David S. McCampbell

David McCampbell was an American naval aviator who became the U.S. Navy’s all-time leading ace with 34 aerial victories during World War II. McCampbell was the third-highest scoring U.S. flying ace of World War II, behind two Army Air Forces pilots. McCampbell was the highest-scoring American ace to survive the war.

McCampbell was born in Bessemer, Alabama and raised in West Palm Beach, Florida. He attended the Staunton Military Academy and one year at the Georgia School of Technology before his appointment to the United States Naval Academy, where he graduated with the class of 1933. McCampbell retired from the Navy with the rank of captain.