I haven’t been able to figure out this is a unit or personal marking on this Emil. Any ideas?
Hatchet job
Fighter
Thunderbolt Thursday
P-47D-11-RE Thunderbolt aircraft Serial 42-75452 of the 374th Fighter Squadron, 361st Fighter Group, based at Bottisham Airfield, England
It’s been a while since the last Thunderbolt Thursday. Since we’re off tomorrow for Good Friday, does that make this Thunderbolt Thursday: Friday Came Early Edition?
In case I don’t get around to posting anything for a bit, have a Happy Easter!
Say hello to my little friends!
Mustangs from the 458th FS, 506th FG based on Iwo Jima as seen from the starboard gunners blister of a B-29
P-51D-25-NA Mustang 44-72864 and friends as viewed from the port side gunner’s blister of a B-29
How about some nice shots of Mustangs escorting Superforts?
Nice to see everyone is keeping a safe distance from each other…
Sexy Vamps!
RAAF de Havilland Vampire formation flypast to mark the completion of the No. 61 Pilots Course at No. 2 Flight Training School (2FTS) at RAAF Pearce in Western Australia on August 17th, 1967
Sometime in the early 90s a new magazine for plastic model builders hit the market. I don’t remember the name anymore but IIRC it was primarily for aircraft modellers. What I DO remember is a Vampire on the cover with the heading “Sexy Vamps!”.
Mom later told me I was about to catch hell for bringing “that kind” of magazine home until she realized it was about model airplanes…
Missing since September 3rd 1942
Via: Missing since September 3rd 1942 and Les souvenirs de guerre de Gérard Pelletier
Missing but never forgotten
Source https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=1535
Missing while on air to sea firing practice.
Fl/Sgt. Joseph Pelletier was classed as ‘missing, believed killed’ along with his pilot on the 03rd September 1942. Defiant N1804 had been on an air to sea firing practice which failed to return. The Royal Observer Corps reported the aircraft crossing the coast at the south end of Druridge Bay, Northumberland (south of Amble) at 15:53 hrs. A search was instigated but apart from a patch of oil on the sea no wreckage trace of the crew were found. Fl/Sgt. Joseph Alphonse Jean Gerard Pelletier R/53763 RCAF – air gunner and Polish pilot, 32 year old, F/O. Stanisław Józef Sowiński P-0151 from Nowy Sacz, Poland missing – believed killed.
Courtesy https://www.facebook.com/color.praeterita/
About the artist
Hi, I’m Harry and I’ve created this page to showcase my efforts in colouring old black/white photographs. Just for fun!
Biography
I’ve long been interested in history, especially that of WW2 aviation, so after coming across the likes of communities like Colourising History and a variety of very talented artists, I decided I’d like to try my hand at this.
I do this for fun: I get a sense of satisfaction when I finally complete an image, but what I really like is how a coloured image can make the history it shows somehow more real… or perhaps more ‘relevant’ would be a better term as I find it makes said history easier to connect with. A colourised photo can remind us that the portrayed person isn’t just some distant, long dead curiosity but was once a living, breathing human being just like you and I.
Collection Gérard Pelletier
“That’s not gone well” Thursday
“I thought we were empty nesters?” edition
A playful Russian Bébé. Regrettably, I’m not sure if this “well-nested” Nieuport was an 11 or a 16. Only minor and subtle differences between the two models and the Russian played quite a bit with their aircraft.
Via: The Dreamy Dodo – Nieuport 11/16 Bébé: “Did I Do That? (IV)”
P-63 Kingcobra: post-WWII service
A successor to the P-39 Airacobra, the Bell P-63 Kingcobra never saw combat in American colors but was heavily exported via Lend-Lease during WWII, and was used on three continents after the conflict.
The prototype P-63 first flew on 7 December 1942, the one-year anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack. The single-seat P-63 was 33′ long with a 38′ wingspan. It was powered by an Allison V-1710 liquid-cooled engine with a two-stage turbocharger. The ceiling was 43,000′ and the average combat radius was 450 NM.
Other than being larger and more sleek than the P-39, the P-63 shared it’s general shape. Improvements were the restoration of the turbocharger which had been deleted from the Airacobra, new laminar flow wings, a new tail for better stability, and a high-performance A64 11’7″ 4-bladed steel propeller. Except for the rudder, all of the P-39’s fabric surfaces were replaced by metal on the P-63.
Read the rest here: P-63 Kingcobra: post-WWII service
Tragedy Above the Bismarck Sea
On February 26, 1943, a Japanese convoy was spotted by Allied forces at Rabaul. At this point in the war, the Japanese were trying to build up their strength in New Guinea after losing control of the Solomon Islands. Fifth Air Force would try to keep a close eye on this convoy, but due to the weather, could not watch it for two days. On March 1st, the weather finally cleared up enough for a 90th Bomb Group crew to see the convoy on its way from Rabaul to Lae. The crew immediately reported the situation as well as the size of the convoy. With six troop transports, two vessels carrying aviation fuel, a boat full of Japanese marines, eight destroyer escorts, and 100 fighter planes, this was not a target to be missed. B-17s from the 63rd Squadron were soon sent to bomb the convoy, but were thwarted by weather. That night, 1/Lt. William Crawford, Jr.’s crew set off to find and monitor the convoy while Fifth Air Force got ready to attack.
Read the rest here: Tragedy Above the Bismarck Sea
Repost: Friendship After Bombing Davao
This story is one of our favorites and we thought it was time to reblog it. Without further ado, here is the tale of an unlikely friendship between two veteran World War II pilots. Two 63rd …
US aircraft in use with the RAF and FAA
US aircraft in use with the RAF and FAA
Meccanica Mekaniikka Mecanică 