Tuskegee Airmen

Actually, in Italy they flew P-47s for a while which they had inherited from another group. In fact, I was able to help the AF Museum out a bit when I was able to to tie one of their new pilots (2Lt Lloyd S - Scotty - Hathcock of the

301 FS/332 FG) to a P-47 that was captured and tested by the Germans.

Hathcock apparently was lost and landed his P-47D-16-RE Thunderbolt at Rome-Littorio Airfield, Italy 0n 29 May 1944. The P-47 was serial number

42-75971 (275971) and was flown by E2 Beute, Rechlin Test Center, Germany after repainting the nose and wing tips yellow and applying the unit markings 8 + 6.

Interviews with a number of the Tuskeegee Airman indicate that they flew both rasorback and bubble canopy P-47s in both OD and natural metal. Since they inherited their aircraft and they had them for just a matter of weeks, it's possible they never got them repainted in the famous red tails. I have yet to obtain any photograph showing their P-47s in any paint scheme.

Sources:

1. Lerche, Hans-Werner. Luftwaffe Test Pilot (New York: Jane's, 1980), pp.

113-116.

1. Headquarters Army Air Forces, Missing Aircrew Report, 2LT Lloyd S. Hathcock (serial number O-817588). National Archives, Military Field Branch, Washington, DC 20409
2. Stapfer, Hans-Henri Strangers in a Strange Land (Carrollton, TX: Squadron/Signal Publications, 1988), pp. 56 & 80.

HTH

Ed

"There are no easy answers, but there are simple answers. We must have the courage to do what we know is morally right." --Ronald Reagan

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When I showed up at Lockheed in 1968, and assigned to the Structural Loads Department on the S-3A Viking project, my boss was an ex-Tuskegee airman.

...../Vess

I think they were issued P-40s when they arrived in North Africa. Not sure, sounds plausible.

WmB

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Here are two recent Modeling Madness articles on the subject

From this one I particularly like the history write up;