Some new WWII Photos... P-51s, Corsairs, and L-5s oh my!

[Starduster77]

The photo of the P-47D "LuckY" is from the 353 FG 352 FS.
Capt. William J Jordan was the regular pilot.
The codes and serial are 42-8396 SX-T.
This plane had a long life for a combat a/c.
There is a photo on the Little Friends sight:
http://www.littlefriends.co.uk/gallery. ... ring=Lucky
This was about Aug./Sept. 1944 .The name was repainted ,not sure why.
http://www.littlefriends.co.uk/gallery. ... ring=Lucky
The end of "Lucky" while in the 56FG
I don't know if that is Capt. Jordan in the photo.
I bid on that one also.Oh well.
Rick

[Starduster77]

the P-51D Mustang 44-14815 "Oaskaloosa, Iowa" looks like it is from the 82nd Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron 5th AF.
Looks like the fin/rubber tip is dark (yellow) the other sqaudron had a white tip.110 TRS.
Rick

[Starduster77]

The second P-51D photo you are correct in that it is 353FG 352 FS(black rudder) but can't see the name under the exchaust stack.If there is one?
Rick

[Dave Smith]

C-54 41-37317 was delivered Oct 30 1943, assigned unit not known. Later sold to American Airlines as NC90413 then to Air France as F-BELJ on June 6 1949. Still around in 1967 when the Air-Britain DC-4 book was published.

[Rauhbatz]

Greetings...mind if we post some of the L-5 pics on our CAF Ohio Valley Wing website? We have an L-5 and they would really add a historical flavor....

[Taylor Stevenson]

Go for it!
CAF Col. Taylor Stevenson

[Jack Cook]

My uncle was in that squadrn. He said that when they were in training Mr. Carr would stay in and study gunnery while the other guys would find other entertanment.

Carr didn't train with the 354th FG. He first flew with the 363rd FG and wasn't assigned to the 354th FG with late July 1944 almost 9 months after they entered combat. He loved to 'big' fish stories!

[HMFischer]

??? Maybe Mr. Sullivan liked a few stories also? It was fun to talk to him and he gave me a few pictures from his many years in the Army Air Corp and USAF. Wasn't Carr trying to liberate a FW 190 at the end of the war and end up landing it gear up? Hugh

[Jack Cook]

Yes, that was a post war episode that he stretched into being shot down, evading capture and stealing it.
The incident put and end to all the 354th's flying of the German aircraft sadly.

[Rauhbatz]

Taylor, thanks much! These pics will lend a nice vintage flavor to the website as well as some flyers we are working on.

BTW, look for a post from me asking for pics that show the air ambulance function of the L-5.....if you have any please feel free to reply to that post.

Although Ive been with the Dixie Wing for a while, Im a new joiner to the Ohio Wing that has an L-5. I hope to get checked out in it before too long...looks like a fun bird to fly!




Regards,

Kevin K

[Starduster77]

More on the P-47D "Lucky"
From Squadron model decal company that did a set for this P-47.
http://www.squadron.com/ProfileDetails.asp?item=EP48170
Hit profile #1 you might have to inlarge it .It is the middle profile.
The 353 FG started using the black and yellow diamond shapes around April 1944 so your photo was before that.
Rick

[tom d. friedman]

great stuff!! my dad, an infantry captain at the time w/ the 31st infantry division served in dutch new guinea, morotai, & mindanoa philippines. he mentioned on a number of occaisons going up in a "cub" to spot his ordered patrol routes. more likely he went up in an l-5.

[Taylor Stevenson]

Im a new joiner to the Ohio Wing that has an L-5. I hope to get checked out in it before too long...looks like a fun bird to fly!

I've been lucky enough to fly/fly in several really cool warbirds, but as far as a fun ride, nothing compares to the L-5. In a pilot's perspective, she is forgiving in the air, the pushrod connected flight controls make it feel like something a lot "tighter" and heavier than it is giving it excellent response to movement, and her TO and L capabilities are quite impressive. Like any taildragger, she can be a bit squirrely on the ground if you fall asleep at the wheel, but other than that you will have a blast with your bird. I've seen your ambulance several times at AIRSHO and flown with her at dawn patrol and might I say you all do a heck of a job with her. Keep it up! Good luck and welcome to the CAF!

[RyanShort1]

great stuff!! my dad, an infantry captain at the time w/ the 31st infantry division served in dutch new guinea, morotai, & mindanoa philippines. he mentioned on a number of occaisons going up in a "cub" to spot his ordered patrol routes. more likely he went up in an l-5.

It probably was a Cub. There were a number of units using them there.

Ryan

[Dave Homewood]

The Royal New Zealand Air Force Corsairs are No. 14 (Occupational) Squadron in Japan postwar (1946-48) as part of J Force, the occupational force keeping the peace in that defeated country.

The roundels are simply normal postwar red-white-blue roundels. The aircraft were all FG-1D's that had not seen much if any wartime service and had been parked up in No. 1 Storage Depot at RNZAF Station Rukuhia in 1945. They were reactivated, repainted and formed up as the squadron at Ardmore, then loaded onto HMS Glory and shipped to Japan. They served initially at Iwakuni and later at Bofu, where on the 10th of October 1948 the survivors of the tour were all torched and burned at the end of the squadron's time in Japan. However rumour has it that one escaped being torched, but I'll believe that when I see it.