Lt. Col. George Hardy

Lt. Col. George Hardy flew with the 99th Fighter Squadron of the 332nd Fighter Group in 1945, piloting “Tall in the Saddle,” previously flown by Capt. Wendell Lucas. At 19 years old, he joined the 99th in April 1945 as a replacement pilot, participating in 21 combat missions, primarily high-altitude escorts with some strafing. After returning to the U.S. in August 1945, he was discharged in November 1946.

Hardy returned to active duty in June 1948, flying P-47s with the 301st Fighter Squadron and the 332nd Fighter Group at Lockbourne Air Force Base in Ohio. Following the Air Force’s desegregation in July 1949, he joined the 19th Bomb Group in Guam. He later relocated to Okinawa during the Korean War, where he flew 45 combat missions and earned the command pilot ranking in September 1959.

During the Vietnam War, from April 1970 to April 1971, Hardy served with the 18th Special Operations Squadron at Phan Rang Air Force Base in Vietnam. He later became the operating location commander at Udorn, Thailand. At Danang Air Force Base in Vietnam, he flew 70 combat missions in AC-119K gunships over northern Laos and the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Hardy retired in November 1971, decorated with several prestigious awards, including the Distinguished Flying Cross with Valor, an Air Medal with 11 oak leaf clusters, a Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster, and a bronze replica of the Congressional Gold Medal.