February 2009 |
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I think this looks pretty official to me! The Flying Bull P-38 (formerly White Lightnin') hooked up to a crane and lifted onto the ship. To see all of the photos, visit the Ezell Aviation website.
Click the video above to see part of the trip. Or click twice to open a new, bigger window. I highly recommend that you MUTE the sound. If you're using the Internet Explorer browser, rather than the far-superior Firefox browser (get the free download here), and you can't see the video above, you can view it here. If you'd like to see her new, amazing home (hangar) you can check it out here. This is Hangar 8, which is opposite Hangar 7 -- the one with the full bar. That's right. I said it. Just remember, fly safely! Many of you have probably heard about Long-time P-38 Association member Jim Lux has put together this short video, taken from inside and out. Here's what he has to say about it: "I had an opportunity to fly in the radar operators seat behind the pilot and in the nose where the bombardier sat. The Scatterbrain Kid was unique in that it was probably the only 3 place P‑38 ever built. It had a pathfinder nose and a nightfighter canopy. We had a fighter nose made for it but the airplane crashed before we could install it. The Scatterbrain Kid II was restored by the Commemorative Air Force (Central Texas Wing). The restoration took ten years." P‑38 44‑53095 "Putt Putt Maru" has changed hands again. It is now owned by Tom Freidkin of Houston, TX (Thanks to Pat Carry) |
Here's a nice shot of P-38 taken by Ed King at the Riverside Air Show at the Flabob Airport on Veteran's Day. Tribute to a pilot who loved his P-38 P-38 Flight Instruction (Now available in the P-38 Gift Shop.) P-38 in Flight (classic B&W film) 1st Fighter Group Strafing Runs For you history buffs out there, we're in search of a good copy of the IAR (Individual Aircraft Record) for "Yippee," the 5,000th P‑38 to roll off the assembly line. Newsletter subscriber Dave Mohr was able to get a faint copy, but we didn't think it would be legible via your computer screen. He's going to try to find a better copy for us, which we'll share with you if he does. In the meantime, have a look at the beautiful RC model he has of "Yippee." P-38 Assn member, Ed Rothermund, pointed out that a recent issue of Air Force magazine has some photos of the 305th Air Mobility Wing at McGuire -- and one of them is a nice shot of the tailfish on their KC‑10 tankers which shows the white P‑38 tribute to Major Thomas McGuire, the base's namesake. If any of you can find a copy of it, send it our way! (Update -- Ed found one for us. Here it is!) For you modeling fans, Marc Brouyere (from Brussels) has built this beautiful, The reference material he used to build this accurate model were these: Queen of the Midnight Skies: The Story of America's Air Force Night Fighters |
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P-38 HardstandREVIEW - "INJURY SLIGHT. PLEASE ADVISE"
Called “Sully” or sometimes “Mr. Five-by-Five” because he was a short hunk of Gaelic dynamism, O’Sullivan was a scrapper in the cockpit and a pile of energy on the ground, even when he was evading the Japanese in the hostile New Guinea jungle. Now there is a DVD devoted to the 30‑day trek O’Sullivan made in September and October 1943 when he was shot down in the hostile environment of wartime New Guinea. Josh Baxter of Arion Pictures has produced a remarkable video which utilizes a live actor in computer enhanced images along with interviews and contemporary photos of the incidents to present a vivid account of a harrowing incident in the history of the P‑38 in the Pacific. Some of the images are so convincing that it is difficult to maintain a realistic distance from the action. Indeed, when O’Sullivan is sitting in his cockpit trying to maintain flight while a ki‑61 Type 3 “Tony” is closing in from behind, the viewer is hard pressed to tell computer image from live recording. The only reservation I had was the niggling complaint that O’Sullivan spent some time unconscious after his P‑38 came to a rest in the dust of the ominous forest. But then, the narration was more dramatically intact within its approximately one hour duration, so my detail carping is just that. Within the length of its run time the video remains a gripping record of a tough Lightning pilot’s endurance. Baxter is currently negotiating to distribute the video, and it is possible to approach him for the chance to get a sneak preview. If you would like to contact him regarding this unusual piece of P-38 history, try him at this email address or write to: ED NOTE: If you missed the mention about this wonderful film, check last month's P‑38 newsletter. P-38 National Association News DONATIONS We thank all of those who have showed that extra measure of support for the P‑38 Association by sending in these generous donations in the past month:
annual membership MEETING updates If you would like to receive updates on our Second Annual Membership Meeting (near the Grand Canyon at the Planes Of Fame Museum in Valle, AZ) as they become available, please send us an email at this address and we'll make sure to let you know as details become available. UPCOMING EVENTS Poppy Festival (April 25-26) BOARD ELECTIONS We’ll be electing our slate of officers at the March meeting, and things are looking pretty promising. Many of our Board Members have agreed to stay on if re-elected, including our Treasurer, Howard Ramshorn, who also handles our Museum Merchandising. Other Board Members who will be staying on if re-elected are yours truly as Director of Internet Operations & Online Merchandising, Joe Onesty as Director of Docents, Stan Jones as Chaplain and Past President and Steve Blake, Editor of our membership publication, Lightning Strikes, and Membership Chairman. President Ron Smith, will be stepping down after many years of leadership, and we have nominated current VP Bob Alvis for the post of President. Bob has been a big asset to our organization in his current post, and we are lucky to have someone whose veins run with aviation fuel and whose heart is rooted in the WWII warbird community. More about Bob in the next newsletter. LIGHTNING STRIKES - MARCH ISSUE Keep an eye on your mailbox because the new edition of Lightning Strikes will soon be on its way. This one is PACKED with great stuff, and we have had many a member tell us over the years that this is one of the main benefits of being a member of our organization: a great publication dedicated to keeping alive the memory of the P-38 Lightning. (If you're not a member yet, but are reading this section of the newsletter anyway, you should definitely join us today because you are clearly a HUGE fan of the 38!)
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Do people have the after-Christmas credit card shock? Only one new members this month. Thank you, Max Rogers! And... Congratulations to Donald Eberhardt, who has converted his membership from annual to Life! And we do have a couple of new members who just haven't sent in their dues yet. We'll include their names next month. In the meantime... Don't be forgettin' to wear the green! 
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Thanks very much for subscribing to our newsletter. We hope you enjoyed it. If someone referred you to this newsletter, but you do not receive it directly and would like to, you can join by sending a blank email here. For questions regarding anything in this newsletter, please send an email to the Editor, Kelly B. Kalcheim here. If you'd like to donate an article or have an interesting tidbit to contribute, you can send them to us here. We will credit you with the information. COPYRIGHT 2009 © P-38 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION • PO BOX 6453, MARCH ARB, CA 92518 |
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Erin Go Bragh!
detailed and accurate model of the "Night Lightning" (P‑38M). The model photos and some good info are on his site 
One of the first stars to put the P‑38 through its paces in the Pacific was Lieutenant Charles Sullivan (later O’Sullivan out of respect for his Irish lineage). He was a beaming boy who faced terror with both the P‑39 (one air victory) and P‑38 (four victories and a probable). 
