Don Blakeslee was finally grounded in September 1944, after the loss of several high-scoring USAAF aces. He had accounted for 15.5 kills in the air and 2 more on the ground. He had flown over 500 operational sorties and accumulated 1,000 combat hours. Barrett Tillman, who served as an executive secretary of the American Fighter Aces Association, stated that Blakeslee had more missions and hours "than any other American fighter pilot of World War II". Blakeslee retired from the United States Air Force in 1965 with the rank of colonel. An obituary in "The Guardian" further described him as: "the most decorated second world war US Army Air Force fighter pilot."