By Luke Lorenz
Director of Legislative Affairs
Navy League of the United States
This is part of an ongoing series, where we look at the lives and legacies of U.S. sea service men and women.
As we approach the inauguration of our 46th president next week, let’s take a look back at a former president with a distinguished naval background. George Herbert Walker Bush was a Navy aviator during World War II. Sent to the Pacific, Bush served as a bomber pilot.
During one mission, while his squadron was conducting a bombing operation over a Japanese installation, they encountered heavy anti-aircraft fire from enemy forces. His plane was badly damaged in the firefight, but Bush continued on mission dumping, all of the bombs in his charge. As the plane headed back to the aircraft carrier San Jacinto, Bush was forced to abandon the plummeting aircraft and take his chances in the turbulent and shark-infested seas.
With the aid of a raft, Bush survived his escape from the doomed aircraft and after floating for four hours he was rescued by an American submarine. His harrowing experience earned him the Distinguished Flying Cross. He would go on to fly a total of 58 combat missions over the course of the war. He would later become the 41st President of the United States and the last World War II veteran to serve as Commander in Chief. George Herbert Walker Bush passed away in 2018 at the age of 94.