I learned yesterday, Sunday the 28th, of the death of my friend, Thunderbolt pilot Quent Aanenson. My heart goes out to his family, and especially to his beloved wife of 63 years, Jackie.
Quent Aanenson with the wreckage of his Thunderbolt, Aug. 3, 1944 (Haywood Magee/Getty)
I’ll post more about Quent in the next few days. Meantime, please visit his site, A Fighter Pilot’s Story. If you haven’t seen his video of the same name, you’ve missed one of the most moving memoirs of WWII.
Thomas D. Jones, pilot and veteran shuttle astronaut, is the author (with Robert F. Dorr) of Hell Hawks! (Zenith, 2008) the true story of a band of Thunderbolt brothers who fought in the air alongside Quentin C. Aanenson.
deepest sympathy to Jackie and family from a fellow Jug pilot who was flying my plane, Topsy, in the above image.
Thank you, Bud, for contacting me about Quent. And thank you for your service with Quent and your fellow P-47 team members.
With respect and admiration,
TJ