Fritz E. Wolf (Commander USNR) 1916-1997

[Richard A. Wolf]

I am looking for anyone who might have served with my father during WWII. The following dates, squadrons and places may help.

1. Pensacola Naval Air Station - Flight Training - 1939-40
2. Bombing Squadron 3 aboard the USS Saratoga - 1940-41
3. American Volunteer Group - Flying Tigers - 1941-42
4. Jacksonville Naval Air Station, Florida - Flighter Pilot Instructor - 1942-44
5. VF-11 - USS Hornet - Jan. 8th, 1945 - Feb. 1st, 1945
6. VBF-3 - USS Yorktown - Feb. 1st 1945 - April 1st, 1945
7. Executive Officer - Brown Field, Cal. - 1945-46

Any help or info would be greatly appreciated.

R. Wolf

[Frank Olynyk]

Richard,
When I get home tonight I should be able to check for the surviving aces from his squadrons (AVG, VF-11, VBF-3), and let you know who they are.

Do his flight logs from the AVG, VF-11 and VBF-3 still survive? I would be interested in getting copies (Xerox or digital) if they do.

Frank Olynyk.
Historian, American Fighter Aces Association.

[Frank Olynyk]

Richard,
Fritz Wolf was in the 1st Pursuit Sqn, 1st AVG. Aces surviving to my knowledge are Dick Rossi and Charlie Bond. Other aces from the AVG survive as well.
The only ace from the second tour of VF-11 still surviving to my knowledge is John Zink.
To my knowledge all the aces from the second tour of AG-3 (VF-3 and VBF-3) are deceased.

Enjoy!

Frank.

[Richard A. Wolf]

Dear Mr. Olynyk:
I greatly appreciate the time and effort you put in to help me find some people that may have served with my father during WW II. I have talk to some of them but I was hoping that there might be more. After my dad past away in April of 1997 I was going through his personal effects and came upon a number of boxes that contained his WW II memerabilia. I felt alot like James Brady (Flags of Our Fathers) when I began to go through it. Like many WW II veterans my father rarely talked about the war. I knew he was in the AVG and in the Navy but I never knew more than that. For some reason I never asked. Like a lot of kids I was more interested in me than my folks. When I started to organize his memorabilia I was amazed at the accomblishments of this individual. I felt that he had quite an impressive career, both military & civilian. Because of this I have been on a quest to honor my father and the contributions he made to aviation in the state of Wisconsin and the nation. A lot of WW II vets are great promoters of themselves but my dad wasn't that type of guy. So I have taken upon myself to do it for him. The first big challenge I had was to get a bill past in our state government to get a building name after him. That took a number of years and a lot of time and effort. Now there is a building at the Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, Wisconsin named after him. My second big challenge is to get him inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame. Only time will tell on this. If you would like to find out more about him you can go to www.flyingtigersavge.com - go to bio's, 1st squadron. www.aviationhalloffamewisconsin.com - click on hall of fame at the top of the pape. You can also go to the USS Yorktown Association website. Click down to WW II - Lt. Commander Fritz Wolf !st Squadron Cammander of VBF-3. He also is in the DFC book that just came out and on their website. `I also have a 3 ring binder that I have made up which I have sent to a number of people to give them a better understanding of what my dad was like.

Once again, thanks very much for your assistance!

Rick Wolf

[hungrymongo]

Rick, I am replying to your post about your father, Fritz Wolf. I believe he was in VF-11 aboard USS Hornet in January 1945. I maintain a website dedicated to the WWII light cruiser Astoria CL-90 (www.mighty90.com) and am currently researching the events of January 21st, 1945. My research indicates that your father's plane went down that day and that he was rescued. I am working to reconstruct a complex series of rescue operations that were performed by cruiser floatplanes (including Astoria) and lifeguard submarines, and am hoping that you might be able to assist in shedding some light. Can you provide any information about your father's experience that day, how he ended up in the water or how he was rescued? Any information would be welcome. Thanks in advance.
-Brent

[Richard A. Wolf]

Fritz Wolf and his team of replacement pilots came aboard the USS Hornet (CV-12) on January 8th, 1945. Flying Grumman F6F Hallcats during his time with VF-11, the Sundowners, Fritz and the rest of the squadron struck Japanese targets on Hong Kong, on Formosa, Hainan Island and French Indo China. On one mission over Formosa, Fritz's plane lost fuel pressure after take-off and he had to make a sea landing. After three hours floating around in the ocean he was finally picked up by a destroyer. He later said that being plucked out of the water was worst than drowning. It was once said that destroyers liked to pick up down pilots because they would trade the pilot for 10 gallons of ice cream. True or False? Brent, if you would like additional info on Fritz E. Wolf you can reach me at rwolf@cambridge.k12.wi.us.