In World War II, the most successful Corsair pilot of the Navy and Marine Corps was Lt. Robert M. Hanson. On August 4, 1943, he flew his first combat mission and had his first confirmed kill. He would go on to record 25 victories, scoring 20 of these kills in a seventeen-day period. On November 1, 1943 he became an ace when he shot down three Japanese planes. Hanson became the third and last pilot to receive the Medal of Honor and was also the youngest.