21 Franz von Werra  Germany Luftwaffe 21 John J. Voll  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 21 Kenneth A. Walsh  United States U.S. Marine Corps 21 Paavo Myllylä  Finland Finnish Air Force 21 Walker 'Bud' Melville Mahurin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 20.75 Evan Mackie  New Zealand Royal Air Force 20 Helmut-Felix Bolz  Germany Luftwaffe 20 Helmut Baudach  Germany Luftwaffe 20 Rudolph Anter  Germany Luftwaffe 20 Paul Becker  Germany Luftwaffe 20 Hans Berschwinger  Germany Luftwaffe 20 Michael Crossley  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 20 Donald N. Aldrich  United States U.S. Marine Corps 20 Thomas J. Lynch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 20 Henry W. McLeod  Canada RCAF 20 Robert B. Westbrook  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 20 Cristea Chirvasuta  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 20 Geoffrey Allard  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 19 Viktor Pyötsiä  Finland Finnish Air Force 19½ Väinö Suhonen  Finland Finnish Air Force 19½ Franco Bordoni  Italy Regia Aeronautica 19 Roy Dutton  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 19 Luigi Gorrini  Italy Regia Aeronautica 19 John "Cat's Eyes" Cunningham  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 19 Glenn E. Duncan  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 19 Patrick D. Fleming  United States U.S. Navy 19 Cornelius N. Nooy  United States U.S. Navy 19 John Lucian Smith  United States U.S. Marine Corps 19 Alexander Vraciu  United States U.S. Navy 19 Erik Teromaa  Finland Finnish Air Force 19 Constantin Lungulescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 19 Stanisław Skalski  Poland Polish Air Force/RAF 18.91 Arthur J. Benko  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 18½ Marion E. Carl  United States U.S. Marine Corps 18½ Lauri Pekuri  Finland Finnish Air Force 18½ Leonard K. Carson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 18½ Glenn T. Eagleson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 18½ Wilbur J. Thomas  United States U.S. Marine Corps 18½ Wakamatsu Yukiyoshi  Japan Imperial Japanese Army 18+ Karel Kuttelwascher  Czechoslovakia Royal Air Force 18 Harry von Bülow-Bothkamp  Germany Luftwaffe 18 Witold Urbanowicz  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 18 Walter C. Beckham  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 18 Herschel H. Green  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 18 John C. "Pappy" Herbst  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 18 Charles H. Older  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 18 Takemizu Takeo  Japan Imperial Japanese Navy 18 Pierre Le Gloan  France French Air Force 18 Hubert Zemke  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 17.75 John B. England  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 17½ Duane W. Beeson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 17⅓ Jouko Huotari  Finland Finnish Air Force 17½ John F. Thornell  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 17¼ Henry W. Brown  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 17.2 Rudolf Božík  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force 17 Ugo Drago  Italy Regia Aeronautica 17 William "Willie" McKnight  Canada Royal Air Force 17 Josef Frantisek  Czechoslovakia Royal Air Force 17 Jorma Sarvanto  Finland Finnish Air Force 17 Yrjö Turkka  Finland Finnish Air Force 17 Gerald W. Johnson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 17 James S. Varnell, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 17 Bolesław Gładych  Poland Polish Air Force/U.S. Army Air Forces 17 Keith Truscott  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 17 Alois Vasatko  Czechoslovakia Royal Air Force 17 Eugeniusz Horbaczewski  Poland Polish Air Force/RAF 16½ William T. Klersey  Canada RCAF 16½ Aulis Lumme  Finland Finnish Air Force 16½ James MacLachlan  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 16½ Eero Riihikallio  Finland Finnish Air Force 16½ Nigel Cullen  Australia Royal Air Force 16½ John T. Godfrey  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 16⅓ Adrian Goldsmith  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 16¼ Clarence E. Anderson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 16¼ Paul Galland  Germany Luftwaffe 16 Les Clisby  Australia Royal Air Force 16 Franjo Dzal  Croatia Croatian Air Force 16 Douglas Baker  United States U.S. Navy 16 James Francis Edwards  Canada RCAF 16 Eero Halonen  Finland Finnish Air Force 16 Bill Harris  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 16 Robert W. McNair  Canada RCAF 16 John Plagis  Rhodesia Royal Air Force 16 Ioan Dicezare  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 16 Ira C. Kepford  United States U.S. Navy 16 Charles R. Stimpson  United States U.S. Navy 16 Stan Turner  Canada RCAF 16 George Welch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 16 Edmond Marin la Meslée  France French Air Force 16 Mario Visintini  Italy Regia Aeronautica 16 Vasile Gavriliu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 16 Raymond Harries  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 15 Ernest Mason  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 15+ John Lloyd Waddy  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 15½ Donald M. Beerbower  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15½ Richard A. Peterson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15½ William T. Whisner, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15½ James E. Swett  United States U.S. Marine Corps 15½ David Lee "Tex" Hill  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15¼ František Cyprich  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force 15 John "Jack" Frost  South Africa South African Air Force 15 Stoyan Stoyanov  Bulgaria Royal Bulgarian Air Force 15 Martti Alho  Finland Finnish Air Force 15 Ljudevit Bencetic  Croatia Croatian Air Force 15 Paterson Hughes  Australia Royal Air Force 15 Geoffrey Page  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 15 Jack T. Bradley  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15 Samuel J. Brown  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15 Edward "Porky" Cragg  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15 Kenneth H. Dahlberg  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15 William D. Dunham  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15 Robert W. Foy  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15 Ralph K. Hofer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15 Cyril F. Homer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 15 Harold L. Spears  United States U.S. Marine Corps 15 Dan Vizanti  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 15 Donald H. Bochkay  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14.84 Donald J. Blakeslee  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14½ John D. Landers  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14½ Aaro Nuorala  Finland Finnish Air Force 14½ Joseph H. Powers, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14½ Johnnie Checketts  New Zealand Royal New Zealand Air Force 14½ Henry Brown  United States U.S. Army Air Force 14½ Charles Scherf  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 14½ Mario Bellagambi  Italy Regia Aeronautica 14 Svein Heglund  Norway Royal Air Force 14 Sophus Baagoe  Germany Luftwaffe 14 Günther Wegmann  Germany Luftwaffe 14 František Brezina  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force 14 Bruce W. Carr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14 Robert C. Curtis  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14 Robert M. DeHaven  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14 Archie G. Donahue  United States U.S. Marine Corps 14 Wallace N. Emmer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14 James A. Goodson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14 Arthur R. Hawkins  United States U.S. Navy 14 Arthur F. Jeffrey  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14 Edward O. McComas  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14 Elbert S. McCuskey  United States U.S. Navy 14 Daniel T. Roberts, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 14 John L. Wirth  United States U.S. Navy 14 William Henry Franklin  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 13½ George C. Duncan  United States U.S. Navy 13½ Pekka Kokko  Finland Finnish Air Force 13½ Heimo Lampi  Finland Finnish Air Force 13½ Roger W. Mehle  United States U.S. Navy 13½ Donald J. Strait  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13½ George Carpenter  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13.4 Donald S. Bryan  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13.3 Helmut Lennartz  Germany Luftwaffe 13 Darrell S. Cramer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 John Wong Pan-Yang  United States Chinese Nationalist Air Force(USA-born volunteer) 13 James L. Brooks  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 Jan Zumbach  Poland Polish Air Force 13 Safet Boskic  Croatia Croatian Air Force 13 Mervyn Shipard  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 13 Daniel A. Carmichael, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 13 James N. Cupp  United States U.S. Marine Corps 13 Clyde B. East  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 Robert E. Galer  United States U.S. Marine Corps 13 John F. Hampshire  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 Bruce K. Holloway  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 William P. Marontate  United States U.S. Marine Corps 13 Willard. W. Millikan  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 Glennon T. Moran  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 Robert Neale (pilot)  United States AVG 13 Robin Olds  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 James O'Meara  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 13 Yrjö Pallasvuo  Finland Finnish Air Force 13 Harry A. Parker  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 Roy W. Rushing  United States U.S. Navy 13 Edward O. Shaw  United States U.S. Marine Corps 13 AJ "Jackie" Sewell  United Kingdom Fleet Air Arm 13 Robert W. Stephens  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 John R. Strane  United States U.S. Navy 13 Robert Lee Scott, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 Wendell V. Twelves  United States U.S. Navy 13 Anthony Charles Bartley  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 13 Felix D. Williamson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 13 Tiberiu Vinca  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 13 Ioan Maga  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 13 Henryk Pietrzak  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 12½ Lasse Aaltonen  Finland Finnish Air Force 12½ Ted Thorn  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 12½ Hugo Armstrong  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 12½ Andrew "Nicky" Barr  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 12½ Tony Gaze  Australia Royal Air Force 12½ Lowell K. Brueland  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12½ Kenneth D. Frazier  United States U.S. Marine Corps 12½ David Charles "Foob" Fairbanks  United States RCAF 12½ Eino Koskinen  Finland Finnish Air Force 12½ Onni Paronen  Finland Finnish Air Force 12½ Urho Sarjamo  Finland Finnish Air Force 12½ Per-Erik Sovelius  Finland Finnish Air Force 12½ James C. Stewart  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12½ Quince L. Brown  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12⅓ Luigi Baron  Italy Regia Aeronautica 12 Mato Culinovic  Croatia Croatian Air Force 12 Eduard Martinko  Croatia Croatian Air Force 12 Veca Mikovic  Croatia Croatian Air Force 12 Zlatko Stipcic  Croatia Croatian Air Force 12 Marian Pisarek  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 12 John Dundas  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 12 John Freeborn  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 12 Jozef Štauder  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force 12 Pavol Zeleňák  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force 12 Bruce Bretherton  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 12 Charles Crombie  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 12 Peter Turnbull  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 12 John Yarra  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 12 Anton Matúšek  Slovak Republic Slovak Air Force 12 Leo Ahokas  Finland Finnish Air Force 12 Michael Brezas  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Levi R. Chase  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Clement M. Craig  United States U.S. Navy 12 David B. Eastham  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Loren D. Everton  United States U.S. Marine Corps 12 Luigi Giannella  Italy Regia Aeronautica 12 George W. Gleason  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Leroy E. Harris  United States U.S. Navy 12 Coatsworth B. Head, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Roger R. Hedrick  United States U.S. Navy 12 William E. Henry  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Howard D. Hively  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Kenneth G. Ladd  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Lydia Litvak  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 12 William J. Masoner, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 12 Pierce W. McKennon  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Robert W. Moore  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Michael J. Quirk  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Attilio Sanson  Italy Regia Aeronautica 12 LeRoy A. Schreiber  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Harold E. Segal  United States U.S. Marine Corps 12 James A. Shirley  United States U.S. Navy 12 Norman C. Skogstad  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 William J. Sloan  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Giorgio Solaroli di Briona  Italy Regia Aeronautica 12 Eugene A. Trowbridge  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Richard E. Turner  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 James A. Watkins  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Richard L. West  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 12 Nicholas Megura  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11.84 George R. Carr  United States U.S. Navy 11½ James A. Clark, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11½ Paul A. Conger  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11½ Olin E. Gilbert  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11½ William T. Halton  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11½ William J. Hovde  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11½ John A. Kirla, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11½ William N. Snider  United States U.S. Marine Corps 11½ Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11½ Liu Chi-Sheng /Liu Zhesheng  China Chinese Nationalist Air Force 11.3 Howard Mayers  Australia Royal Air Force 11.3 Louis H. Norley  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11.3 Philip C. DeLong  United States U.S. Marine Corps 11.2 Richard John Cork  United Kingdom Fleet Air Arm 11 Ian Bedford Nesbitt Russell  Australia Royal Air Force 11 Albin Starc  Croatia Croatian Air Force 11 Josip Helebrant  Croatia Croatian Air Force 11 Stjepan Martinasevic  Croatia Croatian Air Force 11 Harold W. Bauer  United States U.S. Marine Corps 11 John T. Blackburn  United States U.S. Navy 11 William A. Dean, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 11 Geoff Fisken  New Zealand Royal New Zealand Air Force 11 Carl M. Frantz  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 James B. French  United States U.S. Navy 11 Robert J. Goebel  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Phillip L. Kirkwood  United States U.S. Navy 11 John B. Lawler  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Hemmo Leino  Finland Finnish Air Force 11 Francis J. Lent  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Leland P. Molland  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 William L. Leverette  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 John S. Loisel  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Wayne L. Lowry  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Carlo Magnaghi  Italy Regia Aeronautica 11 Charles M. Mallory  United States U.S. Navy 11 Alexei Petrovich Maresiev  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 11 Charles M. McCorkle  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Norman L. McDonald  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Hamilton McWhorter III  United States U.S. Navy 11 John W. Mitchell  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Urho Nieminen  Finland Finnish Air Force 11 James V. Reber, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 11 Elmer W. Richardson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Robert H. Riddle  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 James F. Rigg  United States U.S. Navy 11 Donald E. Runyon  United States U.S. Navy 11 Donald H. Sapp  United States U.S. Marine Corps 11 Murray Shubin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Cornelius Smith, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Giorgio Solaroli di Briona  Italy Regia Aeronautica 11 Kenneth C. Sparks  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 11 Richard E. Stanbrook  United States U.S. Navy 11 Virgil K. Meroney  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Stanley W. Vejtasa  United States U.S. Navy 11 Mario Veronesi  Italy Regia Aeronautica 11 Ioan Malacescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 11 Teodor Zabava  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 11 George T. Burgard  United States AVG 10.75 Frank Q. O'Conner  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10.75 Charles F. Anderson, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10½ Marshall U. Beebe  United States U.S. Navy 10½ George F. Ceulleers  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10½ Jack E. Conger  United States U.S. Marine Corps 10½ George A. Doersch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10½ Niilo Erkinheimo  Finland Finnish Air Force 10½ William J. Hovde  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10½ Martti Kalima  Finland Finnish Air Force 10½ Kullervo Lahtela  Finland Finnish Air Force 10½ Raymond H. Littge  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10½ Kai Metsola  Finland Finnish Air Force 10½ Edward Rector  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10½ Russell E. Reiserer  United States U.S. Navy 10½ John A. Storch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10½ John C. Symmes  United States U.S. Navy 10½ John V. Newkirk  United States AVG 10½ Kai Metsola  Finland Finnish Air Force 10½ Eino Peltola  Finland Finnish Air Force 10½ Robert E. Murray  United States U.S. Navy 10.4 Ralph E. Elliot  United States U.S. Navy 10.3 Fred W. Glover  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10.3 Bobby Gibbes  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 10¼ William D. McGarry  United States AVG 10¼ Robert W Aschenbrenner  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Wilfred Arthur  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 10 Virgil Brennan  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 10 Colin Parkinson  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 10 Frank B. Baldwin  United States U.S. Marine Corps 10 Wayne K. Blickenstaff  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Archie Boyd  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 10 Joseph E. Broadhead  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Carl A. Brown, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 10 Thaddeus T. Coleman  United States U.S. Navy 10 William K. Giroux  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Walter J. Goehausen, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Ernest A. Harris  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Iro Ilk  Germany Luftwaffe 10 Alwin M. Juchheim, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Veikko Karu  Finland Finnish Air Force 10 Mauno Kirjonen  Finland Finnish Air Force 10 Ahti Laitinen  Finland Finnish Air Force 10 Herbert H. Long  United States U.S. Marine Corps 10 Edward E. Lines  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Thomas H. Mann, Jr.  United States U.S. Marine Corps 10 Joseph L. Mansker  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Harris E. Mitchell  United States U.S. Navy 10 Mikko Pasila  Finland Finnish Air Force 10 Steve Pisanos  Greece Royal Air Force/U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Robert J. Rankin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Thomas H. Reidy  United States U.S. Navy 10 Andrew J. Reynolds  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Robert L. Scott, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Arthur Singer, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 10 John M. Smith  United States U.S. Navy 10 Claudio Solaro  Italy Regia Aeronautica 10 Paul M. Stanch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Josef Stehlík  Czechoslovakia Royal Air Force 10 Elliot Summer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 James S. Swope  United States U.S. Navy 10 Ennio Tarantola  Italy Regia Aeronautica 10 Adriano Visconti  Italy Regia Aeronautica 10 Robert V. Westermark  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 10 Ion Dobran  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 10 Nicolae Polizu-Micsunesti  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 10 Dumitru Ilie  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 10 Fletcher E. Adams  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 ½ Ernest E. Bankey, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 ½ Leonard J. Check  United States U.S. Navy 9 ½ Edward Coate  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 9 ½ Ernest C. Fiebelkorn  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 ½ Aleksander Gabszewicz  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 9 ½ Michał Maciejowski  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 9 ½ Dale F. Spencer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 ½ Robert C. Coats  United States U.S. Navy 9 ⅓ Mirosław Ferić  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 9 ⅓ Henryk Szczęsny  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 9 ⅓ Charles R. Bond  United States AVG 9 ¼ Stephen W. Andrew  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 William M. Banks  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 ½ Lee "Buddy" Archer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Aleksander Chudek  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 9 Emanuele Annoni  Italy Regia Aeronautica 9 Jan Falkowski  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 9 Roderick Bowes  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 9 James Timothy Kearney  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 9 Edgar R. Bassett  United States U.S. Navy 9 Norman R. Berree  United States U.S. Navy 9 William R. Bland  United States U.S. Navy 9 George E. Bostwick  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Mark K. Bright  United States U.S. Navy 9 Paul D. Buie  United States U.S. Navy 9 Henry A. Carey, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 9 Frederick F. Champlin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Frank J. Collins  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 William M. Collins, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 9 Richard L. Cormier  United States U.S. Navy 9 Louis E. Curdes  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Perry A. Dahl  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Jefferson J. DeBlanc  United States U.S. Marine Corps 9 Richard W. Dunkin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Richard T. Eastmond  United States U.S. Navy 9 Robert A. Elder  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Eugene H. Emmons  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Grover E. Fanning  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Edward L. Feightner  United States U.S. Navy 9 Sylvan Feld  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Joseph M. Forester  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Marvin J. Franger  United States U.S. Navy 9 Doris C. Freeman  United States U.S. Navy 9 Kenneth W. Gallup  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Thomas S. Harris  United States U.S. Navy 9 Frederick R. Haviland, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Allen E. Hill  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Frank D. Hurlburt  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 George C. Kiser  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Joseph J. Lesicka  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Christopher L. Magee  United States U.S. Marine Corps 9 Louis A. Menard, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 9 Virgil K. Merony  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Stanley B. Morrill  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Walter Omiccioli  Italy Regia Aeronautica 9 Edmund F. Overend  United States U.S. Marine Corps 9 Lloyd J. Overfield  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Joel B. Paris III  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Harvey P. Picken  United States U.S. Navy 9 Eugene D. Redmond  United States U.S. Navy 9 William N. Reed  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Daniel R. Rehm, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 9 Eugene P. Roberts  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Hans-Ulrich Rudel  Germany Luftwaffe 9 Meryl M. Smith  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Robert T. Smith  United States AVG 9 Natalino Stabile  Italy Regia Aeronautica 9 James S. Stewart  United States U.S. Navy 9 John S. Stewart  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Franklin C. Thomas, Jr.  United States U.S. Marine Corps 9 Arthur Van Haren, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 9 Benjamin F. Warmer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Robert H. White  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Norman. F Williams  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 9 Judge E. Wolfe  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 Gheorghe Popescu Ciocanel  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 9 Stefan Greceanu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 9 Gheorghe Cocebas  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 9 Andrei Radulescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 9 Charles E. Watts  United States U.S. Navy 8.75 Zdzisław Henneberg  Poland Polish Air Force 8½ Stanisław Brzeski  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 8½ Wacław Król  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 8½ John L. Banks  United States U.S. Navy 8½ William E. Bryan, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ James B. Cain  United States U.S. Navy 8½ Charles J. Cesky  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Oscar I. Chenoweth  United States U.S. Navy 8½ Arthur Chin /Chen Ruitian  United States Chinese Nationalist Air Force(USA-born volunteer) 8½ Frank A. Cutler  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Carl C. Foster  United States U.S. Navy 8½ John F. Gray  United States U.S. Navy 8½ Everett G. Hargreaves  United States U.S. Navy 8½ Thomas L. Hayes, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ John H. Hoefker  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Otto D. Jenkins  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Arthur G. Johnson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Frank L. Lawlor  United States AVG 8½ Gregory K. Loesch  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8½ Carl J. Luksic  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Donald McDowell  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Bernard J. McGrattan  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Sanford K. Moats  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ John L. Morgan, Jr.  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8½ George W. Pigman  United States U.S. Navy 8½ Claude W. Plant  United States U.S. Navy 8½ Albert L. Schlegel  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8½ Larry R. Self  United States U.S. Navy 8½ Antoni Głowacki  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 8⅓ Eugeniusz Szaposznikow  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 8⅓ John Fraser Drummond  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 8⅓ James H. Howard  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8⅓ Franklin T. Gabriel  United States U.S. Navy 8¼ George B. McMillan  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8¼ Adolf Pietrasiak  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 8.1 Erich Mix  Germany Luftwaffe 8 Erich Büttner  Germany Luftwaffe 8 Hans-Dieter Weihs  Germany Luftwaffe 8 John M. Ainlay  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 John R. Alison  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 David W. Allen (USAAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Frederick A. Bardshar  United States U.S. Navy 8 Lloyd G. Barnard  United States U.S. Navy 8 Walter G. Benz, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 William J. Bonneau  United States U.S. Navy 8 Robert J. Booth  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Roy O. Burnett, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 8 Walter J. Carroll, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 William N. Case  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 J. D. Collinsworth  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Arthur W. Cruikshank  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Fernley H. Damstrom  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 John F. Dobbin  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 Landis E. Doner  United States U.S. Navy 8 Frederick J. Dorsch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Walter F. Duke  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 William C. Edens  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 John L. Elder  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Eric A. Evenson  United States U.S. Navy 8 Arthur C. Fielder, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Francis M. Fleming  United States U.S. Navy 8 James M. Fowle  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 William A. Gardner  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Frank Gaunt  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Francis R. Gerard  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Clement D. Gile  United States U.S. Navy 8 Maxwell H. Glenn  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Mathew M. Gordon  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Richard J. Griffin  United States U.S. Navy 8 Leroy V. Grosshuesch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Fred E. Gutt  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 Mayo A. Hadden, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 8 Frederick A. Harris  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Kenneth F. Hart  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Edwin J. Herman (or Hernan), Jr.  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 George L. Hollowell  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 Angus Horne  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 8 Jack E. Ilfrey  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Michael J. Jackson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Byron M. Johnson  United States U.S. Navy 8 John M. Johnson  United States U.S. Navy 8 John L. Jones  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Claiborne H. Kinnard  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Charles M. Kunz  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 William N. Leonard  United States U.S. Navy 8 William H. Lewis  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Elvin L. Lindsay  United States U.S. Navy 8 Thomas E. Maloney  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 William R. Maxwell  United States U.S. Navy 8 Earl May, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 8 Johnnie G. Miller  United States U.S. Navy 8 William W. Momyer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Douglas W. Mulcahey  United States U.S. Navy 8 Alva C. Murphy  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Joseph L. Narr  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 George P. Novotny  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 9 John G. O'Neill  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Edward M. Owen  United States U.S. Navy 8 Nathan T. Post  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 Luther D. Prater, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 8 Edward F. Roddy  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Robert R. Rowland  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Philip Sangermano (FO)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Charles W. Sawyer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Glenn D. Schiltz Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 David A. Scott  United States U.S. Navy 8 Dale E. Shafer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Robert M. Shaw  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 William A. Shomo  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Robert H. Smith  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Gordon A. Stanley  United States U.S. Navy 8 Arland Stanton  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 John L. Sublett  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 James B. Tapp  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Philip E. Tovrea  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 James O. Tyler  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 John W. Vogt, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Boyd D. "Buzz" Wagner  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Victor E. Warford  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Arthur T. Warner  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 Charles E. Weaver  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 8 Rex Kerslake Wilson  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 8 Theodore H. Winters, Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 8 Donald K. Yost  United States U.S. Marine Corps 8 Dan Scurtu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 8 Traian Dirjan  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 8 Eugen Cameceanu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 8 Mihai Mihordea  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 8 Ioan Panaite  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 8 Joseph L. Lang  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7.83 Everett W. Stewart  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7.83 Józef Jeka  Poland Polish Air Forces/Royal Air Force 7½ Henryk Pietrzak  Poland Polish Air Forces/Royal Air Force 7½ Howard M. Burriss  United States U.S. Navy 7½ Kenneth J. Dahms  United States U.S. Navy 7½ Harry W. Brown  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7 Noel le Chevalier Agazarian  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 7 Hugh C. Godefroy  Netherlands/ Canada Royal Air Force/RCAF 7 Walter Prues  Germany Luftwaffe 7 Alfred Ambs  Germany Luftwaffe 7 Karl-Heinz Becker  Germany Luftwaffe 7 Franz Köster  Germany Luftwaffe 7 Helmut Eberspächer  Germany Luftwaffe 7 Roger Haberman  United States U.S. Marine Corps 7 Bolesław Drobiński  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 7 Marian Bełc  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 7 Stanisław Karubin  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 7 Furio Niclot Doglio  Italy Regia Aeronautica 7 Liu Chui-Kang /Liu Cuigang  China Chinese Nationalist Air Force 7 Sydney S. Woods  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7 William Anderson  Sweden U.S. Army Air Forces 7 Robert A. Dibb  United States U.S. Navy 7 Edward "Butch" O'Hare  United States U.S. Navy 7 Sammy A. Pierce  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7 Arval J. Roberson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7 Ferruccio Serafini  Italy Regia Aeronautica 7 Ernest Shipman  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7 Robert E. Woody  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7 Gordon M. Graham  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7 Bert W. Marshall, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 7 Iosif Moraru  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 7 Parsifal Stefanescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 7 Constantin Pomut  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 7 Liviu Muresan  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 7 Giuseppe Oblach  Italy Regia Aeronautica 7 Karol Pniak  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 6.75 Basil Gerald "Stapme" Stapleton  South Africa Royal Air Force 6.66 Russell Foskett  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 6½ Theo Osterkamp  Germany Luftwaffe 6 GianLino Baschirotto  Italy Regia Aeronautica 6 Remy Van Lierde  Belgium Royal Air Force 6 James B. Dalglish  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 6 Livio Bassi  Italy Regia Aeronautica 6 Yekaterina Budanova  Soviet Union Soviet Air Force 6 Guido Fibbia  Italy Regia Aeronautica 6 Norman E. Olson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 6 Fred R. Haviland, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 6 James P. Hagerstrom  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 6 Le Yi-Chin / Le Yiqin  China Chinese Nationalist Air Force 6 William B. Freeman  United States U.S. Marine Corps 6 Ludwik Paszkiewicz  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 6 James Henry Whalen  Canada RCAF 6 Stefan Janus  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 6 Norman W. Mollard, Jr.[7]  United States U.S. Navy 6 Henry S. Bille  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 6 Lynn E. Witt, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 6 William E. Whalen  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 6 Horia Agarici  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 6 Florin Alexiu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 6 Constantin Ursachi  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 6 Ioan Vornica  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 6 Radu Reinek  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 6 Gheorghe Tutuianu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 6 Dean (Diz) S. Laird  United States U.S. Navy 5¾ Gordon B. Compton  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5½ Norman J. Fortier  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5.83 Walter J. Koraleski  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5.54 William Cundy  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 5½ Charles W. Lenfest  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5½ Leslie D. Minchew  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5½ Laurence Stark  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 5½ Kazimierz Rutkowski  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 5½ Stefan Witorzeńć  Poland Polish Air Force/Royal Air Force 5½ James E. Duffy, Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5.2 Raymond B. Myers  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William J. Cullerton  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Hayden A. "Buck" Gregory  United States U.S. Navy 5 Joseph Heim  Germany Luftwaffe 5 Alfred Schreiber  Germany Luftwaffe 5 Ulrich Steinhilper  Germany Luftwaffe 5 Pentti Tilli  Finland Finnish Air Force 5 Robert W. Abernathy  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Fred T. Ackerman  United States U.S. Navy 5 Oliver L. Adair  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert H. Adams (USAAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John W. Agnew  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William H. Allen (USAAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Stuart C. Alley Jr  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Ernest J. Ambort  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert H. Ammon  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Benjamin C. Amsden  United States U.S. Navy 5 Leslie E. Anderson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Richard H. Anderson (USAAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lester L. Arasmith  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lee Archer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William E. Aron  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Richard W. Asbury  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Abner M. Aust  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Eugene D. Axtell  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Donald A. Baccus  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Jack A. Bade  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Oscar C. Bailey  United States U.S. Navy 5 Raphael F. Baird  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Donald L. Balch  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Robert P. Baldwin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Raymond W. Bank  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Bruce M. Barackman  United States U.S. Navy 5 Rex T. Barber  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert M. Barkey  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Truman S. Barnes  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Albert Baumler  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Aaron L. Bearden  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edward H. Beavers Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Louis Benne  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Jack S. Berkheimer  United States U.S. Navy 5 Richard L. Bertelson  United States U.S. Navy 5 James D. Billo  United States U.S. Navy 5 Lewis S. Bishop  United States AVG 5 Walter D. Bishop  United States U.S. Navy 5 Foster J. Blair  United States U.S. Navy 5 William K. Blair  United States U.S. Navy 5 Richard B. Blaydes  United States U.S. Navy 5 Victor E. Bocquin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John W. Bolyard  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert R. Bonebrake  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert R. Bonner Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Guy P. Bordelon  United States U.S. Navy 5 Clarence A. Borley  United States U.S. Navy 5 Ernest O. Bostrom  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Wilbur L. Bowen  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Fred E. Bowker  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John L. Bradley  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Richard L. Braun  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Gerald A. Brown  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Jasper R. Brown  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Paul J. Bruneau  United States U.S. Navy 5 Robert L. Buchanan  United States U.S. Navy 5 Robert G. Burns  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert L. Byrnes  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John B. Carder  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William A. Carlton  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Nial K. Castle  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Henry K. Champion  United States U.S. Navy 5 George T. Chandler  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Van E. Chandler  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph J. Cielinski  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Arthur B. Cleaveland  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Donald C. Clements  United States U.S. Navy 5 Robert E. Clements  United States U.S. Navy 5 Dallas A. Clinger  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Vivian A. Cloud  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Paul R. Cochran  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William F. Collins  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Philip E. Colman  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Harold E. Comstock  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Harry L. Condon  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Merle M. Coons  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Leland B. Cornell  United States U.S. Navy 5 Ralph L. Cox  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Niven K. Cranfill  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William S. Crombie  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John O. Cross  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Omer W. Culbertson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Arthur C. Cundy  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Warren D. Curton  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William A. Daniel  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Clarence E. Davies  United States U.S. Navy 5 Leonard K. Davis  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 George E. Dawkins Jr  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Roald Dahl  United Kingdom Royal Air Force 5 William C. Day Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Richard S. Deakins  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 George Della  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Reuben H. Denoff  United States U.S. Navy 5 Frederick E. Dick  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Michael Dikovitsky  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Harry W. Dorris  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Cecil J. Doyle  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Charles W. Drake  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Daniel B. Driscoll  United States U.S. Navy 5 Willie Driscoll  United States U.S. Navy 5 Francis E. Dubisher  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles H. Dubois  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 James E. Duffy (USN)  United States U.S. Navy 5 Richard E. Duffy  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph L. Egen Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Hugh M. Elwood  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 James W. Empey  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lyle A. Erickson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Herman E. Ernst  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles D. Farmer  United States U.S. Navy 5 Robert A. Farnsworth Jr  United States U.S. Navy 5 William Farrell (USMC)  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Richard D. Faxon  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Marion C. Felts  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 James E. Fenex Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William Fiedler (USAAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Virgil C. Fields Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Howard J. Finn  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Charles R. Fischette  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Harry E. Fisk  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Nelson D. Flack Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Kenneth A. Flinn  United States U.S. Navy 5 Ralph E. Foltz  United States U.S. Navy 5 Paul J. Fontana  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Claude E. Ford  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Kenneth M. Ford  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 George Formanek Jr  United States U.S. Navy 5 Dwight B. Galt  United States U.S. Navy 5 Warner F. Gardner  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Noel Gayler  United States U.S. Navy 5 Steven N. Gerick  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Grover D. Ghelson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert D. Gibb  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Cyrus R. Gladen  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lindley W. Godson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Norman D. Gould  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Giorgio Graffer  Italy Regia Aeronautica 5 Robert F. Graham  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Vernon E. Graham  United States U.S. Navy 5 Hayden A. Gregory  United States U.S. Navy 5 Robert C. Griffith  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William Grosvenor Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Cheatham W. Gupton  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Albert E. Hacking  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Samuel E. Hammer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Harry T. Hanna  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Christopher J. Hansenman  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Walter R. Harman  United States U.S. Navy 5 Thomas L. Harris (USAAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Raymond E. Hartley  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Herbert B. Hatch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles D. Hauver  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Russell C. Haworth  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Frank R. Hayde  United States U.S. Navy 5 Frank C. Hearrell  United States U.S. Navy 5 Charles F. Held Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Paul M. Henderson Jr  United States U.S. Navy 5 Randall W. Hendricks  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 James E. Hill  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Richard Hope Hillary  Australia Royal Air Force 5 Donald E. Hillman  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Kenneth G. Hippe  United States U.S. Navy 5 Edwin M. Hiro  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Myron M. Hnatio  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John B. Hoag  United States U.S. Navy 5 William R. Hodges  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Cullen J. Hoffman  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Louis Hoffman  United States AVG 5 Herbert N. Houck  United States U.S. Navy 5 Edward R. Hoyt  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Mark E. Hubbard  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Howard R. Hudson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Alvaro J. Hunter  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph W. Icard  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Julius W. Ireland  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Clayton M. Isaacson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Hayden M. Jensen  United States U.S. Navy 5 Evan M. Johnson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Wallace R. Johnson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Curran L. Jones  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Frank C. Jones  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lynn F. Jones  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Warren L. Jones  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph W. Jorda  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William M. Julian  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles Kendrick  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Daniel Kennedy  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert H. Kidwell  United States U.S. Navy 5 Melvin B. Kimball  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John R. Kincaid  United States U.S. Navy 5 Charles W. King (USAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 David L. King  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Marion F. Kirby  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lenton F. Kirkland  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert H. Knapp  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Carroll S. Knott  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edward H. Kopsel  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William J. Kostic  United States U.S. Navy 5 Wayne W. Laird  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 William E. Lamoreaux  United States U.S. Navy 5 Richard C. Lampe  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Willis Laney  United States U.S. Navy 5 Ned W. Langdon  United States U.S. Navy 5 Thomas G. Lanphier  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Franklin C. Lathrope  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles H. Laughlin  United States AVG 5 George Laven  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Earl R. Lazear  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Harold K. Lee  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Richard J. Lee  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Marlow J. Leikness  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles W. Lenfest  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Jack Lenox Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John A. Leppla  United States U.S. Navy 5 Alfred B. Lewelling  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Brooks J. Liles  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Hugh D. Lillie  United States U.S. Navy 5 James W. Little  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles P. London  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Donald Lopez  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 George G. Loving, Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John F. Luma  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lowell C. Lutton  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John A. Mackay  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Morton D. Magoffin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Keith Mahon  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Jackson C. Mankin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lee P. Mankin  United States U.S. Navy 5 Harry A. March Jr  United States U.S. Navy 5 Luigi Mariotti  Italy Regia Aeronautica 5 Lester C. Marsh  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Albert E. Martin Jr  United States U.S. Navy 5 Kenneth R. Martin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph L. Mason  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William H. Mathis  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph Z. Matte  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Chester K. Maxwell  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Benjamin I. Mayo  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Paul G. McArthur  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Henry A. McCartney Jr  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Leo B. McCudden  United States U.S. Navy 5 William F. McDownough  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 James N. McElroy  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John L. McGinn  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Selva E. McGinty  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Samuel E. McGuffin  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John W. McGuyrt  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Donald J. McKinley  United States U.S. Navy 5 George. McMillan  United States AVG 5 Evan D. MacMinn  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Donald M. McPherson  United States U.S. Navy 5 George L. Merritt Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Frederick H. Michaelis  United States U.S. Navy 5 Everett Miller  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph E. Miller  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert C. Milliken  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles Milton  United States U.S. Navy 5 Marinos Mitralexis  Greece Greek Air Force 5 Arthur P. Mollenhauer  United States U.S. Navy 5 Franklin H. Monk  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert H. Moore  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Paul V. Morriss  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Arthur H. Munson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Jennings S. Myers  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph R. Myshrall  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Leslie D. Nelson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert J. Nelson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Franklin A. Nichols  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edward M. Nollmeyer  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Marvin R. Novak  United States U.S. Navy 5 Jack G. Oberhansky  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Frank O'Brien Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edwin L. Olander  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Austin L. Olsen  United States U.S. Navy 5 Paul E. Olson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Enzo Omiccioli  Italy Regia Aeronautica 5 Eugene W. O'Neill Jr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lawrence F. O'Neill  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Ernest K. Osher  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert J. Overcash  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edward W. Overton Jr  United States U.S. Navy 5 Joel A. Owens  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Melvyn R. Paisley  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Forrest F. Parham  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edsel Paulk  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Oscar F. Perdomo  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John Petach  United States AVG 5 Costantino Petrosellini  Italy Regia Aeronautica 5 David P. Philips III  United States U.S. Navy 5 Edward A. Phillips  United States U.S. Navy 5 Hyde Phillips  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Kenneth R. Pool  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edward S. Popek  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert B. Porter  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 George H. Poske  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Ernest A. Powell  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 MacArthur Powers  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Jack C. Price  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Royce W. Priest  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Roger C. Pryor  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Donald L. Quigley  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert J. Raines  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Orvin H. Ramlo  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 WIlliam C. Reese  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Joseph E. Reulet  United States U.S. Navy 5 Thomas W. Rhodes  United States U.S. Navy 5 Vincent A. Rieger  United States U.S. Navy 5 Andrew Ritchey  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Newell O. Roberts  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Leroy W. Robinson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Ross F. Robinson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Franklin Rose  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Gerald L. Rounds  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Henry S. Rudolph  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William A. Rynne  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Hartwell V. Scarborough  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Thomas D. Schank  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Gordon E. Schecter  United States U.S. Navy 5 John L. Schell  United States U.S. Navy 5 Raymond Scherer  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 James F. Schilke  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Louis Schriber  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Duerr H. Schuh  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert B. Schultz  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Harry H. Sealey  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Alexander F. Sears  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert B. See  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Carlo Seganti  Italy Regia Aeronautica 5 Robert K. Seidman  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles A. Shields  United States U.S. Navy 5 Lester H. Sipes  United States U.S. Navy 5 Frank Sistrunk  United States U.S. Navy 5 Jack R. Smith  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Kenneth B. Smith (USAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Kenneth D. Smith  United States U.S. Navy 5 Virgil H. Smith  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Irl V. Sonner Jr  United States U.S. Navy 5 James J. Southerland  United States U.S. Navy 5 Arthur Spurgin  Australia Royal Australian Air Force 5 Clyde P. Spitler  United States U.S. Navy 5 William J. Stangel  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Morris A. Stanley  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edgar E. Stebbins  United States U.S. Navy 5 Edward J. Stefanski  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Raymond D. Stehle  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Carl V. Stone  United States U.S. Navy 5 Johnnie C. Strange  United States U.S. Navy 5 Richard C. Suehr  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Charles P. Sullivan  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert C. Sutcliffe  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John F. Sutherland  United States U.S. Navy 5 John F. Swinburne Jr.  United States U.S. Navy 5 William J. Sykes  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Stanley Synar  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Oliver B. Taylor  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William W. Taylor (USN)  United States U.S. Navy 5 Robert D. Thompson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John A. Tilley  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Edward W. Toaspern  United States U.S. Navy 5 John W. Topliff  United States U.S. Navy 5 Harrison B. Tordoff  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Ross E. Torkelson  United States U.S. Navy 5 Eugene P. Townsend  United States U.S. Navy 5 Clifton H. Troxell  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Peter J. Van Der Linden  United States U.S. Navy 5 Rudolph D. Van Dyke  United States U.S. Navy 5 Robert H. Vaught Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John E. Vogt  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Horace Q. Waggoner  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Walter B. Walker Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lyttleton T. Ward  United States U.S. Navy 5 Jack R. Warren  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Ralph J. Watson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Sidney W. Wheatherford  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Willard J. Webb  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Gregory J. Weissenberger  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Darrell G. Welch  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Albert P. Welles  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Robert G. West  United States U.S. Navy 5 Harry S. White  United States U.S. Navy 5 John H. White (USAF)  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 David C. Wilhelm  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Paul H. Wilkins  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 William F. Wilson  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Russell D. Williams  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert A. Winston  United States U.S. Navy 5 Ralph L. Wire  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Lee V. Wiseman  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 John L. Wolford  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 George L. Wrenn  United States U.S. Navy 5 Max J. Wright  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Vasseure F. Wynn  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert R. Yaeger Jr.  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Robert M. York  United States U.S. Army Air Forces 5 Michael R. Yunck  United States U.S. Marine Corps 5 Aurel Tifrea  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Constantin Popescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Constantin Nicoara  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Petre Cordescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Aurel Tifrea  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Hariton Dusescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Vintila Bratianu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Nicolae Burileanu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Laurentiu Catana  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Erich Selei  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Gheorghe Cristea  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5 Mircea Dumitrescu  Romania Royal Romanian Air Force 5

Preguntas relacionadas

Who is the greatest fighter pilot of all time?

The most successful fighter pilot in history is German ace Erich "Bubi" Hartmann, credited with 352 aerial victories in World War II, a record unlikely ever to be surpassed. Flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109, he flew 1,404 missions, was never shot down, and reportedly never lost a wingman.

Who was Erich Hartmann?

Erich Hartmann, nicknamed "Bubi" (little boy) and "The Black Devil," was a German World War II fighter ace and the top-scoring pilot in history with 352 kills. He flew the Bf 109, survived the war, and later trained pilots for the West German Luftwaffe before becoming a civilian flight instructor.

Who was the Red Baron?

The Red Baron was Manfred von Richthofen, the most famous fighter pilot of all time. He scored 80 victories in World War I flying, among other aircraft, the bright-red Fokker Dr.I triplane with his feared unit, the "Flying Circus." Read the full story of the Red Baron.

What is a fighter ace?

A fighter ace is a military pilot credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft in air-to-air combat. The term dates from World War I, and the highest-scoring aces, such as Germany's Erich Hartmann, built their totals over hundreds of combat missions.

Why are German pilots so dominant among top aces?

World War II German and Japanese aces flew continuously until killed, accumulating huge scores, while successful Allied pilots were often rotated home to train newcomers. As a result the all-time top scorers are dominated by Axis aces; gifted Allied pilots such as Soviet ace Alexander Pokryshkin are credited with far fewer victories.

Who was Douglas Bader?

Douglas Bader was a celebrated British fighter ace remembered less for his roughly 20 kills than for flying combat after losing both legs in a 1931 flying accident. Using prosthetic legs, he returned to the cockpit, became a Battle of Britain leader and an enduring symbol of determination.

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90 Comentarios

  1. Ferenc Tóth

    I’d definitely put Werner Mölders on the list. He was the first to reach 100 victories.

    • ASH KING ?

      Respect those legendary people’s who lost their life in War . ??
      Love from india ?? ?????

    • Rob

      I agree that Werner Molders needs a consideration.

  2. Ross Kapernick

    Finally an explanation why the German Air Force put up such a long term fight despite the fact the AXIS produced only a fraction of the aircraft the Allies did in WW2.
    We never hear just how successful they were in terms of kills per pilot. All we ever hear about is the failure of the Battle of Britain.
    Obviously both German Aircraft and German pilots were very good in there day.

  3. Omer Jamil

    Interesting and very informative read, I was hoping you would mention the name of M.M Alam , he holds the record of scoring 5 kills in a minute in the 1960s with an F 86.

    • Danny Daemon

      That is a fabrication of the Pakistan Air Force told to keep up the Morale of the Pakistani public and used in the post war inquiry into the performance of the Pakistani Armed Forces against the Forces of India where Pakistan lost a disproportionate amount of men and material in spite of being the aggressor. This has been corrected in the biographies of two Pakistan Air Force Air Marshals Including the then Chief of PAF Asgarh Khan. The circumstances of the earlier claim By M.M Alam with a flight of 11 Sqdn Sabres was impossible, to say the least. This claim has been debunked even by the sqn mates who formed the flight and now M.M Alam is given the credit for one kill.

      • Mohammad Hamza

        Danny Daemon . First the Air Chief Marshal on that time was Nur Khan . 2nd Indian Airforce admit 3 kills in that less than 60 second combat . may be its imposible when it is against PAF . But Against Israel and Indian Airforce its not Impositble when Pilots are from PAF

        • TejasWagh

          3 kills at that time but alls not by mm Alam… If pakistan has that much potent piolets then how come they lost that conflict against IAf..?
          Your government lies alot they never show burn patches given by India to them.. and that’s why ur so-called potent technology of sending pigs(terrorists) in India are under practice now a days..

      • Ghauri

        Yeh yeah yeah Danny, just because you are so butthurt, we would listen to your lies?

        • Salvador Pais

          Tom Cruise is the GOAT

      • shbz

        Check this international platform to confirm the kills of Great MM Alam, from Pakistan Air Force,Tea was really fantastic though

    • Cleetus Farragamo

      Yeketrina? A Soviet chick?

  4. Mika

    Nice work, but…
    I would’ve mentioned Ilmari Juutilainen of the Finnish Air Force, the first non-german fighter ace in the list.
    Flying with a modified Brewster Buffalo (a fighter the U.S. thought was out-of-date) and still having an astonishing sum of kills. He’s also the best pilot to score with both the allied-made (the Brewster) and axis-made (Me Bf109) warbirds.
    One should also mention Hans Wind, same plane types, few kills less, but any how, a brilliant pilot also.

    • Sakari

      As a further comment on Eino Ilmari (Illu)Juutilainen. He stands out of every other, including all the Germans; while having 94 confirmed kills, his aircraft had never taken a single enemy shot – not even a scratch. To consider that every German top ace lost several planes and obviously took a lot of hits.

    • Dan

      and Juutilainen never had any of his aircraft hit by an enemy round though his entire career.

  5. Johny

    Geez, these people crazy!

  6. Ascalon

    In terms of sheer brilliance and longevity of career, I think Eric ‘Winkle’ Brown should get a mention. His kill list is small, but his achievements as a military aviator are not only unsurpassed, they probably never will.

  7. Norm

    Why is William (Billy) Bishop not on this list?
    According to Wikipedia, “Air Marshal William Avery “Billy” Bishop VC, CB, DSO & Bar, MC, DFC, ED (8 February 1894 – 11 September 1956) was a Canadian flying ace and Victoria Cross recipient of the First World War. He was officially credited with 72 victories, making him the top Canadian ace of the war” and arguably the top Allied ace of WW1.

    • TSAthirty

      This list is of the WWII ace’s only

      • Dodo

        I realize the second list is only WWII aces (,which may be what you’re referring to) but as Norm says, Billy Bishop had 72 victories, which is a lot compared to many of the others on the main list (thinking James Doolittle here) so I think he deserves a spot there somewhere.

        He was pulled out of combat several times; the last time, when they pulled him out for good, was several months before the war ended. In his last 12 days of combat service, he managed an amazing 25 kills; how many more would he have got if they hadn’t pulled him out? He also holds a VC, as Norm says, for raiding an enemy airbase solo and taking out 5 German planes which took off to defend the base before making good his escape and returning his crippled aircraft to his base. Although he exaggerated his achievements for public relations, his own combat reports often understated his performance. If that’s not reason enough to be on the list, I don’t know what is…
        See also:
        http://www.journal.forces.gc.ca/vo3/no3/doc/55-60-eng.pdf

    • Cleetus Farragamo

      Because as per usual the Yanks have won every single war single handedly.I looked for him too.

  8. S Walton

    Wing Commander Roland ‘Bee’ Beamont. 1920 – 2001. Battle of France 1939/40, Battle of Britain 1940, Operation Overlord 1944, Operation Market Garden 1944. PoW 1944-45. Credited with 9 kills. Also ‘killed’ 32 V1 Flying Bombs. Exceptional post-war Test Pilot (Canberra, Lightning, TSR-2), first Briton to fly supersonic (in one of only 2 US XP-86 Sabres) in May 1948. Bloody nice bloke and my Grandfather.

  9. S Walton

    Forgot to add…Royal Air Force. CBE, DSO and Bar, DFC and Bar, Croix de Guerre (Belgium)

  10. Michel

    Giora Epstein IAF
    The jet age ace ,
    a world record of 17 Jets downed in air to air combat.

    • Low Vincent

      Good as gold

  11. pl80

    Thanks to the Russians, the Germans have all the top spots on the list 🙂

    • Dan

      and thanks to the Germans they constantly flew and did so until they were dead.

    • Cleetus Farragamo

      LOL Agreed.Stalin’s boys did fly some awful junk, didn’t they?

  12. BigE

    The Finnish pilots should be mentioned however as usual always overlooked. It amazes me how the western nations know almost nothing about the fight for survival of the Finnish people in WW 2. With what the Finns had in 1939 when defending themselves against the ussr and then to defend themselves again against the ussr after Hitler started operation Barbarosa is nothing short of a miracle. Its time for the stories to be told, and I will do just that as a loud and proud Finnish born American raised patriot!

  13. Nils-Peter morley

    Heinz Baer-highest scoring jet ACE of WW1
    Marmaduke pattle-most victories in obsolete aircraft and shot down with influenza/pneu.
    Goren epstein-highest scoring ace in jets

    • Harlas

      on his last days he flew will being sick. He managed to down 6 planes on his last flight and kept flying with fever! His scores were in 1941 against the properly trained Luftwaffe pilots…

    • Dan

      Baer was amongst or at the top while in the west, med, east, FW190, BF109 and top in jets,

  14. Nathan Adamson

    Ritchard Ira Bong, or “Dick” Bong. He was the top-scoring American Ace of WWII.

    • Arsham

      Where is Iran-Iraq war?!
      Where is Jalil zandi?!
      Where is tomcat aces?!

  15. Richard Rogers

    Not inky Billy Bishop but Raymond Collishaw. He had 60 confirmed kills and likely dozens more but attributed those to young flyers to build up their confidence. His squadron, Black Flight, was the most feared and respected by the Germans including the Flying Circus.

    • R. Carnahan

      My father an aviation buff whose childhood spanned the 1920s and 30s grew up hearing rumours that Collishaw’s total kill count was well in excess of 100.

      Collishaw had extensive combat experience in several other theaters following World War One where he continued to rack up many more victories. He may have flown missions (clandestinely, in a Hawker Hurricane) well into World War Two.

      Stories abound of Collishaw crediting his own kills to bolster the confidence of novice pilots, or later on, especially after WW1, not recording victories at all. While flying for the White Russian Forces his squadron was constantly retreating from Red Army Forces so proper record-keeping became a total nuisance. In WW2 any combat he might have participated in would have been completely unauthorized.

  16. David Johnson

    You need to do more research with respect to WW1 Fighter Pilots.
    William Avery Bishop, VC, CB, DSO & Bar, MC, DFC, ED (8 February 1894 – 11 September 1956) was a Canadian flying ace of the First World War, Victoria Cross recipient, and Air Marshal. He was officially credited with 72 victories, making him the top Canadian ace of the war.

    • TSAthirty

      You do realize this list is of the WWII ace’s only right?

      • alex

        ahhh yes, i remember when the vietnam war happened in ww2. It’s not just pilots from the second world war, it just happens that due to the circumstances of ww2 the german pilots managed to get exponentially more kills and this will never be bested as air to air combat has changed so drastically

      • Dodo

        so what’re Manfred von Richthofen, Ernst Udet, and Mick Mannock doing there then (just to name a few)? The article’s title is “Best fighter pilots of all time”, not “best fighter pilots of WWII”

      • Billy's Boy

        Red Barron wasn’t in the sequel, so yeah, there are WWI pilots here, too.

  17. Mike Ratel

    ” Wonder where his name is coming from? His three-winged Fokker was painted in bright red – so he would scare the shit out of his enemies once they spotted him. ” Not very professional to use foul language on an otherwise awesome and valuable resource you have compiled.

    • Danny

      Oh good god, go fuck yourself.

  18. Bing

    This list is all WW… what about the jet age? AFAIK there’s an Israeli pilot with 17 kills and IIRC all using the French Mirage.

    • Johan

      It is difficult to understand or justify that you’ve overlooked Finnish Ilmari Juutilainen, the non-German fighter pilot with the most kills in WWII, 94. The second best non-German was Japanese, Iwamoto, with 14 kills less. Numbers speak for themselves and when one considers he flew much of the time the American Brewster Buffalo that was considered outdated and was not used by the U.S., this does not make his achievement any less remarkable.

  19. Marc

    William “Billy” Bishop was the commonwealth’s (Britain/Canada/Australia/New Zealand/South Africa/India) top ace in WW1 with 72 victories- Rene Fonck of France was the top ace of the allies with 75 victories and Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen was the overall leader in WW1 with 80 victories. It is to note that Bishop and Fonck both survived the war when Richthofen did not.

    • Judge

      Bishop actually might have 80 victories but five of them were not counted due to the fact that he shot them down when no one else in the 60 squadron could find a German plane

      • Judge

        And why not add Barker VC he was the highest scoring ace in Italy during the First World War

  20. Bataki

    Hans-Ulrich Rudel was the highest decorated german pilot of WW2. Maybe this should be taken with a slight grain of salt, that Rudel was a dedicated nazi certainly would not have hurt him when it came to rewards, but still.
    Rudel flew ground attack planes like Stukas. These had great tactical significance, especially in the first part of the war. So maybe he would make the list more rounded since I did not see the Close Air Support role represented.

    I heard previously that he only had one kill against other aircraft even if he shows up as having 9 in the list above.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans-Ulrich_Rudel

  21. David

    what about Japanese pilots? I would recomend Saburo Sakai for this list. I believe he had 62 kills against USA, Dutch, and Australlian pilots.

    • Jack G. Stiteley

      In fact, Sakai had 64 confirmed kills.

      • Paco Cimino

        Sakai had two kills in China before Pearl Harbor (not much competition) and 62 kills against western (US, British Commonwealth and Dutch) planes after Pearl Harbor (the start of the greater Pacific War). Some dispute those numbers now because of author Martin Caidin’s exaggeration in his book on Sakai.

  22. arrowBflight

    This is a huge list of fighter pilots and yet, there are many others. Here is an up date on some of the lads. Charley Scherf was an Australian, he served with RCAF No.418.
    In a recent article from VWoC, ” Stocky ” Edwards stated according to his log book, he
    had 20 E/As. CAN/RAF, is by definition a Canadian who enlisted directly in the RAF.
    1820 all ranks, 422 were decorated, 777 KIA, 225 transfered to RCAF. A few of the heavy
    hitters include: Vernon ” Woody ” Woodward 19 + 2 shared, M.A. ” Hilly : Brown 14 + several shared, R.A. Barton, 13 + 6 shared. Douglas Charles Fairbanks ( u.s.) served in RAF 15 all on Tempest V, RCAF: Donald Laubman 15 ( top scorer in 2 TAF from D – Day forward) J MacKay 12.5 + 1 mIG 15 Korea, J F MacElroy 12 + 3 shared, J H Turnball 12.5,
    Claude Weaver 111 American/ RCAF 12.5 + 3 probable ( youngest allied Ace of WWII
    age 19 yrs ), G U Hill 10 + 8 shared, R J Audet 10.5 ( “only Spitfire pilot to become Ace
    5 victories in single sortie), R A Kipp 10.5 +2 ground,J D Mitchner 10.5, D W Schmidt 10.5, J E Walker 10.5, A U ” Bert ” Houle 11, J W Williams 10, D C Gordon 9 + 2 shared,
    I F Kennedy 8 + 4 shared, R D Schultz 8, D A Mac Fadyen 7 + 5 ground + 5 V1s
    J T Cain 5 + 15 ground, Irving Kennedy 6 + 4 shared. A little known fact is that some
    of the ” Best ” pilots never claimed any A/C shot down. They flew # 4 or arse end Charlie. They kept the others….. alive.

  23. lawless alan

    Heinz Baer should absolutely be on any list of greatest or most remarkable fighter pilots. Not only did his score of 220 place him in the top ten, but he did so mostly in the western theaters where the opposition quality was much greater. He also performed very well in the early French campaigns and the Eastern and African theaters – and was remarkably close to the awesome Marseille’s core in that theater alone. But wait there’s more – he also was among the highest scoring Me-262 pilots. He did everywhere and his name should be better known.

    • John Foreman

      Absolutely. In my opinion Bar was the greatest. Hye fought in all theatres – Phoney War, Battle of Britain, Russia, Africa, then Home Defence. Denied the Diamonds, as “Fat Hermann” disliked him, Went from Gruppenkommandeur to Staffelkapitan – and back again and finally led JV44’s Me262s. What a pilot!

  24. A E G

    Robert S. Johnson (ETO-28 claimed air victories), Ray S. Wetmore (ETO-22 claimed air victories), Don S. Gentile (ETO-22 claimed air victories, 8 ground), Charles E. Yeager (ETO-13 claimed air victories), these pilots and other pilots flying for both Allied and Axis powers also possessed another valuable asset which contributed to their God given abilities as great combat pilots: 20-10 vision. When you can see ‘bogeys’ at up to 50 miles away you definitely have the advantage over your enemy. This aided them greatly during missions and ‘dogfights’. Some great combat pilots (Erich Hartmann, Richard Bong, etc.) simply surprised enemy aircraft and closed to 20 or 30 yards before firing which ensures victories. Also- -my vote for arguably the greatest piston engine fighter/bomber combat aircraft of WW2: Dornier Do 335 ‘Pfeil’. What a brilliant design-excellent. Well done Claude Dornier !!! beautiful restoration Daimler Benz Dornier Lindauer 1970s!! on the only one left in the world @ Natl Air & Space.

    • DUANE PFEIL

      A remarkable aircraft, such a beauty.

    • Paco Cimino

      Johnson had 27 victories and Francis Gabreski had 28. Both flew for the famed 56th FG the “Wolfpack” which flew the P-47 Thunderbolt throughout the war.

    • Gord

      the red baron did not shoot down 80 aircraft in a fokker triplane..more than 60 of his kills came flying a red albatros DIII and D V biplane fighter..

  25. Henrik

    Jorma Sarvanto, Finnish pilot, shot down 6 Soviet bombers in 4 minutes. Fastest kills ever.

  26. Mani

    Why M.M alam is not in this. You dont what he done

    • Khizar Baig

      MM Alam is also makes a world record who destroyed 5 Indian fighter Jets in just one minutes

  27. Joseph Gannon

    How in the world does Gen. Jimmy Doolittle get on a list of best fighter pilots by commanding a famous BOMBING mission? I don’t believe he ever flew a single sortie in a fighter plane. I’m not denigrating his very real and important contributions to the war in both commanding his famous raid and then commanding air groups in Europe, but what in the world has that got to do with being one of the best fighter pilots ever?

  28. JEFFERY RIFENBERY

    I have a question with all those German pilots they’re talking about and all of their kills with the world war if you added all of them up there’s no way that many planes were shot down he probably didn’t even make that you’re talking thousands and thousands of planes it just makes me feel it’s hard to believe that all these German shot down all those planes.. It really seems to be a lot of over exaggerating I mean you understand what I’m trying to say if you add all of those German kills together.. I mean seeing triple or quadruple…lol

    • Mackerel

      There were most likely exaggerated claims, no doubt. But the numbers of aircraft produced/lost in combat/written off, particularly in WW2, are simply staggering.

    • M.R.

      Hard to believe isn’t it…but true. The Germans had a very strict system for counting aerial victories which included at least one witness, verification plus approval by the squadron commander. They also maintained meticulous records through the end of the war. No half kills were counted etc. If there was a disagreement the action would not be documented/counted at all. They simply had the best fighter pilots that will ever take to the sky. Look at the performance of their soldiers in general. You were not awarded the Knights Cross for one heroic action. You needed to have already distinguished yourself in numerous previous actions, for example…
      (EK2/Ek1/German Cross in Gold/Close Combat Clasp in Bronze-Silver-Gold/Knights Cross/Oak Leaves etc). Despite the repugnance of the regime, there will very likely never again be soldiers of this quality to step onto a battlefield of this magnitude. Ironic isn’t it.

    • Volker

      Far more than 600.000 Allied Airplanes in total has been produced during WWII.
      Compare that number with the planes shot down!

  29. Mackerel

    There were most likely exaggerated claims, no doubt. But the numbers of aircraft produced/lost in combat/written off, particularly in WW2, are simply staggering.

    • Paco Cimino

      There rules were strict but overclaiming still occurred (part fo the nature of the beast) and the Luftwaffe didn’t always follow its own rules especially towards the end of the war.

      The records show that, although the Luftwaffe generally did not accept a “kill” without a witness, some pilots habitually submitted unwitnessed claims and sometimes these made it through the verification process, particularly if they were made by pilots with established records. Unlike all of the other air forces that fought during World War II, the Luftwaffe did not accept shared claims, but sometimes it happened. Each claim should have referred to a particular aircraft, but some victories were awarded to other pilots who had claimed the destruction of the same aircraft. Overall they are the most accurate but not 100%.

  30. Sean Mc

    Your list completely neglects the Battle of Britain, which was by far the most important Ariel battle fought on the western front in WW2.
    The British & Foreign fighter pilots, particularly the Poles should be far better represented in your top 10.

  31. Chris Gsell

    I’ve heard that German kill claims had to be verified & were among the most stringent & accurate records of the WW2. They flew more missions & had to fight until they died. The number of planes produced was staggering in WW2. The ME 109 German Fighter had over 30,000 plane types produced during the war alone. German kill ratios were very high when comparing men killed. planes destroyed, tanks destroyed…. Remember, two world wars where Germans basically fought everyone & it was a close fight. Plus they had tremendous achievements in some of the best guns & other small arms, first & best jet fighter plane ME 262, Komet Rocket Plane ME 163. first jet bomber Arado, first guided air to ground missiles, first rocket cruise missile V-1 & first continental ballistic missle V2 & best & most advance submarines.

  32. M P

    Your list “Greatest Fighter Aces”, number 12. James Doolittle. He wasn’t a fighter pilot, and not an ace. He flew bombers. And the photo is not him. It is his grandson James Doolittle III, who IS a great test pilot!

  33. Dinar Khan

    Where is the name of group captain Saiful azam of bangladesh air force who fought for three countries as pakistan, Jordan and Iraq.

  34. GORD

    you forgot the top ranked WESTERN allied aCE OF WORLD WAR 2. MARMADuke St. John Pattle, RAF. Pattle scored at least 41 victories in the early days of the North African CAMPAIGN IN A GLOSTER GLADIATOR biplane fighter before being killed in action.. No list ever includes him yet his victories put him above all western allied aCES ( THE RUSSIANS HAD A 61 VICTORY ACE IVAN KOJEDUB). Pattle’s victories were over German and Italian aircraft

  35. Leslie C. Taylor

    Ilmari Juutilainen – Top non-German ace. And probably the highest scoring non-officer.

  36. Shahrookh Shroff

    Please learn basic MATHS…additions and subtractions will suffice…lol!

  37. Albert Batten

    Surely Wing Commander J.E. “Johnny” Johnson should be here, as well as Wing Commander Bob StNford-Tuck, who once put an 8mm shell dead centre down the barrel of an 8mm flak gun.

  38. Salim Ahmed

    Pl. read John Feeler book on 1965 war(indo_pak)

  39. SAJIB

    SAFUL AZAM ONE OF THE GREATEST FIGHTER PILOT OF YHE WORLD BECAUSE OF HE IS ONLY ONE PILOT WHO LED BY THREE WAR . 1965-1967-1971. THE LIVING EAGLE

  40. Eric Rotzoll

    John “Forty Second ” Boyd.

    “During the 1950s, John Boyd dominated fighter aviation in the U.S. Air Force. His fame came on the wings of the quirky and treacherous F-100; the infamous “Hun.” Boyd was known throughout the Air Force as “Forty-Second Boyd,” because he had a standing offer to all pilots that if they could defeat them in simulated air-to-air combat in under 40 seconds, he would pay them $40. Like any gunslinger with a name and a reputation, he was called out many times. As an instructor at the Fighter Weapons School (FWS) at Nellis AFB, he fought students, cadre pilots, Marine and Navy pilots, and pilots from a dozen countries, who were attending the FWS as part of the Mutual Defense Assistance Pact.

    He never lost.

    Boyd was famous for a maneuver he called “flat-plating the bird.” He would be in the defensive position with a challenger tight on his tail, both pulling heavy Gs, when he would suddenly pull the stick full aft, brace his elbows on either side of the cockpit, so the stick would not move laterally, and stomp the rudder. It was as if a manhole cover were sailing through the air and then suddenly flipped 90 degrees. The underside of the fuselage, wings, and horizontal stabilizer became a speed brake that slowed the Hun from 400 knots to 150 knots in seconds. The pursuing pilot was thrown forward and now Boyd was on his tail radioing “Guns. Guns. Guns.”

    The myth of “Forty-Second Boyd” still rankles AF fighter pilots. They say there is no “best” pilot; that everyone has a bad day. But if they went through Nellis in the late 1950s, they know Boyd had no bad days. And they cannot come up with the name of anyone who ever defeated him.

    Boyd was equally famous in the classroom where he developed the “Aerial Attack Study.” Until Boyd came along, fighter pilots thought that air combat was an art rather than a science; that it could never be codified. Boyd proved them wrong when he demonstrated that for every maneuver there is a series of counter maneuvers. And there is a counter to every counter. Afterwards, when fighter pilots attacked (or were attacked), they knew every option open to their adversary and how to respond. “

  41. colin

    cant find anything about feldwebel adolf denz 110 pilot

  42. Andreas

    Hi,
    Good job, but there are several calls without explanation i.e. [4]
    Also you mention “Slovak Republic”, “Czechoslovakia”, “Ireland Royal Air Force” and other country names and military units that deserves some explanation too.
    In some cases it would be better to include nationality in 1939 and not a “national air force” that didn’t exist during the war.

  43. Greg

    Germans shot down 33,544 aircraft and still lost the war? Amazing. And, just a little sus.

  44. George Elder

    Ronald Mugs Mckeown first top gun commander… Double mig killer, first operational f14 squadron commander, vx4 pilot (captured mig 17 and 21) ..had a habit of departing the f4 from controlled flight (see air combat mig killers of the midway). Flew NF104 starfighter to 127 k feet, 997 Carrier landings.. Many in f-8 quote (the f4 was easy to land… I was always sure I would get aboard….the f8 I was never sure I would get aboard at night)

  45. Niko

    I would add two more German pilots: Oswald Boelcke and Werner Voß. Boelcke downed 40 enemies before he died in an accident and was one of the most famous German aces. Why I would add him to the list are not his kills, though, but his development of aerial combat tactis, He is called “the father of air combat”.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oswald_Boelcke

    Werner Voß, on the other hand, was maybe the best German pilot of WWI and part of one of the most famous aerial battles of WWI. In his last fight, he took on 8 aces from 56 Squadron under James McCudden alone.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werner_Voss

  46. Udo

    Concerning Erich “Bubi” Hartmann it should be explained, why the Russians called him the “black devil”.
    The reason was the black painting on the nose of his Me-109, also called the black tulip.

  47. Daniel Orenge

    Ooops! Manfred von Richthofen . . . along with his 80 victories . . . seems to be absent !

  48. Richard

    Regarding the ‘exagerated’ claims of German pilots – around 105 thousand planes were destroyed during the years 1941 – 1945.

    The Germans generally kept their aces in field whereas the Allies usually removed top pilots (30 – 40) victories and used them as trainers.