Then there's guys like Dick Bong who racked up more confirmed kills than Yeager ever will
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How well would Bong have done against the LW in his P38? no one will ever know.
How well would Yeager have done against Japanese pilots? no one will ever know.
I remember reading Yeager talking about Bong and how Bong refused to understand the airplane he was flying and it cost him his life. Yeagers take on it was that Bong thought he was too good to be told how to fly an airplane by a younger non-combat pilot and thats why Bong flamed out and crashed on takeoff. Bong didnt listen when he was told to be careful about applying too much throttle too quickly. Thats what Bong did, and Bong died as a result. Unfortunately for Bong, so Yeager suggests, the Younger man telling Bong to be carefull had more experiece with the new experimental fighter, but Bongs ego got the best of him, eventually.
Was Yeager right about Bong? Who knows........
One thing is for sure, Yeager is still alive
