To the new Inspector General, Lt Gen Ernest C. Hardin Jr., Olds offered to take a voluntary reduction in rank to colonel so he could return to operational command and straighten out the situation. Olds himself shot down one of the seven, for which he and the other aircrew were awarded Silver Stars. After bagging another MiG-21 on May 4, Olds shot down two MiG-17s on the 20th to raise his total to 16, including the four MiGs over Vietnam. Col Olds had several general assemblies with the support staff and they were always motivational. Traveling to Britain, he commanded No. Five years later, young Robin flew for the first time when his father took him up in an open-cockpit biplane. [2] He retired in 1973 as a brigadier general . [81] The 44-year-old colonel also set the tone for his command stint by immediately placing himself on the flight schedule as a rookie pilot under officers junior to himself, then challenging them to train him properly because he would soon be leading them. Olds and Ella Raines separated in 1975 and divorced in 1976. In March 1967, he led a strike against a steelworks in North Vietnam. That show starred George Segal, Wendy Malick, and Laura San Giacomo. He retired in 1973 as abrigadier general. A woman named Robyn appeared as a model back in 1997 on the series Just Shoot Me. [45][46] His combat report for that date concluded: Still in a shallow dive, I observed a P-38 and a Me 109 going round and round. His initial twin-engine training at Williams Field, Arizona, was in the Curtiss AT-9, followed by transition fighter training[35] to the Lockheed P-38 Lightning in its P-322 variant. He was active in public speaking, making 21 events as late in his life as 2005 and 13 in 2006. The Sedalia Democrat (Sedalia, Missouri) Thu.24 Jan. 1935, Page-9 MRS. ROBIN RAINES STOCKTON Mrs. Robin Raines Stockton, 31 years old, wife of K. W. Stockton. Postwar after VE-Day, he returned to the States and reverted to his permanent rank: a 23-year-old Captain. [32] Olds received his pilot's wings personally from Gen. Henry H. Arnold on May 30, 1943,[33] and graduated on June 1 as a member of the Class of June 1943, 194th in general merit of 514 graduates. By this time I was traveling in excess of 500mph (800km/h). He was a triple ace, with a combined total of 16victories inWorld War IIand theVietnam War. Years later, Wetterhahn compared Olds arrival with that of Brig. Olds turned his flight left and began a ten-minute pursuit in which they climbed to altitude above and behind the Germans. I was assigned to Base Operations and they were both frequent visitors. I was the only one to return homeWhen I tested the stall characteristics of my wounded bird over our home airfield, I found it quit flying at a little over 175mph (282km/h) indicated and rolled violently into the dead wing (note: the right flap had been blown away and two large holes knocked in the same wing). When he reported to his first interview with Air Force Chief of Staff General John P. McConnell, McConnell walked up to him, stuck a finger under his nose and said, "Take it off." This required some adjustment on Olds part as the single-engine Mustang handled differently than the twin-engine Lightning. He stood before the F-4C Phantom crews and said, Im going to start here by flying Green Sixteen (tail-end Charlie) and you guys are going to teach me how. Not Robin Olds. He was not happy. But his report and analysis were not well received, and his recommendations were ignored. Cape Town - Police in Limpopo have opened a case of murder as well as an inquest docket after the husband shot and killed his wife and, later, turned the gun on himself on Sunday.Provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo said the couple worked as paramedics.Mojapelo said the 44-year-old wife had obtained a protection order against her husband.The pair were estranged at the . Robin Olds, known for his brash personality, became an endearing figure thanks to his leadership, forward-thinking in aerial warfare and love for fellow Air Force pilots. The MiG losses were the highest suffered in one day by the North Vietnamese during the war. Cadets applying to the Air Corps were classified as Air Cadets, with a modified curriculum which provided flying training but eliminated Military Topography and Graphics required for Ground Cadets. March 16, 2015 12:01am. [103], When the Operation Linebacker bombing campaign began in May 1972, American fighter jets returned to the offense in the skies over North Vietnam for the first time in nearly four years. OLDS ROBIN: (1922-2007) American fighter pilot, a 'triple ace' with a combined total of 17 victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. Chris Hemsworth 's wife Elsa Pataky had a few words to say about the rumours that Miley Cyrus ' song "Flowers" is about her brother-in-law Liam Hemsworth. It lasted until, as a colonel, he went to Washington after his service in Vietnam to meet the Air Force chief of staff, Gen. John P. McConnell. [89], The F-4s and their crews, however, proved equal to the situation and claimed seven MiG-21s destroyed, almost half of the 16 then in service with the VPAF without loss to USAF aircraft. YoutTube/Nation Press FoundationRobin Roberts said she's 'grateful for all of her . His ashes were interred at the US Air Force Academy. Olds, briefly hospitalized during the incident for facial cuts, pleaded guilty in return for charges of weaving and felony vehicular eluding being dropped. He knew from his sources that all was not well in the 8th TFW and resolved to see it from the perspective of the FNG (the freaking new guy). The baby had convulsions several times . Robin Olds Met Hollywood Actress Ella Raines on a Blind Date In 1946, while based at March Field, Olds met Hollywood actress (and "pin-up girl") Ella Raines on a blind date in Palm Springs. Robin Roberts announced she and her longtime partner Amber Laign are marrying in 2023. Declining a series of football scholarships, he elected to take a year of study at Millard Preparatory School in 1939 before applying to West Point. He later reflected on the hazards of such missions: I was hit by flak as I was pulling out of a dive-strafing pass on an airfield called Tarnewitz, up on the Baltic. In February 1971, Olds became director of aerospace safety in the Office of the Inspector General. When he died on June 14, not quite 85, Olds left the work incomplete. Dressed in a child-size air service uniform, he watched his father testify on Mitchells behalf. The man was bigger than life and reading his memoir will confirm all the amazing stories about this legendary fighter pilot. As a Colonel, I had to check with some general for permission to visit the latrine., Unlike many pilots who regarded airplanes as tools, Olds could be sentimental about his machines. Her husband has three children from a previous relationship;[112], Robert Ernest Olds, who was stillborn in 1958. When Nazi Germany invaded Poland in 1939, Olds attempted to join the Royal Canadian Air Force but was thwarted by his father's refusal to approve his enlistment papers. Robin Olds, who died four years ago at age 85, lived a story-book life. In his first two dogfights, he was alone with his wingman, having left formation to hunt on his own. Deciding on a military career at the age of 12, Olds attended Hampton High School in Hampton Virginia where he became a standout football player. He is from USA. Learning of the outbreak of World War II while at Millard, he attempted to leave school and enlist in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Following his exchange assignment, Olds returned to March AFB to become operations officer of the 94th Fighter Squadron of the 1st Fighter Group, flying North American F-86A Sabres, on November 15, 1949. Olds was aggressive, even mean, as a player, and received offers to attend Virginia Military Institute and Dartmouth College on football scholarships. General Olds, who in the course of a long career flew 65 kinds of military planes, almost perfectly filled the role of hotshot flier. Far too many military personnel, policemen, and politicians mouth their oath of office as a rote exercise. in English and creative writing from Vassar. [65] In late May, the 412th was ordered to undertake Project Comet a nine-city transcontinental mass formation flight. "[98] Olds started the mustache in the wake of the success of Operation Bolo and let it grow beyond regulation length because "It became the middle finger I couldn't raise in the PR photographs. Gen. Robin Olds once said his magnificent mustache represented his defiance. A highly decorated combat fighter pilot of World War II and the Vietnam War, he was a triple ace with a combined total of 16 aerial victories in both wars. For math, science, nutrition, history . . Despite her impressively long resume, she'll probably always be best remembered for her role in . [106], In 1968, Olds received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement. On the evening of June 14, 2007 he died from congestive heart failure in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, a month before his 85th birthday. On his second transition flight, at the point of touchdown during landing, Olds learned a lesson in "false confidence" when the powerful torque of the single-engined fighter forced him to ground loop after the Mustang veered off the runway. Legendary fighter pilot Robin Olds dies Published June 15, 2007 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFPN) -- Legendary fighter pilot, retired Brig. Gen. Robin Olds, died June 14 from congestive heart failure one month short of his 85th birthday. After relinquishing command of the 8th TFW on September 23, 1967, Olds reported for duty to the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in December 1967. [73], Most of their 29-year marriage, marked by frequent extended separations and difficult homecomings, was turbulent because of a clash of lifestyles,[113] particularly her refusal to ever live in government housing on base. U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFPN) -- Retired Brig. [89], On May 4, Olds destroyed another MiG-21 over Phc Yn. He is buried at the United States Air Force Academy Cemetery, Colorado Springs, Colorado. [37], Olds was promoted to first lieutenant on December 1, 1943. [44] Despite battle damage to his own plane, including loss of a side window of its canopy, Olds shot down two during the dogfight and another on the way home to become the first ace of the 479th FG. He was born on July 14, 1922 and his birthplace is Honolulu, HI. Robin Lord Taylor is an American television and film actor, and director. [51] Olds shot down an Fw 190 in his new Scat VI on October 6 during a savage battle near Berlin in which he was nearly shot down by his own wingman. [118], Days later, on July 21, 2001, Olds was enshrined at Dayton, Ohio, in the National Aviation Hall of Fame Class of 2001, along with test pilot Joe H. Engle, Marine Corps ace Marion E. Carl, and Albert Lee Ueltschi. Save Article. He closed in and fired twice more, with his third burst sending the Messerschmitt down in flames. I tried to contact the flight to get myself recognized, but observed an Me 109 making a pass at me from about seven o'clock high. But his greatest moment came on Jan. 2, 1967, when, as a colonel, he created an aerial trap for enemy MIGs. Olds then married Abigail Morgan Sellers Barnett in January 1978, and they divorced after fifteen years of marriage. After damaging one of the jets in a chase meant to lure the fighter escort away from the bombers, the Mustangs returned to the bomber stream. He became an instructor at the Air Corps Tactical School between 1928 and 1931, the crucial period when the theory of strategic bombardment achieved ascendancy within the Air Corps as the most effective use of airpower. He was honored with a flyover and services at the United States Air Force Academy, where his ashes are housed, on June 30, 2007. And even as a commanding officer, he made a point of placing himself on the flight schedule as a rookie pilot under officers his junior. Like so many other pilots and WSOs, he was energized by the new COs press-on attitude. Olds had administrative and staff duty assignments at the Pentagon between 1958 and 1962 as the Deputy Chief, Air Defense Division, Headquarters USAF. Gen. Robin Olds, died June 14 from congestive heart failure one month short of his 85th birthday. When the leaders were only interested in suiting up, he exercised some initiative. Through the remainder of the year, he flew as part of a jet demonstration team with Lt. Col. John C. Pappy Herbst. Olds was a team player as long as the team wanted to play. The son of U.S. Army Air Forces Major General Robert Olds, educated at West Point, and the product of an upbringing in the early years of the U.S. Army Air Corps, Olds epitomized the youthful World War II fighter pilot. Your email address will not be published. After he received a conditional commitment for nomination from Pennsylvania Congressman J. Buell Snyder, Olds moved to Uniontown, Pennsylvania, where he lived in the YMCA and supported himself working odd jobs. Operation Bolo, and P-38 dogfights Olds experienced were recreated using computer animation in the episode "Air Ambush", of The History Channel Dogfights series, first telecast on November 10, 2006. Apart from Maurice, he had one sister, Lesley Evans, and two brothers, Barry and Andy. Scat XXVII (F-4C-24-MC 64-0829) was retired from operational service and placed on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Olds used to say that the two best things about World War II were London and Col. Zemke. A month before the fall of Nazi Germany, Maj. Robin Olds of the 479th Fighter Group, U.S. Army Air Forces, scored his final aerial victory of World War II, chasing a Messerschmitt 109 through a formation of B-24 Liberator bombers and shooting it down. Brig. [69] Discouraged and at odds with the Air Force, in which he was seen as an iconoclast, Olds reportedly was in the process of resigning when he was talked out of it by a mentor, Maj Gen Frederic H. Smith Jr., who brought him to work at Eastern Air Defense Command headquarters at Stewart AFB, New York. General Olds went on to serve in many countries and positions, including assignments to Air Force headquarters and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. To the new Inspector General, Lt. Gen. Ernest C. Hardin, Jr., Olds offered to take a voluntary reduction in rank to Colonel so he could return to operational command and straighten out the situation. I broke left as well as my plane could and the Jerry overshot. At a time when the Air Force was focused on nuclear strategy, General Olds argued for strengthening conventional warfare capabilities. [104][105], Robin Olds' ribbons as they appeared at retirement. [22], Olds played on the varsity college football team in both 1941 and 1942. A 14-aircraft aerial review included four F-4 Phantoms flying a missing man formation. What to do? She holds a B.A. Olds had a highly publicized career and life, including marriage to Hollywood actress Ella Raines. After World War II, General Olds became one of the first Air Force pilots to fly jets. Olds logged 650hours of flying time during training, including 250hours in the P-38 Lightning, as the 479th built its proficiency as a combat group. Robin Olds was born on July 14, 1922, in Honolulu. This defiance grew into the modern-day practice called Mustache March in the U.S. Air Force, in which Airmen of all ranks grow their mustaches out of regulations for the entire month of March in defiance of AF hair grooming standards. I knew McConnell understood. Born on July 14, 1922 in Honolulu, Olds was the son of Robert Olds, a fighter pilot in World War I and later an aide to Billy Mitchell. It departed the Los Angeles area on April 15 for Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, and shipped aboard the USS Argentina for Europe on May 3. Promoted to brigadier general on June 1, 1968, he worked to restore pride in the school after a large cheating scandal had blackened its reputation. He pulled behind the two FW-190s and at 400 yards behind the trailing plane, he fired a six-second burst, hitting the left wing and then pulling his gunfire onto the fuselage. He remained in this role for much of the Korean War despite repeated requests for combat duty. Olds ruled over a fiefdom like a feudal baron, enjoying the excitement of the hunt by day and discussing the great game with his men at arms by night. After brief service at Shaw AFB in South Carolina, Olds was given command of the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW) at Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base. He chandelled steeply to the left and I shot some more. Flying the Gloster Meteor jet fighter, he commanded No. [94], Air Force Inspector General and Olds' West Point classmate Lt Gen Louis L. Wilson Jr. sent Olds to Southeast Asia in the autumn of 1971 to determine the state of readiness of Air Force pilots. But as he said, Scat VI had taken me through a lot and I was damned if I was going to give up on her.. Retiring to Steamboat Springs, CO, he became active in public affairs. Gen. Robin Olds' legacy runs far deeper than a mustache. But think about how to protect and defend the Constitution. "Reading Robin Olds mesmerizing memoir is like sitting on his shoulder and physically experiencing his decades of flying, fighting, and defending America's freedoms and values. You cant teach it. Olds with his trademark mustache, conducting a pre-combat mission walk around inspection of his F-4 fighter, at, 1971 inspector general tour and 1973 retirement, A private site asserts that this was a derogatory comment, and that they were usually referred to as ". Wife And Net Worth; Gina Cirone : Career, Height, Husband, Age And Net Worth; Age, Net Worth, Boyfriend, Height And Career Of Kendall Long; My left window blew out, scaring the hell out of me. He nursed his crippled Mustang back to base but found that it stalled at 175 mph, rolling violently. Robin Olds died on June 14, 2007. [29], By an act of Congress on October 1, 1942, during Olds' second class year, the academy began a three-year curriculum for the duration of the war for cadets entering after July 1939. At first on the command staff of the 86th Fighter-Interceptor Wing at Landstuhl Air Base, West Germany, Olds then commanded its Sabre-equipped 86th Fighter-Interceptor Group from October 8, 1955, to August 10, 1956. Robin Olds was born in Honolulu, HI on July 14, 1922. Robin married Abigail Morgan Sellers Barnett in January 1978, and they divorced after fifteen years of marriage. Because do you know what that is? He retired in 1973 as a Brigadier General of the United States Air Force (USAF) after 30 years of service. By the end of World War II, Olds had established his reputation as a talented fighter pilot in the P-51 Mustang, having shot down 12 enemy aircraft and destroyed another 11.5 on the ground, all in . He entered the academy a month later but after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Olds was sent to the Spartan School of Aeronautics in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for flight training. [75] Following his Pentagon assignment, Olds attended the National War College in Washington D.C., graduating in 1963. Robin Olds (July 14, 1922 - June 14, 2007) was an American fighter pilot and general officer in the U.S. Air Force. [93], His 259total combat missions included 107 in World War II and 152 in Southeast Asia, 105 of those over North Vietnam. Olds had made ace in both the P-38 and P-51, probably the only pilot ever to do so. He continued attacking in "dead-stick mode", hitting his target in the fuselage and shooting off part of its engine cowling. His reputation as a superbly skilled fighter pilot and outstanding leader continues to inspire active duty, retired and aspiring pilots and air crews alike. Their son is named after Robin, whose middle name was McLaurin. In 1978, Robin Olds married his second wife, Abigail Morgan Sellers Barnett. Olds commanded the wing until July 26, 1965. For five minutes these bogeys paralleled the bomber stream while the 479th held station. He remained in the service as it became the United States Air Force, despite often being at odds with its leadership, and was one of its pioneer jet pilots. Olds was also selected as an All-American as the cadets compiled a 63 record, beating Lafayette College, Cornell, Columbia, Harvard, VMI, and Princeton, and falling to Notre Dame, Penn, and Navy. Through a career in the United States Air Force spanning 30 years, plus 34 years of active retirement, Robin Olds led a remarkable and exemplary life. That made him one of very few that have recovered from a compressibility event. He served as commandant of cadets for three years and sought to restore morale in the wake of a major cheating scandal. Implemented in January 1967, the operation saw American aircraft down seven MiG-21s, with Olds shooting down one. On this week's episode of her podcast "I've Got a Secret! Like the rest of the Air Force, it had barely broken even with Hanois MiGs, peaking at a 2-1 exchange rate. Made Deputy Chief, Air Defense Division at the Pentagon in 1958, Olds produced as series of prophetic papers calling for improved air-to-air combat training and the increased production of conventional munitions. You can download the book in thee-book format of your choice at AmazonorSmashwords. 1 Squadron at Royal Air Force Station Tangmere between October 20, 1948, and September 25, 1949,[61] the first foreigner to command an RAF unit in peacetime. [38], The 479th began combat on May 26, flying bomber escort missions and attacking transportation targets in occupied France in advance of the invasion of Normandy. [49], He made eight claims while flying the P-38 (five of which are sustained by the Air Force Historical Research Agency) and was originally credited as the top-scoring P-38 pilot of the European Theater of Operations. The wing had converted to the F101 and he loved to show us what it could do during annual air shows. He says "I went on into the fight, got another one, BE (His wing man) got two others with one pass. In 1946, while based at March Field, Olds met Hollywood actress (and pin-up girl) Ella Raines on a blind date in Palm Springs. The oldest of four, Olds spent the majority of his childhood at Langley Field, Virginia where his father was stationed as an aide to Brig. As a young man he was also recognized for his athletic prowess in both high school and college, being named an All-American as a lineman in college football. [115], In his retirement at Steamboat Springs, Colorado, Olds pursued his love of skiing and served on the city's planning commission. Instagram/RobinRobertsGMAGMA's Robin Roberts flaunted her figure in a tight pink dress with sexy lace[/caption] Instagram/RobinRobertsGMARobin's dress was the color of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. When is Robin Roberts Marrying? Five P-51s made a pass on the airdrome that April day. Robin Olds was born in Honolulu. [19], Instead of entering college after graduating in 1939, Olds enrolled at Millard Preparatory School for West Point in Washington, D.C., a school established to prepare men for the entrance examinations to the military academies. Olds' class was given an abridged second class course of study until January 19, 1943, when it began an abridged first class course. By Kayla Keegan Updated: Jan 4, 2023. Returning to the United States after the war, Olds was assigned at West Point as an assistant football coach for Red Blaik. Robin Olds was an American fighter pilot and general officer in the United States Air Force. Explore Robin Olds Wiki Age, Height, Biography as Wikipedia, Wife, Family relation. The remainder of his career was spent in non-operational positions, as Commandant of Cadets at the United States Air Force Academy and as an official in the Air Force Inspector General's Office. US Air Force Brigadier General. The old ways were not only out, they were deceased. I thought I had been hit by some of the ground fire I had observed in the vicinity. Throughout his career, he was a staunch advocate for better fighters, better pilot training and new tactics, culminating in the war-winning air-to-air tactics and doctrine of surgical precision bombing that we use today, Gen. T. Michael Moseley, Air Force chief of staff, said in a statement after General Oldss death. You will laugh, cheer out loud and maybe even shed a tear. What he valued most was the courage and skill of his aircrews. Welcome to the official Robin Olds website. The group converted to P-51s in September but on October 30, 1944, while flying in unforecast turbulence, the wing of Zemkes P-51 was torn off. The class originally designated the Class of 1943 graduated January 19, 1943, as the, Had Olds completed the standard four-year Academy course, he would have been compelled by his height to become a bomber pilot after the AAF imposed height limitations on new fighter pilots to 5'08" [1.73m] or shorter in early 1944. "My dad and I were great buddies," said Christina Olds. As recognized by the American Fighter Aces Association, Olds was the only pilot to "make ace" in both the P-38 (5 victories) and the P-51 (8 victories). [84] The Olds-James combination became popularly nicknamed "Blackman and Robin". [56][57] South of Bremen, Olds noticed contrails popping up above a bank of cirrus clouds, of aircraft flying above and to the left of the bombers. If you ever wanted to fly a P-51 Mustang in combat over Germany or shoot down a MiG over North Vietnam flying your F-4 Phantom, reading this is the closest you can get without actually doing it. [77], Olds formed a demonstration team for the F-101 using pilots of his wing, without command authorization, and performed at an Air Force open house at Bentwaters. He considered it a dangerously wasteful effort, as the mill had been hit repeatedly, but its smokestacks had remained standing. U.S. Air Force fighter pilot who served in both World War II and the Vietnam War. [17], Olds first flew at the age of eight, in an open cockpit biplane operated by his father. Weighing his options, he decided to risk it all and flat planed. As our way to help you celebrate the New Year, were offering the first book in the Hamfist series FREE! He found what he feared: most Air Force fighter crews couldnt fight their way out of a wet paper bag. Commander John Nichols, a Navy MiG killer brought to Udorn, Thailand to teach dogfighting to the Air Force blue suits, saw Olds taxi his F-4 into the chocks after a practice mission. He had earlier been treated for prostate cancer. Then he began learning the way the Wolfpack did business so he could improve upon it. And when he could not wrangle a combat assignment in the Korean War, he participated in transcontinental jet races and flew with the Air Forces first aerobatic demonstration team. He flew with his father aboard an open cockpit biplane when he was just eight years old. He retired in 1973 as a brigadier general. The Vietnam War "proved the need to teach tactical warfare and have fighter pilots. As a result the flow of war materials into this area was appreciably reduced. This led him to be subject to compressibility. 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