Downed / Hardlanding Photos WWII Fighters

Modeling Subjects Aircraft
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I am going to attempt my first Diorama soon and am looking for photos of WWII fighters that were shot down or made a hard landing (mostly intact aircraft). I am using a 1/48 scale P-47D but photos of simmiler aircraft will give me the idea of battle damage and landing damage. Any help in locating photos would be great!

Thanks

2

Get a copy of BENT & BATTERED WINGS VOL2,by Larry Davis.Its a Squadron Signal book on crashed USAAF/USAF aircraft from 1935 to 1957 should have everything you need.Still available thru Squadron.

3

darodent,

I’ve got lotsa shots of bent P-47’s and can email 'em to you. I just have to scan them, which will take a bit of time. If you like, email me your address ( blackwolfscd3945@aol.com ) and when I’ve got a good bunch I’ll fire 'em off to you.

Fade to Black…

4

The one I always wanted to do was an event that happened to my Dad at Richmond AAB in 1944. He was test flying a rebuilt P47 when the entire outer half of one wing snapped off. But at 400MPH the plane was still stable. He couldn’t let go to bail out, so he tried to belly in. As soon as he lost enough speed to set it down, it snap-rolled, smashed belly-down onto the runway, and continued to roll the length of the field shedding parts. He vaguely remembers plowing thru a rolling stairway and under the chin of a C-47. When he woke up, the plane was accordioned against a railroad embankment. There was literally nothing left except the cockpit and Dad. He’d smacked his head on the gunsight, but he was otherwise fine. As a souvenir, he brought home the joystick grip from that Jug - well, the top half of it, which he broke off trying to steer while skidding!

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OUCH!! … but if you can walk away!!
The flyer in my family was my grandfather who flew during WWI. He never did make into battle … had the wing of his plane shear off on approch to his aerodrome (first overseas poasting after being an instructor)… and a ticket on the boat back to Canada. He never got into a plane again. Ne … I have a love of WWII planes … just not the $$$ to do much about it so I ride a bike … it is my flying on land :slight_smile:

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Thanks for the help