[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 94 (Friday, June 9, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1218]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                       A TRIBUTE TO DAVID W. HOWE

                                 ______


                           HON. PHIL ENGLISH

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 8, 1995
  Mr. ENGLISH. Mr. Speaker, it is with great sadness that I rise to 
honor David W. Howe, a World War II fighter ace, who is being laid to 
rest in Arlington National Cemetery today.
  David W. Howe began his flying career in Canada in 1941 when he 
joined the Royal Air Force. After he completed his training, he was 
sent to England to fight the Nazis with the Royal Air Force. In 1943, 
when the United States began looking for experienced American pilots, 
David Howe became part of the famed American Eagle Squadron. He was a 
member of a elite group of ``double-breasted'' pilots who wore wings 
from the the United States Air Force as well as Royal Air Force. As 
part of the Eighth Air Force, Howe's fighter squadron flew much needed 
cover for bomber groups attacking German targets across Europe. By the 
end of World War II, Howe had received the Distinguished Flying Cross 
with two oak leaf clusters, the Air Medal with 13 oak leaf clusters and 
a Presidential Unit Citation. Howe flew 117 combat missions and was 
credited with shooting down nine enemy aircraft and destroying German 
trains as well as other ground targets.
  Perhaps what best illustrates the heroism of David W. Howe is the 
story of an incident that occurred near the end of World War II. Howe 
barely escaped certain death when a new Nazi jet fighter was in pursuit 
of his propeller driven P-51 Mustang fighter. Knowing that it was 
impossible to outrun the German Messerschmitt 262, Howe turned his 
fighter into a steep dive, gaining needed speed, then abruptly flew 
under a bridge. The pursuing jet, unable to make the same maneuver, hit 
the bridge. Howe's superior flying skills and fighting spirit truly 
make him a flying ace and one of America's finest that ensured the 
defeat of the Nazi forces.
  After the war, Howe returned to his wife and family in Erie, PA. 
Saddened by the number of friends that he had lost in the war, he did 
not fly for several years. Flying, though, remained his first love and, 
in 1951, he joined Bell Aircraft and trained to become a test pilot for 
experimental aircraft. He became the very first American pilot to test 
a Vertical Takeoff and Landing [VTOL] jet. Because of the unique 
principle of the aircraft, Howe was forced to teach himself how to fly 
it. That plane now hangs on display in the Smithsonian Museum at the 
Garber Facility in Suitland, MD.
  Howe was a co-pilot of a specially outfitted B-50 bomber carrying an 
X-2 rocket plane that exploded just under the mother ship's bomb bay in 
1953, in a test flight over Lake Ontario. The blast killed the X-2's 
pilot and a scanner on the B-50. Howe and other crew members fought to 
bring the big bomber, which was on fire and had lost all hydraulics, 
back to the base without any further loss of life. The bomber was later 
deemed beyond repair.
  David W. Howe passed away on May 22, 1995, after suffering from a 
massive stroke. Every generation of Americans has been called to send 
their finest into battle, and at every call, the finest have responded, 
fully prepared to give their ``last full measure of devotion.'' Many, 
far too many, have given their lives on the world's battlefields. Many 
more, like Capt. David W. Howe, have served with extraordinary 
distinction and were able to return home and continue giving to their 
families, communities and Nation in ways far too numerous to record. 
Today, I am thankful that David W. Howe's service continued beyond far 
away battlefields and touched so many lives in our community.
  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
  

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