Ever drive past Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and wonder who McGuire was? Today, we’re Turning Back Time to the final years of World War II, when Major Thomas B. McGuire, Jr. became a flying ace in two days.

Major McGuire was the second-highest-scoring American fighter ace of World War II. (His 38 aerial victories put him just behind Richard Bong, who finished the war on 40 victories.) Born in Ridgewood, New Jersey in 1920, McGuire flew a twin-engined P-38 Lightning across the Southwest Pacific with the Fifth Air Force’s 475th Fighter Group. In a romantic gesture, he named his P-38s ‘Pudgy’, his wife’s pet name. (Pudgy V, the fifth incarnation of Pudgy the P-38, is pictured with McGuire.)

In early August of 1943, while flying over New Guinea, McGuire shot down three enemy aircraft; the next day, he shot down two more, making him an ace in two days. He was widely recognized as a skillful pilot and a natural leader and was selected to fly several missions with the world-famous Charles Lindbergh as his wingman. (McGuire and Lindbergh can be seen together in this post’s third photo.)

On January 7, 1945, McGuire was killed in action when he threw his fighter into a hazardous low altitude turn to protect a fellow pilot. His P-38 stalled and crashed. The other American pilot survived thanks to McGuire’s actions. The 24-year-old McGuire was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor to accompany his Distinguished Service Cross with three devices, two Silver Stars, six Distinguished Flying Crosses, three Purple Hearts, and 15 Air Medals. His remains were recovered and laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery in 1949. McGuire Air Force Base, now an integral part of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, was dedicated in his honor in 1948.

Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst is the military’s only tri-service installation and hosts units from all six branches of the armed forces. JBMDL is more than 65 square miles large, most of which is in Burlington County. A P-38 similar to McGuire’s is preserved on the base and pictured here.)