Lee Lue
| Lee Lue | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 1935 Phou Pheng Village Xiangkhoang Province, Laos, French Indochina |
| Died | July 12, 1969 near Muang Soui, Laos |
| Allegiance |
Hmong people French Indochina  Kingdom of Laos  United States of America 
|
| Service/branch | Royal Lao Air Force |
| Years of service | 1967–1969 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Unit | Special Unit based at LS-20A, Long Tieng, Laos |
| Commands held | T-28 fighter bomber squadron |
| Battles/wars |
Secret War in Laos Second Indochina War (Vietnam War) Cold War |
| Relations | wife Jou first-born son Ze |
Major Lee Lue (1935 – July 12, 1969) was a Laotian Hmong fighter bomber pilot notable for flying more combat missions than any other pilot in the Kingdom of Laos. Lee Lue flew continuously, as many as 10 missions a day and averaging 120 combat missions a month to build a total of more than 5,000 sorties. Lee Lue was the leader of the special group of Hmong pilots flying T-28Ds out of Long Tieng against the Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese positions. The group was funded by the CIA and was part of the regular Royal Lao Air Force, but took orders directly from MR2 Commander Gen. Vang Pao. He was shot down by anti-aircraft fire and killed over Laos near Muang Soui on July 12, 1969. At the time of his death, he had flown more combat missions than any pilot in history.
A motto attributed to him was "Fly 'til you die." He was posthumously promoted to Lieutenant Colonel.
Lee Lue was born in 1935 to Chong Ger Lee and his wife Pa Vang in the village of Phou Pheng in Xiangkhoang Province. In 1953, Lee Lue's family moved to Xieng Khouang city after the Vietnamese invaded Laos. After the war ended in 1955, Lee Lue married Jou and two years later their first child, a son named Ze, was born. Lee Lue studied in Xieng Khouang city and later enrolled in teacher training school. In 1959, he took a position as an elementary school teacher in Lat Houng. He was among a handful of Hmong teachers in the entire country. As the Secret War was escalating in 1967, Touby Lyfoung and General Vang Pao requested volunteers for flight training in T-28s. The training took place in Thailand. With six months of flight training, Lee Lue and another volunteer, Vang Toua, became the first two Hmong T-28 fighter pilots. Lee Lue successfully flew aerial support for ground troops and built a record number of sorties.
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