When the U.S. entered the war after the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Carroll Shelby became a flight instructor in the Air Force and also a test pilot in a Beechcraft AT-11 Kansan and a Curtiss AT-11 Jeep. The first was equipped with dummy bombs destined for the training of future bomber pilots, while the second was a twin-engine used to facilitate the learning of pilots originially trained in single-engine planes. He was assigned to his home state of Texas at the school for pilots-in-training from San Antonio (today Lackland Air Force Base). During that period, Shelby married Jeanne Fields on December 18, 1943. One year later on December 27, 1944, the couple celebrated the birth of their first child, a girl named Sharon Anne.

Returned to civilian life in August of 1945 with the rank of lieutenant, Shelby began to raise chickens before embracing a fantastic career as a race car driver (winner at the 24 Hours Le Mans in 1959 with Aston Martin), as a preparer-constructor (AC Cobra, Mustang Shelby GT 350) and as an outfit owner who gave Ford its first two victories at Le Mans (1966 and 1967) with Shelby American Ltd. But his passion for aviation never waned to his death on May 10, 2012. He religiously attended the big annual event of the EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association), and regularly flew with personalities such as Barron Hilton (founder of the famous hotel chain of the same name and, at 87 years young still a great aviation enthusiast) and Chuck Yeager (now 92 years young, he was the first pilot to break the sound barrier, in 1947).

When Ford returns to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2016, half a century after the first of its four consecutive victories, there is no doubt Carroll Shelby's "bigger than life" imprint will be alive and well in the minds of Bill Ford, Chip Ganassi, their drivers and the entire team...

Jean-Philippe Doret / ACO - Translation by Nikki Ehrhardt / ACO

Photo: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, SUNDAY JUNE 21 1959. Winner at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Aston Martin along with British driver Roy Salvadori, Carroll Shelby proudly wears the overalls he wore on his chicken farm!