Obetend

Obetend t1_j9dct4r wrote

Reply to comment by Dramatic-Scratch5410 in Found this atop an hvac duct when I moved into my new home. I wish I knew more about it, although I assume it's circa mid 1940s by Dramatic-Scratch5410

No problem! I just finished reading Baa Baa Black Sheep by Gregory Boyington, who himself was a Flying Tiger. According to him the Flying Tigers were a kind of “off the books” unit. No one wore rank or any insignia. They technically weren’t in China doing what they were doing (wink wink). So after seeing all the insignia on these pilots I figured something was amiss and looked closer at the nose art.

Edit: The Flying Tigers technically weren’t even in the US military

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Obetend t1_j9dbgwl wrote

Reply to Found this atop an hvac duct when I moved into my new home. I wish I knew more about it, although I assume it's circa mid 1940s by Dramatic-Scratch5410

Definitely a P-40, and definitely not the Flying Tigers seeing that the nose art is a snake head. After a quick google search this is what I found with identical nose art:

The “Bushmasters” of the 78th Fighter Squadron / 15th Fighter Group operated their P-40K’s from the Hawaiian Islands and Midway in 1943. They carried a large snake head on the noses of their aircraft. An interesting if somewhat obscure marking.

Anyway, that is an impressive find! Love this kind of stuff

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