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/2005 - HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. (AFPN) -- Sixty years after serving in the Army Air Corps, a 7th Fighter Squadron pilot received a Distinguished Flying Cross and an Air Medal.

First Lieutenant James Costley, a P-38 pilot in World Word II, received the last of his military decorations in front of three generations of his family, friends and fellow military veterans at the Veterans of Foreign Wars hall in Two Harbors, Minn., on Oct. 25.

He entered the Army Air Corps at the age of 24. Throughout his time in service, he flew 87 combat missions and had nearly 300 flying hours. Lieutenant Costley joined the 7th Fighter Squadron and the 49th Fighter Group at Tacloban, Leyte, in the Philippines in 1944. . .

According to Lieutenant Costley, he enjoyed his military experience, especially flying the P-38. He said the P-38 was like a Cadillac.

“With the counter-rotating props, you took off at slow speed and landed at slow

speed. It just practically landed itself because of the torque from the engines. It is unbelievable to have a plane like that in the South Pacific, because it could out perform any other plane by total tonnage,†Lieutenant Costley said. “I had so much fun shooting everything up."

Throughout his service, Lieutenant Costley and his squadron held a unique record because all their pilots returned home safely.

One of his missions, Lieutenant Costley said, turned everything around for him in an instant.

“I was having fun until my aircraft got shot,†he said. “(The mission) wasn’t so neat any more.â€

After his plane was hit, he was ordered to return to base. He dropped out of formation and flew solo back to the base a couple hundred feet above the sea.

“That is the worst feeling to have, especially when you don’t know how bad the damage is,†Lieutenant Costley said.

For years, Lieutenant Costley had told his children stories of his war experiences and achievements. But to his dismay, none of them believed him until now.

“Now they will believe me when I say that I have earned these medals,†he said.

In reviewing the base records, Sergeant Henneman came across a letter written in 1949 authorizing an Air Medal for Lieutenant Costley and later found documentation for the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Sergeant Henneman said the documentation was never finalized so “the medals were never presented.â€

“(Lieutenant Costley’s) initial reaction was over the phone, but I could tell he had a tear in his eye because he’s been waiting for (these medals) for so long,†Sergeant Henneman said.

Members of Lieutenant Costley's family were in attendance to witness the moment.

“The greatest thing about the ceremony is that the entire family got to see it, including his great grandchildren,†said Mr. Bill Young, a son-in law. “This would never have happened if he had received the medals years ago.â€

Lieutenant Costley said he was glad his family could be there to witness him receive the medals.

“This is something I will never forget,†he said.

papa Art

Glad to hear he finally got what he earned. Thanks for sharing that .

Hugs,

Brooke

Man, don't ya just love stories like these? Let's hear a ripping hooray for 1st Lt Costley! You go boy. Delighted that the whole family got to see the ceremony. What a moment that must have been!

Here's more on Costley!

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After 60-year wait, local vet receives medals

Distinguished Flying Cross, Oak Leaf Cluster

BY CHUCK FREDERICK Duluth News-Tribune staff writer

Lake County News-Chronicle

Last Updated: Thursday, October 27th, 2005 10:35:51 AM

In 1945, an adventurous 24-year-old kid named Jim Costley was ``having so much fun shooting everything up.' It was neat,'' said Costley, an 85-year-old Two Harbors veteran. ``But then (my plane) got shot, and itwasn't so neat anymore.''

Costley coaxed his P-38 fighter plane about 700 miles back to his base.

On Tuesday, the longtime Two Harbors railroad worker was honored at a ceremony in the Two Harbors VFW Hall, both for his nerve-wracking return flight and for his overall service in World War II. He received a second Oak Leaf Cluster and a more-prestigious Distinguished Flying Cross, medals that should have been pinned to his chest more than six decades ago.

I thought it was a lost cause, so I never (pushed it),'' Costley said. ``This is important to me. People might think I've been lying all these years about what I did 61 years ago. I never could prove I did what I claimed I did. But now I'll be able to tell everyone, `Believe me. I'm telling the truth.' ''

The failure to present Costley his medals was likely a simple oversight, according to him, his family and an official from his former unit. A ceremony wasn't held at the end of the war.

A fire in at the National Personnel Center in St. Louis in the early 1970s destroyed many military records, including some detailing Costley's service.

Costley wrote letters inquiring about his medals, his unit said.

More than a year and a half ago, a bag bearing his name was discovered by a historian for his unit, the 7th Fighter Squadron of the 49th Fighter Group of Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, Costley said. The historian researched the name and discovered the oversight.

``He is one of our unsung heroes, and the 49th Fighter Wing wants to make sure he is properly recognized,'' the 49th's Capt. Vince King said. ``This is an extremely rare event. This will be the first time in 60 years the 49th Fighter Wing, or our predecessors, has presented (the Distinguished Flying Cross) medal.''

The Distinguished Flying Cross is given for ``extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight.''

Costley's long, slow return to his base following the mission over Okinawa qualified, he said.

He was born in Eveleth and lived there until he was 5. His family moved to Biwabik after his father, a firefighter, died of pneumonia. They moved again three years later to Two Harbors, which still is Costley's home.

He graduated from Two Harbors High School and spent a year working on a Great Lakes ore carrier, then for two years was a brakeman for the railroad. In 1942, he enlisted in the Army Air Forces. In 1944, he earned his wings and was sent overseas.

His unit helped clear the way for Gen. Douglas MacArthur's famous return to the Philippines and was the first on the ground in Japan after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Unit history also indicates Costley, a flight leader, participated in every major Pacific campaign between October 1944 and November 1945.

In 297 hours of combat, he flew 87 dive-bombing and strafing missions, destroying locomotives, rail cars, trucks, buses, bridges, gun emplacements and other targets. Some targets were concealed in thick jungle foliage, forcing Costley and other fighter pilots to fly dangerously low.

``Everything was an open target. When you're flying like that, it's fun,'' Costley said.

His P-38 was hit by anti-aircraft fire. ``That took all the fun right out of it,'' he said. ``That's the worst feeling when your plane gets hit and you don't know how bad the damage is. You're jarred, and then there's a noise. That was the only time I really got clobbered good.''

Costley had been ordered to return to base at 10,000 feet. But he felt his plane losing power and was forced to drop out of formation. At only a couple hundred feet above the ground, he flew alone.

``I didn't even know if I had enough gasoline to make it back,'' he said. ``I was skimming along the tops of the waves the whole way.''

After World War II, Costley returned to Two Harbors and the railroad, where he worked a total of 37 years.

He married a girl he knew from school whose name, Winnie, had decorated the nose of his P-38. The couple had two sons and two daughters before divorcing after 21 years.

Costley remarried. His second wife died about three years ago, which also was about the time he suffered a stroke and moved to an assisted living facility in Two Harbors.

Costley first received word of his overdue medals in March 2004. Tuesday's ceremony included military brass from the Pentagon and from New Mexico, including 49th Fighter Wing commander Brig. Gen. Kurt Cichowski and 7th Fighter Squadron commander Lt. Col. Chris Knehans.

``We're all thrilled for him,'' said Costley's daughter, Ginny Young. ``It's a great honor and it's so nice the people from the 49th are doing this. It's so weird they would have caught it after all these years.''

The Distinguished Flying Cross ``is really is a hard medal to get. It's something really different,'' Costley said. ``I keep reminding myself how lucky I was and how lucky I am. What happened to me is something you'll never forget.''

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Photo by Forrest Johnson

Air Force Lt. General Donald Hoffman and 49th Fighter Wing commander Brig. General Ben Cichowski flank Two Harbors resident and former First Lt. Jim Costley, who served as a P-38 pilot during World war II. After a 60-year wait, Costley received two medals for his service during ceremonies held this week at the VFW post in Two Harbors.

I love to hear that. He is the kind of guy that really deserved a medal---even it if was a little late.

It doesn't hurt to fill out the Gov't forms and request information on your Dad or GrandDad. You never know what surprises you might find. My Dad did that and they wrote back to inform my Dad that he was never officially presented with his medals. During the war, the Army just handed out ribbons in about 90% of the cases. My Dad had gotten his Bronze Star Medal. But it was really great to have it and his campaign medals with his name engraved on them.

Steve