George Carl Connolly (1941 - 2021)

Early Years

George was born June 22, 1941 in Edison, Middlesex, New Jersey, United States. His parents were separated when he was very young, after which his maternal grandmother, Matilda Eichert, joined the household to help raise George and his brother Vincent while his mother worked on a factory assembly line to support the family.

George spent most of his youth living in Highland Park, New Jersey. He and Vincent found a lot to do there, with a large park along the Raritan River and lots of hills for sledding and thrilling bike rides.

His memory of a day when the sky was filled with wave after wave of airplanes (most likely flying over New York City to celebrate the ending of World War II) set the stage for the rest of his life. From that point on, his life was centered on airplanes.

Princeton University Graduation

George advanced to the rank of ranger in the boy scouts. He also sang in church and school choirs as a featured soloist. In high school, he ran hurdles on the track team.

George's academic accomplishments earned him a scholarship at Princeton University, where he belonged to an eating club (Princeton's substitute for fraternities) and participated in a singing group (the Footnotes) and Air Force ROTC.

George simultaneously received his Aeronautical Engineering degree and Air Force commission in June 1963. He married Audrey Wilson September 23, 1963 in Morristown, New Jersey.

F-105 Pilot Graduation

Air Force Career

Pilot Training
After basic pilot training, George won a coveted assignment to the F-105, nicknamed "Thud" for the style in which it often returned to the ground. Originally planned as a bomber, it was larger, heavier, and less agile than other fighters, but it was also faster and could outrun any pursuers.^[1]

George completed F-105 training as number one in his class for both academics and flying. The final step in pilot training was survival school. George's daughter Lori was born while he was running around northern mountainsides and woods in winter trying to avoid capture by a bunch of bad guy impersonators while managing to not freeze, starve, or get lost (intended to prepare him for escape and evasion in the tropical jungles of Vietnam). He did not find out that he was a father until the completion of this training.

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During his 26 years in the Air Force, that included several tours of duty as a fighter pilot during the Vietnam War, George was awarded:

• Silver Star
• Distinguished Flying Cross with four oak leaf clusters
• Defense Meritorious Service Medal with one oak leaf cluster
• Air Medal with twenty oak leaf clusters
• Joint Service Commendation Medal
• Air Force Commendation Medal
• Distinguished-Presidential Unit Citation
• Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with one oak leaft cluster
• Air Force Organizational Excellence Award
• Combat Readiness Medal
• Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with one oak leaf cluster
• Vietnam Service Medal with six Bronze Stars
• Air Force Overseas Short Tour Ribbon with one oak leaf cluster
• Air Force Overseas Long Tour ribbon with three Oak Leaf Clusters
• Air Force Longevity Service Award Ribbon with five oak leaf clusters
• Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon
• Air Force Training Ribbon

Foreign Decorations:

• Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with device
• Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal

This photo of George is part of the permanent display in the Vietnam section of the National Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio, United States.

F-105F Thud Wild Weasels and Rolling Thunder Individual crews had their pictures taken when they arrived in theater, like this one taken at Korat in 1968.       Capt. George Connolly (l) and Capt. Larry LeMieux (r) are both wearing the commonly worn, locally-made “boonie hat.” (U.S. Air Force photo)

George retired from the Air Force in 1989 and began his second career as a weapons systems engineer working for a defense contractor until retiring in 2006.

George and Gaile (Gordon) Goetsch were married March 25, 2007 in Fairview Beach, King George, Virginia, United States. At the same time, they moved to Grant, Marshall, Alabama, United States where they lived on a six and one half acre property that includes a 100+ foot high waterfall.

After a three and one half year struggle to recover from a cardiac arrest, George died June 13, 2021 at the Floyd E Tut Fann Veterans Home in Huntsville, Madison, Alabama, United States.

Sources

^[1]

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Wikipedia, The Republic F-105 Thunderchief Fighter-Bomber.

• Remembrances of George Connolly, as told to his wife, Gaile Connolly