Jim Markel was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for heroism 18 October 1966 near Chu Lai, Republic of Vietnam. As flight leader of a formation of single-seat F8E Crusader supersonic jet fighters, he sank several vessels and disrupted enemy forces along the Song Tra Khuc River that had pinned down a Marine Reconnaissance Platoon caught between the Regular Army main force and an advance party of Viet Cong guerillas. Bad weather blanketed the area.
Jim’s was the only flight of numerous jets scrambled to the site to find a slit in the cloud cover over the steeply mountainous terrain and fly down a winding valley to engage the enemy. Dive angles were limited by low ceilings so he jettisoned the bomb load and used low deflection shots with Zuni rockets and 20MM cannon. This required high ‘G’ turns to follow the course of the river at very low altitudes, hazardously close to heavy enemy fire; and blind reversals in the clouds to line up each run. It enabled the Recon Marines to establish a defensive position from which they were later extracted by helicopter.
Jim Markel entered the Marine Corps at age 19 and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant and designated a Naval Aviator shortly after his 22nd birthday. With seven years USMC service, 100 combat missions, five Air Medals in addition to the DFC, and a tour as a fighter intercept instructor, Jim left active duty in 1968 to pursue a successful career in civil aviation.