Top Photo: Donald McPherson. US Navy

Donald McPherson, believed to be America’s last surviving “ace” from World War II, passed away on August 14, 2025. He was 103 years old.  

McPherson earned the Congressional Gold Medal and three Distinguished Flying Crosses during his service as a US Navy pilot aboard the aircraft carrier USS Essex in the final battles of World War II.

McPherson enlisted on January 5, 1943, after the Navy waived a two-year college requirement for its aviation cadet training program. He earned his commission and wings at Corpus Christi, Texas, on August 12, 1944. He was assigned to fly a Grumman F6F Hellcat fighter and was a part of Fighter Squadron 83 when it was transferred to the USS Essex in March 1945, during the battle for Okinawa. 

On his second evening aboard the Essex, McPherson recalled watching Japanese kamikaze bombers based on Kyushu in southern Japan attack the fleet. One bomber clipped the Essex’s radar tower before crashing into a nearby island. Another bomber seriously damaged the USS Hancock.

“This sure made us wonder what we had gotten ourselves in for,” McPherson recalled. 1

Ensign Don McPherson. US Navy

McPherson completed his first combat mission – a 300-mile flight to strike on an airfield at Nittigahara – on March 19, 1945. During the raid, his division, known as “Wonder-5” destroyed Mitsubishi G4M ‘Betty’ bombers on the ground. As he was pulling out from the attack, his plane’s engine stalled, and it was struck by anti-aircraft fire. McPherson was able to fly the plane back and successfully land on the USS Essex.

“Upon inspection of the damage to the airplane, we found that a 20mm cannon shell had penetrated the fuselage about a foot behind my back and severed one of the cables that controlled the tail surface,” he recalled.

Between March and June 1945, VF-83 flew 6,560 sorties from the Essex. McPherson’s group was credited with destroying 220 Japanese planes in the air and 72 on the ground. McPherson would become an ace after shooting down two Aichi D3A Val dive bombers near Kikai Shima off Okinawa on April 6, 1945. He would go on to destroy three Kawanishi E7k float biplanes, which were flying as kamikazes, on May 5, 1945.

McPherson was able to marry the "love of his life" Thelma Johnston, on August 17, 1944, after completing his training.  After the war, he returned home to Adams, Nebraska, to work as a letter carrier. He is survived by his two daughters, a son, along with many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

McPherson was an active member of the Adams United Methodist Church, as well as the local American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars. He also served as organizer, promoter, and coach for the Adams Summer Baseball and Softball leagues. The Associated Press reports that the community later named the ballfield McPherson Field in honor of him and his wife. 

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  Hammel, Eric M. 1998. The American Aces Speak. Novato, CA: Presidio.