Browse Items (37 total)

362nd_tents_before_chateau.JPG
According to the caption on this photo, a German POW is directed to dig a latrine for the 362nd Fighter Group near their tents. Note the soldier on the far left, his guard. You can just make out a smirk on the face of the seated airman. The caption…

362nd_Volleyball.JPG
Pilots and grounds crew were encouraged to take their minds off of the war by their commander, Colonel Joseph Laughlin. He did not want his pilots to get battle fatigue or his grounds crew to suffer exhaustion so he made sure they had something else…

Men_on_flak_gun.JPG
377th Fighter Squadron pilots Lt. Robert J. "Red" Campbell and Lt. Roy D. Christian hang onto a previously camouflaged 88 mm flak gun. These larger flak guns were used to target high-altitude planes, like the P-47. Sadly, Lt. Christian was KIA a few…

B26_Museum.JPG
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…

Five_by_Five_fuselage_sign.JPG
The call sign reads as "B8-A". The "B" is for the 379th Fighter Squadron; the "A" is for the 362nd Fighter Group; and the "8" is the plane number within the squadron. This was Colonel Laughlin's call sign in early 1945.

Laughlin_and Weyland_in_front_of_Luftwaffe.JPG
Colonel Laughlin and General Weyland stand in front of a surrendered German Luftwaffe airplane, a Focke-Wulf (FW) 190 at the Frankfort Rhein Main Air Base in Germany. The plane had been flown in by the German Luftwaffe Commander to be surrendered to…

Laughlin_and_Magoffin_shake_hands.JPG
With one leg in the cockpit of his P-47, Colonel Laughlin shakes hands with his commander, Colonel Magoffin, the two of them sharing a laugh amidst the stresses of training for war.

Laughlin_in_front_of_chateau(2).JPG
From left, 1st Lt. Joe Lane, Colonel Laughlin, 1st Lt. John Hill, and an unknown pilot stand in front the the chateau outside of Reims. Colonel Laughlin managed to "acquire" it, and it was large enough to house all of the pilots of the 362nd Fighter…

Laughlin_Letter_from_Ruba_Oyster.jpg
This article, from a newspaper in Ohio, tells the story of a local pilot getting shot down in the Battle of Bastogne, but insisting on getting back to base as he was expecting to hear news that he was a father. This airman, 1st Lt. Duane E. Oyster,…

Laughlin_Press_Release_1.JPG
This press release, also found in a partial article from a Nebraska newspaper also in this collection, describes the recent successes of Colonel Laughlin in France. It includes the details behind a Ninth Air Force record-setting flight that was…
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