Henry "Hank" Buttelmann was a fighter pilot of the United States Air Force in the Korean War and Vietnam War. He achieved seven victories over enemy aircraft in Korea, making him a flying ace. He gained his fifth kill on June 30, 1953, just after his 24th birthday, which made him the youngest ace of the war. Buttelmann was born in Corona, Queens, New York City, and attended the University of Bridgeport for two years. He was sent to Korea in December 1952, flying as a wingman in the F-86 Sabre jet against MiG-15s in "MiG Alley", the area around the border between North Korea and China. He shot down his first plane on June 19 of the next year, and he scored his fifth victory eleven days later. He added two more in July, days before the end of hostilities. He served two tours during the Vietnam War, flying the F-105 Thunderchief and F-100 Super Sabre. He retired from the Air Force in 1979 after a career total of 286 combat missions.
Early life and education
Buttelmann was born to German immigrants on June 26, 1929, in Corona, a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. His first introduction to aviation was when he had a neighbor who was an American Airlines pilot. He began attending the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut in 1948, and he also served as a private in the 514th Troop Carrier Group of the Air National Guard, after having worked as a lifeguard to save for flying lessons. In 1950 he was called to active duty when the Korean War broke out. He then went to Big Spring Air Force Base in Texas and then Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada for three months of advanced gunnery training.
Military career
Korean War
He joined the 25th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron of the 51st Fighter-Interceptor Group in November 1952, where he had to be trained in air-to-air combat because he had only learned air-to-ground at Nellis. He was sent to Suwon Air Base, South Korea, on December 23, where he completed several check flights in the F-86 Sabre before doing his first combat mission on January 15, 1953. He flew in "MiG Alley", the nickname given to the area around the border between North Korea and China near the Yalu River where American pilots fought Chinese, Soviet, and North Korean MiG-15 planes. The war was winding down into a stalemate by the time Buttelmann arrived, so there were few MiGs in the skies. Because of this, he flew aggressively, venturing north of the Yalu, into Chinese territory, but he still only saw MiGs twice during his first five months, when he was a wingman. On his 50th mission, he came across a formation of MiGs but had to break off because he had reached "bingo" state, which meant he was below the minimum of fuel needed to get back to base safely. The airstrip was covered in clouds when he returned, and Buttelmann said he was lucky to have been able to land in those conditions while low on fuel. On June 19, his 55th mission and first as an element leader, he made his first kill. His fifth victory came on June 30, 1953, making him a flying ace. He was the USAF's 36th ace and the youngest ace of the war at 24 years and 4 days. On July 19, he was in a flight of four F-86s led by future astronaut John Glenn that ran into a group of MiGs. In the ensuing skirmish, Glenn, Buttelmann, and Glenn's wingman were each credited with a victory. Glenn said that "the MiGs' tactics were so poor I could only imagine it was a training flight, or they were low on fuel, but we were unbelievably lucky". In another flight with Glenn three days later, he scored his seventh and final victory—also the last day of aerial combat in the war. After coming home from Korea with 65 combat missions, Buttelmann returned to Nellis to serve as an instructor.
In May 2015, he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by Nevada Senator Dean Heller for "his role as an American Fighter Ace during the Korean and Vietnam Wars". Buttelmann died on September 16, 2019, at the age of 90. He died in Frankfort, Illinois, where he and his wife, Audrey Buttelmann, moved in 2018. Buttelmann was one of two surviving Korean War aces when he died; the other is Charles G. Cleveland
Awards and Decorations
His decorations include:
Aerial victory credits
Throughout his career, Buttelmann was credited with seven victories, all of them in the Korean War.
