in 1940 Blakeslee sought other opportunities to continue flying.

The only financially feasibly option seemed to be to enlist into

the Air Corps. However, there was an obstacle on the path of

the young pilot. Since he did not meet the eduacational requirements he was denied the access to the cadet course in the

USA so he was able to join RCAF instead. After the training in

Canada he was dispatched to the Great Britain where he arrived

in the middle of May 1941. He flew his first combat mission as a

member of the 401 Squadron RCAF and enjoyed his first combat

success on November 18, 1941 when he damaged a Bf 109 in the

Tourqueet area. After a short stint with 121 Squadron he left for

the squadron numbered 133 where all the American volunteers

gathered and where he became a flight leader. On September 29,

1942 he left the RAF service and with the rank of Captain joined

the USAAF where his home squadron became a part of the newly

formed 4th Fighter Group.

Col. Donald J. Blakeslee

(11 September 1917 – 3 September 2008)

Although with 14.5 confirmed kills Donald Blakeslee does not

rank among the top American fighter aces of the the WWII he

was a remarkable pilot and respected commander. Love for the

airplanes accompanied his life since the childhood. In his desire

to learn how to fly in the end of 30s, together with his friend he

bought Piper J-3 Cub which he leased to the local aviation club

in exchange for the pilot training. After the crash of his Cub

This move also meant exchanging the trusty Spitfires Mk. V for

P-47s. From the end of November 1942 till the middle of May

1943 Don Blakeslee acted as the 335th FS commander and later

became the Operations Officer of the whole fighter group. In the

course of his service he was gradually promoted up to the rank

of Lt.Colonel (July 7, 1943) and increased both his personal

score (in 1943 it stood at 5 confirmed kills, 2 probables and 7

enemy aircraft damaged) and his leadership experience above

all. At this stage of his career he also accomplished one of his

extraordinary feats-he became the first P-47 pilot in the world to

shoot down an enemy aircraft. In December 1943 he was posted

to 354th FG in order to facilitate their accomodation in the ETO

(European Theater of Operation). The unit flew new P-51B and

Blakeslee immediately fell in love with it. After returning to 4th

FG he started to lobby for its re-equippment with Mustangs. His

effort met quite some resistance since it would have broken the

established rules according to which the new units arriving in

ETO had the priority to convert to P-51. Blakeslee’s effort did not

bring fruits even after he was promoted to command the whole

4th FG on January 1, 1944. The VIII. Fighter Command was afraid

of the interruption of the operational flying which the conversion

to the new type would have caused. Don Blakeslee’s negotiations with VIII. FC commander finally resulted in authorizing P-51

deliveries to the 4th FG under the condition that the pilots had

to convert to them within 24 hour i.e. without the interruption

in flying the combat missions. Lt. Col. Blakeslee approached this

unusual condition in a way contradicting the standard procedures-he told his pilots that they could familiarize themselves with

the new type during the actual combat mission! This took place

on February 28, 1944. Some pilots in the units in fact did not log

more than one hour on P-51. Barely a week later Don Blakeslee,

already a Colonel, became the first American aviator who reached Berlin area while leading the escort of the „Big Brotheres“

over „Big B“.

He also led larger formations in the consequent operations. The

most crucial was commanding the fighter escort on the mission Frantic I.- longhaul flight of the 8th

USAAF bombers and fighter to Soviet

Union, further to Italy and back to the

Great Britain during June 21-May 7,

1944. During this mission Col. Blakeslee

also scored his last aerial victory when

on July 2, 1944 he shot down a Bf 109

in Budapest area. His final score was

14.5/3/11.

After a leave in the USA during September and October 1944, having spent

three and half years away, Blakeslee

returned to the combat flying. Oddly it

was stopped by the loss of another outstanding pilot, Hub Zemke, 56th FG leader on October 30, 1944. Gen. Kepner,

VIII. FC commanding officer decided to

„ground“ Blakeslee reasoning that the

Air Force cannot afford to loose another commander of such caliber. On November 4, 1944 Col. Blakeslee handed

Pilot Officer Don Blakeslee is seen here

climbing into his Spitfire Mk.V while

serving with No. 401 Squadron RCAF in

the spring of 1942. Blakeslee‘s soon-to-be wife‘s name, Leola, is painted

under the windscreen (Photo: IWM).

16

eduard

INFO Eduard - August 2021