Gone West: Howard Pardue

By Carmelo Turdo

The Aero Experience mourns the loss of warbird and racing pilot Howard Pardue in the crash of his Grumman F-8F Bearcat Wednesday, March 4, in Breckenridge, Texas.  Pardue had just taken off from Stevens County Airport when something went terribly wrong, causing the aircraft to come down about two miles away. 

(EAA Photo)

Howard Pardue, a former U.S. Marine Corps pilot, was inducted into the EAA Warbirds of America Hall of Fame in 2004.  He was also founder/President of the Breckenridge Aviation Museum.  He brought his Bearcat, the XF-8F-1 prototype, to the Salute to Veterans Corporation Airshow in May of 2006 to perform alongside other warbirds during the Memorial Day event.  Below is a photo of the Bearcat at the airshow, and the autographed picture obtained at that time: