John F. Bolt

For other people named John Bolt, see John Bolt (disambiguation).
John F. Bolt
A man in a flight suit and helmet sits in the cockpit of an aircraft
Bolt in the cockpit of his F-86 Sabre in July 1953
Nickname(s)"Jack"
"Blot"[1]
"Duke of Mukden"[2]
Born(1921-05-19)19 May 1921
Laurens, South Carolina, U.S.
Died8 September 2004(2004-09-08) (aged 83)
Tampa, Florida, U.S.
Buried
Evergreen Municipal Cemetery
Sanford, Florida, U.S.
Service / branchUnited States Marine Corps
Years of service1941–1962
RankLieutenant colonel
Service numberO-13522[3]
UnitVMF-211
VMF-471
VMF-215
VMF-224
39th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron
CommandsVMA-214
Battles / wars
AwardsNavy Cross
Distinguished Flying Cross (3)
Air Medal (2)
Other workLawyer

John Franklin Bolt (19 May 1921 – 8 September 2004) was a naval aviator in the United States Marine Corps and a decorated flying ace who served during World War II and the Korean War. He remains the only U.S. Marine to achieve ace status in two wars and was also the only Marine jet fighter ace. He rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel during his military career.

Born to a poor family in Laurens, South Carolina, Bolt was a self-described "workaholic" and was involved in numerous groups and social activities throughout his life. After dropping out of the University of Florida for financial reasons in 1941, he joined the US Navy and trained as a Marine Corps pilot. Sent to the Pacific Theater of Operations, he flew an F4U Corsair during the campaigns in the Marshall Islands and New Guinea, claiming six victories against Japanese A6M Zeros.

Bolt continued his service through the Korean War, entering combat through an exchange program with the United States Air Force (USAF) in late 1952. Over a period of several weeks in mid-1953, he led flights of F-86 Sabres into combat with MiG-15s of the Chinese Air Force, scoring six victories during fights along the northern border of North Korea, commonly known as "MiG Alley," giving him a total of 12 victories over his career.

Bolt stayed in the Marine Corps until 1962, serving as an analyst and instructor in his later career, before retiring and earning a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Florida. He subsequently settled down in Florida and began a private real estate law practice; he continued to be active in law until 1991. He died from leukemia in 2004.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Walton_p16 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Dorr 2005, p. 161
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference LO22 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).