 Ted
Bullock began his 31-year Air Force career as a combat
fighter pilot during World War II. He flew Many fighters
during the war, including American and British aircraft
such as the P-51 Mustang and the Supermarine Spitfire.
Following
flight training in southern California, he became a frontline
pilot at Paine Field in 1942, flying air defense missions
in the P-39 Aircobra. He was then transferred to North
Africa and flew Spitfires and, eventually, Mustangs.
Bullock was a member of the 52nd Fighter Group, 4th
Fighter Squadron. He first flew the Spitfire Mark V in
North Africa before his unit transitioned first to the
P-51B and later the P-51D. During his combat service
in North Africa, Sicily, Corsica, and Italy, he flew
a total of 70 missions including fighter cover for B-17’s
and B-24’s during the historic Ploesti oil field
raids. He shot down three enemy fighters, two ME-109’s
and an Italian aircraft in German markings flown by the
Romanian Air Force.
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