Spitfire “Buckeye Don” Low Top Canvas Shoes
This design is based on the Supermarine Spitfire (MD-T, serial number BL255) nicknamed “Buckeye Don” flown by Dominic ‘Don’ Gentile of the 336th Fighter Squadron, 4th Fighter Group, RAF Debden, October 1942. At 23 years of age, Don would go on to surpass Eddie Rickenbacker’s World War I record of 26 downed aircraft and was officially credited with 21.8 air and 6 ground victories during WWII. After the war, on January 23, 1951, Gentile died in a training crash while piloting a T-33 jet trainer at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. He was 30 years old. During his service, he received the Distinguished Service Cross x2, Distinguished Flying Cross x 8 and 4 x Air Medals, and was known as the “Ace of Aces”.
