Lt. Howard Hart McWhorter, Jr.
(Mar 20, 1931- Oct 10, 2007)
Aviation News:
May 11, 1998
Colonel Howard H. McWhorter, Jr., a native of Athens, Ga. and graduate of the University of Georgia, began his 26-year Air Force career in 1954. He flew F-86, F-102 and F-106 fighter interceptors from 1956 to 1975 and completed 250 combat sorties in the Vietnam War. In 1974 his fighter team won second place at the William Tell world wide weapons meet at Tyndall AFB, Florida. In 1975 he was assigned to the North American Air Defense Command's Combat Operation Center in Cheyenne Mountain Colorado. His last assignment was base commander at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. He retired with over 5,000 hours of fighter time and in 1989 founded the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame where he still serves as the Chairman of the Board.
This Day in Georgia History - May 16, 1998
"In ceremonies at Warner Robins Air Force Base, the Georgia
Aviation Hall of Fame inducted Col. Howard McWhorter, Jr."
Lt. McWhorter was different. He had enough enthusiasm for ten men. All you had to do was point him and push him. Such was the case when the officers decided to hold a dance in the Ops briefing room one weekend for just themselves and their wives (girlfriends allowed). Howard got the responsibility for seeing that music was provided. Didn't take him hardly any time at all. Through the front door came a beautiful juke-box. He plugged it in, fired it up, and it was awesome. Mostly, the officers walked around it open-mouthed and amazed. Howard was not getting the enthusiastic response he thought he deserved. And rightly so....
Across the years when Life dumped all of its crap on me, one piece and part at a time, I'd always think of Lt. McWhorter and mumble..."Well, at least, I'm not being sent after a juke-box," because I still have no idea how to go about finding such a thing.
There was also a particular day when Lt. McWhorter had messed up his practice attack run. Don't know how, don't know why. But lock-on had been confirmed and the NADAR tape was running. The steering dot was pegged at the top of the scope, possibly the Captain flying target was deliberately elusive. Right at the end of the run, Howard picked up a visual and quickly turned toward line of sight, but overshot. The steering dot, which was supposed to be centered when the firing X appeared on the screen, dove from the top of the scope to the bottom of the scope right through center, taking no more than a second to do that. Just as it hit center, the firing X appeared. And it was perfect, not a hair off center.
Lt. McWhorter put the arm on every pilot in the 482nd and dragged them in to see that tape and gave us orders not to erase it EVER and I know it was still around six months later. Of course, in order for the run to be counted, the steering dot had to remain inside the firing circle (for missile guidance) until the impact symbol, a second X, warned the pilot to break away. Howard was livid that his run was not credited. I think I was the first to say that and so I took the brunt of his...eh...enthusiastic response of my assumed lineage. The senior officers (I think Howard took it all the way to Col. Thomas) backed me up. Rules are rules, but privately, I was with Lt. McWhorter...I think you got him, Mac. GCW