Clifford Jolley shot down his first Soviet MIG-15 on his 31st birthday. He would go on to become the 18th jet fighter ace of the Korean War with seven confirmed kills and thirteen probable downings over Korea’s famous “MIG Alley.”
Jolley joined the Air Force in 1941, served in World War II and later joined the Utah Air National Guard in 1949, having already made the transition to jets. He was activated into service during the Korean War and flew with the 335th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, “The Chiefs,” from Kimpo.
During a mission on July 4, 1952, after having already shot down his second plane and despite having suffered superficial face wounds from enemy fire as well as being low on fuel, Jolley realized his wingman had disappeared. He left to search for the plane, soon discovering the two pilots had ejected into the Yellow Sea. The wingman perished, but a helicopter crew later rescued Jolley.
Jolley recorded his seventh kill in October 1952 over Sinuiju. His wingman on the mission was the man who taught him to shoot: Captain Clyde Curtain. Jolley was a gunnery student at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. “We spotted four MIGs as we were flying at 30,000 feet,” Jolley recalled. “We dove down and bounded them. I gave the number four man five bursts. He started to smoke and burn and the pilot ejected.”
Curtain gave the number three MIG four short bursts from 2,400 feet away and then finished it off with another short burst followed by a long one for his first kill. Jolley bagged two more kills on August 7 and shot down his fifth enemy plane – making three kills in two days on August 8, which qualified him as an ace. Those U.S. pilots shot down 13 MIGS, had one probable kill, and damaged five others in five straight days of aerial combat over the Yalu River. It was the biggest day of the war for U.S. airmen.
Jolley was given a rousing welcome home parade in Salt Lake City. A flight of F-51s from Clovis Air Force Base escorted him to the Salt Lake City Air National Guard. He was driven through downtown Salt Lake City and on to Holliday where 1,500 school children lined the streets to cheer his return.