America's last living ace pilot from World War II dies at age 103

ADAMS, Nebraska (AP) — A World War II veteran from Nebraska believed to be America's last surviving “ace” pilot because he shot down five enemy planes has died at age 103.

Donald McPherson served as a Navy fighter pilot aboard the aircraft carrier USS Essex in the Pacific theater, where he engaged Japanese forces during the final years of the war. He earned the Congressional Gold Medal and three Distinguished Flying Crosses for his service

However, his daughter Beth Delabar said his loved ones always felt McPherson preferred a legacy reflecting his dedication to faith, family and community instead of his wartime feats.

“When it’s all done and Dad lists the things he wants to be remembered for … his first first thing would be that he’s a man of faith,” she told the Beatrice Daily Sun, a southeast Nebraska newspaper that first reported McPherson died on Aug. 14.

“It hasn’t been till these later years in his life that he’s had so many honors and medals," she said.

McPherson was listed as the conflict's last living U.S. ace by both the American Fighter Aces Association and the Fagen Fighters WWII Museum. He was honored at the museum's Victory at Sea event last weekend in Minnesota. To be considered an ace, a pilot has to shoot down five or more enemy planes.

McPherson enlisted in the Navy in 1942 when he was 18. Trainees weren’t allowed to marry, so he and his wife Thelma tied the knot right after he completed the 18-month flight program in 1944. He flew F6F Hellcat fighters against the Japanese as part of fighter squadron VF–83.

He recounted one mission where he shot down two Japanese planes after he noticed them low near the water on a converging course. In a video the Fagen museum played in his honor, McPherson described how he shoved his plane's nose down and fired on the first aircraft, sending that pilot into the ocean.

“But then I did a wingover to see what happened to the second one. By using full throttle, my Hellcat responded well, and I squeezed the trigger and it exploded," McPherson said. "Then I turned and did a lot of violent maneuvering to try to get out of there without getting shot down.”

When he returned to the aircraft carrier, another sailor pointed out a bullet hole in the plane about a foot behind where he was sitting. His daughter, Donna Mulder, said her father told her that experiences like that during the war gave him the sense that “Maybe God is not done with me.”

So after he returned home to the family farm in Adams, Nebraska, he dedicated himself to giving back by helping start baseball and softball leagues for the kids in town and serving as a Scoutmaster and in leadership roles in the Adams United Methodist Church, American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars.

The community later named the ballfield McPherson Field in honor of Donald and his wife, Thelma, who often kept score and ran the concession stand during games.

World War II veterans (from left) Orval Legget, Frank Smith, Keith Goman, Donald McPherson and Donavan Diller received 80 Years of Victory medals Friday at the Veterans Club. (Christina Lyons/Beatrice Daily Sun via AP)

FILE - A World War II era F6F Hellcat taxis after landing at Mather Airport in Rancho Cordova, Calif. Friday Oct. 4, 2019. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)

Donald McPherson, left, greets the pilot of a restored Hellcat, Steve Hinton Jr., at the Beatrice Municipal Airport in March 2021. (Dave Lyons/Beatrice Daily Sun via AP)

Rep. Adrian Smith greets Congressional Gold Medal recipient Donald McPherson of Adams at the ceremonies in 2015. (Beatrice Daily Sun via AP)

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Monday that she has “no issue” with her country hosting Iran's World Cup team after its training base was moved from the United States to Mexico for the summer soccer competition.

The team will still play its matches in the U.S. but its base has been moved to Tijuana, Mexico, just south of San Diego, California, according to Iran's soccer federation. The development comes against the backdrop of the war in Iran, which the U.S. and Israel launched on Feb. 28.

Sheinbaum said at a news conference Monday that she was told by a FIFA representative the U.S. was reluctant to have the Iranian soccer team spend time outside the games on U.S. territory.

“The United States doesn’t want the Iranian national team to stay overnight in the United States,” Sheinbaum told reporters. She said a FIFA representative had then asked, “Can they stay overnight in Mexico?”

“And we said, ‘Yes, no problem. We have no issue with that',” she said.

Iran's soccer team is slated to play matches in Inglewood, California, against New Zealand on June 15 and against Belgium six days later, before facing Egypt on June 26 in Seattle.

Before the war broke out, the team was originally planned to set up its base in Tucson, Arizona. But with tensions simmering, Iran's team moved its base to Tijuana in Mexico, Sheinbaum said, confirming an announcement by the Iranian federation over the weekend. The federation said the Iranians had received approval from FIFA, though it has not confirmed the move.

Teams use base camps to train before and after matches. This year’s World Cup runs from June 11 to July 19 and will be co-hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

The possibility of a move had simmered for months in the uncertainty surrounding the war in the Middle East and security concerns. U.S. sanctions on Iran were likely to only make the team’s stay in the U.S. more complex.

The U.S. State Department said in a statement on Monday that President Donald Trump had made it clear the Iranian team was welcome to participate in the tournament.

The department’s statement did not address where the team might stay, or Sheinbaum's comments.

Sheinbaum said that her government was working with FIFA to hash out all the details before the competition.

Iran's national soccer team players stand onstage as they are greeted by a crowd during a pro-government gathering before their departure for training and friendly matches in Turkey ahead of the World Cup at Islamic Revolution Square in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)