Browse Items (19 total)

The Consolidated B-24 Liberator flew in every Theater of Operation during the war. They were excellent bombers but were unable to protect themselves from enemy fighters. Thunderbolt P-47s flew escort missions for bombers like this one until their…

Colonel Joseph Laughlin flew the P-36 Hawk, but in what capacity it is not mentioned. It was rendered obsolete by the time fighting intensified in the Pacific and European Theaters of Operation, and it was relegated to training purposes only at that…

The P-40 was the most readily available fighter for U.S. forces after the attack at Pearl Harbor. Although most of the fleet was destroyed in the attack, there were still some planes that survived. Colonel Joseph Laughlin flew this type of plane as a…

The Martin B-26 Marauder was flown in every Theater of Operations during the war. Although very accurate in bombing, they were vulnerable to enemy aircraft, requiring bomber escorts from P-47s and P-51s. Also, Colonel Joseph Laughlin managed to…

The P-38 Lightning was a thoroughly capable fighter plane. Weighing in at the same maximum weight as the P-47, it could accomplish the same mission types with similar armaments. Utilized in both the Pacific and European Theaters of Operation, it is…

The bombs were positioned just to the outside of the last machine gun, which was also where the bullets to the machine guns were stored in the wings. That made the wings the most vulnerable part of the plane, especially if the bombs had not been…

The 8 .50-caliber machine guns on a P-47 could fire at a rate of up to 500 rounds per minutes. Even without the use of bombs, this made the P-47 a very deadly weapon in the hands of a capable pilot.

The P-47 Thunderbolt was a heavy fighter aircraft, maxing out at 17,000 lbs. Part of this weight was owed to the extra protection given to the pilot. Armor plates were installed behind the seat and on each side of the cockpit below the window. In…

This insignia was introduced in 1943. The blue and white gloss insignia was referred to as the "star and bar" and was standard on all planes in the U.S. military in WWII. It was painted under both wings to help ground troops avoid friendly fire. The…

The propeller on the engine of a P-47. The engine, a Pratt and Whitney R-2800, helped to determine the size of the plane. The engine was covered with metal plates known as a cowling. During combat, the cowling cover was color-associated with the…