George Preddy

Major George Earl Preddy Jr. (February 5, 1919 – December 25, 1944) was a United States Army Air Forces officer during World War II and an American ace credited with 26.83 enemy air-to-air kills (a number that includes shared one-half and one-third victory credits),[1] ranking him as the top P-51 Mustang ace of World War II and eighth on the list of highest scoring American aces.[2] Preddy was born and grew up in Greensboro, North Carolina.[3]

George Earl Preddy Jr.
Nickname(s)"Ratsy"
Born(1919-02-05)February 5, 1919
Greensboro, North Carolina
DiedDecember 25, 1944(1944-12-25) (aged 25)
near Liège, German-occupied Belgium
Buried
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Army Air Forces
Years of service1941 1944
Rank Major
Unit49th Fighter Group
352nd Fighter Group
Commands held328th Fighter Squadron
Battles/warsWorld War II
Awards Distinguished Service Cross
Silver Star (2)
Distinguished Flying Cross (7)
Purple Heart
Air Medal (7)

Early life

Preddy was born in 1919 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the second of four children born to George Earl Sr. and Clara Noah Preddy. He attended Aycock School and Greensboro High School. Following graduation, he worked at a cotton mill and attended Guilford College for two years, before becoming a barnstormer pilot.[4]

Military career

On September 1940, he enlisted in the North Carolina National Guard and served with the 252nd Coast Artillery Regiment. Preddy attempted to become a naval aviator in the U.S. Navy, but was rejected thrice. As a result, he entered the Aviation Cadet Program of the U.S. Army Air Corps on April 29, 1941. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Air Forces and was awarded his pilot wings at Craig Field in Alabama, on December 12, 1941, just five days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.[5][6]

World War II

Major George E "Ratsy" Preddy Jr. of the 352nd Fighter Group in the cockpit of his P-51 Mustang (HO-P, serial number 44-13321) nicknamed Cripes A' Mighty 3rd.

Preddy was assigned as a P-40 Warhawk pilot with the 9th Pursuit Squadron of the 49th Pursuit Group, which provided air defense against Japanese aircraft attacking Darwin, Australia. Preddy claimed two Japanese aircraft damaged over Darwin. He was hospitalized after a midair collision with another P-40, in which the other pilot, 2nd Lt. John Sauber, was killed. After his recovery, he arrived at Hamilton Field in California, looking for an assignment and in December 1942, he was sent to Mitchel Field in New York and later to Westover Field in Massachusetts where he was assigned to the 487th Fighter Squadron of the 352nd Fighter Group, flying P-47 Thunderbolts.[6] On June 30, 1943,[7] the 352nd FG boarded the troopship RMS Queen Elizabeth. The group landed in the United Kingdom and was assigned to RAF Bodney in Watton, Norfolk, under the operational control of the 67th Fighter Wing, VIII Fighter Command.[8]

Preddy flew his first European combat mission in September 1943[7] and on October 14, 1943, he took part in the Second Schweinfurt raid but was forced to turn back from the mission along with 196 other P-47 pilots due to near-empty fuel tanks. On December 1, 1943, he shot down a Bf 109, his first aerial victory and on December 22, he led his flight in breaking up an attack by Me 210s against a straggling B-24 Liberator and managed to shoot down one of them and lure the remaining away from the B-24, for which he received the Silver Star.[6] [9]

On January 29, 1944, the 352nd FG escorted a formation of 800 bombers returning after targeting industrial complexes in Frankfurt. Over the French coast, Preddy shot down an Fw 190 but was hit by enemy flak. He managed to fly his P-47 over the English Channel and then bailed out of his aircraft. Preddy's wingman Lt. William T. Whisner kept circling over Preddy and repeatedly radioing his coordinates despite his risk in running out of fuel until air-sea rescue could triangulate the position. A Royal Air Force flying boat arrived and attempted to rescue Preddy, but rough seas resulted in the aircraft almost drowning him. After rescuing him, the aircraft had to be towed to the coast by the Royal Navy, as the aircraft broke one of its pontoons in the rough sea.[9]

In April 1944, the 352nd FG converted to North American P-51 Mustangs. Preddy became a flying ace after he shot down two Bf 109s during a bomber escort mission to Neubrandenburg on May 13. On June 20, while escorting bombers to Magdeburg, he shot down a Fw 190 and shared in the destruction of an Me 410 with another airman.[9]

George Preddy was killed on the morning of December 25, 1944, by friendly fire. As commanding officer of the 328th Fighter Squadron, 352nd FG, he was leading a formation of 10 P-51s. After patrolling for about three hours, they were directed to assist in a dogfight already in progress. Preddy destroyed two Messerschmitt Bf 109s[11] before being vectored to intercept a lone Focke-Wulf Fw 190 strafing Allied ground forces southeast of Liège, Belgium. As he pursued the Fw 190, Preddy's aircraft as well as two other P-51s passed over the Allied front line at treetop height. A US Army anti-aircraft (AA) battery (believed to be part of the 430th AA Battalion, XIX Corps) fired at the Fw 190 but missed and, instead, hit Preddy's P-51. Preddy managed to release his canopy but was unable to bail out before his aircraft hit the ground at high speed. Although the shallow angle of impact meant the crash was potentially survivable, his wounds from .50-caliber machine gun fire were mortal.[12]

Preddy's brother William, a P-51 pilot with the 503rd Fighter Squadron, 339th Fighter Group, was later buried alongside George at the Lorraine American Cemetery, Saint-Avold, France. William died in what is today's Czech Republic on April 17, 1945, from wounds he sustained when he was shot down by enemy AA fire, while strafing České Budějovice airfield.

Military decorations

Restored P-51 Mustang Cripes A Mighty 3rd

Preddy's military decorations include:

USAAF Pilot Badge
Distinguished Service Cross
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Silver Star with one bronze oak leaf cluster
Silver oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Distinguished Flying Cross with silver and bronze oak leaf clusters
Purple Heart
Silver oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Air Medal with one silver and one bronze oak leaf cluster
American Defense Service Medal
American Campaign Medal
Bronze star
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with one bronze service star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with four bronze service stars
World War II Victory Medal
Croix de Guerre, with Palm (Belgium)

  Army Presidential Unit Citation

Memorials

Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2087 in Greensboro was named after George Preddy, soon after the end of World War II.

In 1968, Business Interstate 85, through Greensboro, North Carolina was given the street name Preddy Boulevard, in memory of both Preddy brothers.

There is a memorial kiosk with video, photos, and models of planes flown by the Preddy brothers at Piedmont Triad International Airport.[13]

Footnotes

  1. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 20, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) George Preddy Greensboro's Ace, North Carolina Museum of History, Office of Archives and History, N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, 2005.
  2. fran adams. "The 'Full House' Painting and History". Archived from the original on December 22, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
  3. "George Preddy – The Preddy Memorial Foundation". Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  4. Howell Jr., Russ. "An Ordinary American Boy". O. Henry Magazine. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  5. "George E. Preddy Jr". Veteran Tributes. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  6. Joe Noah & Samuel L Sox Jr (January 3, 2007). "Synopsis of George Preddy Top Mustang Ace and addendum". Aviation-History.
  7. Joe Noah and Samuel L Sox Jr (1991). George Preddy Top Mustang Ace (1st ed.). Osceola, WI: Motorbooks International. ISBN 0966904206.
  8. "352nd Fighter Group (USAAF)". History of War. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  9. Bell, Kelly (August 2013). "George Preddy, Jr.: The USAAF's Greatest P-51 Ace". Warfare History Network. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  10. "Kracker Luftwaffe Archive".
  11. Bf 109G-14/AS Werk.No.784111 "Yellow 6" of Uffz. Heinrich Zinnen, killed, and Bf 109G-14 Werk.No.785758 "Yellow 9" Fw. Karl Heinz Schröder, wounded[10]
  12. "George Preddy: Top-Scoring World War II Mustang Ace". HistoryNet. 2006. Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  13. "P is for Preddy Brothers, George and William". Greensboro Daily. Retrieved July 26, 2012.

References

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