Naval Aviator Hero Edward "Butch" O'Hare-- Part 4

Edward O'Hare's bravery and success was some of the first good news the United States had during the war. President Franklin Roosevelt presented the now-Lt. Cmdr. O'Hare the Medal of Honor on April 21. The citation called his feat "one of the most daring, if not the most daring, single action in the history of combat aviation."

Sadly, O'Hare would not survive the war. America's first World War II naval ace was shot down in November 1943 in a nighttime dogfight defending his ship from a torpedo plane attack in the Pacific. His death was front-page news across the nation.

So, the Next Time You Fly Into Chicago's O'Hare Airport. --GreGen

Naval Aviator Hero Edward "Butch" O'Hare-- Part 3

The nine Japanese bombers O'Hare was flying against had three guns each and nothing better to do than shoot at him. That did not deter O'Hare and he flew directly at them and in less than five minutes, shot down five of the enemy and damaged a sixth.

By then, planes from the Lexington were approaching and the Japanese broke off the action. Only one bomber returned to base.

Coming just three months after Pearl Harbor this was a great jolt of good news for the United States. (Doolittle's Raid did not come until mid-April.

---GreGen

Naval Aviator Hero Edward "Butch" O'Hare-- Part 2

Lt. O'Hare was flying solo support for the aircraft carrier USS Lexington along with its four cruiser and ten destroyer escort group on February 20, 1942, America's "Dark Days" of the war.

The rest of the Lexington's aircraft had just repulsed a Japanese bomber attack and were on the ship's deck refueling and rearming when a second squadron of nine Japanese bombers arrived on the scene.

This was the 28-year-old O'Hare's first action, and he immediately threw himself into the fray, knowing that if the bombers got through, the Lexington and its 1,700-man crew would certainly be lost.

Flying in a fighter, O'Hare had speed and maneuverability on his side, but he was heavily outgunned.

--GreGen

Naval Aviator Hero Edward "Butch" O'Hare-- Part 1

From the March 17, 2013, Chicago Tribune "Chicago Flashback: Why JFK came to town" by Stephan Benzkofer.

 Today, in my Cooter's History Thing Blog, I wrote about President Kennedy coming to Chicago in March 1963 to dedicate O'Hare Airport and Butch's father, Edward O'Hare's gangland connections.

Whereas his father's reputation was one of ill-repute, his son's definitely wasn't. Edward "Butch" O'Hare was a hero of the first order, whose actions saved the aircraft carrier USS Lexington in February 1942. Besides the men who would have perished, the United States could ill afford to lose one of its major ships after the disaster at Pearl Harbor.

--GreGen