Swede Vejtasa

Stanley W. Vejtasa
Lieutenants Swede Vejtasa (right) and Dave Pollock of Fighting Squadron 10 aboard the USS Enterprise in October 1942, shortly before the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands
Nickname(s) Swede
Born (1914-07-27)27 July 1914
Montana
Died 23 January 2013(2013-01-23) (aged 98)
Allegiance  United States
Service/branch  United States Navy
Years of service 1937-1970
Rank Captain
Commands held USS Firedrake (AE-14) (1959–1960)
USS Constellation (CV-64) (1962–1963)
Naval Air Station Miramar (1965–1968)
Battles/wars

World War II

Korean War
Awards Navy Cross (3)
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star (2)
Meritorious Service Medal
Navy Commendation Medal

Stanley Winfield "Swede" Vejtasa (27 July 1914 – 23 January 2013) was a United States Navy career officer and World War II flying ace.[1][2] During the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, he shot down seven Japanese aircraft on 26 October 1942, becoming an "ace in a day".[3]

Vejtasa was born at an isolated homestead in Montana. He attended Montana State College, before transferring to the University of Montana.

He joined the Navy in 1937 and became a Naval Aviator on 13 July 1939.[1][2] Commissioned an ensign in August, he was first assigned to Scouting Squadron Five (VS-5) aboard the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CV-5) that same month, flying the Douglas SBD Dauntless.[1]

After the United States entered World War II, then Lieutenant (junior grade) Vejtasa attacked three Japanese "aircraft tenders or transports", scoring a direct hit on one of them "near Salamaua and Lae, New Guinea", on 10 March 1942, for which he was awarded his first Navy Cross.[4]

During the Battle of the Coral Sea, he was one of several dive bomber pilots who struck and sank the Japanese light aircraft carrier Shōhō on 7 May 1942.[5][6] The next day, he shot down three Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters, despite flying a much slower Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber.[1][6] For his actions during the battle, he was awarded his second Navy Cross.[4] Walter Schindler, a future vice admiral, filmed the naval battle as Vejtasa's rear gunner.

Vejtasa was transferred to fighters, piloting the Grumman F4F Wildcat, and was assigned to the newly formed Fighting Squadron 10, under Lieutenant Commander James H. Flatley, aboard the USS Enterprise (CV-6). During the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, he shot down seven enemy aircraft on 26 October 1942 - first two Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers after the USS Hornet (CV-8), then five Nakajima B5N "Kate" torpedo bombers targeting the Enterprise - becoming an "ace in a day".[6][7] Lieutenant Vejtasa was awarded his third Navy Cross for this achievement.[4][8] Seventy years later, an attempt to upgrade this to the Medal of Honor was denied.[7] He is the only World War II carrier pilot awarded the Navy Cross "for both dive bombing and aerial combat."[9]

He left Flying Squadron 10 in May 1943 and returned to the United States to serve as a flight instructor at Naval Air Station Atlantic City.[9] He saw no further combat. At the end of the war, his tally was 10.25 victories, the quarter credit being for a Kawanishi H6K "Mavis" flying boat on 13 November 1942.[1][9]

Vejtasa remained in the Navy after the end of the war and served in the Korean War as air officer aboard the USS Essex (CV-9) from 1951 to 1953.[10] He commanded the ammunition ship USS Firedrake (AE-14) from July 1959 to August 1960 and the aircraft carrier USS Constellation (CV-64) from November 1962 to November 1963.[11] He received the Legion of Merit for his work as Commander Fleet Air, Miramar, from 15 August 1965 to 7 June 1968. He retired on 1 July 1970 as a captain.

He was also awarded two Bronze Stars, the Meritorious Service Medal and the Navy Commendation Medal and was inducted into the Carrier Aviation Hall of Fame in 1987.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Swede Vejtasa: In Memoriam". Naval Aviation News. 9 May 2013.
  2. 1 2 "Stanley W. Vejtasa". veterantributes.org.
  3. ↑ "Swede Vejtasa Bags Seven at Santa Cruz Islands". Naval Aviation News. 3 August 2012.
  4. 1 2 3 "Full Text Citations For Award of The Navy Cross / To U.S. Navy Personnel / World War II: V". www.homeofheroes.com.
  5. ↑ Cutler, Lieutenant Commander Thomas J.; Burgess, Lieutenant Commander Rick (November 2009). "Lest We Forget: Swede Vejtasa, VF-51 (Part 2)". Proceedings. Vol. 132/11/1,245. (registration required)
  6. 1 2 3 "Naval Aviators of 1942 Earn Their Pay". Lyon Air Museum. 20 June 2017.
  7. 1 2 Mersky, Peter (15 November 2014). Whitey: The Story of Rear Admiral E.L. Feightner, a Naval Fighter Ace. Naval Institute Press. pp. 29–30. ISBN 9780870210846.
  8. ↑ Tillman, Barrett (12 February 2013). Enterprise: America's Fightingest Ship and the Men Who Helped Win World War II. Simon and Schuster. p. 131. ISBN 9781439190883. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Eagle Biography: Stanley W. Vejtasa". Gathering of Eagles Foundation.
  10. ↑ Keith, Don (7 April 2015). The Ship That Wouldn't Die: The Saga of the USS Neosho- A World War II Story of Courage and Survival at Sea. Penguin Publishing Group. p. 186. ISBN 9780698157804. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
  11. ↑ "Commanding Officers U.S.S. Constellation CVA/CV-64". Archived from the original on 14 March 2008.

Bibliography

  • Edwards, Ted (15 June 2018). Seven at Santa Cruz: The Life of Fighter Ace Stanley “Swede” Vejtasa. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1682472876.
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