Military Bio of the Honorable T. Jackson Bedford Jr. Judge, Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia Born April 18, 1944 during World War II, Judge Bedford was almost two years old before his father, a Navy Veteran of the Pacific War, ever saw him. Judge Bedford grew up a “Navy Brat” with his family following his father during a 24 year career as a Naval Officer, which also included service in Korea during the Korean War. After graduating from high school in Oklahoma City, Judge Bedford attended the University of Virginia in 1962 on a Naval ROTC Scholarship. While a student at the University of Virginia, he was a Company and Battalion Officer in the NROTC Battalion and in his 4th year received recognition by being awarded the General Dynamics Outstanding Midshipman Award. Upon graduating from the University in June 1966, Judge Bedford was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy and received orders to Naval Pre-Flight School in Pensacola where he also attended 1 | Page Basic Naval Aviation Officers Training School. After completion of his basic Naval Aviation training he received orders to the Advanced Naval Flight Officer Training School at Naval Air Station Glynco, Brunswick, Georgia. In March 1967 Judge Bedford was awarded his “Wings of Gold” as a newly minted Naval Flight Officer (NFO) with specialty training as an Electronic Warfare Officer. Thereafter, he was ordered to VAQ33, a fixed wing Electronic Warfare Squadron stationed at Quanset Point, Rhode Island. As a member of this squadron, Judge Bedford flew in a large single engine plane known as the EA1F, affectionately nicknamed the “Fat Spad.” In fact, it was the last single engine propeller driven plane flown in combat by the U.S. Navy. To give you an idea of the size of the plane, it had a single 3,000 horsepower, 18 cylinder engine, which turned a four-bladed propeller, each blade of which was just over 6ft long, for a total diameter of 12 ½ feet. 2 | Page While assigned to VAQ33 Judge Bedford completed the curriculum for the Naval Justice School in Newport, Rhode Island and then was designated as the Squadron Legal Officer. In early 1968 while training to go to Vietnam aboard the USS Intrepid, CVS-11, Judge Bedford attended and completed a week long Survival, Escape and Evasion course in the snowy freezing woods of Northern Maine. He never understood why one went to the woods of Northern Maine to train for the jungles of Vietnam?? In the spring of 1968 Judge Bedford deployed aboard the USS Intrepid on what ended up being an around the world cruise with a 7 month stopover in the Gulf of Tonkin flying off the coast of North Vietnam. While on this WestPac Tour (Western Pacific), among other forms of training, he also attended Jungle Survival School in the Philippines. Flying Combat support missions almost daily and around the clock while on “Yankee Station” in the Northern Gulf of Tonkin, Judge 3 | Page Bedford and his crew were responsible for the electronic jamming of the North Vietnamese gun fire control radars so as to prevent the North Vietnamese anti-aircraft guns from “locking on” to our attack planes on their bombing runs. Judge Bedford flew over 102 combat support missions before his squadron and ship returned to the United States in early spring of 1969. After completing service with VAQ33 as both the Legal Officer and Personnel Officer, having ultimately been promoted to full Lieutenant (same as Marine/Army Captain), Judge Bedford was assigned to the Naval Air Technical Command Advanced Naval Flight Officer School in Brunswick, Georgia, where he completed his active duty as an instructor and the Legal Officer of the Training Command. While attending Emory Law School 1970-1973, and for a few years after, Judge Bedford was a member of Naval Reserve Intelligence Unit 6 assigned to Naval Station, Atlanta at Dobbins Air Force Base. Judge Bedford resigned from the Naval Reserve in 1976. 4 | Page While in the Navy Judge Bedford was awarded two Air Medals, the Navy Unit Commendation Award, the National Defense Ribbon, the Vietnam Campaign Ribbon with two battle stars, and the Republic of South Vietnam Service Ribbon. Judge Bedford also has the distinction of having flown one of, if not the last, single engine combat propeller airplane mission of the U.S. Navy. One of the planes he flew in is now on display at the Museum of Naval Aviation, NAS Pensacola and his ship, the USS Intrepid, is now the Naval Aviation and Space Museum on the Hudson River in New York City. Judge Bedford is an active member of the Atlanta Vietnam Veterans Business Association. He has also served on the Atlanta History Center’s World War II Commemorative Commission. Finally, closer to home, he now serves as the Chairman of the Mentoring Committee of the Superior Court of Fulton County Veteran’s Court. 5 | Page .