If A Thing Is Old, It Is

Major Richard Bong Was An Example Of The Tragic And Terrible Price We Must Pay To Maintain Principles Of Human Rights, Of Greater Value Than Life Itself. This Gallant Air Force Hero Will Be Remembered Because He Made His Final Contribution To Aviation In The Dangerous Role Of Test Pilot Of An Untried Experimental Plane, A Deed That Places Him Among The Stout-hearted Pioneers Who Gave Their Lives In The Conquest Of Sky And Space.

If A Thing Is Old, It Is A Sign That It Was Fit To Live. The Guarantee Of Continuity Is Quality.

And I Have Yet To Find One Single Individual Who Has Attained Conspicuous Success In Bringing Down Enemy Aeroplanes Who Can Be Said To Be Spoiled Either By His Successes Or By The Generous Congratulations Of His Comrades. If He Were Capable Of Being Spoiled He Would Not Have Had The Character To Have Won Continuous Victories, For The Smallest Amount Of Vanity Is Fatal In Aeroplane Fighting. Self-distrust Rather Is The Quality To Which Many A Pilot Owes His Protracted Existence.

Let The Moment Come When Nothing Is Left But Life, And You Will Find That You Do Not Hesitate Over The Fate Of Material Possessions.

There Is A Peculiar Gratification In Receiving Congratulations From One's Squadron For A Victory In The Air. It Is Worth More To A Pilot Than The Applause Of The Whole Outside World.