Joe M. Jackson
Joe M. Jackson was born in Newnan, Georgia, United States on March 14th, 1923 and is the American Military Officer. At the age of 95, Joe M. Jackson biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 95 years old, Joe M. Jackson physical status not available right now. We will update Joe M. Jackson's height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, and measurements.
Jackson, born on March 14, 1923, in Newnan, Georgia, was an avid model aircraft enthusiast in his youth. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps in March 1941, a few days after his 18th birthday, in hopes of being an airplane mechanic.
After the United States entered World War II, Jackson was assigned to serve as crew chief aboard a B-25 Mitchell bomber. As a testament to his early flight aptitude, he substituted for a flight engineer who was sick for a training flight. During the flight, the right engine of the plane caught fire. The pilot of the aircraft, not knowing how to put out the fire, asked for Jackson's help, which resulted in Jackson saving the plane and crew. Afterwards, Jackson decided to be a pilot. He successfully completed Aviation Cadet Training and became a commissioned officer. He became a gunnery instructor, flying P-40 Warhawks and P-63 Kingcobras throughout the war, and ended the war at the controls of a B-24 Liberator bomber aircraft.
During the late 1940s, Jackson returned to flying fighter aircraft.
During the Korean War, he was promoted to major and was assigned to the 524th Fighter Squadron. As the Operation Officer and Executive Officer of the squadron, he flew 107 combat missions in the F-84 Thunderjet as a fighter-bomber pilot.
His in-service accomplishments include:
After completing a staff tour in Europe, Jackson volunteered to go to Vietnam. He was assigned to the 311th Air Commando Squadron as a commander flying the C-123 Provider over South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The unit flew flare, communications cover, air evacuation, and search and rescue missions for downed aircraft. While he flew 298 combat missions during this period, it was his daring C-123 rescue mission on May 12, 1968 during the Battle of Kham Duc near Laos that earned him the nation's highest personal award for military valor and the only known photo capturing such actions that led to a Medal of Honor. The other four crew members of Jackson's plane also received decorations.
On January 16, 1969, President Lyndon B. Johnson presented Jackson with the Medal of Honor at a White House ceremony. Also receiving the Medal of Honor that day was fellow Newnan native Stephen W. Pless, a Marine Corps aviator who, like Jackson, had earned the decoration for an airborne rescue operation. Legend states that, upon realizing that both Pless and Jackson were from the same small Georgia town, President Johnson quipped "there must be something in the water down in Newnan."
After Vietnam, Jackson served at the Pentagon before his final assignment as Chief of Strategic Forces Studies in the Department of Military Strategy at the Air War College from May 1971 until his retirement from the Air Force on December 31, 1973 with the rank of colonel.
