Clarence "Bud" Anderson

On March 8, 1944, then-Captain Clarence “Bud” Anderson was leading a squadron of P-51 Mustangs that were returning from escorting B 17 bombers on a run over Berlin. Suddenly three German Messerschmitt 109s dove on a straggling B 17. One of Anderson’s comrades quickly closed on the first 109 and opened fire, blowing it to pieces. Another Mustang chased the second German 109, while Anderson took after the third.

The German pilot refused to run, so the 109 and Anderson’s Mustang, which he affectionately called “Old Crow,” spiraled through the air in interlocking circles, each maneuvering to gain an advantage on the other.

One of the original leaders of the new 357th Fighter Group, Anderson was on only his ninth mission, having fired his gun just once in combat. He was eager, anxious for his first kill, and perhaps a little trigger happy. He decided to take his chances. Though he did not have a good angle, when he caught the German in his sights, he let loose a stream of bullets, hoping they would strike the enemy fighter.

Lucky for Anderson, they did. A golden shot punctured the enemy plane’s radiator, and the pilot bailed while the plane crashed in a fiery explosion. It was his first kill. It would be one of many. By the end of the war, Anderson would have 16 ¼ kills, ranking him among America’s top World War II aces.

Bud Anderson loved to fly. It was his self-admitted addiction. When the pilots were not scheduled to fly the next day, most spent the evenings in English bars, drinking late into the night. Chuck Yeager, Anderson’s friend and comrade in the 357th, said two things transformed Anderson into a wild man – alcohol and flying. But in Anderson’s words, “Drinking was just a poor substitute.”

Anderson and his comrades spent the week leading up to D-Day bombing and strafing German positions in France. They drew little opposition, as many of the German fighters had been pulled back to Germany to defend their homeland.

On June 5th, 1944, Anderson was sent on a mission to strafe the beach at Calais, where Allied leaders wanted the Germans to think the invasion of Normandy was going to take place. As he flew back toward his base over the English coast, he looked down to see more boats that he had ever seen in his life lined up in the estuaries. “Oh, wow!” he exclaimed over the radio, whereupon the group commander immediately responded, “Radio silence!” Hours later, those boats would stream toward the coast of France, hundreds of thousands of Allied military personnel aboard, in what was the largest amphibious invasion in history.

Anderson would continue flying missions over Europe in Old Crow. By the end of the war, he had flown nearly 500 hours in combat, flying 116 missions without ever being hit by enemy fire. In every mission he flew, he led the flight, and sometimes even the squadron or even the group. Chuck Yeager said of him, “In an airplane, the guy was a mongoose…the best fighter pilot I ever saw.”

Bud Anderson would enjoy a 30-year career in the United States Air Force, serving as a test pilot following the war, then commanding a squadron in Korea and a wing based on Okinawa. In 1970, at the age of 48, he flew combat strikes as a wing commander against Communist supply lines. He retired a colonel with more than 7,000 hours logged in over 100 types of aircraft. In addition to his 16 ¼ kills, he would be awarded the Legion of Merit twice, the Distinguished Flying Cross with four Oak Leaf Clusters, the Bronze Star, and the Air Medal with 15 Oak Leaf Clusters

For his valor over the skies of Europe in World War II and his distinguished career since, the American Veterans Center is proud to present Colonel Clarence “Bud” Anderson the 2009 Audie Murphy Award.