SBD-5s of VB-10 return to their carrier, USS Enterprise after a strike on Palau, 30 March 1944

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Wing folding mechanism for a Douglas A-1 Skyraider. I took this at the Chino Planes of Fame airshow, May 2011

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Yup!

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The truth! Start with them.

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The truth!

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USS Card. A Grumman F6F Hellcat that came in too low. 1943

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The USS Thetis Bay (CVE-90) ferrying inoperable aircraft to NAS Alameda, 8 July 1944. Visible onboard are eight PBY Catalina flying boats, eighteen F6F Hellcat fighters, and a J2F Duck amphibious biplane.

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C-46 Commando's under assembly at one of the Curtiss-Wright factories in Buffalo, New York.

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The visible Pratt & Whitney R2800 aircraft radial engine.

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Inside the landing gear bay on a P51 Mustang. Note the radiator scoop at the bottom.

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It is the truth.

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An OS2U-3Kingfisher is lifted off the recovery sled and about to be swung aboard the battleship USS Pennsylvania (BB-38) on August 3 1943.

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They sure were rugged!!! A B-17G of the 351st BG hit by 88mm FlaK on September 27th 1944

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They were so young. 384th BG Aircrew with B-17G Buckeye Belle

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The truth!

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A Komodo Dragon at rest in the forest. I took this while on a guided walk on the island. Our guide said it had eaten something and was resting (and lethargic) in the shade as the temps approached 100F. Komodo Island National Park. Indonesia. Jan 2001

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B-17 bombers of the 398th BG taxiing into position. The thoughts of those crews must have been intense.

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Over the weekend, someone posted a picture of a P38 on the ground with clear blue sky's. I said it was a photoshop fake. So here is the original picture that was taken in 1944.

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B-17G 44-6196 of the 99th Bomb Group dropping bombs. This bomber survived the war and returned to the USA. Eventually scrapped at Kingman Arizona.

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A Corsair Mk II 132 of the 1831 NAS missed the wires and ended upside down.

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The Bell XP-39 prototype, 38-326, in the original turbosupercharged configuration. First flight of the prototype was on April 6, 1938.

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This F6F Hellcat had a landing problem.

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The wing folding mechanism for a Grumman TBF Avenger. I took this at the 2009 Chino Planes of Fame airshow. May 2015

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Battle damaged B18 Bolo of the 5th BG at Hickam Field, Hawaii. After the Japanese attack on Dec 7th 1941.

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Continuing my series of pictures from Klondike. The west bound intermodal is passing through the curve. making lots of noise, and providing a picturesque scene for me. BNSF Needles sub, on Ash Hill east of Ludlow, San Bernardino Co, Calif. Sept 2017

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A deckload of U.S. Army Air Force Republic P-47N Thunderbolt fighters on the flight deck of USS Casablanca (CVE-55), 16 July 1945. The planes were loaded at Naval Air Station Alameda, California (USA) and were bound for Guam.

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The wing latch mechanism for a Grumman E-6 Intruder.

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A TBD-1 of Torpedo Squadron 5 (VT-5) in flight over Southern California, November 16 1939.

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Spectacular desert scenery. Mountains. Joshua tree's. Puffy clouds and a blue sky. And Old Glory on a Union Pacific train. What more can you ask for? This east bound coal train is just east of the Cima Summit. Mojave National Preserve, San Bernardino Co, Calif, Sept 2014 [OC]

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B-17G of the 351st BG hit by a 88mm FlaK shell September 27th 1944.

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Trains, the California desert. And the late afternoon. A perfect combination! On Ash Hill east of Ludlow, San Bernardino Co.

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F6F- 5 Hellcat just hanging around on the deck of the escort carrier USS Takanis Bay.

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On the USS Wisconsin (BB-64) a crewman is checking out a drone prior to launch. May 23, 1945.

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I have no idea what they are trying to do to this poor Corsair.

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November 5th, 1943, A Dauntless on board the US aircraft carrier USS Saratoga. This hole cost a man’s life. The gunner in this Navy bomber was killed by a 20mm shell from a Japanese Zero during the US Navy raid on Rabaul.

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On this day 90 years ago, Aug 11, 1937. The first flight of the Boulton Paul Defiant aircraft was made at Wolverhampton, England. This first prototype was flown without the gun turret and with ballast added to compensate for the turret and its gunner.

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For this Veterans Day. Those are his guardian angel crewmates. The ones that did not survive. For all these years they have been watching over him, keeping him out of harms way. They are just waiting for him to make his final sortie and they will be waiting for him.

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Douglas B-18A Bolo's over San Juan Puerto Rico. November 5th 1940

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USS Wisconsin (BB-64) crewman are checking the control surface of a drone with the pilot prior to prior to be catapulted. May 23rd, 1945. I dont have any other info on what drone this is. Its interesting though because these drones were in use during wartime.

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15th AAF Consolidated B-24 Liberator bomber with a hole made by a 20 mm shell from a German fighter. The shell proved to be a dud, and did not explode after penetrating.

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General Motors FM-2 Wildcats of Composite Squadron (VC) 93 aboard USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80) prepare for a mission supporting the invasion of Okinawa, 25 March 1945. I am amazed that the Wildcats were still being used that late in the war. Hellcats were a dime a dozen at that time.

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The Bell XFL-1 Airabonita, a prototype carrier-based version of the company’s P-39. Testing was unsuccessful and the single airframe was disposed of at NAS Patuxent River.

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Aboard USS Cape Gloucester (CVE-109), a Plane Director uses arm signals to position a TBM Avenger bomber on the ship's starboard catapult, during operations off Kyushu, Japan, 8 September 1945. Flight deck crewmen are attaching a catapult bridle to the plane.

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The truth hurts? LOL

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Early B-18 Bolo at Wright Field

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A Mosquito in its natural element. I took this on Saturday at the Chino Planes of Fame. [OC] Nov 2021

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B-17G K8-G (in back) 42-102593 of the 398th Bomb Group. K8-G had one hundred missions to its credit and survived the war. Returned to the US to be scrapped at Kingman Arizona.

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B-18 Bolo's of the 7th Bomb Group in formation on September 18 1938. Note the turret like contraption on the plane in front.

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Ground crew examine a newly arrived B-32 at Clark Field, Luzon, May 1945

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Fighter row at the 2012 Chino Planes of Fame airshow.

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The cruiser USS Biloxi catapults a Curtiss SO3C Seamew floatplane, during her shakedown period. October 1943

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A Convair PB4Y

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Douglas B-18 Bolo in flight. Note the retractable upper turret.

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85 years ago today, Dec 2nd 1936. A legend took to the sky's. The first Boeing YB-17 Flying Fortress, U.S. Army Air Corps serial number 36-149, made its first flight.

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Giant Groundsels, prehistoric plants found on top of Mt Kilimanjaro.

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The forward landing gear for a Boeing B47 Stratojet Bomber.

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A B-18A Bolo of the 17th Bomb Group at Felts Field 1940. This airfield is near Spokane, Washington.

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Douglas B-18A Bolo 37-537 in 1944. Note that there is an extra large fuselage door. This Bolo might have been converted to a squadron taxi or light transport.

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Douglas DB-1 Bolo (Soon to be given the B-23 designation) at Wright Field. Note the bombardiers station has been sheet metaled closed.

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BREAKING NEWS: 148th Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike jockey Sonny Leon just turned down a White House invite saying If I wanted to see a horse's ass I would have came in second

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B-17G 42-31106 “Goering’s Nightmare” of the 96th BG at Snetterton Heath July 21 1944. This was a mission to Regensburg. Lots of damage to this bird.

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A large formation of B-17Fs of the 92nd Bomb Group flies toward Germany.

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Pratt & Whitney R2800 aircraft radial engine crankcase detail.

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Komodo Dragons hanging out at the ranger station. Komodo National Park, Indonesia. I took this picture back in 2001 when I visited the island. These ones were waiting for some chicken meat to be thrown to them

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Tail gunner behind .50 Caliber Machine Guns on a B-17.

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A west bound UP coal train is rolling past me, into the California desert. Its heading towards Barstow. I'm east of Afton Canyon, San Bernardino Co, California. The mountain in back is named Dunn.

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Natives help a B-17 crew that was forced down for a wheels down landing on a beach, after a raid on Rabaul.

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Douglas Digby. That's the RAF name for the Bolo. This is the nose section. I have no idea what the lower glass window is for. Maybe a sighting mechanism for a remote control turret?

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A PBY Catalina at the 2013 Chino Planes of Fame airshow.

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An A20 Havoc and P47 Thunderbolt had a landing mishap. Hard to tell what happened but the P47 has a broken prop, missing most of the wing and has an A20 propeller stuck in the fuselage.

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452nd BG, 730th BS Bomber B-17G 44-6165. On return from Chemnitz Mission on Feb 6 1945, flak hit that damaged the instruments and force landed down in field near Ghent, Belgium. After repairs flew back to UK and crash landed at base. Returned to the US and sold for scrap metal at Kingman Arizon

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FiFi at the Long Beach airport. Nov 2007. You have to see a person standing next to the props to grasp just how big they were. [OC]

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A pair of B-18 Bolo's and a C-47 at Albrook Filed, Canal Zone. January 25th 1943. The Bolo's were being used for anti sub patrols.

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I like this shot because it shows the expanse of the California desert and how empty it is. In the middle is Broadwell Dry Lake. Way in the back on the horizon beyond this lake, is the Soda Mountains, along side of I-15. Nearly 25 miles distant. BNSF Needles sub, Ludlow, San Bernardino Co, Calif.

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An SBD makes a slow pass over the deck of USS Enterprise (CV-6) in order to drop a message during the Doolittle Raid, 18 May 1942

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B-18A of the 7th Bomb Group, 11th Bomb Squadron at March Field (California).

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A west bound UP coal train is rolling past me, into the California desert. Its heading towards Barstow. I'm east of Afton Canyon, San Bernardino Co, California.

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A very high price was paid. Flak salvo's on 13 January 1945 hit the 303rd BG hard. 2/Lt O.T. Eisenhart’s 338689/GN:A took a direct hit in the tail and plummeted earthwards. No one escaped. The target that day was a a rail bridge at Mannheim.

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The Royal Navy escort aircraft carrier HMS Reaper, delivering nine captured Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighters to New York on 31 July 1945.

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A beautiful overhead view of a P-38 flying over England.

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An F6F-3 Hellcat of Fighting Squadron (VF) 15 launches from the hangar deck catapult of USS Hornet (CV-12) during training in Chesapeake Bay, 12 February 1944. The early Essex-class carriers had been built with a hangar-level catapult, called the HIVA catapult (actually, H-4A) that shot planes out

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P-47. And an unknown man watching it.

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Fuddy Duddy sitting pretty inside its hanger at the Lyons Museum, Orange County, California. July 2017

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They were so young. Bolo Babe of the 384th Bomb Group after crash landing in France, 9 September 1944. Note the French boy hanging out of the radio gunners hatch.

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I like this type of Mosquito. At the Chino Planes of Fame. Nov 20 2021.

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If the Andromeda Galaxy were brighter, this is what it would look like.

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The burning wreck of a C-47 that crashed into a Jagdpanther after being hit by antiaircraft fire during Operation Market Garden, 17 September 1944

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A Northrop BT-1 of VB-5 shows off its dive brakes, 1938

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Google Earth caught a Lancaster in flight. Part of the BBMF. First seen in 2006.

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The 6000th B24 built by Ford at the Willow Run assembly plant. And here are a couple of the Rosie the Riveters that helped build it.

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303rd Bomb Group B-17s lined up ready for take-off. Note the two P47's. And the B17's are taxiing with the inboard engines turned off.

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A high price was paid. Luftwaffe officers are inspecting the wreck of B-17

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A B-17 of the 388th Bomb Group encounters an Me 410 over Brux (Czechoslovakia) on 12 May 1944. The target was oil refineries.

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Marcia, Marcia, Marcia. Eve Plumb (Jan Brady) and Maureen McCormick (Marcia Brady) rehearse on the set of The Brady Bunch at Paramount Studios on July 26, 1972 in Los Angeles, California.

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A B17 with some damage.

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You clean it up!. No you! P-47 pilot Lt Edwin King, flak caused oil leak, landed safely, Italy Jan 45

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The heavy cruiser USS Houston (2nd ship of that name). View looking aft, showing damage to the ship's stern area resulting from a torpedo hit amidships received off Formosa on 14 October 1944. Note OS2U floatplane that had been jarred off the port catapult,

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Lieutenant General James H. Doolittle, the first Tokyo raider, flew a Boeing B-29 Super Fortress for the first time at Seattle, June 13, 1945, and called it ''a marvelous airplane''. He's shown in the plane just before the take-off.

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398th Bomb Group, 601st BS B-17G 43-39184 3O-U over Grafenwohr, April 5th 1945. On April 13th, this aircraft was hit by flak and ended up force landing. The copilot and engineer were declared KIA. The strategic air war only had a week or so left when those two airmen died.

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Corsair, Nissan Island 1944

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B-24 hit by flak during Operation Market Garden Sept 18th 1944 crash lands near Udenhout, 9 crew killed, 1 gunner survived

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P38 crashed, winter of 1944/45

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The Brewster XF2A-1 Buffalo prototype Bu. No. 0451.The Brewster Aeronautical Corporation XF2A-1 prototype, Bu. No. 0451, makes its first flight today 85 years ago. Dec 2 1937. The XF2A-1 was designed as a replacement for the U.S. Navy’s biplane fighter, the Grumman F3F.

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A 306th Bomb Group crew with their flak-damaged B-17

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Working on the Tail Fuse of a AN-M64 Carpetbagger General Purpose 500lb bomb in the Forward bomb bay of a B-29 Superfortress. The B&W version has been around since WW2. Here is a colorized version of it. The name of the mechanic working on the bombs has been lost to time.

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B-24 landing with brake failure uses chutes for braking.

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50 years ago, Dec 18 1972. The wife and infant daughter of Senator-elect Joe Biden (D-Delaware), were killed in a traffic accident in nearby Hockessin, Delaware. Biden's two other children were seriously hurt in the wreck but later made full recoveries.

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Thousands of Boeing workers gather in front of Boeing Plant 2 for ceremonies marking the changeover from B-17 to B-29 production on April 10, 1945.

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A P-47 came to grief in Germany. Fortunately for the pilot, it was within allied lines.

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Afton Canyon. San Bernardino Co, Calif.

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Superfortresses on their way to bomb Japan

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Airmen looking over their crashed B-17G

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The underside of the wing of the Mosquito that visited the Chino Planes of Fame last Saturday. Nov 2021 [OC]

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A PBY after landing on the Greenland ice cap during a rescue mission, 1942-1943

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Experimental razzle dazzle paint scheme. I think this is an A36 Apache. Note the four cannons.

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The prototype Handley Page Hampden makes its first flight, 21 June 1936. What an ugly airplane!

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British Fortress Mk I AM526 in flight

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Desert sunrise. An eastbound intermodal train is passing by Siberia as the rising sun is illuminating the desert. Near Ludlow, San Bernardino Co, California.

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North American XP-82 Twin Mustang, 30 August 1945

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P-47's on a forward airfield in France are being fueled up.

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Couldn't get any lower without having to put down the wheels.

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Soviet Shturmovik's fly over the ruins of Berlin. April 28 1945.

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Lots of ready hands are helping to get this injured airman out of his Hellcat.

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B17s begin to taxi on a bitterly cold day at Podington airbase, Bedfordshire England Dec 1944. 92nd Bomb group..

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Continuing my series of pictures from Klondike. The west bound intermodal is traveling threw the curve. And with a little bit of a wide angle lens setting, I got this nice panorama of the desert. BNSF Needles sub, at Klondike on Ash Hill east of Ludlow. San Bernardino Co, Sept 2017.

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F4U Corsair takeoff.

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I have no info on this plane, other than its an early model B17. Maybe a C? Note the single 30 cal machine gun in the nose.

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Douglas B-18A Bolo, code #75

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B-17 Flying Fortress of the 379th BG and a mobile tower trailer. Note that an upper turret was reused and attached to the trailer.

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Aftermath of kamikazes v USS Saratoga off Iwo Jima Feb 1945, 123 dead, carrier had to return to port for repair. Note the Hellcat in the foreground has its engine running with no deck crew around. Another hazard for the damage control crew to worry about.

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May 1942. Working on the nose of an engine on a P-38. Rogers Dry Lake, California.”

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P-51, pilot Tom Christian, 361 FG, later KIA

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15th US Air Force B-24 Liberators of the 464th Bomb Group 778th Bomb Squadron, over Heiligenstadt, Austria, March 22, 1945.

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392nd Bomb Group B-24s drop napalm over Royan (France), 14 April 1945. Note what appears to be a Pathfinder radar ball on the closest aircraft and the bomb trailing marking smoke in the lower right of the frame.

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B-17 'Flatbush Floogie' shot down, crew captured by Germans

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A-36 with bazooka rocket tubes 1944

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Tail Of 463rd Bomb Group B-17G Flying Fortress Bomber 44-6880 “Last Chance”. I've never seen the target names applied to bombers.

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Kind of a busy scene here. Puffy clouds, a sweeping vista of the American west, telegraph poles, a switch and light. Joshua tree's and yucca plants. And of course, a Union Pacific east bound manifest. Cima summit, Mojave National Preserve, California. July 2014.

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Soviet aircraft dominating the skies over Berlin.

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Douglas C-47 Skytrain spraying DDT over Okinawa, July 11, 1945. DDT was excellent at controlling mosquitoes and the scourge of malaria.

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Escort carrier USS Thetis Bay transporting aircraft to Alameda, Cal, for repair, 1944

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P-51 Mustang fighter planes of No. 316 Polish Fighter Squadron lined up for take off at Andrews Field in Great Britain, 27 April 1945.

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P-51 pilot Capt John Thornell Jr, 328th FS

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February 10, 1973: Elvis Presley was in Las Vegas. On this date Elvis met actor Jack Lord and his wife Marie. Jack Lord was best known for his character “Steve McGarrett” on the television series Hawaii Five-0.

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Corsairs over Okinawa 10 June 45 in final stages of the battle

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The North American P-82 (later F-82) Twin Mustang. The prototype made its first flight on 15 June 1945. This was the last American piston-engine fighter. Based on the P-51 Mustang. Prototypes retained both fully equipped cockpits so pilots could fly it from either position, alternating control on lo

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A crew member examines his B-24 after taking flak over Iwo Jima, 1944

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On top of Ludlow Hill. Here is an eastbound manifest as it approaches the rail fan famous west bridge (behind the hill). BNSF Needles sub, Ludlow, San Bernardino Co, Calif. Oct 8 2022

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This B-32 bomber is the first to land on Johnston Island. August 5, 1945.

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