Against All Odds

William A. Jones III was born in Norfolk, Virginia on May 31, 1922 to William A. Jones Jr., a long time Commonwealth's Attorney for Richmond County, VA. His grandfather, William Atkinson Jones was a U.S. congressman for the 1st Virginia District for over 28 years.

William A. Jones grew up at the family home in Warsaw, VA until the age of seven. He then spent most of his youth in the Charlottesville area, graduating from Lane High School under the tutelage of his mother who instructed locally for many years at St. Anne's Episcopal School for Girls. 

He accelerated his education graduating from the University of Virginia at the youn age of 19 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Spanish prior to his appointment to the U.S. Military Academy class of 1945.

Jones Becomes A Pilot

In june of 1945 Jones graduated from West Point, was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant, and then completed his flight training in Oklahoma and then Stewart Field, NY.

Transition flying schools followed at Douglas, AZ (where he met and courted his wife Lois McGregor of nearby Bisbee, AZ), then on to Smyrna, TN and Sebring, FL. His next assignment was as a fighter pilot in the Phillipines from 1946 to 1948.

He returned to the U.S. spending the next four years at Biggs AFB, Texas with the Strategic Air Command flying A-26, C-54, C-97 and C-124 aircraft. It was during this period that Bill and Lois finally were married and started their life together.

In 1952 he flew C-119s  in Europe for four years, returning to the U.S. in 1956 when he completed navigation training for pilots prior to being sent off to SAC once again. In 1965 he attended the Air War College where he received his Master's Degree in International Affairs. 

Duty at the Pentagon with the Air Staff followed; however, he had a strong desire to return to the cockpit, so he volunteered for A-1H Skyraider training at Hurlburt Field in Florida. 

Lt. Col. Jones bottom row 3rd from left with his A-1 Skyraider training class 68-07 at Hurlburt Field, FL 1968.

By then he was a Lt. Col. and found himself in command of the 602nd Fighter Commando Squadron. 

Lt. Col. W. A. Jones III smiles in the cockpit of his A-1H Skyraider while serving in Southeast Asia, 1968.

Colonel Jones won his wings in 1945 and flew with the Strategic Air Command and a Troop Carrier Wing, with overseas duty in both the Phillipine Islands and Europe.

Before the Medal of Honor mission in 1968, Colonel Jones flew 98 combat missions from Thailand.

In November 1969, William A. Jones III was killed in a private airplane crash at Woodbridge, Virginia.

September 1, 1968

The road to the command of a flying squadron is long and difficult. Many a lieutenant, fresh out of flying training, begins the journey with high hopes. Twenty years down the road when the opportunity finally comes, only a few are qualified. The chosen few have a history of outstanding performance and a unique blend of flying experience and leadership ability.

To be the boss of a squadron in combat is both a rare honor and a severe challenge. Lieutenant Colonel William A. Jones III got his chance to command in combat 23 years after he began active duty at the end of World War II. His outfit, the 602nd Special Operations Squadron, flew A-lH and A-lJ aircraft from Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base.

On the first of September 1968, Bill Jones was required to prove his worth as a man, as a leader, and as a pilot. As dawn broke over Thailand, he took off on his 98th combat mission as Sandy 1, the lead ship in a flight of four A-ls headed west on a search-and-rescue mission. Colonel Jones would be the on-scene commander during the effort to recover a downed F-4 Phantom crew.

Arriving over an area to the northwest of Dong Hoi, North Vietnam, Colonel Jones sent Sandy 3 and 4 into high orbit to remain out of range of the enemy's antiaircraft weapons and to conserve fuel. Colonel Jones and his wingman, Captain Paul A. Meeks, would be the low element, searching for the survivors, locating and destroying the enemy guns, and escorting the helicopters in for the pickup.

As the Sandys crossed Laos inbound to North Vietnam, Liner, a flight of Phantoms, had made radio contact with Carter 02 Alpha, the downed Phantom pilot. Bill Jones recalled, "Liner was able to talk to the survivor. I heard him a little bit on the way in and he thought he knew where the survivor was. Liner flew over, wiggling his wings, but it turned out this was off about eight miles and we got no more contact for almost an hour. We wasted a considerable amount of time-almost an hour-searching in the wrong area."

An F-100 fighter, reestablished radio contact with the downed pilot and directed the Sandys to proceed eight miles to the east. The F-100 pilot warned Colonel Jones that he would be in range of 37- millimeter antiaircraft guns and automatic weapons. Bill knew also that they were close to Route 137, a heavily defended enemy supply road running through North Vietnam into Laos.

The enemy threat was not the only problem Bill Jones and Paul Meeks faced. The survivor's position still had not been pinpointed, and the terrain and weather became more challenging as the A-1 s headed east. Below, rugged hills rose abruptly from the valley floor, and above a broken cloud layer obscured the tops of the highest hills.

Nevertheless, there was only one way to find a man hidden in the forbidding countryside. Bill Jones made low pass after low pass crossing the area in a widening search pattern.

Without warning, the A-1 was rocked by a violent explosion from just beneath the fuselage. The North Vietnamese had already found the range. While his cockpit filled with smoke, Bill regained control and jinked from side to side to spoil the gunner's aim. As the smoke cleared, he scanned the instruments and looked the aircraft over.

Apparently the Skyraider had been shaken but not seriously damaged by a multi-barreled antiaircraft gun. Once again, the enemy had set up a flak trap for rescue aircraft, using the downed pilot as bait.

Time became a critical factor. The survivor must be located and extracted before the North Vietnamese could beef up their already formidable defenses. Again Bill Jones trolled over the valleys and hillsides as Sandy 2 and the fighters called out the enemy gun positions. His patience and courage were rewarded when Carter 02 Alpha transmitted excitedly that there was an A-1 directly over his position. Bill had found his man. 

In the same instant another AA gun opened up on Sandy l. Again the daring pilot had attracted a barrage of accurate fire. The enemy was actually firing down on the A-1 from the top of a nearby hill.

It was too late for Bill Jones to unleash his own weapons on that pass. He could not risk calling the fighters in for a dive bomb attack on the enemy because the gun position was too close to the downed pilot. Bill racked the Sandy into a tight turn and reversed course, diving back toward his tormentors. He triggered rockets and cannon fire at the hillside, pulled off, and rolled in again.

On the next firing pass, the A-1 was riddled with 14.5 millimeter automatic weapons fire. This time there was no doubt that Colonel Jones was in serious trouble. The rocket motor for the ejection system, located right behind his head, had been ignited by an exploding shell.

Bill remembered later, "I looked back over my shoulder and saw· fire coming out of the back end of the airplane. The instrument panel was clouded with smoke. Fire seemed to be everywhere. I knew that there wasn't anything for me to do but get out. I pulled for altitude and headed for a clear area. Then I reached down and grabbed the extraction handle with my right hand and pulled. The canopy went off immediately and I waited for the ejection for what seemed like an eternity. But nothing else happened!"

"Here I sat in this thing with fire all around and I said to myself, 'This just can't happen to me. This is not the way it's supposed to be. I've got to get back and see my family. This simply can't happen!' I reached down and grabbed the secondary escape handle, which releases the extraction mechanism, so I could climb out over the side."

The fire burned more intensely when the blast of fresh air hit the cockpit after the canopy was jettisoned. The strap that fastened Bill's oxygen mask burned through, exposing his face to the searing flames. His hands were scorched and Colonel Jones remembered, "They looked like mozzarella cheese!" The cockpit was a smoldering shambles and most of the instruments were unreadable.

Despite the pain, Bill tried desperately to broadcast the exact position of the downed pilot and the hostile guns. His radio calls were blocked as every pilot on the scene screamed at Bill to bail out of the flaming bird. His radio transmitter failed almost immediately and the receiver operated on only one frequency.

As the flames began to die down in the blackened cockpit, Bill Jones had two thoughts. He must make it back to Nakhon Phanom to report the exact location of Carter 02 Alpha and he must not complicate the rescue effort by becoming a survivor himself. He would not bail out!

Paul Meeks joined on the colonel's wing as the two Sandys headed west. Home lay 90 miles and 40 agonizing minutes dead ahead. The two pilots communicated through hand signals and Paul took the lead position.

Having suffered severe burns on his hands, arms, shoulders, neck, and face, Bill Jones flew by instinct. Two-thirds of his windscreen had been shattered by the explosion and the wind-blast on his face caused excruoatmg pain. His eyes were rapidly swelling shut when Bill trimmed the aircraft to align the remaining portion of the left windscreen with the airstream, affording some protection against the windblast. Now the crippled A-1 was trimmed for uncoordinated flight and skidded through the sky as the ships passed slowly over the Laotian countryside.

Approaching Nakhon Phanom, Paul learned that the weather had deteriorated and the A-ls would have to make a ground-controlled approach through a heavy overcast. Despite his mangled hands and blurred vision, Colonel Jones eased the Skyraider into close formation as Paul led him down throught the clouds.

Bill lowered the landing gear by the emergency system and guided the A-1 to a perfect touchdown and no-flap landing.

A view of the burnt out remains of Lt Col Jones’ A-1H Skyraider cockpit shortly after landing, 1968.

Colonel Leonard Volet, the first person to reach the gutted aircraft remembers, "I couldn't believe what I saw. Everything was burned to a crisp, including Colonel Jones' helmet, oxygen mask, survival vest, neck, and arms.

Yet, he kept flailing about the cockpit reaching for his maps as we struggled to lift his nearly 200-pound frame and equipment out of the aircraft. We got him out, but he refused medical attention until he was satisfied that we knew where the survivor and guns were located."

The indomitable Bill Jones continued to debrief an intelligence officer as he lay on the operating table.

Meanwhile, near Dong Hai, the massive rescue effort continued. Later that day Carter 02 Alpha was picked up. Bill's supreme effort had not been in vain.

Jones was nominated to receive the Medal of Honor. Despite this well-deserved recognition, Bill really didn’t believe himself to be any type of special hero. His personal conversations after he heard through the 'grapevine' that his Congressional Medal of Honor nomination had been approved, indicated that he had merely done what he had been trained to do and what had to be done.

He considered the high award to be a tribute not so much to himself, but to all rescue pilots who had flown out of his squadron. However, his calm, articulate modesty belied his unswerving devotion to duty and personal integrity. His stubborn determination served him well in attaining high marks in his life’s work.

Following prolonged treatment at Fort Sam Houston to recuperate from his severe burns, Bill requested to return to Southeast Asia to finish his combat tour, but he was returned to flying status and assigned command of the 1st Flying Training Squadron at Andrews AFB, MD.

He was promoted to Colonel on 1 November 1969.

On 15 November 1969 Jones was killed in the crash of an aircraft he was piloting. Despite an extensive investigation, the cause of the aircraft crash following his normal takeoff was never determined.

The fact that the aircraft was maintaining climb power, and that the flight controls system was operational at impact, gives credence to the theory that Bill suffered some physical incapacity or lost consciousness during climb out.

Medals,Awards and Badges

During his service Col. William A. Jones III was awarded a number of awards and badges as you can see in this list:

• Medal of Honor
• Distinguished Flying Cross
• Purple Heart
• Air Medal with 3 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
• Air Force Commendation Medal
• National Defense Service Medal
• Vietnam Service Medal
• Vietnam Campaign Medal
• Command Pilot Badge

Medal of Honor Citation

As described on the Military Hall of Honor/span>:

Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Col. Jones distinguished himself as the pilot of an A-1H Skyraider aircraft near Dong Hoi, North Vietnam. On that day, as the on-scene commander in the attempted rescue of a downed U.S. pilot, Col. Jones' aircraft was repeatedly hit by heavy and accurate antiaircraft fire. On one of his low passes, Col. Jones felt an explosion beneath his aircraft and his cockpit rapidly filled with smoke. With complete disregard of the possibility that his aircraft might still be burning, he unhesitatingly continued his search for the downed pilot. On this pass, he sighted the survivor and a multiple-barrel gun position firing at him from near the top of a karst formation. He could not attack the gun position on that pass for fear he would endanger the downed pilot. Leaving himself exposed to the gun position, Col. Jones attacked the position with cannon and rocket fire on 2 successive passes. On his second pass, the aircraft was hit with multiple rounds of automatic weapons fire. One round impacted the Yankee Extraction System rocket mounted directly behind the headrest, igniting the rocket. His aircraft was observed to burst into flames in the center fuselage section, with flames engulfing the cockpit area. He pulled the extraction handle, jettisoning the canopy. The influx of fresh air made the fire burn with greater intensity for a few moments, but since the rocket motor had already burned, the extraction system did not pull Col. Jones from the aircraft. Despite searing pains from severe burns sustained on his arms, hands, neck, shoulders, and face, Col. Jones pulled his aircraft into a climb and attempted to transmit the location of the downed pilot and the enemy gun position to the other aircraft in the area. His calls were blocked by other aircraft transmissions repeatedly directing him to bail out and within seconds his transmitters were disabled and he could receive only on 1 channel. Completely disregarding his injuries, he elected to fly his crippled aircraft back to his base and pass on essential information for the rescue rather than bail out. Col. Jones successfully landed his heavily damaged aircraft and passed the information to a debriefing officer while on the operating table. As a result of his heroic actions and complete disregard for his personal safety, the downed pilot was rescued later in the day. Col. Jones' profound concern for his fellow man at the risk of his life, above and beyond the call of duty, are in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Air Force and reflect great credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of his country.

Post Script

Colonel Jones' Medal of Honor was presented to his widow, Lois, by President Richard Nixon on 6 August 1970, during a ceremony at the White House.

Death and Burial

Colonel William Atkinson Jones III died on 15 November 1969 in an aircraft accident in the United States. He is buried at Saint Johns Episcopal Church Cemetery in Warsaw, VA.

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Until next time, keep your eyes safe and focused on what's ahead of you, Hersch!