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In April of 1941, eight months before the United States would officially enter World War II, men of the 1st American Volunteer Group, or AVG, began flying in support of China in its fight against Imperial Japan. Known as the Flying Tigers, their mission was to provide aerial defense and support for Chinese Forces. They were recruited by Claire Lee Chennault and would continue operations in the region until they were disbanded in July 1942. With the United States officially in the war, the Flying Tigers became part of the U.S. Army Air Forces’ 80th Fighter Group. It was during this time that they would get a new nickname - the Burma Banshees.
The Burma Banshees were tasked with providing air support for ground forces, protecting vital supply routes, and conducting reconnaissance missions in the challenging terrain of Burma. Operating primarily the P-40 Warhawk, these highly skilled pilots faced numerous challenges, from adverse weather conditions to the relentless Japanese air and ground forces.
One of the defining features of the Burma Banshees was their close collaboration with the legendary "Hump" operation. The Hump, was an airlift operation over the Himalayas aimed to transport essential supplies from India to China. The Hump route extended from airfields in northeastern India, particularly in the Assam region, over the treacherous Himalayan mountain range, and into various airfields in China. The Banshees' mission was to protect these vital supply flights.
The men of the 80th Fighter Group would fight a mostly forgotten war over the Himalayas and into Burma from the time of their activation in 1942 until the end of the war. They took on Japanese aircraft such as the famed Zero over remote jungles and uncharted fields to support General Stilwell's Chinese Troops and General Merrill's Marauders. Operating with the motto, "Angels on our Wings," their protection of the supply planes was vital.
The Banshees' courage and resilience earned them a reputation for being a formidable force, despite operating in one of the most challenging theaters of the war. They fought in the shadows of more well-known units, however, their impact on the outcome of the war in that region cannot be underestimated.
One of the legendary pilots of the Burma Banshee's was Philip Adair. It was the 13th of December 1943, and Philip Adair in his P-40 Warhawk named Lulu Belle had just landed after completing a 3 ½ hour interdiction mission against Japanese ground forces. Philip was sitting in the alert rest tent approximately 100 feet away from his plane that his crew chief had just finished the post flight service on. Suddenly, an alert sounded which meant that enemy aircraft had been spotted on their way to the airfield. Philip sprang to his feet and ran out to his aircraft. By the time he had arrived, his crew chief had it started. He jumped up on the wing and into the cockpit where he was strapped in. He immediately taxied and was airborne in less than a minute after hearing the alert.
Soon after getting airborne and on a course to intercept the enemy, he spotted the formation - 24 Japanese bombers along with 40 fighter escorts. Philip radioed control with his position and what he was seeing. A voice came back over the radio challenging his observations. You see, control had received “reliable reports” from ground observers that the formation was 40 miles to the east of where Philip had seen them.
He keyed the mic and told control that he was 15 miles away from the base and could see the Japanese formation heading in a direction that he believed would bring them over the base where they would quote, “bomb the hell out of you.” With nobody yet airborne to help Philip, and a Japanese bomber formation closing in on his base, he decided that he couldn’t sit up there and watch them bomb headquarters, the hospital and their living area without at least doing something to try and stop them. So without anybody else yet in position to help, and facing overwhelming odds, Philip took the fight to the enemy.
He began to fire on one of the Japanese bombers and was able to get some “good hits” on it. He could see fire streaming out from the left engine. As he came around to make another pass at the bombers, he was engaged by several of the fighters. Philip says that he got into a scrape with them.
After several minutes of dog fighting with the Japanese fighters, Philip decided he was going to resume his attack on the bombers. He pointed the nose of his P-40 down and went into a dive. When he had amassed enough air speed, he pulled up hard on the stick and lined up his next victim. As he closed on the bomber, he looked down and saw a fighter attacking him from below. Philip could see the tracers coming up at him and could here the Japanese rounds striking his plane. As they did, fire shot up around both sides of the Warhawk's armored plating, but went out as quickly as it started. He knew he had been hit, but didn’t know how badly.
Despite being hit by enemy fire, Philip re-engaged and started to attack the Japanese formation again. His target was again the big bombers, but he was unable to get any shots on them because the fighters had cut him off. He was able to shoot one fighter down and inflict damage on at least two more.
Now out of ammunition and 125 miles away from his base, Philip was in survival mode. Knowing his P-40 was more maneuverable than the Japanese fighters, he went into a dive and performed an outside G turn in an effort to get away. But there was a problem. The rounds he had taken during the fight had severed the trim cable.
Struggling to hold the heavy nose of his aircraft up, he began to loose altitude. Quickly approaching the treetops, Philip rolled the Warhawk over and began to climb while in an upside down configuration. Once he had gained sufficient altitude, he rolled back over until he had once again approached the treetops, at which point he rolled her over again. Philip continued in this manner until he finally approached the base.
Unfortunately, he was coming from the wrong direction. And because he was, he was almost shot down by his own anti-aircraft guns who thought he was the enemy. But a quick thinking gunner noticed something was wrong. Not only was the P-40 upside down, but the landing gear was extended.
As he got over the airfield, Philip rolled the Warhawk over one last time and brought her down. He came to a stop, but was so tired from fighting to maintain altitude, he couldn’t get out. Ground crews rushed over and were able to assist him.
Philip and his squadron, the 89th, were responsible that day for patrolling over the hump and protecting the transports. It was their sister fighter squadron, the 88th, that was tasked with providing protection for the base. But Philip says that he never saw any of them while he was singlehandedly taking on 64 Japanese aircraft. It seems that because it had been hazy, the other squadron could not locate them. After he had broken off and landed, the 88th was able to locate the Japanese formation and engage them. By that time, they had turned around and were heading for home, apparently discouraged from continuing on to bomb the base.
During the encounter, Philip shot down two Japanese aircraft, one bomber and one fighter, and damaged several others. It is suspected that he shot down two more, but that could not be confirmed. He was awarded the Silver Star for his bravery that day. In May of 1944, Philip again found himself outnumbered, this time by 15 Japanese aircraft. He claimed two more victories.
We interviewed Philip Adair back in 2015. To hear more about his amazing career, watch the full interview on our website at: https://www.americansinwartime.org/explore/voices-of-freedom/philip-adair.
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