Dedication

PDK Park Dedicated in Honor of "Doc" Manget

A Leader for Aviation in War and Peace A native Atlantan, "Doc" Manget was born in 1921 and took his first flight in 1929 at the age of eight in Bainbridge, GA.

With the onset of World War II, Henry F. "Doc" Manget, Jr., interrupted his medical training at Emory University to enlist in the Navy. Assigned to the newly constructed Naval Reserve Aviation Base in Chamblee, Georgia, he began primary flight training on 12 December 1941, just five days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In October of the following year, he received his pilot wings and commission as an Ensign in the US Navy at NAS Jacksonville, Florida.

Captain Manget served two combat tours in the Southwest Pacific flying TMB "Avengers", F6F "Hellcats", and F4U "Corsairs" from Henderson Field, Guadalcanal. "Doc" also served on the carriers USS Suwannee and USS Princeton during World War II. He fought in the Battle of the Philippine Sea, the "Great Marianas Turkey Shoot", the Battle of Leyte Gulf, and flew strikes against Saipan, Palau, the Philippines, and Okinawa.

He received one of his three (3) Distinguished Flying Crosses for saving two pilots of downed planes. During the battle of Leyte Gulf, when the Japanese sank his carrier, he jumped from the deck to be rescued later that day by a US destroyer.

After World War II, "Doc" graduated from the University of Georgia. Maintaining his Naval Reserve status, he was recalled to active duty during the Korean War, as Executive Officer of Fighter Squadron 72 (VF-72) aboard the USS Bon Homme Richard.

In 1953 and 1954, Captain Manget was a Navy test pilot at McDonnell Aircraft, St. Louis, Missouri, where he tested the F2H2 Phantom and F2H3 Banshee.

Captain Manget's numerous military decorations include three (3) Distinguished Flying Crosses, five (5) Air Medals, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation, the Navy Commendation Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, and the Naval Reserve Medal.

"Doc" began his career in civilian aviation as the Assistant Manager of the El Paso, Texas International Airport. Returning to Atlanta in 1959 and the field where he first soloed eighteen years earlier, he became the first Airport Director for the DeKalb Peachtree Airport where flight operations grew in a short period of time from a few dozen flights annually to the second busiest airport in Georgia.

Using his foresight and under his leadership, numerous airport improvements were accomplished including a 5,000 foot long concrete runway, instrument landing system (ILS), and development of the North Terminal Area. "Doc" literally established the business plan for the Airport that is used to this day. And since 1978, the Airport has been a self-sustaining County Department receiving no general fund tax monies for its operation due to his business acumen and development skills.

While continuing to fulfill his Navy Reserve assignments at Naval Air Station Atlanta, located at Dobbins Air Force Base in Marietta, Georgia, he served not only as Airport Director, but Director of the Atlanta Airports Council, as an active member of the Georgia Airports Association, a member of Silver Wings, President of the Southeastern Airport Managers' Association and as Director of the American Association of Airport Executives. In 1985, he was recognized with the Public Service Award presented by the Atlanta newspapers.

"Doc" retired in April 1990 following thirty-one years of dedicated service to DeKalb County. On 16 May 1998, Captain Manget was enshrined in the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame at the Warner-Robbins Air Force Base in Warner-Robbins, Georgia.

Captain Henry "Doc" Manget, Jr. was a true patriot, war hero, and an outstanding leader in both his military and civilian careers.

Therefore, we, the CEO of DeKalb County and County Board of Commissioners, desire to name the newly completed first aviation park in Georgia located at the DeKalb Peachtree Airport the "Doc" Manget Memorial Aviation Park in his honor.