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Baytown fighter ace honored
The Baytown Sun

Baytown resident Billy Watts was one of the American Fighter Aces presented with the Congressional Gold Medal last week in Washington – one of the highest honors bestowed by the U.S. government.

U.S. Rep. Brian Babin, who represents the Baytown area and much of east Texas , said, “It was a tremendous honor and privilege to meet Lt. Cdr. Billy Watts USN (Ret) and participate in the presentation of his Congressional Gold Medal, the highest honor that Congress can bestow. As a member of the elite American Fighter Aces, Lt. Cdr. Watts displayed absolute bravery and excellence during his service to our country. He is a national hero and we are honored to have him call Baytown home.”

Out of more than 60,000 American fighter pilots who have served since World War I, fewer than 1,500 have achieved the status of “fighter ace.”

Watts is one of about 1,200 aces designated during World War II – of those, fewer than 100 remain.

In 2014, Congress awarded a collective Congressional Gold Medal to the American Fighter Aces who served during that war.

A year before receiving the medal, Watts was one of four aces to travel to Washington to witness President Barack Obama sign into law the bill awarding the medals. This year he was able to travel to the capital again to receive it.

Soon after his first trip to Washington, to witness the president signing the bill, Watts said that since this is a medal awarded to a group of people, the original of the medal will be given to the Smithsonian Institution and the aces themselves will receive a replica of it.

To achieve the status of fighter ace, a pilot has to achieve five confirmed kills. Since pilots can be awarded a fractional kill when two or more pilots are shooting at the same aircraft when it is downed, Watts ended the war with 8.75 confirmed victories against seven different types of Japanese aircraft.