Jim
Escalle was born and raised in the San
Joaquin Valley town of Delano, California.
After attending the College of the
Sequoias in Visalia, he went on to receive
a degree in Liberal Studies from Fresno
State in 1983. He has been involved in
public education for over 30 years. Jim
currently lives in Bakersfield,
California.When Jim was around eight years old, he was told that he had an uncle who fought and died in the Korean War. At the time, he had been fascinated with anything related to World War II, especially the air war. Jim liked to watch movies on the subject, along with reading just about every book he could find. He also enjoyed going to local air shows and seeing airplanes such as the P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt going through their amazing aerial maneuvers.
But it wasn't until Jim began the research on his uncle's life and his involvement in the Korean War that he came to appreciate the sacrifice his uncle's generation made for our country. His book not only pays tribute to his uncle, but to every airman who fought and died over the skies of Korea.
F/A-18 Hornet simulator at Estrella Warbirds Museum in Paso Robles, CA, 2014
In the cockpit of a T-6 "Texan" at Minter Field (Shafter, CA), 2002
Sitting in a Navy A-4 Skyhawk at NAS Lemoore, 1979