Topic: David Lee

David Lee "Tex" Hill (July 13, 1915 – October 11, 2007) was a fighter pilot and flying ace in World War II, with later service in Korea.

He was born in Kwangju, Korea, the son of Presbyterian missionaries, but raised in Texas. He attended Texas Military Institute, and later attended Austin College, where he would graduate in 1938.

Hill earned his wings as a U.S. Naval Aviator in 1939 and joined the fleet as a Devastator torpedo bomber pilot before joining a Dauntless dive bomber squadron aboard Ranger. In 1941, he was recruited with other Navy, Army and Marine Corps pilots to join the 1st American Volunteer Group (better known by its later nickname of the Flying Tigers). He learned to fly the P-40 in the AVG training program in Burma, and did well as a fighter pilot in the 2nd Pursuit Squadron (Panda Bear) as a flight leader and then squadron commander, becoming one of the top aces under the tutelage of Claire Chennault.