A pilot with the 47th Pursuit Squadron, 2nd Lt. John L. Dains was one of the first pilots to take to the air to defend Hawaii on the date of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He is one of the pilots who actually did what you see in the movies about Pearl Harbor: Got into a car with buddies and raced to the field where only a few airplanes were ready, to get into the air to fight. New research strongly suggests he shot down the first Japanese fighter that day. Flying a P-36A assigned to the 45th Pursuit Squadron, tail number 38-149 -- an older airplane than the P-40 fighters flown by most other pilots that day -- and on his final mission of the day, he was misidentified by U.S. gunners on the ground and shot down while trying to land his airplane. An aggressive and talented pilot whose loss was a personal tragedy for his family and a blow to the nation and the military as a whole, he was the first U.S. combatant pilot casualty of World War II and the first such "friendly fire" casualty of the war.
Other pilots who took to the air that day included Philip Rasmussen, Harry Brown, Ken Taylor, George Welch, Gordon H. Sterling Jr. and Malcolm "Mike" Moore.
Other pilots who took to the air that day included Philip Rasmussen, Harry Brown, Ken Taylor, George Welch, Gordon H. Sterling Jr. and Malcolm "Mike" Moore.
A pilot with the 47th Pursuit Squadron, 2nd Lt. John L. Dains was one of the first pilots to take to the air to defend Hawaii on the date of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He is one of the pilots who actually did what you see in the movies about Pearl Harbor: Got into a car with buddies and raced to the field where only a few airplanes were ready, to get into the air to fight. New research strongly suggests he shot down the first Japanese fighter that day. Flying a P-36A assigned to the 45th Pursuit Squadron, tail number 38-149 -- an older airplane than the P-40 fighters flown by most other pilots that day -- and on his final mission of the day, he was misidentified by U.S. gunners on the ground and shot down while trying to land his airplane. An aggressive and talented pilot whose loss was a personal tragedy for his family and a blow to the nation and the military as a whole, he was the first U.S. combatant pilot casualty of World War II and the first such "friendly fire" casualty of the war.
Other pilots who took to the air that day included Philip Rasmussen, Harry Brown, Ken Taylor, George Welch, Gordon H. Sterling Jr. and Malcolm "Mike" Moore.
Other pilots who took to the air that day included Philip Rasmussen, Harry Brown, Ken Taylor, George Welch, Gordon H. Sterling Jr. and Malcolm "Mike" Moore.
Bio by: John Andrew Prime
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