April 28, 1945. Three Corsairs from Marine Squadron VMF-221, flying off the USS Bunker Hill, are assigned CAP to the west of Okinawa. Directed north, they encountered approximately 25 fighters covering a flight of Kamikazes approximately 120 miles north of Okinawa and west of Kikai Shima. 1st Lt. Dean Caswell finds himself in a head-on flight with a KI.61 Hein (Tony). In the split seconds that follow, Dean’s wingman McManus yells that there is a “Zero” on your tail.” Caswell sees the tracers flying past him all around from behind, and he fires all 6 50-cal’s at the Tony in front of him. Net results are, the Tony explodes in front of him and McManus has shot off the Zero from behind! In that air battle, Dean was credited with three kills and three probables. Incredibly, Dean discovered later that the pilot of the Tony survived. Dean Caswell will finish the war with 7 confirmed Victories. He will remain in the Marine Corps as a career officer with two tours in the Korean War, a short tour in Vietnam, and an F-4 Air Group in the USA. This dramatic image is part of the American Fighter Ace’s Gold Star series in support of the Ace’s Scholarship program. All Gold Star prints are limited to 300 S&N lithographs, Size: 17x22, Price: $95.00, Signed by Ace and Roy Grinnell. For more information contact Irene Grinnell at buywrbonds@aol.com, 214-537-4661.