|
Post by okla on Oct 8, 2011 10:20:20 GMT 8
Hey Guys (and Ladies, if present). During the weeks that I have been absent from this fine Forum I was presented a box of old newspapers, letters, etc by my sister in law. This box, belonged to her mother, who passed to her reward some 10 years ago. I returned the letters, written by the deceased lady's brother who served in Great Britain with the RCAF prior to our entrance into WW 2. This sister in law has no sense of history and still can't understand how pleased I was to receive these old newspapers . The personal letters, I felt, should be returned, but the papers....no way. Included in this tidy little treasure trove were two editions announcing that the Kaiser's representatives had agreed to terms with Marshall Foch in the railroad car outside Paris, several papers telling of V-J and V-E days, Pearl Harbor, etc The newspaper that I found most interesting was one dated Dec 10. A couple of the early dispatches contained reports that the Japanese Battleship, Haruna, had been left in a sinking condition near Aparri. Nothing was said, in this report about Captain Colin Kelly diving his B-17 into said vessel (as did some of the early reports). The article that jumped out at me and prompted me to post it here, was the one reporting that a large Japanese bomber force had been intercepted north of Clark Field and turned back with devastating losses. With hindsight this report boggles the mind. There was absolutely no action that should lead to such a report. Colin Kelly, as we know, did damage a Japanese ship, though only a transport, but a grain of truth was contained in his action. The only thing that could prompt the Clark Field fantasy was one or two Japanese scout planes turning back from snooping around Northern Luzon when sighted by some USAAF Interceptors. One wonders if the reporting of the stunning American victory was a flat out fabrication from MacArthur's PIO Section or uncensored, unverified reports from correspondents in the PI at the time. Just thought some of you might find this drivel interesting. There was also a photo of several British or Canadian dog faces horsing around in a shell hole or trench. I wonder if they might have been among the horde taken off the Dunkirk beaches. Cheers. Postscript...The RCAF guy transferred into the USAAF after America entered the conflict and survived the war. Don't know if he eliminated any of Der Fuhrers Luftwaffe boys or not.
|
|
|
Post by fots2 on Oct 8, 2011 17:40:30 GMT 8
Good topic there okla. Your message reminded me of old scrapbooks I had not thought about since junior high school. My aunts made them in their teenage years during WWII. Somehow I got them and they helped me get interested in the subject. One scrapbook had article after article on the blitz happening in London. It was amazing how so many civilians lived in their homes and in the tubes. They survived the bombing with few casualties. Only in later years did I learn about realistic casualty numbers. Many other comments turned out to be propaganda also. The scrapbooks are interesting but only from the perspective of what the general public was told at the time. I know you are ex-USAF so here is a little story for you. Growing up I always heard stories of relatives in the air force. That is probably what got me hooked on aircraft forever. During WWII, I had two uncles who were RCAF ground crew in Great Britain and later in the Netherlands. A third uncle was trained as a pilot in the Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm but the war ended just before he got to see any combat. This guy later became a doctor specializing in anesthesia. At the Mayo Clinic he was part of a team who pioneered open heart surgery. When I was a kid in school, one cousin was a fighter pilot in the RCAF. He did ok for himself. In 1959 the Golden Hawks flight demonstration team was formed to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the RCAF as well as the 50th anniversary of powered flight in Canada. They flew the Canadair Sabre and he was one of the original team members. Later he was promoted to Wing Commander and became involved with the current aerobatic team called the Snowbirds. He retired as a RCAF base commander. Enough drivel here too. You were in Korea so I am sure the Sabre looks familiar.
|
|
|
Post by westernaus on Oct 8, 2011 22:08:11 GMT 8
Evening folks . Just a bit more drivel . We also had the Sabre in Australia . It was made under licence in Aussieland .
|
|
|
Post by okla on Oct 9, 2011 0:03:00 GMT 8
Hey Guys....You betcha I am familiar with the F-86 Sabre. My outfit, the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing, operating out of Suwon, Korea (just south of Seoul), flew Sabres on sweeps to "Mig Alley". Those things were a good match for the Mig-15. Each had their strong points, also weaker points. All in all they were about equal. My unit is still there, having moved about 8-10 miles south to a place called Osan. Fots...One of my ex-USAF cousins is married to a girl (woman) from London. She was 8 years old during the blitz. She has told of those nights during the late summer of 1940 when she and her family filed into the "tubes" at sundown, awaiting Goering's Lutwaffe.
|
|
|
Post by batteryboy on Oct 9, 2011 7:00:47 GMT 8
The Philippine Air Force had about 60+ Sabres F-86Fs and about 20+ Sabre F-86D "Sabre Dogs". Its one of my favs.
Speaking of old newspapers, I think I have a few WW2 vintage ones about the P.I.
Hey Okla, I also have of the old Clark AFB journals and 13th AF phamplets. Will look for them and post some scans here.
|
|
|
Post by EXO on Oct 9, 2011 8:10:26 GMT 8
yes, and because the Australian Sabre was redesigned to accommodate an engine which had roughly 50% more thrust than the J47, and because it sported 30mm cannons as well as Sidewinder missiles, it was regarded as the most highly developed and "hottest" of these lovely, nimble little sports cars of the air.
The Sabre was the first aircraft to fly faster than the speed of sound in Australia.
|
|
|
Post by batteryboy on Oct 9, 2011 17:09:38 GMT 8
Exo, I spoke to a PAF pilot who had a chance to fly the Aussie Sabre during a joint exercise. He said it had brute force and power and it did make the US Sabres eat dust.
|
|
|
Post by fots2 on Oct 9, 2011 19:02:26 GMT 8
Interesting stuff guys. I had models of this plane when I was a kid. Here is some trivia for you Sabre fans. There were quite a few models of the F-86 produced by North American Aviation in the US and four other countries. Total aircraft built was almost 10,000. Australia was licensed to build Sabres for the RAAF. Later some of these went to the Indonesian Air Force and the Malaysian Air Force. Three versions were produced. (Total built 112 starting in 1951) The Sabre was also licensed and built in Canada. They went to the RCAF, USAF, RAF, Luftwaffe, plus several other countries. Six versions were produced. (Total 1,850 built starting in 1948) Italy and Japan also built sabres but there is little information about this. (Italy built 186 and Japan built 300) This link has a lot of F-86 Sabre information including the countries that used and/or manufactured it. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_F-86_SabreF-86 Sabres with the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing ("Checkertails") are readied for combat during the Korean War at Suwon Air Base, South Korea. Hey, is that okla standing in the background?
|
|
|
Post by batteryboy on Oct 9, 2011 20:54:51 GMT 8
Hey Fots, I didn't know you built models of the F-86s. I have one on my workbench right now: That's a 1/48 F-86F-30. Still about 30% complete. Here are some on my stash: Some are 1/48 and 1/32. ...plus I think I have around 3 or 4 more in 1/72 scale. Here are some PAF Sabre Photos. Here is a pair of F-86D Sabre Dogs over Corregidor Island. Cheers,
|
|
|
Post by EXO on Oct 9, 2011 22:07:14 GMT 8
Hey, can I play too? A NAKED F-86 I took this one in Dayton.
|
|