Weekend Warrior

After World War II, Albert C. Prendergast, a heavy-bomber pilot, went back to Dallas, to his insurance business and to his garden (he could make anything grow, his wife said). But on weekends, and whenever else he could, he headed for the airfield, flew long hours with a Dallas Air National Guard unit. When friends kidded him about being a weekend warrior, Prendergast, 34, would turn serious and say: "Weekend warriors are good fighting men and good citizens."

Last May, Texas' 136th Fighter-Bomber Wing, commanded by Colonel Prendergast, was ordered to Korea. It was the first Air National Guard unit of wing size to reach Korea, and it racked up a good combat record: 2 MIGs positive, 5 probable, 50 damaged.

Last week Colonel Prendergast climbed into his Thunder jet, took off on his 27th combat mission, a standard workhorse job--cutting enemy rail lines near Sinan-ju. Mission completed, he was leading his formation home when he got word that the landing field at Taegu was all but socked in by weather, and that several score orbiting planes were stacked up there waiting their turns to land. Prendergast led his men to another field, saw them head in safely, one by one, then started down himself. He was making his final approach when he ran out of fuel; he was too far from the field to belly-in. A wingman heard him say: "I've got to get out of this thing." He jumped, but he was too low. Within the hour his men found Good Citizen Prendergast shrouded in his, partially opened chute.

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