Chesley G. Peterson

Peterson arrived in England in late 1940 and was assigned to No. 71 Squadron of the Royal Air Force (RAF). No. 71 Squadron was one of the three Eagle Squadrons, made up of volunteer American pilots who served in World War II prior to the United States entering the war. The Americans would fly Hurricanes and Spitfires against the Luftwaffe. In time, he was promoted to flight lieutenant, and given command of No. 71 Squadron. Flight Lieutenant Peterson completed 42 missions while flying with the RAF. When he was given command of No. 71 Squadron, he was only 21 years old and the youngest squadron commander in the RAF.

However, he was not, as sometimes claimed,[2] one of the Few.[3]

In 1942, Peterson accepted a transfer to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) along with the rest of the Eagle Squadron members. He was assigned to the 4th Fighter Group as the executive officer and as a major Later he would be promoted to colonel at the age of 23, and became the youngest colonel in the USAAF.

When Peterson first joined the 4th Fighter Group, they were assigned the P-47 Thunderbolt, which was a radical change from the Spitfires the Eagle Squadron pilots had flown. While flying a P-47 over the English Channel, Peterson was forced to bail out at 500 feet (150 m) above the water. His parachute failed, but miraculously Peterson survived both the fall and the dangerous Channel waters.

In January 1944, Peterson was reassigned to VIII Fighter Command as a staff officer and then to a subordinate unit of VIII Fighter Command, the 65th Fighter Wing, until returning to the United States at the end of 1944. During his time overseas, Colonel Peterson flew a total of 130 missions and was credited with nine aerial victories and nine probables.

After attending Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, Peterson was assigned as the commander of Dale Mabry Field, Tallahassee, Florida in March 1945. His next assignment was as chief, Air Attache Branch, Headquarters Army Air Forces, Washington, D.C., beginning in August, 1945.