FPP226 - A Lifetime in Combat Aviation

Tucker Hamilton (0:00)

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The views expressed in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the official policy or position of the United States government.

Welcome back to the Fighter Pilot Podcast. I am Cinco, and today we have 97-year-old Captain Retired Jack Ashmore from the US. Navy. He's flown more combat than most of us will ever read about. Today's guest cut his teeth in the propeller-driven Skyraider over Korea, went on to fly the A-4 Skyhawk for three combat tours in Vietnam, right through the fire of the 1968 Tet Offensive, before adding the F-4 and the A-7 to his logbook. Somewhere along the way, he flew manoeuvres good enough that the community named them after him. That's not a career, that's a piece of naval history still sitting in front of a microphone. Please welcome Captain Jack Ashmore, United States Navy Retired.

Jack, welcome to the Fighter Pilot Podcast.

Jack Ashmore (1:58)

Thank you, appreciate it. I'm very happy to be here after all these years, yes sir.

Tucker Hamilton (2:04)

Yeah, it's wonderful to have you. Like what an honor it is to talk to someone that is so distinguished in their flying career and able to share with us some insight that is difficult to find nowadays. We really appreciate you joining us.

I'd love to get in just with the initial question of, tell the listeners a little bit about yourself.

Jack Ashmore (2:27)

Well, I'll give you a very brief history. Actually, I started flying when I was four years old.

I say that joke to me because my mother was one of these at her age, a lady who really liked anything new. We're sitting here in a little town, Paris, Texas, and this big foreign tri-motor flew in. In 1932, I was four years old, and he was selling airplane rides for $1.

My mother took me out to this little grass strip airport we had, if you want to call it that, and we went out there and she said, well, we want to go for an airplane ride. He said, well, it would be $2. Well, in 1932, $2 was a hell of a lot of money. My mother said, well, can't afford that. She's about to walk away and I said, look, if you let that kid sit in your lap, I'll let you both go for $1.

That was my first airplane ride. And so I've been doing it ever since. I guess it's above bit me or something, but I'll never forget that first airplane ride as long as I lived. Looked out the window and all the cars looked like little toy cars and whatever. But that was my first flight. And my dad's youngest brother, Uncle Tommy, started flying back in the 20s. He was really young. The canopal and he was too young for World War I and too old for World War II to be a fighter pilot. So he instructed in the old BT-13s, about how long during the war. In the meantime, three years, he used to fly in a visit. And he's the one who really taught me how to fly.

And I hadn't really thought about prayer and aviation until I was getting ready to graduate from a little junior college here, Alcares Junior College, a two-year college. And a recruiter from Dallas came over, naval aviator, said, any of you boys have two years of college, like to be an aviation cadet, so come seek. So I thought, that sounds good. I was about to get drafted if I didn't. So I talked to him and sure, I met all the qualifications with the Dallas and I asked the physicals and all. That's when I joined the Naval Aviation Cadet Program and signed up for four years. So I did, I went there, got all the insubstantial, that's when I went to Korea. And I only had signed up for four years. So I made one combat tour. We're back on a second one. In the middle of that tour, I was seated on the four little jeep carrier. I looked at my day card, I said, my goodness, my four years is up. So I was a bright young man that I went to my boss, the CO, and I said, sir, I'm supposed to be home. My four years are up, and he said, Mr. Ashmore, did you look at your commission? Well, I said, I thought I did. He said, you serve at the convenience of the United States and it's not convenient. Right after you go out. So I have my day card, the old man, he cuts it to cut the new one. It says to read, say, my activity date, indefinite. As I'm saying that, I wasn't going to be able to get out, but I ended up getting a cushy set of orders after that puller to the B-Mill, and we were just getting jets in the Navy, and I got in on the nuclear war, see that? So that led one thing and then another, and that's how I got into jets. Since I was in the attack pilot, the next time to go was the A-4. And so anyhow, a brief history of how I got here, but it was a great journey. Seemed like every time I could get out of it, like when I was in Korea, something happened that wouldn't let me get out.