Bankey, Ernest Edward, Jr., Col

Deceased
 
 Service Photo   Service Details
54 kb
View Shadow Box View Printable Shadow Box View Time Line
Last Rank
Colonel
Primary Unit
1966-1968, 3902nd Support Squadron
Service Years
1941 - 1968
Officer srcset=
Colonel

 Last Photo   Personal Details 

93 kb


Home State
Ohio
Ohio
Year of Birth
1920
 
This Military Service Page was created/owned by SSgt Robert Bruce McClelland, Jr. to remember Bankey, Ernest Edward, Jr., Col USAF(Ret).

If you knew or served with this Airman and have additional information or photos to support this Page, please leave a message for the Page Administrator(s) HERE.
 
Contact Info
Home Town
Wilberforce, Ohio
Last Address
Newbury Park, California
Date of Passing
Jun 15, 2009
 
Location of Interment
Conejo Mountain Memorial Park - Camarillo, California

 Official Badges 

Air Training Command Instructor (pre-1966) Air Force Retired AAFTTC Instructor WW II Honorable Discharge Pin




 Unofficial Badges 

Cold War Medal Air Ace American Fighter Aces Congressional Gold Medal


 Military Associations and Other Affiliations
American Fighter Aces AssociationAir Force Memorial (AFM)
  2016, American Fighter Aces Association
  2017, Air Force Memorial (AFM) - Assoc. Page


 Additional Information
Last Known Activity:

He was credited with a total of 9.5 enemy aircraft destroyed in the air, 2 probables, and 8 destroyed on the ground during WWII. On Dec 27, 1944 he became an ace-in-a-day and also sent his famous (oft-quoted but usually paraphrased) transmission, "This is Sunkist Two. I've got 50 Jerries cornered over Bonn. Will share same with any P-51s in the vicinity. See me at smokestack level. Over and out."
 

Synopsis of his DSC citation:

Awarded for actions during World War II
(Citation Needed) - SYNOPSIS: Captain (Air Corps) Ernest E. Bankey, Jr. (ASN: 0-752095), United States Army Air Forces, was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy while serving as Pilot of a P-51 Fighter Airplane assigned to Headquarters, 364th Fighter Group, EIGHTH Air Force, in aerial combat against enemy forces on 27 December 1944, in support of beleaguered Allied ground forces during the Battle of the Bulge. On this date Captain Bankey became an ACE in a single day, shooting down FIVE enemy aircraft and assisting in the destruction of another. Captain Bankey's unquestionable valor in aerial combat is in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, the 8th Air Force, and the United States Army Air Forces.

General Orders: Headquarters, U.S. Strategic Forces in Europe, General Orders No. 4 (1945)

Action Date: 27-Dec-44

Service: Army Air Forces

Rank: Captain

Company: Headquarters

Regiment: 364th Fighter Group

Division: 8th Air Force

 

   
Other Comments:

Sources:
http://www.barnstormers.com/eFLYER/2008/033-eFLYER-FA02-Legends-Bankey-2.html
http://veterantributes.org/TributeDetail.php?recordID=718
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Bankey
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=78274848
http://valor.militarytimes.com/recipient.php?recipientid=23009
http://www.cieldegloire.com/fg_364.php
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/393783561146697234/
http://www.americanairmuseum.com/person/59523
http://www.crazyhorseap.be/Mustangs/Aces/Ernest%20Bankey/ErnestBankey.htm
P-51 info & photos:
http://www.military-art.com/mall/squadroninfo.php?SquadronID=391
http://www.warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=39806&start=0
 

   

 1941-1941, PT-13 Stearman
From Year
1941
To Year
1941
   
Personal Memories
Not Specified
   
Image
 PT-13 Stearman Details
 


Aircraft/Missile Information
Ode to a Stearman

Indeed, were it not for the noise, the relentless hurricane-force wind sometimes mixed with bullets of rain in the face, the occasional bug in the mouth, the near impossibility of communication, the danger of hypothermia, the unshielded exposure to the sun's deadly gamma rays, the non-existent baggage space, the low-pressure airflow over the cockpits that can suck out charts and papers, the dismal forward visibility, and its otherwise shameless impracticality, an open-cockpit biplane might just be the most ideal aircraft ever conceived - surely the most magnificent of all of man's wondrous machines. Author Unknown

The PT-13 was typical of the biplane primary trainer used during the late 1930s and WW II. Whereas it was powered by a Lycoming engine, the same airplane with a Continental engine was designated the PT-17, and with a Jacobs engine, the PT-18. A later version which featured a cockpit canopy was designated the PT-27.

Of 10,346 Kaydets ordered for the U.S. and its Allies, 2,141 were PT-13s for the AAF. Following WW II, the Kaydet was phased out in favor of more modern trainers.

SPECIFICATIONS
Span: 32 ft. 2 in.
Length: 24 ft. 10 in.
Height: 9 ft. 2 in.
Weight: 2,717 lbs. loaded
Armament: None
Engine: Lycoming R-680 of 220 hp..
Cost: $11,000

PERFORMANCE
Maximum speed: 125 mph.
Cruising speed: 104 mph.
Range: 450 miles
Service Ceiling: 14,000 ft.

   
Add your memories to this entry

Last Updated: Jun 14, 2014
   
My Photos From This Aircraft/Missile
No Available Photos

  4 Also There at This Aircraft:
 
Copyright Togetherweserved.com Inc 2003-2011