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Jolley, Clifford Dale, Lt Col.
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Contact Info
Home Town Cleveland
Last Address Bountiful
Date of Passing Jul 13, 1995
Location of Interment Brigham City Cemetery - Brigham, Utah
Official Badges
Unofficial Badges
Additional Information
Last Known Activity:
On 7 August 1952, Capt. Clifford D. Jolley, flying an F-86 Sabre "Jolley Roger," became the 18th jet ace of the Korean War, and the first Air National Guard "ace" of the war from the (Utah Air National Guard).
Captain Jolley shot down seven Soviet-made MiG-15 aircraft, earning his ace status.
He joined the USAAF in 1941. Jolley learned to fly in 1942. He flew P-40s and P-38s with the 18th Fighter Squadron, 343rd Fighter Group, 11th Air Force in the Aleutians. He shot down 3 enemy planes during WWII.
He first began flying P-51 Mustangs with the California Air Guard in San Bernardino in 1947.
He transitioned to jets in 1948 at Williams Air Force Base, Ariz., and joined the Utah Air National Guard in 1949.
During 1951, he toured the country with his Guard unit, putting on firepower demonstrations. Late that year, he attended Jet Gunnery School at Nellis AFB in Las Vegas. He and many Guardsmen were activated from the Utah unit and assigned to a regular Air Force unit in Korea in 1952.
Jolley flew with the 335th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, "The Chiefs," of the 4th Fighter Interceptor Group from Kimpo Air Base, South Korea. The squadron flew four kinds of missions in Korea: MiG sweeps, cover flights for bombers, cover flights for photo recon planes, and weather searches.
He was shot down over Cho-Do by a MiG-15 on 2 July 1952, managed to eject. He was briefly captured, and subsequently rescued by the crew of an H-5 of the 3rd Air Rescue Service.
While flying his F-86E (#51-2769), he downed his first MiG on his 31st birthday, the second on the Fourth of July, the third and fourth on August 7, the fifth on August 8 (becoming the 18th jet ace of the Korean War), and the 6th and 7th later that month. He is credited with having at least 13 probables.
He came home on August 30, exactly 10 years after graduation from flight school. He became the operations officer for the 191st Fighter Squadron, Utah National Guard upon his return.
Jolley went on to become a flight test pilot with Northrop Corporation, flying many other types of fighter jets, including the F-89 Scorpion. He retired to Salt Lake City in 1966 as a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force Reserve.
He passed in Salt Lake City, 13 July 1995.
Other Comments:
See NOTES for details.
1966-1966, Air Force Reserve Command
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The Air Force Reserve Command is a Major Command of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters stationed at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federally controlled Air Reserve Component of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of duly appointed commissioned officers and enlisted airmen.
AFRC supports the Air Force mission to defend the United States through the control and exploitation of air and space by supporting Global Engagement. AFRC also plays an integral role in the day-to-day Air Force mission and is not strictly a force held in reserve for possible war or contingency operations.
The federal reserve component of the United States Air Force, AFRC has approximately 450 aircraft assigned for which it has sole control. as well as access to several hundred additional active duty USAF aircraft via AFRC "Associate" wings that are collocated with active duty Air Force wings, sharing access to those aircraft.. The inventory includes the latest, most capable models of aircraft that are also assigned to the active-duty U.S. Air Force. On any given day, 99 percent of AFRC's aircraft are mission-ready and able to deploy within 72 hours.
The purpose of the Air Force Reserve as derived from Title 10 United States Code is to:
Provide combat-ready units and individuals for active duty whenever there are not enough trained units and people in the Regular component of the Air Force to perform any national security mission.
