Republic P-47 Thunderbolt: The Final Chapter. Latin American Air Forces Service

By DAN HAGEDORN

~ircraft Illustrations

by Bob Boyd

THE REPUBLIC P-47 THUNDERBOLT: THE FINAL CHAPTER LATIN AMERICAN AIR FORCES SERVICE

by Dan Hagedorn

Front Cover Photo: Truly a priceless airplane and artifact if the serial number were to be believed. The real 44-20339/03 was shot down in Italy 13 April 1945. This aircraft, an MOAP 1953 delivery, is actually 45-49151. It is currently being restored to flying condition by Museu Aeroespacial in Rio. It will then be the world's only airworthy Thunderbolt still in the hands of a military air arm. (MUSAL) Front Cover Insignia: "Senta a pua" was the slogan on the insignia carried by aircraft of the 1st Brazilian Fighter $quadron. An expression of Brazilian cowboys, it translates literally as "give it the blunt spur". Its wartime adaptation was the equivalent of, "let 'em have it", or "give it the gun".

Edited by John W. Lambert

Copyright © by Phalanx Publishing Co., LTD. Library of Congress Card No. 91-62115 ISBN: 0-9625860-1-3 All rights Jeserved. No part of this work covered by copyright hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means - graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or information storage and retrieval systems, without the written permission of the publisher. Published by: PHALANX PUBLISHING CO., LTD. 1051 MARIE AVENUE ST. PAUL, MN 55118 USA

Printed in the United States of America

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INTRODUCTION

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The Library of the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, one of the finest aeronautical repositories in the w9rld, lists amongst its holdings not fewer than 21 titles dealing with the classic World War II fighter, the North American P-51 Mustang. The same library lists but eleven titles for the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, the Mustang's cohort and, according to many, an aircraft which has not received its due in the journals of aviation history. Ironically, the Thunderbolt was selected as the standard post-World War II fighter type for distribution under various forms of U.S. aid to many allied nations, while the Mustangs were, with but few exceptions retained by the USAF for use in Korea and with Air National Guard organizations. This account records, for the first time, the extensive use of the much maligned Thunderbolt in what is commonly referred to as Latin America, where the airqraft type served out its useful life span, final.ly ending the type's first-line military active service anywhere in the world. Most of the Thunderbolts went South under one form or another of U.S. aid. Some arrived via less obvious circumstances, and details of these adventures (which: included the CIA and rather hazy aircraft "brbkers") is presented here for the first time. i Finally, it should be emphasized that the detailed aircraft tables annexed herein, while perhaps of little utility to the casual reader, should be of great interest to historians and potential "Warbirders" who may wish to establish the true lineage of a growing number of "Jugs" being reborn and preserved for the enjoyment and education of future generations. . Dan Hagedorn PREFACE

Like its World War II stablemate, the North Earlyshotofa 12GAvCaP-47D-25-REin./taly. ,The aircraft has fourteen bomb mission "hash" American P-51 Mustang, the immortal marks painted just aft ofthe unitinsignia, "Senta a Pua!" This is the only aircraft noted with the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt served out its mission marks displayed in descending order. (NASM) . final days of active service in the colors of Latin American air arms. . But contrary to many previously published ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS J. Schoppe, James H. Shea, Col John R. accounts, which have spawned wide!yvarying The author and publishers would like to Stell, USAF, Gen P.D. Straw, USAF (Ret.) reports on the Thunderbolt's service in Latin express their thanks to the following Frank Strnad, Jorge J. Suarez, Col Julius B. America, the similarities often quoted for the Ing Adolph two classic warplanes in South America, individuals who contributed photos and lor Summers, USAF (Ret), data to this book: Frank N. Aldrich, AI Villasenor, Nick J. Waters III and CMSSgt Central and Caribbean American use were in fact very dissimilar. 1 I Anderson, Col. L.W. Chick, Jr. (USAF, Ret), Noble C. Wyninegar, USAF (Ret.). To put the F-47s use in Latin A\Tlerica in Very special thanks to the following, lng Roberto Vargas Cruz, John M. Davis, Col Albert Fahy Cpt George Farinas, Col without whom major sections of this story perspective, readers familiar with the massive E.J. Fox (USAF, Ret.) Mrs. Lynn 0 Gamma, would be far less complete: Jesus Antonio USA fielding of the the post-war jetst F-84, FUS Air Force Historical Research Center, Aveledo, Gen Jesus Ramon Aveledo Penso- 86, F-100, F-104 and F-16) as "thl;l chosen Col W.R. Hardee (USAF, Ret.), Col A.J. Jaau, Commander, Venezuelan Air Force, instruments" for standardization .amongst Heintz (USAF, Ret) Foster M. Henderson, CPT, Carlos Dufriche, Sgt Santiago Flores, NATO and other US allied countries,may find Col Delmore E. John (USAF,Ret.), Col USA, Leif Hellstrom, BG Rui Moreira Lima, it convenient to think of the F-47 in this Delmore E. John (USAF, Ret.), Alfredo J. Brazilian Air Force (Ret.) MG Mario Lopez, context as it applied to Latin America from Jurado, MSgt John R. Kerr (USAF Ret.), Dr. Chilean Air Force, Francisco C. Pereira, 1944 through the mid-1950's. The evolution ofthe policy which ultimately James H. Kitchens, USAFHRC, Dr. Gary Brazilian MUSAL, Luis Santos, (warbird Kuhn, University of Wisconsin - LaCrosse, finder extraordinaire) Leslie Sargent and led to the selection of the F-47 for US Col Gary D. Lape, USAF, Bill Lewis, Tim Savage,LTC Dell C. Toedt USAF distribution to Latin America can be attributed NARAMMRB (Suitland NRC), William S. (Ret.)and his gracious wife, Gloria, Ing. Jose to the foresight and momentum of cine man Marshall, WW. Martin, Dale Mathis, Howard Villela and Sandra L Yacura, friend and co- General Henry "Hap" Arnold, wartime Moores, Jr., BG Jooao E. Magallaes Motta, worker who typed and edited the final Commander of the U.S. Army Air Forces. General Arnold, as the result of his own Brazilian Air Force,(Ret.)BG Alberto A. Nido, manuscript. Finally, my love and heartfelt thanks to observations and with the reoommendations Puerto Rican ANG (Ret.), Cpt Jorge Delgado Panchana, Ecuadoran Air Force, Dr. Ruben my wife Kathleen, who spent many long of key staff officers and theater.commanders, D. Pastrana G., Carlos Planas, James V. evenings alone listening to the sounds of a personally approved the almost daring Sanders (Small Air Forces Observer) Leland distant typewriter. decision to equiptwo wartime Latin American

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fighter squadrons (one each from Brazil and Mexico) with these massive aircraft. It must be recorded that there was considerable domestic and even foreign opposition to this move. The decision was a resoundingly successful one, as the Brazilian and Mexican units performed very well and their achievement eased the way for post-war plans that General Arnold championed. But before getting to the larger scale wartime and post-war deployments of Thunderbolts to Latin American operators, the reader should first be provided with at least a thumbnail outline of the terms and various acronyms used in our subsequent narrative. A HOST OF ACRONYMS Unlike its more diminutive cohort, the Mustang, virtually all of the P-47/F-47 aircraft (will be referred to according to the last official prefix assigned by the USAAF of USAF before hand-over to the respective operator) which reached Latin American users were acquired through direct Government-to-Government programs. The first of these was, of course, the well known Lend-Lease (we will observe it as LL throughout) program of the war years and the immediate post-war period. This highly successful, worldwide initiative was followed by a uniquely Latin American Hemispheric plan called the American Republics Project (ARP), which functioned from 1946 through the beginning of subsequent Mutual Defense Assistance (MDAP) and Military Assistance Program (MAP) developments. The MDAP and its many permutations followed the ARP, and has often been loosely referred to as the Rio Pact agreement, as it related to Latin America. This program was the umbrella forthe balance of F-47 deliveries (and sales) of F-47s to Latin America under its several sub-programs, including Grant Aid (GA), Reimbursable Aid (RAP), Foreign Military Sales (FMS) and variations on these. These aid programs were formalized by two specific regional diplomatic initiatives,

and these are important because they provided the framework that facilitated the delivery of F-47's (and other aircraft) to Latin America. The first of these, the Act of Chapultepec, signed in March and April 1945 by Argentina, Bolivia, "Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the U.S., Uruguay, and Venezuela,was instrumental in guiding USAAF planners responsible for the American Republics Projects (ARP). The second, the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, often called the Rio Pact, was signed in September 1947 by all of the parties to the Act of Chapultepec (except Ecuador and Nicaragua) and is often quoted as the more important legislation affecting aircraft deliveries to Latin America. While this is largely true, the Treaty has often been attached to deliveries that either did not occur - or which in fact were not connected to the "Rio Pact" agreements. General Arnold was, at the direct request of the President, primarily responsible for a comprehensive standardization plan which, with the Chapultepec Agreements as a basis, in effect implemented the Air Forces programs for Latin America. His classic book, Global Mission, has interesting passages describing, the diplomatic difficulties encountered, U.S. planners were ready to implement a comprehensiveplan that, had it seen fruition, would almost certainly have had far reaching implications on events that subsequently occurred in our neighbor nations of the Western Hemisphere. EARLY POSTWAR PLANS Aside from Lend-Lease P-47 deliveries, dealt with in detail in the Brazilian and Mexican chapters, the first operational mention of the American Republics Projects reached Continental Division, Air Transport Command ( the USAAF element responsible for deploying the aircraft lin late September 1945. At that time, a total of 750 aircraft, of

all types, was the operative number, and these were to be selected and stored at various points in the U.S. for later use in filling commitments to Latin America. The ARP, unlike Lend-Lease, under which aircraft were shipped or flight-delivered by recipient nation aircrew, entailed a different sort of pioneering for USAAF planners and executive commands, and an account of it is surely a story in itself, sounding like a Latin American travelogue. By October 1945, following the lead of General Arnold, and less than a month after the term "ARP" had been coined, the Aircraft Distribution Office, Air Materiel Command, had requested that Air Transport Command (ATC) shift not fewer than 595 P-47D aircraft from various Continental Air Force locations to Independence, Missouri, for storage pending distribution. The ATC set plans in motion to station Control Officers along the Central American route, as far as the Panama Canal Zone, in order to monitor and expedite the movement of ARP aircraft, ultimately extending this service into South America proper, with a total of 18 officers detached. The first of these left Dallas 26 December 1945, and the first P-47s were expected to be ready to depart Kelly Field, San Antonio, Texas, a scant two days later. Ferrying Division Control Officers were ultimately stationed, during ARP, at Brownsville, Texas; Veracruz and Tehuantepec, Mexico; San Jose, Guatemala; Managua, Nicaragua; Albrook Field, Canal Zone; and at authorized refueling stops at Turbo and Cali, Colombia; Salinas, Ecuador; Talara and Lima, Peru; and at Arica, Antofogasta and Vellanar, Chile. Deliveries of P-47s (as they were still designated by the U.S. atthis point) slowed to a halt almost immediately, however, as it was quickly learned that not all of the required political and diplomatic niceties had been observed, and USAAF staffers and State Department veterans exchanged some heated words until things were smoothed out in February 1946. In several cases, aircraft earmarked for a specific country got no further than Kelly Field, and, at most, Albrook Field in the Canal Zone. Others were stopped altogether until more detailed State Department involvement redefined the "actual" requirements of a number of Latin American governments. Maintenance enroute of such large numbers of aircraft soon presented problems. The Panama Air Depot at Albrook Field, which had initially been looked to for support, could not accommodate such a variety or volume of aircraft. To answer this need, ATC dedicated a Douglas C-47, outfitted as a "flying machine shop", with a highly qualified Engineering Officer on board, to literally fly the delivery route, trouble-shooting aircraft anywhere enroute. WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN

When General Arnold and his planners ordered large numbers of Thunderbolts into temporary storage at the end of the war, with a view towards ultimate distribution under the 2d L T Jorge E.P. Taborada, from Rio de Janeiro, a four-year FAAB veteran, prepares to depart on ARP, the proposed delivery scheme (as of31 a mission in January 1945. Note the crudely applied unit insignia. (USAF) August 1945) looked like this: 2

Country

Number of Aircraft Subtype Condition

Brazil Mexico Chile Peru Argentina Venezuela Colombia Uruguay Bolivia Ecuador Paraguay Guatemala Nicaragua

131 30 80 55 100 45 30 30 30 30 15 12 7

TOTAL

595

P-47D-30 P-47N-25 P-47N-25 P-47D-30 P-47D-30 P-47N-20 P-47D-40 P-47D-30 P-47D-30 P-47D-30 P-47N-20 P-47N-5 P-47N-5

Used New New Used Used New New Used Used Used New Used New

This scheme intended to standardize on variants of the Thunderbolt throughout the Hemisphere,came close to realization in some instances, while in others it simply never happened. The plan is interesting for several resaons. For one, it included virtually every established air force in Latin America, save EI Salvador, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Haiti (Costa Rica and Panama did not have air arms at this time). It also made a statement viz-a-viz the relative importance, in the planner's eyes, of each of the nations in their perceived ability to contribute to hemispheric security. By October 1947, this situation had stabilized and clarified considerably, and at last, the military planners and State Department professionals had reconciled and refined the original August 1945 plan, mitigated by some deliveries which had already taken place. It now looked like this:

Needing no translation, this 500 pound iron bomb is chalked "umsouvenir de FAB!" complete with evil eyes and devilish grin. 2~E Marcos Obelho Magallaes, 21, had been in th~ FAB four years when this photo was taken in Feb1954. (Hagedorn collection)

whom are named herein) and the USAAFI USAF flight personnel and crews who delivered them, a number of whom were interviewed in preparation of this book. Most MDAP deliveries were carried out by the 1737th and, to a lesser extent, 1739th Ferry Squadrons of the 1708th Ferry Group headquartered at Kelly Air Force Base. These movements were carried out by Project Numbers, according to the country receiving the aircraft (e.g. 2F-766, 2F-767, 2F-268, 2F738, and 3F504). Since there were no ferrying routes already established (the ARP experience had been expedited by the remnants of the early postwar infrastructure still largely in place), and Total 88 very little information was available on route This outline came very close to the actual facilities and flying conditions, route surveys Country Number Subtype ARP deliveries accomplished, and was gen- were conducted prior to actual delivery. On 10 January 1953, a route survey team, Brazil 25 P-47D erally referred to as the Interim Program, With ninety more approved by the USAF but' although in the final analysis, some nations headed byColonel Tarleton H. Watkins, Group not yet by the recipient government, twenty- listed received no ARP aircraft deliveries at . Commander, departed Kelly to study five P-470s had already been delivered un- all, due primarily to political impediments. conditions along the West coast of Central der Lend-Lease and no further deliveries These nations were Argentina, Bolivia (ex- and South America for the forthcoming were planned. cept for several C-47s), Paraguay, Haiti, the missions. Stops included Mexico City, Veracruz, Guatemala City, Managua, Albrook Mexico 0 Dominican Repuiblic, and Honduras. Field (Canal Zone), and back via Guantanamo Twenty-five had already been delivered unBay NAS in Cuba and Miami, Florida. der Lend-Lease and no further deliveries Colonel Watkins conducted another survey DELIVERY were planned. on 12 Februarywhich studied conditions along Chile 12 P-47D All P-47 aircraft delivered under ARP were the East coast, traveling via Miami to San All delivered fully combat equipped, including gun mounts, Juan, Puerto Rico, Trinidad, British Guyana, Peru 25 P-47D cameras, bomb racks, drop tanks and French Guyana, Belem, Natal, Salvador and All delivered standard navigational equipment. Wartime Rio, taking the opportunity to deliver a C-47 to Argentina 0 P·47D camouflage, if any, was removed and rocket Brazil in the process. Twenty five approved by the USAFbut not by The surveys concluded that delivery of Frails and associated equipment were not the recipient government. 47s via either route was workable; that support installed in the ARP aircraft. Venezuela 6 P-47D With the exception of the early post-war aircraft (B-25s, B-26s, HU-16s or C-54s ) Nineteen more approved by USAFbut notby Brazilian and Mexican Lend-Lease "make- would be necessary to carry spares and recipient government. up" aircraft, and some of the Peruvian, maintenance personnel; and thatflying would Colombia 8 P-47D Venezuelan, and Ecuadoran MSP/MDA be restricted to mornings only, due to freakish All delivered. aircraft, which were flight-delivered by host afternoon weather almost universally along Uruguay 0 country aircrew, all subsequent P-47/F-47 the routes. A final point was that drop tanks Opted for P-51 Os instead deliveries under the various aid programs would be mandatory (two 165 gal underwing Bolivia 0 P-47D Twelve approved by the USAF but not by the were performed by regular USAF aircrews. tanks on each aircraft). These epic ferry flights, mostly conducted Bolivian government. under the auspices of ARP, RAP, GA and LIFE CYCLE Ecuador 12 P-47D MDAP, are truly a story unto themselves, and All delivered or in country. were this history to be dedicated, such tribute Many readers will probably be surprised Paraguay 0 P-47D Twelve approved by the USAF but not by the would have to be shared between the Latin by the comparatively short service lives American pilots who flew the aircraft (many of experienced by most of the Thunderbolts that Paraguayan Government. Guatemala 0 P-47D Eight approved by the USAF but not by the Guatemalan government. Nicaragua 0 P-47D Seven approved by the USAF but not by the Nicaraguan government. Cuba 0 P-47D Four requested but not approved; eight had been identified for possible future commitment, however. Haiti 0 P-47D None requested nor approved, but three had been identified for possible future commitment.

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reached Latin American nations. Many previous accounts have led students of the subject to believe that Thunderbolts survived in service in substantial numbers well into the 1960s. This simply did not happen. As early as 1952, Lieutenant General T.D. White and Major General R.L. Walsh, USAF, of the Inter-American Defense Board, questioned the continued viability of supporting F-47s in Latin American inventories. Fortunately, General Walsh bought some time for the investment already made in the type in Latin American service, and the First and Second Line Aircraft Board approved the retention of 311 F-47s (194 F-47Ds and 117 F-47Ns), including at least 194 estimated as required for Latin America. All other F-47s in storage at the time - a considerable number - were reclaimed for support purposes, accounting for the relative scarcity of Thunderbolts surviving in this country, as compared with Mustangs. But acknowledging the growing obsolescence of the type, General Walsh noted, "there are no plans to support the aircraft indefinitely, only until such time as more modern types can be made available." As it developed, most F-47 users received MDAP replacements in the form of Lockheed F-80Cs and/or T-33As, or, in a few cases, North American F-86s, during the period 1955: 57, effectively sound ing the curtain call for the Thunderbolt in Latin America. The advent of jets - and not just American made examples - speeded the demise of the Thunderbolt more than any other factor, although, in May 1955, USAF officials announced that, after furnishing "Iife-of-type" spares for F-47s in countries in which the type was supported under Grant Aid, "items peculiarto F-47s would no longer be available in USAF stocks" although items common to F-47s and other types could still be requisitioned - supply allowing. Spares shortages and maintenance difficulties plagued the Thunderbolt's service in Latin America, and in some instances, earned the type a reputation that it did not deserve. In several cases the problem was so severe as to cause the complete withdrawal of the F-47 from service, in favor of less capable types.

SUBTYPES

With relatively few exceptions, the vast majority of Thunderbolts reaching Latin America were of the"non-razorback", bubble canopied P-47D-30, 0-35, or 0-40 blocks. In some cases (notably Brazil), a very diverse mix ofserial number sub-blocks were in service, mainly due to varied sources and length of service. In others, such as Cuba, Mexico and the Dominican Republic, virtually all of the aircraft were of the same serial block, many of them in sequence off the production line and direct from storage. Likewise, many of the post-war deliveries were essentially brand new aircraft, devalued only in that some had sat in open storage in less than ideal climate, for a number of years prior to IRAN-type overhaul and delivery, mainly by the Hensley Field-based TEMCO firm of Greenville, and Dallas, Texas. Others had seen ANG service prior to overhaul and distribution. On at least one occasion, the choice of sub-block became a rather heated issue (see Peru) , therefore it may be useful to examine the basic differences between P-47D-30 and P-47D-40 aircraft, the two most numerous major blocks delivered to Latin America. Some of these are key to recognition, chief amongst these being that P-47D-30s had facilities for installation of the Type AN/ARN-G Radio Compass, while the P-47D-40 did not. Other differences may be seen in Appendix A. BRAZIL

Unquestionably the first Thunderbolt to grace Latin American skies - and the only one of its subtype - was also very possibly the first P-47 to ever operate in regions south of the Continental United States. This aircraft RP-47B-RE 41-6037, which was flight delivered to Brazil by a young First Lieutenant of the Forca Aerea Brasileira (FAB) whose name has escaped the record, arrived at Camp dos Afonsos Air Base in November 1944. Unique in many respects, this already well-worn early model Thunderbolt was intended for ground instruction with the 1QGM I at a mechanic's training school at Sao Paulo. It was flown there by Captain J.E.M.

P·47D-25-RE 42-26756, later coded A4, at Tarquinia shortly after arrival in Italy - this aircraft flew over 100 missions and survived to go home postwar as FAB 4105. (Hagedorn Collection) 4

Motta in December 1944. The first truly modern fighter of any type to actually reach a Latin American country, and the first eightgun fighter South of the Rio Grande, this aircraft remained with the 1QGMI (later renamed Escola de Especialistas da Aeronautica or EEAer) until struck-of-charge (S.O.C.) in September 1967. Strictly speaking, Brazilian Air Force personnel had actually received the FAB's first Thunderbolts earlier - in October 1944but not in Brazil. This unusual turn of events resulted, of course, from the fielding of a Brazilian fighter unit in Italy during World War II, one of the brightest moments in the history of a proud and distinguished branch of service. Brazil, indeed, can lay claim to perhaps the most cosmopolitan aviation heritage in all of Latin America - dating from the great contributions of native son and aviation pioneer Alberto Santos Dumont. Her branches of service launched aerial sections on virtually the same historical timetable as the great powers, and incorporated worldclass ideas and equipment throughout. Fighter (or chasse/pursuit) aviation in the Brazilian Army led a markedly Francoinfluenced course through inception to the early 1930s, when U.S. influence began to be felt. Although relatively small in terms of numbers, especially when viewed against the sheer enormity ofthe country, the Servico de Aviacao Militar included French "chasse" class aircraft in its inventory as early as 1919. By 1922 it had organized its first dedicated fighter unit, la Esquadrilhade Caca, a unit of the Grupo de Esquadrilhas de Aviacao, with nine SPAD S.Vlls, at Santa Maria e Alegrete, Rio Grande do Sui, where it remained until disbanded and absorbed by the Escolade Aviacao Militar (EAM) in March 1928. By this time the Army aviation branch had been renamed the Arma de Aviacao do Exercito. . Between 1927-1930, virtually all Brazilian Army tactical aircraft were of French manufacture, from training and transport through observation, bombardment and combat, and the Nieuport-Delage NiD-72 was the standard fighter mount. No specific fighter unit was in being, as tactical types were grouped together at French Mission suggestion in the Esquadrilha Mista and all others in the EAM. The revolution of 1932 had far-reaching effects on Brazilian service aviation, perhaps chief among these being the introduction of U.S., British and German aircraft types. Besides the NiD-72s already cited, some U.S. built Waco Model CSOs, outfitted and intended from the outset as two gun fighter bombers, saw action in a ground attack role as part of the Grupo MistodeAviacao. Oddly enough, the revolutionary Constitucionalista forces were equipped with the same types, seized at Sao Paulo's military airfield at the outbreak. As a result of this bitter and divisive revolution, Brazil acquired a number of U.S. aircraft types which, had they arrived in time, might have been instrumental in ending the fighting - or preventing it in the first place. These included Boeing Model256 and Model 267 fighters (similar to the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army F4B-4 and P-12 series then

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standard in the U.S. services) and versions of the Vought Corsair biplane series. By 1933, these equipped Regimentos de Aviacao of the again renamed service, now simply Aviacao Militar. Th~ Boeing fighters equipped the I Grupo, 1QReglmento de Aviacao at Rio, 2 consisting of two Equadrilhas, the only dedicated ''fighter'' unit in the service by 1933-34, and in January 1934 they started sporting the distinctive stardevice national insignia still in use today, having previously carried athree color roundel. Between the time of the arrival of the Boeing biplanes and the start of WWII, the Brazilian air arm was renamed again becoming Aeronautica do Exercito, Forcas Aereas Nacionais, and, finally, Forca Aerea Brasileira (FAB) in May 1941. During this nine year period, the sturdy Boeings, never more than 19 in service, constituted the entire deployable fighter strength of Brazil. S~ve,ral fighter types were evaluated by Brazil pnor to the outbreak of WW II, including Seversky, Curtiss, Vought and North American designs, but the only pre war purchase of a type near fighter capability were 30 North American NA-44s - armed export variants of the classic AT-6 design. The NA-44s in fact never served as a fighter type with the FAB, being employed as"general purpose" aircraft. Brazil's entry into the war did not become official until a declaration of hostilities on 22 August 1942, although cooperation with the United States and other Allied nations had been polite and proper since 1939. Hitler, in effect, pushed Brazil into the war through indiscriminate submarine warfare practiced in the South Atlantic and inside the Brazilian Security Zone. The declaration of war had been preceded by a gradual buildup of the Brazilian armed forces, and especially the FAB, atfirstthrough commercia:! purchases and domestic license production of some foreign aircraft types, and then later through Lend-Lease Defense Aid deliveries. . The United States had a keen appreciation for Brazil's strategic position with regard to the defense ofthe Caribbean (and the Panama Canal) and of mainland South America itself, not to mention its vast raw materials, riches needed for the Allied war effort. There was also considerable concern over Axis influence and the possibility of subversion and espionage. But these fears proved to be largely unfounded. Lend-Lease brought new life to the FAB. U.S. concern over a possible Axis leap across the South Atlantic to the" hump" area of Brazil resulted in the rapid dispatch of a token force of fairly effective aircraft for the FAB to aid in the defense measures being taken. This force, consisting of 10 Curtiss RP36As, two Douglas B-18s and six North American B-25s, formed the equipment of the Agrupamento de Avioes de Adaptacao a kind of operational training squadron charged with defensive operations from Fortaleza Air Base. This was the first modern "fighter" unit in the FAB, and its personnel later served as cadre, as the service expanded rapidly. The RP-36As and other modern types were soon followed by six Curtiss P-40E-1 s in April 1942, 10 P-40Ks in Novemberfollowed by 20 more in the first three months of 1943,

Fueli~fJ at Ta.rquin!a, .thi~ view of a 1!!GAvCa P-47D shows the application of the overpainted BraZIlIan natIonal Inslgma to good advantage. (USAF)

and 10 P-40Ms in February. These were supplemented through the end of the war by two more P-40Ks in October 1944 and 41 P40N-1 s between September 1944 and March 1945. These Curtiss fighters served long and faithfUlly in FAB service, and constituted the primary air defense tool forthe country through the end of the war. With this experience on Curtiss fighters it is not surprising that the FAB had progressed to the point of assuming responsibility for coastal defense of its territory, a task borne in part through mid-1943 by U.S. forces, and it found itself strong enough to seek a more active role in the war against the Axis. Cooperation between Brazilian and U.S. diplomatic and military organs grew by leaps and bounds, aided in no small measure by the enthusiasm of the Brazilian Foreign Minister, President Vargas himself and various key U.S. officers and organizations. This very positive climate climaxed in an' agreementto select, train and field a Brazilian fighter unit for the European theater of operations. Decree No.6, 123 of 18 December 1943 created the 1QGrupo de Aviacao de Caca, followed nine days later by the decision to head up this bold undertaking under the command of MAJ Nero Moura, a former personal pilot to President Vargas and a very able young officer. Major Mouraand FABstaffersimmediately launched a service wide call for volunteers and by 3 January 1944 32 airmen wer~ enroute to the USAAF Tactical School at Orlando, Florida, for cadre training in USAAF tactical operations. Training included 60 hours of instruction in Curtiss P-40s, a type with which some of the pilots were familiar although the officers were stillynaware

Panama Canal at a place called Aguadulce, at that time a rather primitive sod field with very limited facilities. The 30th FS was special in several ways. It had been designated as, amongst other things, the fighter unit to which all new fighter jocks arriving from the States to Sixth AF were temporarily posted - for 30 days - for operational training. This unusual squadron was organized by Lieutenant Colonel (later General) G. P. Disosway, who was specially assigned to the Command from the CONUS forthat purpose. Its special status was the basis for its selection as the parent unit to train the Brazilian 1QGAvCa (as the unit designation was abbreviated). It was during this period that the 1QGAvCa could be said to have two identities. U.S. per~onnel.' ,as they completed the training of their BraZilian cou~t~rpa~s were po~ted out t~ other USAAF Units I~ Sixth AF, leaVing only Lleu~enant Colonel Dlsosway and Captains Ch,alrsell and John,as the U.S. element of the unit. For all practical purposes, for several weeks after being activated, the 1QGAv~a and the 30.th. FS wer~ one and the same u.nlt, and participated In normal defenSive operations for the Panama Canal, mounted on a, rather large number of (more than 30) CUrtiSS P-4~B, C? and E models. U~ to thiS pOint, none of the ~embers of the ~ -GA:,Ca had any concrete Idea where destinY '!lIght lead them, although the Brazilian Expe:dl~lonary Force (F~~ca Expedi~i~~aria ~rasllelr<;i or FEB), a BraZIlian Army DIVISional Sized unit, was aware - at ~ommand level asearlyas24May1944,thatltwouldprobably be deployed to Italy as part of the U.S. IV

ofth~ C06~parting

Panama on 26 June, the 1QGAvCa was bundled up and moved by ship . . , to Camp Shanks, New Jersey, where the Meanwhile, t~e balance of the unit Brazilians endured a very uncomfortable personnel wer; being assembled fortrans,port period of quarantine. Finally they were transported to Suffolk to Panama, where some 350, Brazll,lan pers~nn~1 wou.l~ un.dergo Inte~slve Field, Long Island, where at last they met organizatlon~1 tral~I~,g with th: ~,Oth .Flghte:r their warti~e mounts, the huge P-47s.They Squadron. (Flights A throug~ G ), Sixth Air were descnbed by the enthusiastic Brazilians Force. ThiS unusual USAAF fighter squadron as" aviao pra macho" literally "very masculine was located less than 200 miles west of the aircraft". ' ~~~ they were actually destined to take to

5

A rare action view oftwo 19GA vCas taking off, D-5 "(camouflaged) to the right andprobably the Commander's aircraft on the left (one of two aircraft unpainted at this juncture). Billed as a "combat msision" the presence of a film crew to the left probably means a posed episode. (USAF)

There they stayed at Suffolk Field for just over two months, undergoing intensive training on their new mounts, each pilot averaging over 80 flight hours, while the ground crews adjustedtothe radically different equipment. The aircraft the unit trained on at Suffolk Field were not the aircraft they would take to war (the aircraft flown at Suffolk and - also briefly Westhampton, were mainly P-47Gs, identified in available records only by twodigit numbers(e.g. 22, 39, 51,55,59,64,67, 68,72,73,74,76-78,80-84-86,90-92, 94 and 99 - but included also at least one P-47D identified only as "11" and one P-47C identified only as "1 ") nor were they part of th~ Brazilian Lend-Lease allotment, although It appears th~t at lea::,t one of then; may have ~e~n painted In FAB markings for publiCity purposes. . Q M,ost of th,e 1. GAvCa. pllo~s h~d co~s!derable flying time by thiS POl~t~ With a~latlon ,backgrounds ra~glng from alrl!ne to pnvate light plane expenence. According to Colonel (then Captain) Delmore E. John,4 "Few of the pilots had any fighter training," prior to coming to Panama and "extensive training in fighter tactics was needed to rate them". But, because the USAAF was rating fighter pilots with as little as 10 hours fighter timeatthisjuncture, the FABaircrewwere, by the time they finished, at Suffolk, considered combat-ready and on a par with any USAAF unit. It is interesting to note that many of the Brazilian pilots had Germanic and Italian surnames, not unlike many of their U.S. comrades-in-arms and some spoke fluent German and Italian, abilities which subsequently served some of them well. Q THE 1 GAvCa IN ITALY At last, on 10 September 1944, the unit embarked from Camp Patrick Henry, near Newport, Virginia, on the French steamer "Colombie", joining a convoy bound for the Mediterranean. The 1QGAvCA was destined to serve as a unit of the Allied Mediterranean Air Force's 12th Air Force (XXII Tactical Air Command) subordinate to the 62d Fighter Wing and 350th Fighter Group. The Group was composed of the 345th (Devil Hawk) ,346th (Checker Board) and 347th (Screaming Red Ass) Fighter Squadrons. The 350th had already earned high praise from ranking officers of the air and ground forces they had supported in the Mediterranean Theater but, in the words of their own War Diary, "the Group was paid one of its greatest compliments when, on 7 6

October, the 1st Brazilian Fighter Squadron arrived and was assigned to the operational control of the 35Oth". This proved to be an unusually wise decision on the part of Allied Commanders because, again in the 350th scribe's own words ..."all in the 'Group who helped the Brazilians start off enjoyed doing so because the Brazilians wanted to fight the common enemy, and fight him skillfully. Within a month, they operated like veterans, and, unlike U.S. units, they had very few replacements compared to our squadrons, and yet their courage and tirelessness was dauntless". Members of the 1QGAvCa advance guard had arrived at the 350th FG's base at' Tarquinia, northwest of Rome, on 4 October, presenting their credentials and getting acquainted. Staff members of the 350th immediately aided them in establishing camp in a pasture adjoining the 347th FS. The 350th itself was new to the P-47, having commenced re-equipment from Bell P-39s during October, following its move from Bastia (Corsica) to Tarquinia on 8 September. The actual arrival of the main body of the 1QGAvCa on 7 October was described in graphic terms in the 350th diary: "Like a huge tidal wave, 150 famished Brazilian airmen descended on the kitchen stoop for morning sustenance. Scurrying frantically through shelf and pantry, local cuisine operators managed to stuff the arrivals full of chow. These South American gentlemen were the ground crew of the 1st Brazilian Fighter Squadron, scheduled to cast their fortunes with the 350th FG." Equipment and supplies soon followed, and amazingly, the 1QGAvCa carried its colors into action for the first time on 14 October. It seems likely that borrowed 347th FS P-47s were used for this mission. The Brazilian National Colors had been hoisted over the "Brasileiros" camp that same day during a brief ceremony. Actual operations commenced on 31 October,(a scant eight months since training as a unit had commenced on P-40s in tropical Panama) with their own Lend-Lease supplied Thunderbolts, operating together with the other Squadrons of the Group, to familiarize themselves with the realities of the air war in Italy. On 6 November, the FAB unit suffered its first tragic loss in Italy when Second Lieutenant Cordeiro e Silva was lost, with his aircraft, to anti-aircraft fire in the Bologna area. By 11 November, the 1QGAvCa was operating missions wholly on its own - earlier missions having had mixed elements of cadre

pilots from other Group squadrons, and was selecting and attacking targets on its own initiative. On the second day of December, with Tarquinia a sea of mud from incessant rains, the entire 350th FG moved en masse some 200 miles north to Pisa's San Giusto airfield (APO 650), without a break in operations. This advance permitted the unit to make better use of its long-range abilities as the Allies pushed Axis forces up againstthe snow covered Appenines. The rough winter imposed most unusual hardships on the South American crews. Trained from the outset as an interceptor/ escort fighter unit, the 1QGAvCa operated in Italy (as did the 350th and the other three U.S. fighter groups engaged in the bitter Italian campaign) almost entirely as fighterbombers, carrying out the Theatre Commanders objective of interdicting enemy lines of communication, isolating his units, and demoralizing his forces through repeated attacks on rail traffic, road bridges, airfields, artillery positions, barracks, equipment and depots. On several occasions, the 1QGAvCa had the opportunity to support the gallant but hard pressed FEB, by now in the line and attacking Monte Castelo. On 20 February, the unit aided in breaking enemy resistance on a hill at the flank of the Brazilian ground troops. During operations that winter, the unit suffered additional losses. Three officers had been killed in accidents while still at Tarquinia.Otherlossestomenandequipment in operations are detailed in Appendix Band in the individual aircraft tables. The unit flew 445 missions (involving 2,546 individual offensive flights) and four defensive flights, dropping 4,442 bombs, 850 rockets, and firing 1,180,200 rounds of. 50 cal ammunition while answering to their unique Group radio call-up sign, "Jambock". Targets destroyed included two aircraft on the ground, as well as nine damaged, 13 locomotives, 1,304 motorized vehicles and large numbers of other very worthwhile targets, including one ship damaged. During the last month of the war in Europe alone, between 6 and 22 April 1945, the unit flew 5% of all XXII Tactical Air Command missions but accounted for 15% of the destroyed vehicles, 28% of the destroyed bridges, 36% of the damaged fuel depots and 85% of the damaged munitions depots claimed. Peak day for the squadron was unquestionably 22 April when, between 0830 in the morning and 2045 at night, 11 missions, involving 44 flights and 22 pilots, destroyed

The very first Latin American Thunderbolt RP-47B-RE 41-6037, later serialed FAB P-47B 4103 - shown at Sao Paulo in December 1944, shortly after arrival, obviously a very tired warrior. (Rui Moreira Lima)

Excellent study of 42-26762, a P-47D-25-RE, coded C1 (blue flight leaders aircraft - CPT Fortunato) in full 19GA vCa marks at Pisa, fully loaded and armed, displaying at least 47 bomb mission marks. It survived to return to Brazil as FAB 4110. (Tim Savage)

P-47D-25-RE 42-26450, technically the "first" FAB operational P-47, with unit code "1", denoting its use by the 1)GA vCa Commander. Note flak damaged patchwork on the rear fuselage, breaking the national insignia. Had at least 35 bomb mission hash marks at this point. Survived to become FAB P-47D 4104 at home. (Tim Savage)

One of the few Italian campaign 19GA vCa aircraft not camouflaaged, B3 was P-47D-30-RA 44-33093, one of the last delivered during the campaign, its squadron insignia not yet complete. This P-47 returned home as sin 4127, and was lost in an accident 24Nov49. (Tim Savage)

Over the deadly Po River Valley, sometime after 2Feb45, P-47D-30-RE A 1 and 42-26772, a P-47D-25-RE. Note that the "wings" on the fuselage insignia of the two camouflaged aircraft had been painted over. (Tim Savage)

Looking rather tired, 44-19662, a P-47D-28-RE, bears at least 40 mission marks, with Tte Meira 's name beneath the canopy frame. It returned home as 4119, surviving until at least May 1955. (Tim Savage)

Another view of 42-264501"1", the national insignia under the starboard wing almost appearing like an RAF roundel, due to the scrubbing of its USAAF "wings" together with its OD camouflage. Fitted for a long-range mission, it was flown almost exclusively by LTC Nero Moura. (Tim Savage)

19GA vCa Operations Officer's aircraft, "2" was 44-21093, a P-47D-30 -RE, here with both large drop tanks and rocket launchers. It became sin 4125, and was cannibalized for parts from May 1955. (Tim Savage) 7

not fewer than 97 motorized vehicles and 14 buildings occupied by the enemy as well as damaging one highway bridge, one pontoon bridge, one railway bridge and three artillery positions of great tactical importance. Major William Marshall, a member of the neighboring sister unit ofthe Group, the 345th "Devil Hawks" vividly recalls the 1QGAvCa and said, "I felt they, as a group, felt they had something to prove to the Americans flying alongside ofthem...they probably contributed as much 'kill' to the Germans in the Brennar Pass and all through the Po Valley as any other squadron." His only criticism was that "we did feel that they stayed with a target too long...perhaps they were braver than I was!" Probably the greatest tribute paid the men of the 1QGAvCa was uttered by General Arnold, in his book Global Mission: "I went to Pisa from Florence to inspect the Brazilian Fighter Squadron, under the command of Good look at an upgraded D-40's power plant, about to swallow one unsuspecting mechanic, Lieutenant Colonel Moura [he misspelled the literally up to his elbows in his work. Another 149th FS, VANG aircraft, 45-4911 ON went to Brazil name 'Maura']. The Brazilians...had shown as 4180. (Willie F. Hall) themselves capable of being accepted as part of the Army Air Forces team. They lost kept in reserve at the Naples depot. With the served by the USAAF to the Grupo. The 17 men in combat, and three to medical initial exception of the Commanders and Brazilians, unused to "GI" food, very quickly They were Operations Officers aircraft, which were observed that only an ostrich could stand problems, for a total of 20. 5 equipped with P-47s, and they flew them natural metal, all unit aircraft were standard such food. very, very well. This, and [General] Kenney's USAAF olive drab over gray, with modified As replacement aircraft were drawn from experience with the Mexican squadron in the US "star-and-bar" insignia to include the multi- the Naples depot, some were received sans Pacific, which also had a splendid record, would seem to prove that it is quite possible colored national Brazilian insignia in place of camouflage, but most were coded by to have a hemispheric Air Police Force." the US white star, plus the vertical yellowl squadron ("Esquadrilha") within the Grupo Prophetic words, which obviously revealed green Brazilian rudder stripes. Tothisscheme throughout their Italian service and some the source of Arnold's inspiration to field the were quickly added the distinctive insignia of even into postwar use for a time. [Note: it P-47 to Latin America as "the chosen the unit and the fighting slogan, "Senta a must be recalled that the FAB "Grupo" at this instrument" of his hemispheric air defense pua!" a slang greeting which originated in time was equivalent to a USAAF Squadron, a Northeastern Brazil in the Salvador-Ipitanga USAAF Group equaled an FAB "Regimento", plan. area, and which was adopted by some FAB a USAAF Wing roughly equated to an FAB AIRCRAFT OF THE ITALIAN CAMPAIGN personnel stationed in that area. Literally "Brigada" and a USAAF Flight to an FAB translated, the phrase means "resolve to "Esquadrilha"]. Sources differ on the exact number of attack and destroy the enemy" (sometimes Unit coding was as follows: "A" (Red Thunderbolts that Brazil received under Lend- more colloquially expressed as "Let 'em have Esquadrilha), "B" (Yellow Esquadrilha), "c" Lease during the war, and this confusion can it!"). The accompanying art was designed by (Blue Esquadrilha) and "0" (Green be traced to the exigencies of a wartime Captain Fortunato C. de Oliveira (56 Esquadrilha). Each had a statutory strength theater's supply-and-demand, which missions). of six aircraft, and with 22 aircraft lost to all The story goes that Captain de Oliveira causes during the campaign, some probably sometimes had to override pure "ownership". Initially, the squadron aircraft totaled 67 - was inspired to use the ostrich caricature on were never properly coded (see details in of which 26 were "on line" and the balance his design as a result of the initial meals Appendices). Shortly before the Armistice, a general shortage of P-47s to replace losses in other Groups and Squadrons in Italy resulted in the disbursement of the remaining 19 aircraft in the Naples depot - nominally FAB property - to other Allied units. 1QGAvCa disassembled the 26 aircraft it had on hand at Pisa as of the Armistice and shipped them home (via the AAFSC/MTOO at Capodichino), an event most unusual in the history of the Thunderbolt, as very few actual combat veteran aircraft ever returned to the Western Hemisphere. The 19 aircraft forfeited at the Naples depot were almost immediately made good, as, soon after their victorious return to Brazil, agroup of 1QGAvCa pilots was flown to Kelly Field, Texas, aboard USAAF C-54s to take delivery of 19 virtually brand new replacement Lend-Lease aircraft, complete with 1QGAvCa "Senta a pua!" insignia. But the wartime achievements of the 1QGAvCa, which lived on after V-E Day, did not end with the cessation of hostilities and the "Parada da Vitoria" held in Rio on 18 July Gooddetail view of45-49090, ofthe 149th FS, VANG, which became FAB 4176. An old code, "DC", 1945. Forty-one years later, at a moving is just visible below the crewman climbing out of the cockpit, indicating former use by the 121 st ceremony attended by many former members FS DC ANG. (Willie F. Hall) 8

The furthest two of this quartet of handsome Virginia NG F-47D-30-RAs became Brazilian 4184 (45-49151) and 4190 (45-49302) in September 1953 after TEMCO upgrade to D-40 standard. Fate of the nearer two is unknown. (Willie F. Hall)

(or their survivors) and US allies at the FAB Santa Cruz AFB near Rio, the unit was presented with the U.S. Presidential Unit Citation, the award having been recommended by Major Generals Ariel Nielsen and Tom Darcy of the XXII Tactical Air Command in 1945. Truly a great day and an honor unique in all of Latin America. It would be unfair, even though not a part of the Thunderbolt saga, not to at least acknowledge the little known fact that another FAB unit also fought gallantly in the Italian Campaign, under equally demanding and difficult circumstances. These were the 30 officers and men of the la Esquadrilha de Ligacao e Observacao (1 aELO). They flew early model Piper L-4 aircraft as liaison and artillery spotters forthe FEB, operating initially from Landing Craft LCI-116 off Livorno. This may have a claim as Brazil's first aircraft' carrier.

POSTWAR FAB F-47 OPERATIONS With the end of the war, the FAB found itself the strongest air arm in Latin America, with an excellent mix of tactical, transport and training aircraft - and a seasoned cadre of combat veterans as well, both from the Italian deployment as well as the anti-submarine actions in coastal waters. In the immediate postwar era the 1QGAvCa was the largest fighter force south of the Rio Grande, with its 26 veteran aircraft shipped home from Italy, still proudly bearing full wartime markings, and the 19 replacement Lend-Lease aircraft flown down from Texas bearing (subsequently) diamond, heart, club & spade insignia on their cowlings. The subordinated elements of the Grupa had also been reorganized and expanded, with a 1Q,2 Q,and 3 QEsquadro replacing the wartime alpha designations of the Esquadrilhas (represented then as 2 QI 1QGAvCa etc). The 1QGAvCa aircraft bore the playing card insignia noted above, while the 2Q1QGAvCa aircraft still bore wartime

codes(e.g. A1 ,B2,C5, etc.).The 3 Q/1 QGAvCa was equipped with AT-6 aircraft only and existed for a comparatively short period of time. It should also be mentioned that at some point, aircraft of this 2Q/1 QGAvCa started using the "Rompe Mato" insignia in lieu of the "Senta a pua!" design. "Rompe Mato" means, roughly, "one who opens a trail in the jungle," or simply "Trailblazer". It also refers to a semi-deity in the Brazilian "voodoo" religion. However, this has not been proven conclusively to have been carried on P-47s. Use may have been restricted to Meteors with which the Grupo was subsequently equipped. The reorganization of the FAB in March 1947 however, resulted temporarily in the redesignation as the 9QGrupo de Aviacao , when FAB units were numbered numerically, in order from north to south. This was quickly recognized to be publicly viewed as a slight to the famous unit and, in 1949 it was redesignated again as the 1Q Grupo de Aviacao de Caca, stationed at Sao Paulo. This series of events has caused historians some confusion as, in October 1949 the unit which had (under the north to south system ) been designated as the 1QGrupo de Aviacao (stationed in Manaus) under the 1947 reorganization, was redesignated as the 9QGrupo de Aviacao. While designated as the 9QGAv however, unit strength was somewhat reduced due to attrition, and consisted only of two Esquadraos, the 1Qand 2Qwith a total of 34 P-47s remaining, as well as 17 AT-6s. Of these, nearly 46% were inoperable due to spares shortages. The unit at this time had 70 pilots and 1,129 other ranks. During this period, the FAB organized a special unit (in being by March 1948) within the 4QZona Aerea, based at Sao Paulo's Cumbica Air Base, called the Esquadrao Misto de Instrucao (EM I), whose purpose was to provide mounts for the personnel of the Curso de Tatica Aerea (Air Tactical School). Included among its equipment were at least three P-470s, six B-25Js , three AT6s and eight BT-15s.

A third unit associated with the Thunderbolt, about which little is known waas also briefly organized as of January 1949, referred to in U.S. intelligence documents as the "First Attack Squadron" with four P-47s (and six Douglas A20Ks) at Cumbica. These apparently were reassigned by 1 April to the EMI noted above. In the meantime, the FAB received 25 additional P-470s under the Interim ARP program (Project No 73002) mentioned earlier, . deliveries commencing in June 1947 and ending in November 1947. The new aircraft were based at Santa Cruz AFB at Rio, where they augmented the strength ofthe Esquadraos of the 1QGAvCa. It appears that only 23 of these were actually received, however, with the other two being lost (or delayed for a long period) in transit. The FAB also received badly needed spares for 30 P-47s earlier in March. Recapping, by 21 February 1952, FAB Lend-Lease and ARP-supplied P-47 strengthl acquisitions looked like this: P-470-25-RE P-470-27-RE P-470-28-RA P-470-28-RE P-470-30-RE P-470-30-RA F-470-40-RA Total

7 3 2 2 5 2 30 (all of which had been built as P-470-30RAs) 51

(It should be noted here that an FAB orderl bulletin dated 25 November 1952 changed the FAB designation for its Thunderbolts - no matter when acquired - from P-470 to F-47.) U.S. intelligence estimates forthe post-war period through 1950 were highly complimentary of the efficiency of the 1QGAvCa, in spite of chronic spares shortages. One report stated that "in spite of the fact that most of the veteran wartime pilots have been transferred to other units, this unit maintains a very efficient and effective status of operational readiness," a tradition perpetuated by alumni of this outstanding unit into virtually every facet of post-war Brazilian national life. 9

A final batch of 25 F-47D-40s - primarily refurbished ex-Virginia Air National Guard aircraft - were programmed for delivery to the FAB under the U.S. Fiscal Year 1952 MDAP program as GrantAid aircraft (Project MAP2F683). These started arriving by October 1953, their receipt, unfortunately for the Thunderbolt, coinciding with Brazilian acquisition of British Gloster Meteor F.Mk8 jets. U.S. MDAP Grant Aid at this time was programmed to support two fighter squadrons, totaling 50 aircraft. The arrival of the Meteors was a portent of things to come for the F-47s. The 1Q Esquadrao of the 1QGAvCa was almost immediately re-equipped (the first four, twoseat Meteor T.Mk.7s, and two single-seat F.Mk.8s arriving in June 1953) and passed their well-worn Thunderbolts to the 2 Q("PifPaf") Esquadrao. The 3QEsquadrao was to be equipped with the 25 "new" F-47s arriving under GA, the last of which actually arrived in November 1953. This last aircraft was not delivered with the other 24 due to it having caught fire in the U.S., requiring additional maintenance prior to delivery. Upon receipt, itwas found to need yet additional repairs. An MDAP Survey Team had visited Brazil in March 1952 to assess the FAB's needs and capabilities within that program. Forty of the existing Thunderbolts were to be MDAPsupported for parts and operational equipment. The team judged the FAB'sdepot maintenance capabilities for its Thunderbolts to be "good", including engine overhaul production, although it was only operating at about 25% capacity due to a shortage of parts. The team was not so praising of field maintenance which, it stated, is practically non-existent as conceived by the USAF. The FAB's purchase of Meteors, mentioned earlier, was not unique in Latin

America. The British were active in promoting such sales allover Latin America at this time, offering attractive barter and purchase arrangements for Vampire, Meteor and Canberr? jets, all at a time when U.S. policy was in high gear to standardize on F-47s and B-25s. " Thus it may be fairly argued that the death knell of the Thunderbolt in Brazil and elsewhere may be laid at the foot of this very successful British sales drive. The Commander of the Caribbean Air Command, Brigadier General Emil C. Kiel, went so far as to state "if these countries do not receive U.S. jets soon, we can anticipate requests for RAF missions to replace the USAF and in any case lose our struggle to standardize for hemispheric defense." The official U.S. response to the almost overnight outmoding of its only recently delivered F-47s was to issue, in June 1953, information to all Latin American countries (except Argentina and Guatemala) on the pricing and availability of U.S. built jets, purchasable under Reimbursable Aid. This interesting list included the Lockheed F-80C and T-33 variants, Republic F-84F and North American F-86F. By this time, the FAB was slowly but surely winding down its Thunderbolt fleet, although an effort was being made to keep those in service in top condition. Overhauls and some modifications were conducted at the Parque de Aeronautica dos Afonsos (PAF - the Depot at Rio) and at Parque de Aeronautica de Sao Paulo PSP -at Marte, SP). This included installation, retroactively, starting the first half of 1953, of rocket rail equipment on all 1QGAvCa aircraft, diagrams and USAF T.O.s for which had been provided under MDAP. As re-equipment with jets accelerated, the Thunderbolt lost its preeminent position in the prestigious 1QGAvCa, and by November 1953, all remaining Thunderbolts were

Embarassing moment for a proud warrior, 45-49151N (most National Guard aircraft at this point carried an "N" suffix to the USAAF serial), which became Brazilian 4184, in August 1953, reveals stenciling details, gun sight mounting, and the way to make a four point landing in a Jug. (Willie F. Hall)

10

transferred from the units to the two Depots in Rio and Sao Paulo for complete overhaul prior to re-issue to a newly formed unit stationed in southern Brazil. Progress on the overhaul program was slow, only three having been completed by April 1954. The new unit, the 2 QEsquadrao do 5QGrupo de Aviacao (2 Q/5 QGAv), based at Natal ( which had already received some former 1Q/1 QGAvCa F-47s displaced by Meteors) could only muster thirteen F-47s. Almost all of them were from among the twenty-four 1953 MDAP-supported aircraft, the balance of its statutory strength of twentyfive aircraft still being at the depots. It should be noted that, strictly speaking, the 2Q/5 QGAv and the 1Q/4 Qwere not fighter units, but rather operational training units. The F-47 which is pedestal mounted at Fortaleza bears the unit insignia formerly carried on F-80s and T-33s there, but it is not known if the F-47s ever actually wore it while in service there. Thus the last FAB unit to be mounted with the F-47s was the Fortaleza based 1Q Esquadrao do 4 QGrupo de Aviacao (1 Q/ 4QGAv), to whom all Natal-based 2Q/5 QGAv aircraft were transferred in 1956. The FAB operations plan stipulated that the 1Q/4 QGAv would be equipped with 20 F-47s and four Lockheed T-33As, but as spares sources became ever more unreliable, the inevitable order came on 14 October 1957from the FAB Chief of Staff that all F-47s were to be deactivated, the process for which dragged on into 1958. It is not generally known that Brazil was actually intended to receive an additional twenty five F-47D-40 aircraft under the FY5253 MDA program for Title IV countries. Brazilian acquisition of 70+ Meteors however caused the cancellation of this increment which were already "in the pipeline", to the benefit of Chile, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. Five Boeing B-17s, previously on loan to the FAB were substituted for accounting purposes for the canceled F-47D-40s. But that is not the end of the FAB Thunderbolt saga. Not less than forty FAB F-47s remained more or less intact (and many fully airworthy) into 1958. Officially, 18 were Struck-offCharge in March 1958, four in July, four in August and 14 in December while not fewer than nine were preserved as monument or museum aircraft. The last two F-47s to be officially Struckoff-Charge, ironically, included the very first FAB Thunderbolt, F-47B 4103 - which was retired 14 September 1967 from its long tenure as an instructional airframe. It was preceded on 2 May 1966 by F-47 4171, also in use for ground instruction. The closing chapter is not yet written, however, as the FAB is now in process of restoring to airworthy condition our front cover illustrated F-47 4184 (45-49151). It also served as an instructional airframe and museum piece. If successful, this will be the solitary airworthy Thunderbolt on earth still in active service with its last parent air arm.

Members of the FAM's 201 Escuadron in a most uncomfortable and unaccustomed loca~e Pocatello, Idaho - in 1944, where initial training of the u'!i! was. con'!'!cted. P-47s .used durmg training only mounted six guns, and none have been positively Identified. (Ing. Enrique Velasco via Santiago Flores)

MEXICO Of the major Latin American nations with a military aviation heritage, Mexico and her aviators must be credited with one of the most impressive performances in transitioning a unit into a combat-ready status from very spartan origins. , Unlike the traditional powers of Latin America, Mexico had - until World War II virtually no history of pursui~~ighter aVi.at!on in the accepted sense, acquIring, or bUilding only a very few examples between the time of the birth of its aviation forces and 1944. These isolated examples included a single Ansaldo A.1 Balilla acquired in 1921 and a single indigenous design that- was experimental only. . Mexico instead, opted for aircraft and organizadonal structures that suited its peculiar needs and budget, and an examination of equipment choices through the years quickly reveals a decided preference for single-engined, two-seat general purpose aircraft, ranging from Bristol F2B Fighters (newly built examples, surprisingly, delivered in January 1928), two exotic Bristol Model 93B Boarhound lis, variants of the U.S. deHavilland DH-4, and Douglas 0-2 to the Vought Corsair series. This varied collection represented the primary combatant types used through the 1920s and 1930s. The Mexicans clearly did not perceive a need for single seat fighters, as no realistic threat was at hand. While the need for long range recon and light bombardment types, useful in countering chronic insurgency and other internal problems, was fairly obvious. In fact, in the years immediately preceding her entry into WW II Mexico had operated only a veryfew monoplanes of any, type, none of which were single-seaters. MexIco formally entered the war on 28 May 1942, prompted as Brazil was, by Axis attacks on her shipping. At the outset of hostilities her Air Force included six hard working Ryan STM trainers and the 22 Bellanca Model 28-90B "Flash"

aircraft, which could probably best be described as high-speed, two place recon aircraft. The Bellancas (the first Mexican service aircraft with retractable undercarriages) were planned to carry only modest armament and were only used very briefly, due in no small part to two fatal accidents with the type. Oddly enough, these aircraft represented something of a windfall to the Mexicans, as they were originally intended for shipment to the Spanish Republicans - but hostilities in Spain ended before they could evade embargo problems. . The somewhat understaffed Mexican Army aviation element wasn't exactly sure what to do with these unwanted and, as it developed, dangerous aircraft. In fact, at a time when the rest of the world was moving with ever-gathering speed towards monoplane, all-metal aircraft as primary combatant types, Mexico was negotiating for 15 Canadian Car and Foundry (C.C.F.) GrummanG-23 biplanes, yet another two seat, general p~rpose design, altho~gh it was billed as a "fighter". From available evidence it appears that these aircraft came very close to contractfulfillment, but ultimately

they did not reach Mexico, as Canada had more pressing needs even for such obsolescent types as these. With her entry into the war, Mexico almost immediately benefited from infusions of modern Lend-Lease aircraft in considerable number. By June 1944 these included thirty Douglas A-24Bs, a total of seventy-four variants of the North American AT-6B, AT-6C and AT-6D, fifty-two Fairchild PT-19Aand Bs, eighteen Beechcraft AT-11s, two AT-7s, ten each Vultee BT-13As and BT15s, twenty Interstate L-6, six Vought-Sikorsky OS2U-3, four Lockheed C-60As and three Fairchild UC-61 As, a total of 229 aircraft. Coincident with the arrival of the LendLease equipment, the Fuerza Aerea Mexicana (FAM) was reorganized fr.om the old Regimiento Aereo system, which had been officially deleted 20 January 1940, to an Escuadron Aereo system. Six of these units were organized initially, mainly wit~ AT-6 variants and remnants of pre-war equipment, but later included A-24Bs and OS2U-3s. These units were deployed as tactical elements mainly on the Gulf of Mexico and Pacific coasts of Mexico, to contribute Mexico's first wartime operations in Allied defense of the Western Hemisphere. During late 1943 and into mid-1944, Mexican losses to Axis submarines, especially tankers, had inflamed national sentiment. President Avila Camacho and his government initiated talks with the U.S. concerning the possibilities of Mexico - like Brazil fielding ,an operational unit to participate on the active war fronts. The first manifestation ofthese very positive talks resulted in recruiting for personnel to man such a unit. Following rigorous selection processing, a special ~nit, ent!tled P~i~er Grupo de Perfeccionamlento (First Training Group), redesignated as the Escuadron Aereo 201 on 1 January 1945 (and later Escuadron Aereo de Pelea 201) was formed under the overall control of a headquarters element designated as the Fuerza Aerea Expedicionaria Mexicana. The Escuadron itself was commanded, throughout its wartime service by Captain (P.A.)6 Radames Gaxiola Andrade, while the FAEM overall was led by Colonel (PA) Antonio Cardenas Rodriguez. The Escuadron and FAEM personnel departed Mexico City, after great fanfare, for training in the U.S. by special train on 24 July 1944. Arriving at San Antonio, Texas, aircrews were given further aeromedical examinations at Randolph Field while specialists were dispatched to other training centers.

Rare in-flight shot of four 201 Esc. P-47Ds over the ':'1. Note that only ~me ("!8'J has the "petal" painted on and (the only instance noted) also has th!~ nU"'.be~,on f! white h,?rlzontal pan~1 o.n t~e fin. Note also the differing positions ofthe fuselage mvaslon stripes relative to the US Inslgma. (NASM) 11

By October, following initial intensive screening and evaluation at Randolph, aircrews were shipped off to Pocatello, Idaho, where actual hands on training in Republic P47 Thunderbolts commenced - the aircraft selected as the mount the Mexicans would take to war. There is a humorous sidelight to the Mexican's fairly brief stay at frigid Pocatello. Arrangements had been made to make our Spanish-speaking allies as much at home in Idaho as possible, including Spanish language movies atthe Base PX theater. Unfortunately, for U.S. servicemen, this courtesy to the FAM contingent did not end with the departure of the Mexican contingent. Bill Weiszbrod, on leave in Pocatello nearly 13 months later said thatthe base theater was still showing Spanish language films in November 1945. In a typical wartime SNAFU, the contractor had been signed to show at least one Spanish language film per week, even though the intended audience had been gone for over a year. From Majors Field, following graduation on 22 February 1945, the unit was railed to Camp Stoneman in Pittsburgh, California, still in doubt as to their ultimate destination. They departed from San Francisco via the USS Fairiste for a point "somewhere in the Pacific". It should be noted here that Mexico suffered her first wartime military casualties outside of Mexico during this training phase, when Lieutenants (PA) G.E. Salido and Javier V. Martinez were killed in accidents. After 33 grueling days at sea, the first contingent of the FAEM disembarked at Manila Bay, The Philippines, on 30 April 1945 and were met by General George Kenny, CG of the Fifth Air Force. Headquarters were established at Fort Stotsenberg, near Clark Field, while the squadron personnel themselves were moved by rail to Porac airfield, where they were to operate as an element of the 58th Fighter Group, Fifth Air Force.

After settling in, initially using borrowed equipment, the unit entered into a theater training phase lasting from 7 May to 6 June 1945, under the guidance of Colonel Arthur W. Kellond, USAAF, and a number of other U.S. personnel who had joined the unit before its departure> from the U.S. During this "shakedown" period, two more FAM officers were lost through training accidents, Lieutenants (P.A.) Jose Fuentes Espinoza and Fausto Vega Santander. Finally, the first operational mission was flown on 4 June, when a building housing enemy troops and a machine gun position were destroyed in Northe'rn Luzon. Throughout its fairly brief operational life in the P.I., Escuadron 201 operated a mix of "borrowed" and "owned" Lend-Lease aircraft, including some early, razor-backed P-47D variants. A description of the known "borrowed" and "owned" aircraft is contained in the individual aircraft Appendices. From its first operation until 30 June, the unitflew a total of 35 ground support missions ( the four USAAF pilots seconded to the Escuadron participated in 26), dropping 625 1,000 pound ANM-65 bombs and expending 106,934 .50 cal machine gun rounds. Although in combat for a few weeks the unit conducted itself well underdifficultconditions. See Appendices C and D. By the end of July 1945, Escuadron 201 had 28 pilots assigned and, during that month, flew 37 training flights, attempting to maximize training opportuhities, even though local offensive operations had ceased with the end of Japanese resistance in the P .1. Of the 15 aircraft on hand, 11 were airworthy. During the month of June, the rather confusing shuffle of aircraft - all to satisfy the bookkeepers - showed the Escuadron using 14 "borrowed" aircraft. On the 24th, five FAM-owned aircraft were received, four more arriving June 30th. Four of the "borrowed"aircraft were then returned to the parent 58th FG unitsothat by the close of the

2!!Sgt Manuel Alcantar poses with "Pancho Pistolas" at Clark Field, emblazoned on the outer wing panel of a Japanese fighter, in late 1945. Sgt. Alcantar had been honorably discharged from the US Army in order to join 201 Esc. after having made combat paradrops with US units at Casablana, Bizerte and Sicily. The colorful "mascot" , borrowed from the Disney movie "The Three Cabal/eros" re-emerged in pos~warservice. (USAF)

month, aircraft strength stood at 18 (nine FAM and nine "borrowed"). Mexico had nominally been allotted 30 P-47Ds under Lend-Lease as of 17 July 1945, but unlike the Brazilian aircraft, these were not individually identified as such on Individual Aircraft History Cards maintained by the USAAF. The unit had operated with a peak strength of 32 pilots, and an average of 17 P-47s while assigned to the 5th Fighter Command. They were transferred from Porac airfield back to Clark Field on 30 July 1945, from which limited flying continued. By October, the Escuadron still found itself on station at Clark Field, awaiting movement home with thousands of other Allied warriors. By then, the paperwork shuffle had been resolved, and all 17 aircraft on hand with the unit were FAM property, including one flown in from Zamboanga., On the 12th, all 17 P47s were handed over to the 45th Service Group, USAAF, for disposition. A decision had been made to replace the FAM P-47 Lend-Lease allotment of 25 aircraft, with virtually factory fresh examples in the U.S. This decision was prompted, at least in part, by the failure of a little-known scheme, hatched shortly after Mexico's entry into WWII in June 1942, which makes for an interesting excursion into "what-if" for aero-historians. Considerable correspondence had been exchanged from mid-1942 to the time the Escuadron was due back from the Far East between the Mexican Government and the U.S. State Department, with a view toward Mexico acquiring the patent rights and machine tools for production, in Mexico, of the Republic P-43 "Lancer" design. As the war progressed, however, this initiative died quietly, mainly due to logistics problem~ CPT 1/0 (PA) Radames Gaxiola Andrade, Commander of the 201 Escuadron (de Caza) in the inherent in the plan and the fact that Escuadron Philippines, with his mechanic, SGT D. Chavez, showing the manner of titling used while in the 201 had, by then amassed considerable experience in the P-47. Clearly the Pion "owned" aircraft. 44-33737/21 is visible in the background. (Santiago Flores)

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A loaner from USAAF surplus stocks, P-47D-28-RA, Ser. 42-28523 still carries certain markings of 41 st Sq, 35th FG. seen here at Parae, P.I. on 26Jun45, "Me Darfin" collected a Jap victory flag with prior "owner" CPT Morgan R. Beamer. (USAF)

Thunderbolt was a far superior aircraft type which was still available under unused Mexican Lend-Lease credits.

POSTWAR FAM THUNDERBOLT SERVICE Like their Brazilian comrades-in-arms, the FAEM personnel returned home to hero's welcomes, and many of the wartime unit members served on with the FAM after the war. The newspaper "EI Nacional" reported on 24 August 1945 that pilots and wound crew members of the unit as well as families of deceased members, were to be presented with plots of ground for homes as a reward for their wartime sacrifices.

One of the veteran's first tasks was to take delivery of 25 like-new P-470s at Laredo and Greenville, Texas, during the last week of November 1945, returning them to Veracruz. Four of the aircraft went to the new International Airport at Mexico City then under construction. The Thunderbolts sat idle for nearly four months (bearing only their FAM national insignia and USAAF seriaks on natural metal) due to the poor condition of the FAM's runways at its Mexico City facilities and the almost complete lack of 100 octane aviation fuel there and at Veracruz. On 13 March 1946 Major Radames Gaxiola Andrade, still the Escuadron CO, flew one of the four aircraft at Mexico City.

CPT Pablo Rivas M. of Mexico City and CPT Roberto Legorreta S. of Jocotitlan, shortly after both landed from Escuadron 201's first Luzonstrike (USAF)

Though he lost power on take-off, he recovered nicely and proceeded to "beat up" the field, coincidentally making the first "operational"P-47flight in Mexico and thrilling a crowd of Mexicana Airline employees and FAM personnel. Rumors persist that the 25 aircraft obtained against Lend-Lease in November 1945 were P-47Ns. In fact, even some early post-war U.S. intelligence reports reflect this. These are completely in error. All twenty-five were in fact P-470-35-RA aircraft. The FAM is also unique in that it is the only Latin American Thunderbolt operator which did not obtain P-47s under MOAP, ARP, or GA programs, its Lend-Lease increment providing its sole source throughout the life of the type in FAM service.

Tte Reynaldo Perpz of Mexico City and Tte Fernando Hernandez-Vega of Juarez also participated in 201 Esc. 's first combat mission. (USAF)

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The P-47D-28-RA in the foreground, 42-29088"74" (in 41/35 unit markings) has not been positively identified as one of the P-47Ds loaned to 201 Esc. in the Phi/lipines, but the invasion stripes seem to support the possibility. Six Lend-Lease FAM P-47D-30-RAs are in the background including 44-33710 - an almost brand new aircraft when this photo was taken in mid-1945. (NASM)

Escuadrilla "A" of 201 Esc, with its own dis- Two early, borrowed razor-backed P-47Ds of the Mexican 201 Escuadron at Porac Airstrip, PI, tinctive insignia (I. to r.): 1S!Tte Graco Ramirez undergoing maintenance 26 June 1945. (USAF) (Mexico City), 1S!TteCarlos Varela (Mexico City), 1S!Tte Fernando (Juarel) and CPT Roberto Legurreta (Jucotitlan) at Clark Field about July 1945. (USAF)

"18" being groomed by 201 Esc personnel, bearing the penultimate markings as worn by the unit on its own aircraft while in the P./. (USAF) 14

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A Mexican P-47D-30-RA(44-90049) with most US stencils in place, named "Trigolele", a caricature ofAlley Oop above the name. (Santiago Flores)

Close-up look at "Exotica", PZT-1015, perhaps a memory of a special Filipino maiden. Pin-up nose art is extremely rare in Latin America. (Santiago Flores)

Fine study ofPZT-1 009.Unit insignia is incomplete,caricature of Disney inspired "Pancho Pistolas" not yet added in circle. (Ing. Jose Vil/ela) PZT-1 001/1, its secondpost-warscheme starting to show extreme wearand-tear, thunders along a taxiway at Mexico City about 1952. (Santiago Flores)

Exceptions are the rule in Latin America. PZT 1010, with what appears to be a fully colored cowling, seen with "petaled" PZT-100B and one other in September 1953. Anti-glare panel extends the distance of the spine and over the lip of the cowl. (Ing. Roberto Vargas Cruz)

Post-war FAM Thunderbolt use can best be described as a process of gradual attrition, which was complicated by high-level ambivalence over control of such a powerful weapon in a nation where politics were sometimes volatile. By late May 1946, all 25 were again concentrated at Veracruz, but by June1947 the unit had been transferred back to Mexico City where seventeen (plus a single AT-6 which had been assigned since August) were on hand. The other eight aircraft were assigned to the Escuela de Aviacion Militar at

In a somewhat later configuration, PZT-1001 now has unit emblem and red bands on wings, rear fuselage and fin, edged in black. The perennial "petal" on the cowl has been refreshed and edged (in red). (Santiago Flores)

Mexico City and Guadalajara. Five had apparently been earmarked for training use as early as December 1946. Through the first year ortwo following the end ofthe war, the FAM Thunderbolts retained their USAAF serials on their fins, with the national insignia of Mexico in six positions and standard Mexican tricolored rudder stripes. Initially, only two aircraft were otherwise adorned with the cowl-petal design reminiscent of the style used in the P.1. during the war and the numerals "1" and "2", presumably the Escuadron Commanders and

XOs aircraft. Gradually, all of the aircraft gained these cowl petal colors, with individual aircraft numbers up through at least 20 being known. Thereafter, FAM Escuadron de Pelea 201 P-47s were marked in a variety of colorful schemes. The numerals on the cowl petals gradually gave way to a new post-war FAM serial system involving a three character acronym on the fin atop a four digit individual aircraft serial number. The acronym "PZT" indicated type and function: Persecussion de Zona Thunderbolt or Zone Defense 15

November 1945 view of the Lend-Lease batch of 25 P-47D-35-RAs delivered to the FAM at home, still bearing USAAF serials and a few with petaled cowls and unit numbers. Nearest is 44-89945 with "2" on its petal zone. (lng. Enrique Velasco via Santiago Flores)

Thunderbolt. Serials assigned were 1001 through at least 1023. Serials 1024 and 1025 would logically have rounded out this sequence, but two Thunderbolts had been lost to accidents by 1 January 1949. One of them had crashed in the sea on 4 January 1948 near Naotia,Veracruz, killing the pilot. By October 1948, the Escuadron Commander was 1QCPT Reynaldo Perez Gallardo, a wartime member of Escuadrilla "B". Escuadron and FAM P-47 strength remained static through mid-summer 1950 at 16 aircraft in the fighter squadron and a further seven in depot and training status. By this time, pilots trained on the P-47 during the war were leaving the squadron' through promotion, transfers and separation from the service, and training replacements posed some unique problems. Since no twoseat Thunderbolts were available, new pilots would train successively in AT-6 and A-24B aircraft, landing in both types without the aid of flaps, with the instructor in the rear seat in an attempt to simulate P-47 handling characteristics as nearly as possible. The unit rotated periodically to Las Bajadas, Veracruz, for gunnery and ordnance practice using "bombs" made locally from tree trunks. At about th is juncture, the aircraft adopted bands painted on the wings, around the rear fuselage (with the national insignia superimposed) and horizontally across the fin, in the colors of the four Escuadrillas into which the Escuadron was still nominally divided; yellow, dark red, green and blue, along with the recently developed Escuadron insignia portraying "Pancho Pistolas" (from the Walt Disney film "The Three Caballeros") carried on both sides of the forward fuselage. Prior to this time, roughly between 1950-54, the unit insignia had been a fighting cock. The cowl petals were retained but instead of the earlier white, they correspond to the Escuadrilla color, as did the prop spinners. Some time prior to the adoption of this overall scheme, many of the Escuadron's aircraft carried nose art of one form or another, a practice unique on P-47s that saw service in Latin America. This was apparently confined to the aircraft of various wartime veterans and ranged from simple names (usually female) to more explicit images. With the Mexicans, . many of these were matched with specific aircraft, some apparently named for places in the P.1. by wartime veterans.They include: "Adena", "Mindanao", "Luzon", "Cigarra", "Aracuany" , and "Jujuzarat", and appear to have only been carried between 1946 and 1950. By June 1950, at which time the Escuadron was commanded by Major (PA) 16

Amador Samano Pina, another wartime Escuadrilla "C"vet, the FAM leadership, aware that budget constraints and serviceability problems would become ever greater, had started considering the possibility of disposing of its remaining P-47s in favor of twenty-five F-51 Mustangs. In fact, by July, the Peruvian Air Attache in Mexico had gone so far as to initiate talks with the FAM High Command for the outright purchase of P-47s, a move the USAF Liaison Office advised against strongly since the Mexican Lend-Lease Account was still not completely settled. A trade-in for F-51 s with a California firm was also discussed, but it all came to naught. The Mexican press had been giving much space at this time to the need for Mexico to reequip her air fo~ce with first class aircraft. These negotiations, between General Antonio Cardenas Rodriguez (former wartime commanderofthe FAEM inthe P.I.) and a Mr. Wilson Brown involved the trade-in of the entire remaining FAM P-47 inventory. According to North American Aviation Corporation, the only known source for such numbers of Mustangs at that time was a Mr. Finklestein (apparently fronted as "United Nations Engineering Corporation") who claimed to have 100 Mustangs for sale "as is, where is" at $12,500. Finklestein had offered these 100 Mustangs to NAA under these conditions, but the company declined. Finklestein allegedly had connections with arms supplies to Israel during 1947 and these 100 aircraft were thought to have been originally intended for Haganah forces. Brown also had connections with Haganah activities, in Mexico, in 1947. He was also accused of being active in the purchase of arms for revolutionary elements in Central America, and the U.S. State Department's concern was that the FAM P47s, if traded in against Mustangs, might end up in such circumstances. In fact, with Mexico's requirements under MDAP somewhat in limbo, at the very time that the FAM was considering disposing of its P-47s, the Joint Mexico-U.S. Defense Council (an organization born during WWII) advised Brigadier General Alberto Salina C., FAM Cin-C, on 31 October 1950, that "the U.S. Government was reserving - for a short time only - 35 F-47Ds (and 10 AT-11s) on an 'as iS,where is' basis forthe FAM. The Mexicans bought the AT-11s but said "No thanks," to the Thunderbolts. FAM determination to rid itself of its now somewhat tired P-47s continued, and by January 1951, the service was allegedly negotiating the sale of the best 17 aircraft, through the Iba Corporation of Miami, Florida

to Trujillo's Aviacion Militar Dominicana, at a cost of $15,500 each, fly-away. The deal included all armament and even painting on the AMD insignia, and President Aleman had purportedly signed the necessary export licenses. Peter Ethier, a U.S. citizen and former USMF WWII pilot had been contracted to fly the aircraft to the Dominican Republicvia Miami - three at a time, with the aid of two other pilots of his choosing. The Mexican government did advise the U.S. State Department of its intent to sell the aircraft, but cited the buyer as Mitchell Mobile Hangar Corp. of New York. The U.S. State Department did not approve this sale - again because of the unresolved Lend-Lease account proble ms, as well as the somewhat shadowy U.S. connections in the deal. From this point on, FAM P-47 operations went downhill, as more and more aircraft succumbed to minor accidents and spares shortages, as well as severe budgetary constraints which limited the FAM's ability to alleviate these problems. By June 1945, only 12 P-47s were still on hand with the Escuadron (as well as 13 T-6s) now stationed permanently at Las Bajadas, Veracruz, and not a single one was judged combat ready. Four of these (including PZT 1003,1 006,and 1016) participated in the grand opening of the new Mexico City International Airport on 1 June 1954. Between 1954 and 1957 most of the remaining airworthy Escuadron P-47s were painted over all Mexican olive drab, with yellow bands on the wings and rear fuselage, and standard six position national insignia and rudder stripes, but with the vertical fin painted a very light green, some with the unit insignia and some without. Several were also apparently painted a light gray during this period also and may have been trainers. By 30 June 1957, nine Thunderbolts remained, by now bearing the added indignity of being replaced by North American T-28 trainers, although this hardy type was admirably suited to limited FAM needs at the time. Strength remained at nine through 1 June 1958, when the decision was made to finally retire the type, and all but two were scrapped. PZT 1016 and PZT 1008 were earmarked for permanent display at Base Aerea Militar No. 1 and Colegio del Aire respectively. Replacements for the now lionized Thunderbolts finally arrived, to relieve the Escuadron de Pelea 201 T-28s in December 1960 in the form of fifteen nimble ex Canadian deHavilland Vampire F.3 jets, although the latter were not assigned to Escuadron de Pelea 201, a new unit being created to operate them.

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ECUADOR Chronologically, the next Latin American nation to acquire Thunderbolts, after wartime operators Brazil and Mexico, was the Pacific Coast nation of Ecuador, nestled between mighty Colombia on the north and hostile Peru to the south. Ecuador's military aviation tradition prior to WWII was somewhat halting compared to its larger or wealthier neighbor states, and at several stages in its development came to almost a complete halt. Pre-war Ecuadoran military aviation was influenced heavily, in turn, by French, Italian, and in the 1930's non-governmental U.S. influences. Largely a training organization at best, the single largest group of anyone type operated between creation and 1941 consisted of ten Italian built Meridionali (Romeo) Ro-37bis biplanes, multi-purpose aircraft, which were a handful for their Ecuadoran crews, and which suffered a number of accidents due to mechanical failures of various origins. Fighter aviation, assuch, did not materialize in any form until 1941, aside from the acquisition, primarily through donations, of single examples of WW I vintage SPAD, Nieuport-Macchi 17 and Hamiot HD-1 designs during the 1920s, none ofwhich ever mounted armament. In 1936 however, Ecuador became determined to create a small but efficient air service capable of providing at least some response to its powerful neighbor to the south, Peru, which had been making territorial claims against large sections of Ecuadoran land. The government contracted with the CurtissWright Corporation to fulfill this need, and subsequently purchased its first modern equipment, which included quantities of CW16E biplane trainers and six monoplane CW19Rs which the Ecuadorans called "Sparrows", and came closest to a modern fighting aircraft they had enjoyed up till that time. With the approach of war, and probable cut-off of foreign sources of equipment, Ecuador, like other states, had to cast around almost desperately, for aircraft, especially after the border war with Peru of 1941, in which Ecuador lost considerable territory. Eventually, acting through the agency of Guisseppi Bellanca, the Ecuadorans managed to locate a hodgepodge selection of four assorted models of the basic Seversky SEV-1 (P-35) design, all former racers or demonstrators which, although essentially similarto the P-35 fighter design, did not even have guns fitted at the time of purchase. These four aircraft, despite chronic fuel leakage problems, together with the surviving CW-19Rs and commercially acquired CW22Bs, formed Ecuador's first designated fighter unit. To this odd collection were added six Curtiss-Wright SNC-1 s (U.S. Navy version of the CW-22B) and small quantities of North American AT-6B and Os some of which also served with this first fighter unit, courtesy of the Lend-Lease program. By the end of WWII the Fuerza Aerea Ecuatoriana (FAE) had grown to a rather quick maturity and, though still small by South American standards (second only to Paraguay in terms of aircraft strength) it was now a well-

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Upon landing at Kingston, Jamaica in June 1953, L T Toedt discovered that the FAEC repairs to his undercarriage weren't quite complete. The aircraft was repaired and eventually joined its mates in Ecuador. (L TC Dell C. Toedt)

rounded organization with a defined infrastructure and a comparatively well trained cadre of pilots and crews. Identified early as a participant in the American Republic Projects (ARP), mainly because of her assistance in making available the vital Galapagos Island airbase, one of the cornerstones of Panama Canal defense, as well as the large coastal air and naval patrol base at Salinas, Ecuador was to receive twelve P-47D aircraft (as well as one C-47A and an AT-7). Although paid for in November 1946 (ahead of neighbors Peru, Colombia and Chile) at $6,500 each, political considerations dictated that all four west coast nations should receive their ARP Thunderbolts as nearly as possible atthe same time. Thus, the FAE's aircraft did not in fact arrive in Quito at Mariscal Sucre Air Base until April-June 1947 and then only after the U.S. Mission Chief transmitted an urgent appeal to the U.S. State Department, reporting that FAE officers were threatening to resign if something was not done to expedite the delivery of the aircraft they had already paid for. The aircraft, flown in from Albrook Field, Canal Zone, were covered under ARP Project' No 73001 and at the time of delivery represented more than 33% of the total FAE inventory, and certainly the most powerful single weapon, as a unit, that Ecuador had ever possessed. Initially, all twelve were stationed on the grass field at Quito, high in the beautiful Andean capital of the country, and operated at minimum weight, due to the altitude and short field, not to mention the rather hairy approach to the landing area. Later, for political purposes, two of the P-47s were detached; one to Guyaquil and oneto Salinas. The unit operating the P-47s, according to Leland Schoppe, a member of the U.S. Mission in Ecuador from mid-1948 until mid 1950, was known only as the Ecuadron de Caza, and this unit received the lion's share of the Missions' efforts during that period. The President of Ecuador, a graduate of Stanford University, was striving to improve the educational level of his country and as a result, the military budget was cut to the minimum, thus idling the Escuadron de Caza, supplied with the least economical of the FAE's aircraft . The Mission's Fighter Advisor, Major William J. Hovde, (ETO P-47 ace with 10.5

kills and much revered by FAE pilots) became so frustrated by the inactivity that he put in for a curtailment of his tour with the Mission and volunteered for duty in Korea.? By May 1948 the FAE had lost one P-47 to an accident, but the remaining 11 still constituted the most numerous type in the 39 aircraft Air Force. Anotherwas lost by January 1949 but strength remained static mainly due to inactivity, until mid-1949. At that time, in an attempt to form at least a token bomber force (again to match neighbors Peru and Colombia), the FAE gained approval for the purchase of three North American B-25s from the U.S. Foreign Liquidation Commission (FLC). However before the deal was consummated, and on the advice of the U.S. Mission which wisely pointed outthe added costs in manpower and operating expenses that the Mitchells would incur, the FAE requested to alter the approval to read three (or four) F-47s to make up for attrition. These four aircraft were approved under one of the very last ARP cases (9SF-116) on an "as is-where is" basis, and Captain Fernandez of the FAE selected 44-

Nose of the FAE-403 (digit "3"just visible on the cowl chin) , one of the first three ARP P-47D-30s for Ecuador. (FAE via COL Gary Lape)

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32897,32797,32873, and 32912 from stored aircraft on 2 May 1949. (32698 was rejected on 2 May 1949.) With these ARP supplied P-47s the FAE managed to create a professional corps of pilots and technicians that would prove, in retrospect, to be viewed as the period in which the modern FAE was born. With the help of the small but very enthusiastic USAF Mission, the FAE crews managed to wring the most out of their Thunderbolts and, at the same time, create an esprit that survives to this day. This utilization was not without its price. By January 1953 the extremely poor condition of the surviving 10 ARP-supplied P-47s was such that the USAF Mission advised that "the FAE shops would be overwhelmed in attempting to overhaul the aircraft". Still based at Quito and referred to now as the Ecuadron de Caza-Bombardero, the unit also mounted ten assorted AT-6s. With the birth of MOAP, U.S. planners recognized quickly that some relief for the hard-pressed FAE would soon have to be forthcoming. Accordingly, as early as May 1953, U.S. MOAP requests included six F470-40 aircraft programmed for Ecuador, coming under Plan VI of the Fiscal Year (FY) 1952 MOA Material Program for Title IV countries. Of course these six aircraft would have actually arrived in Ecuador in Calendar Year 1953 had delivery gone ahead as scheduled. Brazil's program deviation however (see Brazilian chapter) permitted a substantial increase in the allotment of aircraftto Ecuador, Chile, and Colombia, and resulted in the FAE receiving eleven (rather than six) F-470-40s. Flight delivered by pilots of the USAF Ferrying Squadrons accompanied by a USAF

Douglas B-26 pathfinder, actual arrival was in June 1953 and not a moment too soon. As of April of that year, only 5:20 hours had been flown (that month) on the best of the surviving ARP P-47s due to their poor condition. Almost immediately after arrival, twentytwo young Se~ond Lieutenants were checked out on the aircraft by Mission personnel. The Escuadron de Caza-Bombardero now boasted twenty Thunderbolts (as well as a varying number of AT-6s) and 25 crews, although not all were rated as qualified fully on the type. By July 1953, eight of the 11 "new" F-47s had experienced 100 hour inspections, and were Temporary Duty (TOY) atSalinas, being utilized intensively in the Mission designed program for rating the FAE's fighter pilots. Plans were also on-going for the overhaul of the nine remaining ARP-supplied P-47s. Through the end of that month, 17 new pilots and seven experienced pilots had been checked out on the F-470-40s. Going into August 1953, the FAE Thunderbolts had flown more since the arrival of the 0-40s than in the preceding 18 months, and Mission personnel reported that "remarkable progress was being made". The new life breathed into the FAE as a result of the arrival of the 0-40s had a number of interesting side effects including by September 1953, the emergence of unit designations for, FAE units. The Thunderbolt equipped unit had been designated as the 10Q Escuadron, 100 Q Ala de Caza-Bombardero (10th Squadron of the 1OOth Fighter-Bomber Wing) MOAP planners were guided by an overall hemispheric defense plan, which outlined "Tab" forces which each MOAP eligible participant would reasonably be expected to mount. Ecuador's Tab Force, as of the end of

1953, was one Fighter-Bomber Squadron, optimally equipped with 25 F-47s - although in fact only nineteen were on hand. Nine of these were in need of rehabilitation. Overhaul of the nine remaining ARPsupplied P-47s(plus one recoverable hulk) was a major goal of the USAF Mission from November 1954 through January 1957, being assigned their Project Number 54-7. By January 1956 only 30% of the needed work had been completed mainly due to erratic assignment of personnel and a shortage of hangar space. The FAE depot only allowed one aircraft to be worked at a time. An associated Mission Project, No. 54-8, which commenced in July 1954, led to the training of two FAE pilots as test pilots for the P-47s. These were possibly the first such pilots formally trained in Latin America. These test pilots quickly earned their keep flying two F-47s more than 40 hours at sea level from Salinas to try and isolate the chronic problems being encountered at the time with the faulty turbo-exhaust tubes. These potentially catastrophic problems with the turbo-exhaust tubes had led to an interesting recommendation by the USAF Mission, and the sea-level tests noted above were a part of it. In effect, the Mission recommended that all FAE F-47s be operated only out of Salinas and at altitudes not in excess of 10,000 feet, the tests having shown that the aircraft functioned normally below 10,000 feet without the equipment. As a result, f!!l turbo-exhaust systems were removed from FAE Thunderbolts at this point, with the intention that they serve out the rest oftheir service lives as low altitude interdiction fighter bombers. However, the Mission assisted the FAE in locating a commercial supplier in the U.S. (TEMCO) who could

Spectacular setting as a backdrop for two of Ecuador's ARP-supplied P-47D-30-RAs, FAE 401 is at left (note serial under chin) before mighty Cotapaxi. Note FAE roundel under starboard wing ofaircrafat at right. Otherwise, only marks were standard rudder stripes, and three digit serial on fuselage. (USAF) 18

replace the systems in twelve of the aircraft, permitting them to continue to operate throughout mountainous Ecuador. In spite of these exertions, the turboexhaust repairs and total overhaul projects noted above, funded to continue through January 1958, were gradually shunted onto a back burner by the FAE as a general lack of interest manifested itself. The FAE was, like Brazil, bringing jets on line. Training operations had continued on into 1954, overhaul of the ARP supplied aircraft grinding along, with two of them finally being worked in the FAE Depot area by March. Through the first quarter of that year, 120 hours had been flown in the F-47D-40s on aerial gunnery, bombing and formation training missions. The USAF Mission Tactical Training program (Mission Project 54-1) had commenced in April 1954 and was considered completed by 1 June 1956, when the 10Q Escuadron de Caza-Bombardero was considered combat capable by USAF standards, a very laudable and seldom witnessed event in Title IV MDAP experience. Trouble cropped up in April 1954 however, possibly as a result of the high utilization rate during the months since arrival of the D-40s. By then 214 hours had been flown since the first of the year, but the entire unit was grounded during the last week of April following a fatal accident attributed to engine failure - the sixth engine failure since the arrival of TEMCO overhauled F-47D-40s. The aircraft remained grounded while a flurry of messages were exchanged between the USAF Mission, Headquarters in Panama and Washington, and the Air Materiel Command (AMC). By June 1954 eleven newly overhauled engines had reached the FAE through a special MDAP supplemental project, to put the aircraft back in commission and hopefully restore the FAE's faith in the type, the U.S. MDAP system, and the hard pressed Mission. Meanwhile, the FAE Depot continued the tedious and painfully slow process of what amounted to rebuilding the old ARP-supplied P-47s only two of which were completed and returned to service by December 1955. The 'quick fix' rushed to the FAE in June 1954 (noted above) was followed by nine more R-2800-59s and a special team from AMC to install and inspect the new and existing engines as well as the FAE maintenance procedures. The FAE thus ended June 1954 with eight operational and nine non-operable Thunderbolts with 25 trained crews. FAE Thunderbolt operations continued despite these calamities at a somewhat more relaxed pace into 1956 when, by 31 December, they could still count 17 aircraft. But all had again been grounded by continuing difficulties in processing replacement stacks, as well as further explosions in the turbo exhaust section of the rear fuselage, which had been an on going but thought to be fixable problem. By the closing months of 1956, the FAE was planning to move the F-47 unit to Taura Air Base, near Guayaquil, although transition and tactical training would continue at Salinas. The arrival of jets seems to have squelched this move.

Ecuadoran ARPThunderbolts completely devoid of markings, except stenciling and pilot's names, with CPT G. Fernandez nearest aboard P-47D-40-RA 45-49334, which became FAE-402. (FAE COL Gary Lape)

After the groundings and spares problems detailed above, 12 aircraft were finally returned to service in early 1958 and, still based at Quito, were by now operated as the 108Q Esquadron de Caza, including in its strength five T-6Ds. Remarkably all 12 F-47s were considered combat ready. By June 1958 the unit had been transferred to General Ulpiano Paez Air Base at Salinas, making way at Quito for the Gloster Meteor FR9 jets acquired from England in 1955, and the Lockheed T-33As and F-80Cs which had been programmed as rep'lacements for the Thunderbolts under MDAP. Deliveries of the first T-33As had started in November 1956. As of December 1958 the Thunderbolt unit was no longer considered combat ready mainly, due to now overwhelming maintenance difficulties. However, fifteen new pilots were due to begin transition to the type (one can easily imagine their motivation) in a regimen totaling 45 hours each in formation, divebombing and gunnery. While the F-47s had been grounded, gun pods and bomb racks were mounted on two T-6Ds to help the F-47 pilots stay current in gunnery and attack skills. Many experienced F-47 pilots had been transitioned onto T-33s and Meteors, and two F-47s had been salvaged as a result of explosions and fire in the exhaust turbo system. One ofthe last functions of the FAE's F-47s was perhaps the ultimate indignity. They served as tow-target tugs for the FAE's F80Cs from 1957 to final grounding. As a little known precondition to the ultimate delivery of the F-80s, Ecuador was required to agree to scrap all of its remaining F-47s. This occurred between the end of 1958 and July 1959, the aircraft last serving, at least nominally, as tugs on the strength of Escuadron 2110 at Quito, with a mix of Meteors and T33s. All that remains of the F-47s service in Ecuador is a single .50 caliber machine gun, salvaged by an FAE general and later donated to the infant FAE Museum at Quito.

PERU After Brazil, and not counting the Thunderbolts used in the Philippines by the Mexican Expeditionary Force and not returned to the Western Hemisphere, Peru was the second largest operator of Thunderbolts on mainland South America. Historically, Peruvian military aviation has been characterized from its earliest foundations by progressive, well modeled organization and equipment. Peru has never been without some form of fighter/ pursuit! chasse aviation organization in its modest but adequate structure. As in the other major Latin American powers, Peruvian aviation was influenced by the ebb and flow of various foreign missions, seeking to capitalize on the new markets for products and influence major arms sales. The earliest of these was an Italian Mission, represented by the Ansaldo house, which brought with it in 1919 four or five variants of the Ansaldo A. 1 Ballila fighter (best sources indicate one A.1 Ballila and four A.300s) which were supplemented through the first three years of the 1920s by aircraft donated to the young Peruvian aviation element of the Army by various national interest groups represented by Great Britain and France. s These WW I designs, supplemented by other types from a variety of sources, remained the primary Peruvian mounts through the 1920s until growing tensions over the Leticia region with Colombia prompted a rather frantic modernization and rearming campaign in the early 1930s. By this time pursuit aviation had all but vanished through attrition and war. This renewal came in the form of three Curtiss-Wright Sea Hawk lis (often erroneously identified as P-6s) in 1932 - the same type aircraft acquired in larger numbers by Colombia - and three exotic Vought V80Ps, all mounted on floats and operated with other types during the rather frustrating campaign - by the Grupo "Ancon". 19

Realizing that she was outgunned in the air by a well manned and well armed Colombian air force, Peru quickly sought additional world class pursuit aircraft but these did not arrive until well after the crisis. They included 12 French built Nieuport-Delage NiD626C-1, sesquiplanes in 1933, a single Italian Caproni Ca-113 in June 1934, 12 Caproni Ca-114s in January 1935; and six NiD-123s in February 1935 These aircraft together formed the first Peruvian unit specifically organized and identified as a fighter unit (2 2 Escuadron) by June 1936, but changed simply to Escuadron de Caza by September 1937, when six of the NiD-626s and 12 Ca-113/114 aircraft remained. The latter types remained after the Nieuports were withdrawn as trainers as late as August 1943 when three remained airworthy. Peruvian territorial claims again prompted major arms purchases near the end of the 1930s and Peru became the first Latin American nation to mount monoplane, retractable gear fighters when seven North American NA-50As were received in 1939. The single seat fighter development of the basic NA-16 trainer design subsequently served with the Escuadron 41 and XII Escuadron, four of them surviving as fightertrainers as late as June 1950. At least one of' these rare fighters still exists on a pylon in Peru. This gradual stepping stone of pursuit aviation development in Peru probably comes closest, within Latin America, to the evolution of the genre within the major powers during the same period, and was continued, in the WW II years, by a very substantial, almost surprising allotment of 30 Curtiss P-36Gs commencing in September 1942. These aircraft were former Free Norwegian Hawk 75A-4/8s for the most part. TheHawkswereregardedwithgreatpride and fondness by the airmen of the (then) Cuerpo de Aeronuautica Peruana (CAP), and initially equipped a new unit, the Escuadron de Caza 21. It was redesignated as the 11 2 Escuadron de Caza in a post war reorganization by October 1946 when the unit was stationed at Talara. With post war assurances of substantial ARP aircraft deliveries, the CAP (it became the Fuerza Aerea del Peru, or FAP, in July

receipt was somewhat restricted by a number of factors. As early as the close of 1947, the service experienced the first of several critical shortages. In this case it was the proper lubricantforthe turbo-superchargers. Critical shortages would, from time to time, ground the operating unit en masse. By January 1949, only one CAP Thunderbolt had been lost. This occurred on 26 January when its pilot, Tenente J. Constantini of Escuadron de Caza 11, lost control and dove straight into the beach near Chiclayo from 2500 feet. This loss was quickly followed by one more in the same month, in a mid-air collision. The aircraft piloted by Captain Suarez lost its tail (although he bailed out successfully) and the other aircraft landed with only light damage. Early in 1949, the CAP reorganized and the Talara based P-47 unit was redesignated as Escuadron de Caza 12. The unit lost two more aircraft in training by 1 April 1950, by which time the CAP's remaining P-36Gs and NA-50As were worn out and thought was being given to strengthening the now somewhat depleted first line P-47 strength. Of twenty-three still on hand at that time, not fewer than eighteen were out of service. To maintain pilot proficiency, the unit was . augmented by two AT-6s. The CAP (represented by Colonel Bernales) signed a contract in May 1950 for 42 additional F-47s and an option on 25 more plus spares. Diplomatic and financial wrangling delayed this initiative to the point that the Peruvians broke the agreement in August, 1951. When it became apparent that new Thunderbolts would not be forthcoming quickly from the U.S., the Peruvian Air Attache in Mexico City negotiated with Mexican officials about the possible purchase of the FAM's surviving Thunderbolts during the summer of 1950. These arrangements came to naught when complications over the unpaid balance on the Mexican Lend-Lease account surfaced. Meanwhile at home, the CAP was renamed as the Fuerza Aerea del Peru (FAP) in July 1950. ltwas one of the last Latin American air arms to modernize its formal title in line with other world air forces. FAP Thunderbolt operations stabilized somewhat between 1950 and 1952. The operating unit strength remained static at 23 aircraft (nominally). Serviceability was enhanced considerably as a result of the Bostick Report (USAF) of January-June 1952. The report concluded that Grant Aid would continue to support the 22 intact P-47D-40s on hand. One aircraft had been cannibalized for spares following a crash at sea 15 May 1952, killing the pilot. Other spares had been procured under Reimbursable Aid. The report noted that, "P-47s are flown only an average of three to five hours per month, which accounts for the high percentage of surviving aircraft from the 25 delivered in 1947...ifthese aircraft were flown 50% of normal USAF flying hours, only 10% would still be in flying condition after a very short time." Meanwhile, Peru had become eligible for MDAP participation. The trail leading to the A very late photo of FAP 544 (TF-47D-30-RA) in full Escuadron de Caza 13 markings, and now second batch of 25 FAP Thunderbolts is sporting rudder stripes a/so. FAP 442, from the earlier ARP (1947-) supplied batch, is in the almost a case study in the complexity of the background with Escuadron de Caza 12 marks. (Dr. William Kuhn & William Green) inter-governmental negotiations wh ich

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1950) was, both on paper and in fact, one of the best equipped, best trained and best maintained organizations in all of Latin America. This standing, coupled with intensive experience on its P-36s, elevated it to a level of efficien'cyalrnost equal in combat-seasoned fighter organizations to Brazil and, to some extent, Mexico, and certainly made the acceptance and integration of its initial, ARPsupplied Thunderbolts in late July 1947 a less challenging transition than some of its neighbors who also accepted the type at this juncture. Colonel (USAF Ret.) Julius B. Summers, Jr., one of the ARP Project Officers detailed to expedite delivery of Peru's first P-47Ds recalls that "One ofthe most interesting facets of our training program was the tactic we used to getthe Jugs into and outof Limatambo airport at Lima." "Having no let-down pattern, we would fly along the coast south [from Talara] until we came up on a large cross cut into the mountains to the west. Then, we would fly to the east, letting down almost 400 feet per minute until we came out below the (almost constant) overcast - usually at around 500 feet. We would then turn back to the west making sure to clear the shoreline, which was around 400 feet high - with one pesky smokestack standing some 50 feet higher and then make a left turn into Limatambo. Our usual procedure was to tack four P-47s on the wing of one B-25, in close formation, and lead them to the landing. The system worked,asweneverlostanyJugsondelivery." Foliowingdelivery,theARPteam,besides instructing CAP personnel in operations and maintenance, joined some English speaking Peruvians to translate a number of manuals on the spot. They worked primarily at Limatimbo, Talara (el Pato) and Chiclayo, with Talara being the main base after appropriate ceremonies at Limatambo, Lima and Talara (el Pato) had the only really long runways in Peru at that time, most of the others having been built by PanAm and Panagra, with a standard one-kilometer length. Landing was, in the words of Lieutenant Colonel (USAF Ret.) James H. Shea "a little tense in a Jug or B-25." Peruvian operational experience with its P-47Ds during the first six years following

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precede such arms transfers, and is recorded here in summary as a typical illustration of such. As mentioned above, the U.S, Department of State had transmitted to MDAP planners a note from the Peruvians as early as 26 February 1951, requesting forty-two F-47Ds with spares and maintenance equipment. Pricing and availability of these aircraft was made by the USAF and duly forwarded to Peruvian authorities. An additional pricing and availability study was made by the USAF on 21 August 1951, this time for twentyfiveThunderbolts with spares and equipment because of a reduction in the number of aircraft required by Peru. A check was subsequently deposited by Peru to cover the twenty-five aircraft, and the funds allotted to the USAF. Meanwhile, the U.S. Ambassador in Peru, in a telegram dated 13 January 1952, requested information on the anticipated delivery date ofthe purchased aircraft. In reply, the State Department stated that the FAP Air Attache in Washington had been advised by the USAF that, inadvertently, orders had been placed for the rehabilitation of twenty-five F-47D-30 aircraft instead of -40s as requested by Peru The matter of substitution of D-30s for D40s and other specific points relating to the transaction, had been discussed with the FAP's representatives as early as 4 January and the USAF advised the State Department that they would ask the FAP if they would accept the twenty-five D-30s (already, in fact, rehabilitated) or be willing to wait the 10 months for rehabilitations of twenty-five D40s. The USAF took the heat for this mix-up, and addressed a formal letter to the Peruvian Embassy on 16 January discussing the proposed substitution and listing the differences between the two subtype blocks. The FAP rejected the USAF solution, insisting on the D-40s they had paid for and work then proceeded on these. The result was an increased cost of $240,000 for the project (Case OMA-Peru-14 and 14/1) and this was absorbed by a reduction in the number of F-47D-40s being furnished under these RAP cases and incl usion of the "whole" aircraft

Three F-47Ds -40-RAs, all from the 1952-53 batch of RAP aircraft. FAP 539,522, and 524 at a 1954 firepower demonstration dropping napalm bombs. Note the scalloped red cheat/ine running aft from the cowling and the early (but not unique) "bullet" antenna fairing on 522's spine. ("EI Comercio" via Javier Goto)

in the Peruvian Grant Aid program. Thus, the second batch of twenty-five FAP Thunderbolts consisted of nineteen RAP-supplied aircraft, and six GA-supplied examples. Case 14/1 was for spares for 1,000 hours for seventeen F-47Ds to be applied to the best 17 survivors of the first, ARP-supplied batch. Unfortunately this was not the end of this embarrassing episode. . In October 1952, Lieutenant Colonel Roger M. Carter of the USAF Mission to Peru had traveled to Kelly AFB, Texas to act as liaison. between the FAP officers and USAF authorities in taking receipt of the twenty-five rehabilitated aircraft. Many discrepancies

were found in the aircraft by Lieutenant Colonel Carter after a "safety-in-flight" inspection and after correction ofthese the Peruvians insisted on making their own inspection. Many additional discrepancies were found and this accounted for additional delays with the result that delivery did not occur until December 1952. The nineteen TEMCO-rehabilitated F47D-40s supplied under RAP enabled the FAP to create a second fighter unit - Escuadron de Caza 13, based initially at Limatimbo. The aircraft arrived to great fanfare at Lima on 27 March 1953 (although thirteen had been flown down by FAP personnel from Kelly in December 1952). Six more actually arrived in early March 1953 bringing the FAP fighter strength to forty-four P-47 and F-47 aircraft and eighteen P-36Gs. The six Grant Aid F47D-40s included in the package were flight delivered to the FAP on 8 July 1953, although one of these which suffered an accident on the ferry flight at Kingston, Jamaica, was not finally received until 19 November 1953. The final six FAP programmed Thunderbolts, for a total of fifty-six, arrived in May 1953, just ahead of the other six GA aircraft cited above. These had been part of seventeen aircraft originally intended for Brazil which had traveled no further than Albrook AFB, Canal Zone. These six aircraft, incidentally, were valued at $368,000 for MDAP accounting purposes. By now FAP Thunderbolt operations had settled into a steady regimen, and with more reliable spares sources and freshly refurbished examples, morale and proficiency soared. This hiatus was to be relatively shortTwo FAP pilots with an ARPproject officerat Talara circa 1947. While training the recipient crews, lived, however. The FAP utilized an airframe life extension most ARP aircraft retained full US insignia. Note the anti-glare panel extending back the spine program, initially following delivery of the first and stenciling detail. (COL Julius B. Summers, Jr.) 21

of the MDAP F-47s, conducting all training on just two aircraft - one from each squadron. A typical monthly utilization rate was February 1953 when 45 hours were logged on the pair in use. Following receipt of the bulk of the new aircraft and after new pilot proficiency had been established, the two Escuadrons de Caza, with 21 each of the best remaining aircraft, were averaging 21 hours per P-47 by June 1953. This intensive six month period came to an abrupt halt in August, however, when the aircraft were grounded after discovering that practically all of the older Thunderbolts had faulty rear exhaust tubes leading to the supercharger. This shock was almost immediately followed by the detachment, for political reasons, of Escuadron de Caza 13 and its almost "new" F-47s from Talara to Lima. Up until its grounding, Escuadron 12 had been concentrating on night flying (something of a novelty for FAP pilots) and air-to-ground gunnery with, according to U.S. Mission personnel, "quite satisfactory proficiency." Plans had also been nearly final to mount Mk6 rocket adapters on the aircraft, which had been locally fabricated based on USAF supplied blueprints. The U.S. Mission and MDAP officials conducted a crash program to fix the burgeoning' exhaust tube problem and, by September, had nearly achieved this - a remarkable engineering and logistics accomplishment - with thirty-six of the forty-seven P-47s and F-47s on hand being operational and logging 465 hours that month alone. By mid-1954, scarcely a year after the arrival of the latest batch, FAP Thunderbolt operations were already in jeopardy, the advent of jets just over the horizon. FAP planners were already working on initial steps to integrate the first three (of many) Lockheed T-33As expected in March 1955 to be closely followed by North American F-86 Sabres which were very advanced for Latin America. The first of these arrived through June and July 1955. British Hawker Hunters did not begin arriving until February 1956 and the F47s "real" replacements, Lockheed F-80Cs until March of 1958.

As of June 1954 the Escuadron de Caza 12 was still at Talara ( by then renamed Base Aerea "Captain Montes") with fifteen of its twenty-three P-47s operational. Escuadron de Caza 13 was at Limatimbo also with fifteen operational birds out of twenty-four on hand. The units had.,completed training for all pilots on the K-14 and K-18 gunsights, but only twenty-three of the FAP's Thunderbolts had these sights, (seventeen with the K-14 and six with the K-18.) The other twenty-four were equipped with the old N3C. Also in May and June 1954, perhaps sensing that their best days were gone, serious maintenance problems began to manifest themselves on ill! of the thirty-one TEMCO refurbished aircraft received in 1953. Since arrival, seven had experienced total engine failure at Talara. Five in 1953 were considered fairly routine, but of two in the month of May 1953 alone, one was a complete loss. Once again, the FAP began a gradual slowdown in utilization and maintenance enhancement with the aid of the U.S. Mission and closed the year (1954) with a fairly commendable total of 4855 hours flown on the type. From this point on,with every passing day, the FAP came to view its Thunderbolts as fighter bombers, then ground support, and finally fighter-trainer aircraft, as career oriented, first class aircrew sought to pass on to the jets. By 1 July 1956, 46 were still on hand (many were not airworthy) but two crashes in 1957, both related to engine failure didn't help matters. Both ofthe 1957 accidents occurred on 30 August. The first (FAP 545) landed at Piura with its engine on fire. Its pilot, Major Aranibar, suffered injuries and the aircraft completely burned out. The other was lost over the Pacific near Sechura. It was also attributed to engine failure, but pilot Alferez D. Miranda was rescued. By June 1958 its designated MDAPsupplied and supported fighter-bomber replacements (F-80Cs) had arrived and it would have seemed that the FAP would retire the thirty-two remaining F-47 type aircraft. However, viewed as national assets, and with a good supply of spares and salvageable

aircraft on hand, the type remained operational in the inventory as fighter-trainers. No other single-seat replacement quite filled the bill as well Two more crashes, one on 14 February 1961 at Piura, killing Alferez R. Pereyra Block, and another on 6 June 1963 at Hacienda San Carlos, Piura, killing Major R. Bravo, only served to cast a shadow on the reputation of the legendary aircraft among both novice and veteran pilots. Finally, in June 1966 twelve were still nominally counted on strength at Piura. This remote base had the reputation of the FAP's equivalent to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. It sported several semi-complete B-26s, F47s and other types in various stages of disrepair. This is where one was recovered for shipment, by USAF C-130 aircraft, to the USAF Museum from whence one was drawn fordisplay in Lima (marked arbitrarily as FAP450). Six were sold to Colonel Ed Jurist of the Confederate Air Force in 1967. The aircraft did not finally leave Peru for the trip to Texas until September 1969, in company with not less than 50,000 pounds of spare parts. The rest of the aircraft were scrapped or reduced to spares, thus ending the last "operational" service of the Thunderbolt anywhere in Latin America. . COLOMBIA

Colombian aviation history is filled with a host of unusual and unique events, largely involving single-seat combat aircraft. Military aviation in Colombia didn't really commence until 1919-1920 with the aid of a well organized and rather ambitious French mission which brought with it, among other types, four classic Nieuport 17C-1 biplanes of Great War vintage. These aircraft were viewed with awe by the fledgling Colombian aviators, who preferred the much more docile and predictable Caudron G-III and G-IV trainers. The quartet of Nieuports were all lost, mainly by members of the French Mission while stunting and by November 1922 Colombian fighter aviation came to a complete haltfor ten years. The little known Leticia Incident of 19311933, a border region dispute with Peru, prompted Colombia to launch a massive (by South American standards) armaments mobilization, much to the glee of U.S. and German aircraft manufacturers (notably Curtiss-Wright, Consolidated, Bellanca, Junkers and Dornier). III equipped to actually field the large but well balanced assortment of combat, recon and training aircraft procured, the Colombians managed to hire two obscure contingents of mercenary aviators to man the aircraft. One was a group of Americans led by Colonel Jesse Rothrock. The other group consisted mainly of Germans. A number of Colombian aviators also flew quite well and others were trained by the mercenaries. The largest single groupof aircraft acquired at this time was (at least) 27 Curtiss Sea Hawk II biplane fighters, with interchangeable fixed wheel or twin float undercarriages, the first of which was delivered in October 1932. One of the first ARP-supplied Peruvian P-47D-30-RAs, 45-49404 as it appeared shortly after A significant number of these classic and arrival at Talara. Most of the ARP supplied Thunderbolts were very low-time aircraft, stored near esthetically pleasing aircraft saw action against the end of the war specifically for post-war ARP deployments. (COL Julius B. Summers, Jr.) the Peruvians, and were still the Colombian's

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only significant single seat fighter aircraft when the first of the P-47s arrived 15 years later. Colombia can also lay claim to having acquired examples of the Republic fighters' genealogical forbearers, when, in July 1936, she bought three (not six, as frequently cited) exotic Seversky SEV-3M-WW two place, monoplane, amphibian fighters. The Fuerza Aera Colombiana (FAC) had a terrible time with this trio from the start. They were afraid to fly them, considering them underpowered, hard to land and too fragile. Their biplane stable mates, the Sea Hawks, were much preferred mounts and outlasted their technically more advanced "replacements". Colombia did not receive any combatant types under Lend-Lease during WW II although a significant number of AT-6B, C and variants were considered "operational" types by the FAC. They did, however, benefit well from the post-war ARP initiative of the U.S. Plans for post war modernization under ARP had taken shape as early as September 1946 and finally evolved to include eight P47D aircraft on Project 94490-S including four spare engines at a cost of $6,500 each. The engines and spares were priced at $8,254.47. These aircraft were officially handed over on 21 July 1947. The Colombians actually paid for seven P47s. An eighth aircraft (45-49445) which'had been intended for the Venezuelan ARP program, crashed enroute to its pre-position delivery point on 12 September 1946 in Colombian territory. Forexpediency, the hulk was transferred to the FAC as a spares source and it appears it was eventually returned to service. These initial aircraft were heavily utilized during their first two years of service, and all still miraculously survived by May 1948. By October of that year, in line with efforts to further expand and modernize the Colombian armed forces, the U.S. agreed to make available an additional fifty-two aircraft of various types, including thirty-two P-47s although only twelve of these could be budgeted by the FAC. These twelve aircraft had to undergo a rather lengthy refurbishing program in Dallas (at TEMCO) and were finally received in two batches of six during the second half of 1949. By this time all FAC Thunderbolts were located at the FAC's Madrid Air Base, organized into a unit and referred to only as the Escuadron de CazaBombardero. The FAC's earliest known loss of a Thunderbolt did not occur until August 1950, something of a tribute to the service, which had been alerted in March 1949 and made combat ready as a result of another series of incidents on her Southern border. Colonel A.J. Heintz, Chief of the USAF mission at the time, relates that during this anti-guerrilla action, the Guerrilla "Jefes" were holding a council of war in a house in the Magdalana Valley. A P-47 dropped a bomb on the place, but the projectile went straight on through the flimsy structu re into the ground and did not detonate. This event was confirmed to him by one of the Jefes when they surrendered following the assumption of power by General Rojas. The seven Guerrilla Jefes surrendered personally to Colonel Heintz in the latine of FAC headquarters.

The border tensions and the guerilla activity obviously influenced the FAC's drive to acquire the additional Thunderbolts which were covered under provisions of one of the very last ARP Projects, No. ARP-9SF-45. The border alert sorties and related deployments were not without cost, however, because by 1 May 1950, with a total of fifteen P-47s left, not less than nine were inoperable. Four had been lostto various causes between January and May 1950. These were all nominally assigned to the Maintenance and Supply depot at the FAC German Olano Air Base at Palanquero together with a C-47, an AT-11, twelve AT-6s, seven PT-19s, two B25s and three BT-15s. It is not generally known that Colombia participated in a tangible manner in the U.N. effort in Korea, fielding an infantry battalion and small naval units in the anti-Communist It was one of the few Western effort. Hemisphere nations to make such a commitment. This sacrifice benefited Colombia in a rather unusual manner according to Colonel Heintz. "We had been alerted [in 1952] to expect a rather large group of F-47s to transit Colombia enroute to Chile [under MDAP] and we were tasked to assist them on their way. I contacted our Headquarters in Panama, pointing out the Colombian commitment to the Korean Police Action and managed to elicit a decision to divert the entire group of F47s to Colombia." "When the flight arrived at Techo, the main Bogota field at the time, they circled in a tight, beautiful formation before crowds of dignitaries". For at least a day, the U.S.A. could do no wrong in Colombia. "After landing," Colonel Heintz went on, "I overheard the flight leader tell his pilots to go and check out the FAC pilots on the planes and cockpit. A bit later, one of his pilots returned, and I overheard him say, 'Hell, they were born in the cockpit.' 'He didn't know the Colombians had already been operating Thunderbolts at their base in Palanquero for nearly six years." . With the advent of the MDAP, FAC Thunderbolt operations and acquisitions became rather complex. By June 1952, thirteen F-47s still remained on the FAC Air Order of Battle, and the Bostick Survey report of that period recommended funding of maintenance and spares support for those

thirteen aircraft for one year and supply of five newly refurbished aircraft as well. These five "new "aircraft did not immediately materialize, however. Instead, through Colonel Heintz' intervention, MDAP offset a total of fourteen additional F-47D-40s to the FAC. Eleven of them arrived en masse, as related earlier, in May 1953 swelling total strength to twentytwo. Of these fifteen were airworthy and the other three were flown in to Bogota and on to Palanquero 15 September 1954. Dale Mathis, a former memberofthe USAF Ferry unit that delivered many of the MDAP aircraft, participated in the eleven plane flight from Albrook Field to Bogota. He recalls that "We no sooner landed, signed off our Form 1s than the FAC had loaded up the aircraft, armed them and flew off into action." In fact, the aircraft probably went to Palanquero where most airworthy F-47s were kept armed at all times as a matter of policy. Just prior to the arrival of this final set of aircraft, MDAP assistance had begun to be felt in other ways as well, when badly needed parts arrived, allowing six Thunderbolts to be returned to service. Likewise, pilot proficiency, an ongoing concern, had become the prime objective of the USAF Mission. As of January 1953 ten pilots had completed a special course aimed at alleviating this persistent problem. By February 1953 the Panalquero based Thunderbolt unit had been officially designated as the 1QEscuadron de Caza and, with the 1QEscuadron de Bombardero Ligiero (equipped with only two B-25s, also at Palanquero) was the hub of FAC power in the country. In May 1953 the FAC initiated a life extension program for it s F-47s, similar to that instituted in Peru. Of the twenty-two F47s on hand, two of the oldest were selected, intensively maintained and used to fly all training missions averaging fifty-one hours that month alone. In spite of this, attrition was inevitable. One aircraft went out of service following a major accident at Barranquilla and was shipped to Palanquero where it was completely rebuilt with parts from one of the old derelict, ARP supplied P-47s not carried on the MDAP support program. The high in-commission rate continued into January 1954 although a landing accident at Palanquero damaged both aircraft then in

Fully marked, prior to adoption of wings on the FA V national insignia, 8-A-36 runs up prior to a flight. Note absence of rocket stubs and that red cowl marking only extends back about half the chord of the cowl. (FA VIJesus Antonio Aveledo)

23

use as high intensity trainers, reducing the average inventory to eighteen. By March 1954 the FAC had launched a program to purchase sufficient SCAR Rocket Adapters to equip all of the aircraft in the unit. This and other initiatives were frustrated, however, when plans were announced early in 1954 to purchase jets under MDAP. Six Lockheed (Canadair) T-33A-Nswere received in December of that year, with a predictable siphoning off of the most experienced F-47 drivers. The effect of this move, and other equipment purchases, became almost immediately apparent, as, by April 1954 the F-47s had flown only twenty-two hours total since the start of the year because of a shortage of qualified pilots. Only ten were available to the unit. The situation in May scarcely improved, although seventeen hours were flown that month alone. The prime reason was FAC purchase of twenty T-6Ds in the U.S., requiring many experienced pilots to take part in the delivery. In the final analysis, FAC F-47s only averaged seven hours each during the first six months of 1954, and this dropped to one hour per month between June and December. New aircraft deliveries, transition training, and runway construction at. Palanquero (the' F-47s had been operating exclusively off of turf) all contributed to the decline. With eighteen aircraft on hand, only twelve qualified pilots were assigned. Of the eighteen F-47s remaining at the end of 1954, fourteen had been MDAP supplied and four, amazingly, were old ARP aircraft. Of these, fourteen were rated by the USAAF Mission as "combat ready" had sufficient crews been available. 1955 saw the end of FAC Thunderbolt operations, all 18 surviving aircraft being grounded permanently in December. The arrival of the T-33A-Ns, Canadian CL-13B Sabres, Douglas B-26s and expansion of the air transport element of the FAC all conspired against continued investment in the Thunderbolts, and the budget and availability of the MDAP and USAFtocontinueto support this type quickly dried up. The eighteen survivors continued to be counted on the FAC AOB (Air Order of Battle) through June 1957 but as plans advanced to supply 16 Lockheed F-80Cs in March 1958, the designated MDAP supplied replacement for the F-47s, the FAC unceremoniously

shoved all but one of the survivors into the Rio Magdalena, which runs near the EI Dorado Air Base at Palanquero, thus ending ten years of Thunderbolt service. One aircraft is exhibited, in good condition, at the o!-Jtdoor facility of Colombia's air museum. VENEZUELA Chronologically, the next Latin American nation to obtain Thunderbolts was Venezuela. She received six P-47Ds under ARP Project A40039 and 94547-S almost exactly a month after Colombian deliveries, formal hand over occurring on 28 August 1947. These six aircraft had actually been programmed for delivery as early as 8 May 1947 following a USAAF demonstration team's visit in October, but were delayed due to pending improvements to the airfield at Maracay, their first designated base of operations. Venezuela thus entered into the modern, high performance combat aircraft era after a rather unusual prelude, since the majority of operational types acquired previously had tended to be predominantly of multi-purpose type. In fact, prior to 1935 only one single seat "chasse" type had ever been operated, a single Hanriot HD-1 ,arriving with the French Mission in April 1920 and surviving unti! about December 1923. An ambitious modernization scheme, featuring mostly French contemporary stateof-th~-arttypes, commenced in the mid-1930s and Included modest numbers of bombers, two seater general purpose, bomber transport, coastal recon and fighter types, the latter in the form of a trio of aquiline Dewoitine D.500V monoplanes. The D.500Vs are historically significant for a number of reasons, but chiefly because they we re the first modern, low-wing monoplane fighters (albeit with fixed undercarriages) to enter service with any Latin American air service. Delivered in November 1935, one of them survived as late as September 1942. The Venezuelan government supplemented its air strength in April 1938 with the first of ten Italian Fiat C.R. 32 fighters, some of which survived until the arrival of the first of the Thunderbolts. The Venezuelan transition to P-47s was eased somewhat by procurement of versions of the North American NA-16. Venezuela had been one of the earliest operators of the type, and later benefited from Lend-Lease

deliveries of similar AT-6 variants Vultee BT15s, and some nimble Curtiss Wright SNC1s. The transition was not without cost, as within a week of formal handover, Tenente Jesus 1. Monsalve was killed when his aircraft crashed at Las Palmas (Mesa de Guanipa), Anzoategui. Monsalve had graduated from the Escuela de Aviacion in 1945. A second aircraft, flown by one of the USAAFMission members, Lieutenant William Perez, USAAF (a WW II veteran born in Maracaibo, Venezuela) crashed 28 October 1947 at Boca de Rio killing the pilot and reducing the Venezuelan P-47 strength to four aircraft. A replacement aircraft seems to have been supplied for the lost aircraft as Fuerza Aerea Venezolana (FAV) P-47 strength stood at five by 5 May 1948. By late 1948 the political situation in Venezuela had stabilized and with oil revenues increasing due to growing post war demand, the FAV found itself in a position to negotiate with the U.S. Foreign Liquidation Commission (FLC) for an additional twenty-two aircraft under the auspices of the continuing ARP Interim Program. It is interesting to note that these twentytwo aircraft, including fourthatwere intended from the outset for cannibalization (even though overhauled with the others for flight delivery) were virtually all Evansville, Indiana built aircraft. They had been universally redesignated as TF-47Ds on USAAF Individual Aircraft History Cards and had experienced very low USAAF utilization. Almost without exception, they followed the same late-war and post-war itinerary: Norfolk, Virginia (from whence they would have been shipped overseas had the war continued), Richmond, Seymour-Johnson, Independence Missouri (a major post-war storage site) and finally selected for post-war deployment under ARP and stored at Tinker Field in Oklahoma. ,In an unusual departure from prior procedure Colonel Marcana and Tenente Ramirez of the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington, in the company of a Mr. McKelvais ofTEMCO, toured Tinker AFB and hand picked twenty-two aircraft. Unfortunately, because of the confusion between the U.S. Commanders at Tinker and AMC, the FAV understood itwas paying for F47D-40s when in fact they were not. This misunderstanding was the cause of considerable diplomatic traffic into 1950.

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Venezuelan Thunderbolts in an early line-up view following activation of Escuadron de Caza 36. Of eleven aircraft on line, only three have their unit codes applied to the nose (including 11-AX-36),several others having their codes in smaller characters on their fins. Taken at Boca del Rio AB 10Dec50, the first five aircraft in line are believed to be the survivors of the ARP-supplied P-47Ds. (FAVIJesus Antonio Aveledo) 24

At any rate, Otto Witbeck, representing TEMCO and the FAV, duly arrived at Tinker and signed for the aircraft selected on an "as is where is" basis. The upshot of all this was that the aircraft, following rather peremptory inspection by TEMCO , were flown to Miami where their engines were further refurbished (or replaced, in some cases) prior to their ferry flight home by FAV aircrew. The first four of this second batch of 22 aircraft arrived in Venezuela by 29 June 1949 by which time the "unit" operating the aircraft - hitherto referred to only as the Escuadron de Caza - had been reorganized as the Grupo Aereo 9 (Caza y Reconicimiento Misto) at Maracay. In its strength it counted the four airworthy, newly arrived TF-47s (the surviving earlier ARP supplied examples were all unserviceable) as well as sixteen T-6, six AT11 , and two BT-13 ai rcraft. The last eight TF-47s (of the total batch of 22) and probably the eight "as is where is" aircraft were finally due to leave Miami for home on 18 December 1949. But as related by (then) Tenente Agustin Berzares, the ferry flight was not without incident. "Eight F-47 pilots and two B-25 pilots were gathered on a cold morning in December - to be precise 18 December 1949 - at Base Operations of 'Flamingo' at Miami International Airport, where we listened to a briefing our formation leader had prepared for our ferry route from Miami to Boca del Rio having as alternative emergency stops Camaguey in Cuba and Ciudad Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. "The B-25s served as mother ships, transporting the support personnel and essential logistics items, the flight being organized by elements - two F-47s each side of a B-25. I was to be the leader of the second element ( to the left of the mother ship). We were, however, still to navigate individually in order to be ready to follow separate courses in case of bad weather or unforeseen circumstances - but we were not to lose contact of the formation if VFR conditions prevailed. "The first leg of the route was uneventful and after an hour and twenty minutes, we all landed at Camaguey to refuel and check maintenance. "Everything looked promising for the rest of the flight - the sky cleared and the feeling of 'coming home' had spread among us, with expressions of optimism all over. "Twenty minutes later, we were flying in formation at 11,000 feet over Eastern Cuba, making corrections in our flight path from left to right in order to avoid a cumulus cloud formation located in our path, and maintain our prescribed interval. "I felt a bit uncomfortable and thought about loosening the parachute harness from the seat but a sixth sense advised me to maintain them properly adjusted. "Everything was normal and quiet until impact - a sound like two cars colliding - but the impression that escaped me was more desperate and intense. I never saw the other aircraft. [Tenente Araque who continued the flight.] I immediately lost my view to the port side and, probably due to the sudden imbalance of my aircraft, went into a pronounced dive descending to near 5,000 feet before I finally bailed out.

Lineup of six Escuadron de Caza No. 36 Thunderbolts and two Escuadron de Bombardero No. 40 B-25Js at Boca del Rio in full marks. Note slightly differing flashes on the wheel doors. (FA VI Jesus Antonio Aveledo)

"Getting out was not easy, despite the fact that the canopy was destroyed during the collision - centrifugal force tying me down to the seat, three attempts being necessary until finally, using the seat as a point of leverage, I abandoned the aircraft. "Like being in a swing, I descended until I hit the ground, without any other concern but to observe the fields around me in order to select an appropriate landing zone - somewhat concerned about some forested area ahead of me. "The forest, as it happened, was my landing site - part of a cattle ranch. As I was picking up the 'chute, I heard the unmistakable sound of a furious bull coming towards me. I was obliged to seek shelter in a much more expeditious way than the one that cost me the loss of my aircraft. What an afternoon! I lost my aircraft in the air, and, as a matador, my dignity on the ground!" Thus, by 1 January 1950 the FAV's Grupo 9 could muster fourteen Thunderbolts of which nine were rated "combat ready" by the USAF Mission following another loss on 25 November 1949, when Rafael Maria Ferrer Reyes' aircraftwentdown in Lagode Valencia, Carabobo state. Peak strength and heyday of the Thunderbolt in FAV service was reached in April 1950 when unit strength stood attwentyfour P-47 aircraft, as well as sixteen AT-6s, six AT-11 s, two BT-13s and ominously, one deHavilland Vampire. Two Vampires had arrived at Maiquetia on 9 December 1949. From the arrival of the Vampires, the Thunderbolt's days in FAV service were numbered. USAF Mission personnel were determined to use the ARP and FLC supplied mounts as best they could to aid in the continued training program and to maintain the fleet of F-47s as the most viable and numerous of the tactical aircraft then available to the FAV. The Mission staff had been intimately involved with the FAV's procurement of the large batch of twenty-two aircraft. To sight one example, Lieutenant Colonel James F. Roberts, USAF Materiel Advisor spent the entire month of October 1949 in Texas and Florida where he assisted FAV personnel in the inspection of the aircraft purchased and overhaul of the engines at Miami. First Lieutenant Dexter M. Green, Colonel Robert's assistant, test flew most of the eighteen TF-47s at Dallas, and served as one of the ferry pilots When a group of five were flown down to Venezuela.

Part of the impetus behind this quietly furious pace was Venezuelan politics. A huge "Dia de la Fuerza Aerea" (Air Force Day) demonstration was planned for 10 December 1949. It was the largest such event ever held to that time in Venezuela. Witnessed by the entire ruling Junta Militar and large crowds of citizens at Boca del Rio it offered live fire power demonstrations including bombing and air-to-ground gunnery. Following this strenuous exercise, day to day FAV F-47 operations fell into a more pragmatic, operational cycle. In March 1950 training and maintenance exertions caused the USAF Mission to request assignment of an additional skilled aircraft mechanic who specialized in F-47 maintenance. By April, after the airpower demonstration and intensive training, many items necessary forThunderbolts were in critically shortsupply. Colonel Roberts had used the lull to complete the harmonization of the guns on all of the aircraft, and First Lieutenant Richard A. Atkins, Assistant Operations Advisor, had directed U.S. style training of the entire tactical group in formation flying, and further transition training. This all culminated in a nearly perfect mass fly-over during the General Miranda holiday celebration of 26-31 March, during which the new Escuela Militar was dedicated in Caracas. The FAV was again reorganized about this time to rationalize the assignment of the much larger number of standard types entering the inventory, Grupo 9 and 10 being split into Escuadrons mounting B-25s (Escuadron de Bombardero B40), C-47s (Escuadron de Transports T-1), a reconnaissance squadron (R-1 )with Beech AT-7s and AT-11 sand Escuadron de Caza No. 36 with F-47s. The Escuadron was further divided into Escuadrillas "A" and "B" signified by marking unit codes of serial numbers carried on each aircraft (e.g., 1-A-36 to 15-A-36 and 1-B-36 to 15-B-36) although not all numbers in sequence were used, and some other higher numbers were used as a ruse to confound the intelligence services of potential adversaries. It has often been reported that an organization entitled Escuadron de Caza 10 was formed within the FAVwith F-47s butthis is completely without foundation and the sou rce ofthe information is unknown, although a Grupo de Bombardero y Transporte Misto 1Owas in being circa October 1950, equipped with fourteen B-25s, twelve C-47s, a solitary VIP C-54, and a BT-13 hack.

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By the end of June 1950totalavailableF47 strength of Escuadron de Caza No. 36 stood at nineteen. Not less than nine of these were inoperable for one reason or. another, and another five - those lost through normal debilitating accidents - were being used for spares. Accidents continued to take their toll on the dwindling number of serviceable aircraft, Alferez Jesus Garcia Seguira crashing at Valencia, Carabobo state on 22 March 1951 and Tte Rafael Ascanio Gonzalez Lagreca being lost at Parapapa de Ortiz, Guarico state. The FAV thus ended 1951 with between seven and eight airworthy Thunderbolts, growing numbers of deHavilland Vampires entering service and Venoms and English Electric Canberra interceptor variants on the horizon. The flight personnel roster of the unit remained remarkably stable throughout the period 1949-1954 - somewhat surprising considering the problems inherent in training and manning an air arm of what amounted to a one-squadron, prop driven fighter element. For the record, these men are listed in Appendix E. Many later rose to positions of great importance in the FAV and the Venezuelan Government, their final rank being listed in parenthesis. The Thunderbolt unit also formed its own aerobatics team during this period. Nospecial markings were used and composition was rather fluid. However, out of this, the "Escuadrilla de Vampiros" and later special teams were formed flying Vampires and other types. With the termination of ARP support and Venezuela forging its own independent path in aircraft procurement (mainly British jets), 1952 was the final year of FAV F-47 operations, Escuadron de Caza No 36 being officially deactivated by Command Communique No. 782 dated 10 December 1952. Fighter aviation from that date on was concentrated in a new unit, Escuadron de Caza No. 35 which operated Vampires and was commanded by Major Alaberto Delgado Ontiveros, an excellent F-47 pilot. This new unit never operated F-47s, contrary to published reports. The last three months of FAV F-47 service were their most eventful. In an incident involving the Armada de Republica de Colombia, (ARC -the Colombian Navy) frigate "Almirante Padilla" had arbitrarily challenged Venezuelan coastal waters near the small group of islands called Los Monjes at the mouth of the strategic Lago Maracaibo oil region. 9 Escuadron de Caza No. 36 was deployed to Oro airfield on "maximum alert". The unit was fully armed, including some indigenously manufactured napalm bombs and countered repeated feints by the "Almirante Padilla" and other ARC vessels, as well as some FAC aircraft ( types not specified but possibly including Thunderbolts) . All eight of the best airworthy aircraft literally patrolled the area continuously, probably using up what little vitality remained in their weary airframes. Gradually, the tension eased, especially following a signal to the Colombian frigate which stated, essentially: Leave the area to avoid "accidental" bombing by F-47s "on maneuvers in the area". The FAV fighter unit was aided during "Operation Caiman" by

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Escuadron de Reconocimiento R-1, equipment shortcomings foiled the possibility Venezuelan naval forces, as well as the Army of a truly unique transition. and National Guard which occupied Los Chile received her first, single seat "scout" Monjes del Sur to display Venezuelan .aircraft and monoplanes in 1917 in the form of resolution. the first six of twelve Bristol M1Cs, supplied Individual aircraft involved in this operation by Great Britain in partial compensation for a included:5 -A-36, 10-B-36, 12 -A-36, 22- B- Chilean battleship which had been 36,and at leasrtour others unidentified. expropriated by the Royal Navy while under FAV Thunderbolt operations thus came to construction during WW I. a halt, although eight intact examples were One of these diminutive aircraft gained still nominally counted on the AOB as late as eternal fame when young Tte Godoy, 30 June 1954. Seven ofthem were announced exhibiting the spirit of fighter aviation, took off for sale by 1 January 1956. (without authorization) and proceeded to fly These final examples were being disposed the frail craft across the Andes Cordillera into of legally since they were non MDAP, neighboring Argentina, returning home a hero. purchased aircraft. Interest was shown by The M.1 Cs were joined in October 1918 both Nicaragua (which received other forms by eight examples of the classic RAF SE-5A of aid from Venezuela during this period) and (another example was acquired as late as Chile, which was sufferingsevere shortages 1922) and a single French SPAD S-XIIIC-1 in its own F-47 fleet. In fact, Foster M. two months later. Henderson, former member of the U.S. During the 1920s, with the nimble M1.Cs Mission, recalls preparing "five or six" of the and SE-5As as service mounts, the Chileans FAV Thunderbolts for sale to Chile, although imported a number of test examples of it appears the sale never actually transpired. advanced foreign designs in order to evaluate Four F-47s intact, remained on display in Venezuela at various sites as late as 1975, trends and formulate policy for future and three remain today. The fourth aircraft equipment purchases. These included single was sold to Jean Sales in France (in part examples ofthe angular, inverted-gull winged exchange for a replica Caudron G -III for the Dornier DoH Falke in 1922-23, and a Junkers FAV's new museum's flying example) and A.20 in December of 1924. Although a two . two others, dismantled, are stored at EI place aircraft (and a "fighter" only by modern Libertador Air Base outside Maracay. Dr. definition) the Junkers was a monoplane of all M.D. Schulke of Orlando, Florida negotiated 'metal construction and a very potent aircraft unsuccessfullyforthree of these aircraft circa for its day. The first major equipment upgrade as a 1972. Other negotiations for retrieval of one or another of these remaining veterans are result ofthese ongoing evaluations, and timely replacements for the surviving SE-5As, came ongoing at this writing. in the form of a large batch of Vickers-Wibault Type 121 s delivered from September 1926. CHILE The Vickers was a parasol, all metal French The last major Latin American Country to design of rather fragile construction and receive ARP, post war deliveries of appearance. These parasol fighters were only in service Thunderbolts, Chile has perhaps one of the most consistent and efficient histories of fighter until about September 1932, having been aviation development to be found in all the supplemented as early as February 1927 by eight each of the Curtiss P-1 A and P-1 B region. The evolution of this story reads almost Hawk versions, which outlasted the French like a textbook step-by-step progression design. Chile is also frequently cited as leading to the arrival of the P-47s with the having acquired examples of the Curtiss Sea exception of the war years, but unforeseen Hawk II biplane between 1932-35, but the

Beautiful shot ofFAC-759 shortly after delivery (the MDA supplied, second use ofthe serial). Note the anti-glare panel the length of the spine, and the two-color prop spinner. (FACh)

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three aircraft usually mentioned (some say four) all appear to have actually gone to Peru for the Leticia emergency, the "Chilean connection" merely serving as a means to avoid an embargo on arms sales to a belligerent. The P-1 , in-line D-12 powered versions of the Hawk served well and faithfully in Chile, and established an excellent service record, in company with a large number of similarly powered Falcon recon-bombers, some of which were assembled at a Curtiss "factory" in Chile. By the mid 1930s however, the Hawks were decidedly obsolescent, and Chile was actively seeking replacementtypes, ordering a number of North American NA-49s configured as two place combat aircraft from the U.S. in 1939 ( not delivered until April 1940), and ordering twenty Italian Breda BA65 fighter attack aircraft (some of which were configured as single seaters). The Bredas were delayed repeatedly and did not finally arrive until December 1938. The BA-65s, highly touted by the Italian sales team, were intended to be the primary Chilean combat mounts for some years to come, but trouble was experienced with the type from the outset. The resulting political furor, fueled by two fatal crashes, resulted in all remaining BA-65s being grounded permanently in November 1939 after less than eleven months in unit service. This forced the NA-49s, soon to arrive into a more demanding role than the light attack mode for which they were equipped. Lend-Lease deliveries to Chile during WWII, although substantial and including twelve Douglas A-24B dive bombers, did not include any Curtiss P-40s (or any other fighter types) as has often been alleged. Thus Chile spanned the war years from 1939-1946 withoutaoysingle-seatfightertypes in service, the only period in its history so served. The ARP program for Chile was one of the earliest to be formalized and six P-47Ds were in the country under Project 94526-S as early as 1 July 1946, but were not formally"turned over to the FACh (Fuerza Aerea de Chile) until29 September 1947, although they carried FACh national insignia prior to that date. It took more than a dozen Thunderbolts to see twelve into Chilean hands, however. At least four aircraft intended for Chile flew into the sea in foul weather between Panama and

Good study of freshly overhauled TF-47D-30-RA (now up to D-40 standard by TEMCO) 45-49250/ FE-250 at Dallas. It became FAC-756. (LTC Dell C. Toedt)

Ecuador and another was lost elsewhere enroute. The commander of the U.S. ARP team (referred to by the FACh as the Mission Aerea Norte Americano, or MANA), Colonel Albert F. Fahy, recalls that the ferry flight starting at Kelly Field in San Antonio was by way of Managua, Nicaragua, Albrook Field, Canal Zone, Cali, Colombia, Lima, Peru and Antofogasta, Chile, arriving finally at Quintero with the six P-47s, ten B-25Js, six C-47s, and two OA-1 Os without mishap Quintero, named for the small resort 35 miles north of Valparaiso on the coast, had been (and still is) one of the FACh's primary operating bases. The field in 1946-47, consisted of two hangars, an officers' club, a dining hall and barracks with a single 3,900 foot concrete runway, approached from the north over Bahia Quintero or the south over low hills. Colonel Fahy recalls the FACh officers they trained, with fondness, the Commander of the first eleven FACh pilots trained on the type, Major Pancho "Huaso" (Cowboy) Guevara being described as, "six foot two, an extrovert with a great personality, a real leader and excellent pilot with a good sense of humor and fair English, a real follow me type of officer." Ten years later he became the Commanding General of the FACh. The English language Tech Orders were translated into Spanish by a rather unusual process. The mass of TOs were divided into 30+ packets and given to the FACh mechanics detailed to the P-47s with instructions to get

them translated and report back within three weeks. Colonel Fahy had nothing but the highest praise for these ground crews, who "owned" their airplanes Training on the type proceeded better than could be expected and was aided by strong command interest on the part of the FACh commanding general who saw to itthat the P-47 element got the cream of the personnel pool. Training was mainly checkout and solo, formation flying, cross-country and low/high altitude operations with special emphasis on emergency procedures. The training paid off in a spectacular way. A special review was held in January 1948 commemorating the formal completion of the ARP transition training, before thousands of officials, families and friends, It concluded with a final fly-past and pull-up at 1,000 feet by the P-47s peeling off for a 180 degree turn to approach in-line and land over the bay at Quintero. On pull-up one of the pilots had his engine quit cold. His shouted MAYDAY was repeated to the crowd over the PA system. He made a 360 degree turn out of his initial 180, deadsticked it in, and landed on the first third of the Quintero runway with a completely dead prop. The crowd went wild and a hero was born. It turned out that the pilot had failed to switch tanks on call from the flight leader, his auxiliary measuring half full upon investigation. Captain Royce Priest a WW II P-51 pilot with the U.S. Mission,was a great influence on the FACh P-47 pilots according to Colonel Fahy. Captain Priest served as a flight leader during an FACh celebration at EI Bosque Air Base, near Santiago, on 18 September 1947, a national holiday. FACh pilots flew most of the ARP types during the demonstration, but Captain Priest made a lasting impression when, as a finale, he performed a solo aerobatics routine which concluded with a low-pass at 300 mph inverted., followed by an inverted pull-up, pitch out and perfect roll out on landing. ARP had obviously been well received by almost every recipient nation, but, although it included a 'two year' spares package with each type, there was no established infrastructure for follow-up spares source delivery. By January 1949, all FACh P-47s (twelve) MDA quartet of TEMCO refurbished F-47D-40s take a break on delivery to Chile, probably at were concentrated in a massive, multi-role Talara, Peru, in July 1953. Nearest is 45-49219/FE-219 (which became FAC-750) with 45-49379 unit atQuintero designated Grupo de Aviacion behind, which probably became FAC-766. Groups of F-47s were escorted by a navigating 8-25 No.2, which included on its strength all of the or 8-26 and an SA-16 Albatross on long over water stretches. (LTC Dell C. Toedt) P-47s as well as three PBY-5s, eight OS2U27

28

aircraft (as well as the ever present seven AT6s), although two other ~-47~ on hand were beyond economical repair. ThiS tC?tal dropped to nineteen by December, of which the U.S. Mission judged twelve to be combat ready by U.S. standards. . Some time during this period, an aerobatiCS team was organized within the Grupo but few details are recorded, and it apparen~ly ~as dissolved in 1955 after only limited performances. Between December 1953 and June 1954, F-47 operations were somewhat curtailed, by the specter of the future - jets then being introduced throughout the region - and serviceability was hampered by the transfer of skilled crews to newly arrived British deHaviliand Vampire two seattrainer variants. The Thunderbolts, consequently, had an extremely low utilization rate during the six Most of the MDA 1953 deliveries to Chile, plus the surviving ARP aircraft, at Quintero circa 1953, months leading up to July 1954, three hours a total of 14 aircraft on line. (FACAh) Chile received seventeen F-47D-40s under or less per aircraft. The unit pilot strength had , ,. 3s,sevenAT-6s,fourN3N-1s,seyenBT-13s, Grant Aid provisions of the MDAP dropped to eleven. Operations continued as priOrities two PBY-5As and ten B-25Js - V1rtu~lIy g)J ~f commencing on 19 July 1953, but o~ly the combat capable and airworthy aircraft In fourteen arrived by that date, one each ha~lng changed, but were heavily influenc~d ~y the the FACh except trainers and transports. been delayed for various reas,ons at Anca, Vampires and the first four of a Significant This organization was, however, tailored Chile, Lima, Peru and AlbrookAlr Force Base, number of Lockheed T-33As which arrived in mainly to consolidate training and Canal Zone. All weredeliveredbytheendof October 1956. By this time the FACh was already looking ahead to its first pure-jet maintenance under ARP a~ we!1 as support August. , functions, and was soon rationalized by type. One aircraft, which departed the U.~. fighter, the MDAP supplied Lockheed F-80Cs In fact, by 1 April 1949 the P-4 ~s had been . intended for Chile (45-49209), crashed In that began arriving in early 1958. FAChThunderbolt operations had never organized into a purely fighter U~lt, Grupo ~e Cuba enroute, and was turned over to t~e Aviacion No.5, also at QUintero, (stl!1 Cuban government ~s a wreck, although It~ reached the point of armed comba~, altho~gh possessing four AT6s as well), and this Unit Individual Aircraft History Card showed It occasional tensions with neighboring continued to operat~ the type for only a short disposed of to Chile on project ~~P-2F-766. Argentina sent a few F-47s up to glare at time, - a reorganization putting the P-47s and MDAP support for the remaining ARP p_ Argentine flyers feinting alonQ the rugged , B-25s back together again briefl,y ~~ Grupo de 47s had preceded the arrival of the seventeen border between the two countnes. A total of thirteen F-47Ds were stili Aviacion NO.5 before the definitive fighter TEMCO refurbished F-47D-40s and had been unit, Grupo de Aviacion No. 11, was officially instrumental in keeping three in excellent nominally on the AOB at 30 June 1957, but created. condition through at least January 1953, twelve of these were finally struck-off-charge By January 1950, two P-47s had been utilization averaging twenty- one hours per on 31 December 1958 and reported available lost one while on exercises with naval vessels month at that time. The unit (Grupo 11) had for MAP redistribution (which never took " . off the coast (serial number 756) and one in fourteen pilots at the time sharing these three place). Today two monument aircraft survive In a training accident. This occurred after coveted aircraft. With the arrival of the "new" F-47s.' and a Chile to c~mmemorate the use ofthis classic, Grupo11l had settled into the "new", F~Ch three digit serializing system. Up to thiS !Ime, more reliable support network, new life was and f~ndly remembered aircr~f~, in Chilean the aircraft had retained their abbreviated breathed into Grupo 11 and by June 1954, skies, both of them in good condition, although USAAF serials, with FACh markings a~d, as the unit could field twenty-one air worthy not faithfully marked. an interim measure, carried individual aircraft numbers (although not universal,ly applied) in a straight numeric sequence which had been the FACh practice for some years (e.g., "1" "2" "3" "4" etc)

,ARP s'par~ and 'supply shortcomings had begun to manifest themselves as early as the end of 1949 when, with ten P-47s still on hand only one was airworthy due to lack of parts, although the four AT-6s were all active and being used to keep the pilots somewhat current. By the end of January ~ 950, a second aircraft had been made airworthy (although one of th~ AT-6s h.ad been lost) a.nd this situation remained static through Apnl . Another aircraft was lost by July, again returning FACh to the position.of holdi~g only one airworthy fighter of nine assigned. However the unit had been reinforced with two mor~ AT-6s, for a total of five, and had formally been constituted as Grupo de Aviacion No. 11 de Caza. Further attrition continued, as supplies and parts trickled in from gover,nment and commercial sources, until MDAP programming came to the rescue. O,nly seve~ of the ARP-supplied P-47Ds survived until 1952.

In flight view ofFACh-750 shortly after delivery (the MDA supplied, seco'!d use ofthe serial). Note the anti-glare panel the length of the spine, and the two-color prop spmner. (FACh)

Ultra-rare, wartime in-flight view of 44-33721118 of Mexico's 201 Escuadron over the Philippines. This is one of the finest studies known of the definitive wartime marks of the unit. (NARS)

Evidence of the Thunderbolt's "Achilles' Heel", the warped and blistered turbo exhaust tube outlet on Cuban F-47D-30-RA FAEC 469 in its chocolate-DO camouflage (44-33190). (J. Quintero)

The 1!!GAvCa 's P-47s can probably lay claim to being the only Thunderbolts ever hangared in a Zeppelin shed. Shot taken from high on the catwalk at Rio's old Hindenberg hangar. (BG Magallaes Motta via Carlos Dufriche)

29

A veteran of the Italian Campaign, formerly 42-26779, a P-47D-27-RE, retained its wartime code ("C3'~ and is seen here probably while in use with the EMI-CTA, hence its day-glow style orange chevron. It also carried the FAB national insignia in all four wing positions, and, unusually, rather far aft on the fuselage. This aircraft was wrecked at Fartaleza Air Base 19 July 1957

An F-47D-35 RA of the Fuerza Aerea Ejercito de Cuba at Campo Colombia in June, 1953. So far as is known, this was the only FAEC Thunderbolt to have a two-color (red/yellow) cowling, others being painted entirely blue, white, red, green or yellow. The unit emblem of the "10 de Marzo Escuadron de Persecucion" was added later. 'FAEC' appeared under the port wing and on the upper right wing panel, with the then current, relatively new national insignia on opposite wing panels and the fuselage sides.

Lead aircraft of a trio of Fuerze Aerea del Peru P-47s that took part in a fire-power exercise in Peru in the early 1950s, the others being FAP 539 and 522. Only this lead aircraft was equipped with an antennae of this type and with the red upper fin. Roundels were otherwise carried in the standard wing positions of the day.

One of the first four P-47D-30-RA 's delivered to the Fuerza aerea Colombiana in 1947 under the ARP as seen in 1951 at Cali. It is the only known FAC P-47 with a yellow cowl- all of the other known examples have had red or partially red cowls. The national insignia at this point was carried only on the four wing positions.

30

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Mexican PZT-1016 "Panchito " as itappearedat Veracruz on 6 December 1951, the red diagonal band on the fuselage, bandon wing and white "petal" on the nose showing considerable wear and tear, while the national insignia had been freshly painted. This was at one time the Squadron Commander's aircraft, which may account for the special red bands.

One of the last two Mexican P-47Ds as marked while in service with Esc. 201 at Veracruz in 1957. With the exception of the yellow bands around either wing inboard of the guns and on the rear fuselage, and the fin and prop spinner a color called "pistachio green, " the aircraft was originally "Mexican Olive Drab" overall.

TF-47D-30-RA 8-8-36 ofthe Fuerza Aerea Venezolana as it appeared in 1949. The roundel ofthe time (prior to the addition ofthe "wings 'J was carried in all four wing positions, and the serial code, which was a number-within-unit system, on the forward fuselage and on the vertical fin. The only other concession to adornment was a jagged red flash on the undercarriage door.

Probably the most colorful Thunderbolt in Latin American service, Dominican Air Force serial 1124 coded "A" was identical to most other FAD F-47s with the exception of the absence of a rear fuselage band and the stars on the vertical fin were mere gold outlines, whereas all other known aircraft carried small white stars in this position. Note also the small red/white/blue band running the chord of both wings and horizontal tail surfaces, which have not been shown on previous FAD Thunderbolt color views. 31

Another view of post-war Italian campaign veterans at BASC, B3 (4433093), which bec ame FAB P-47D 4127 foremost - unusual in having its bomb mission hash marks on the starboard side (50 missions) and crews' names. (pilot: Ten. Canario). (BG Magallaes Motta via Carlos Dufriche)

"At home" but still bearing full Italian Campaign marks, an early postwar lineup of 1!2GAvCa veterans, now with the "new" four digit serials roughly applied to the fins in small yellow characters - and the "wings" deleted from the national insignia in all positions. (GEN Magallaes Motta)

I

l2

Very rarely illustrated, 1QGAvCa postwar codes, here red "diamond 2" at BASC with postwar serial on the fin too small to distinguish. Note that fuselage national insignia is no longer carried (BG Magallaes Motta via Carlos Dufrische)

Ferry pilots prepare to depart the TEMCO facility near Dallas with two freshly refurbished F-47D-40s. A Ithough they appear to be paintedgray, the aircraft were merely "cleaned up" and ,in fact, were natural metal. The nearest, 45-49403/FE-403, became FAE-415. (LTC Dell C. Toedt)

Although red seemed to predominate, as on this unidentified FAD-F47D (probably 1125/A), at least four each had orange, medium blue green and yellow cowls and trim at one point. (Ola Thorn via Leif Hellstrom)

Extremely rare shot ofa yellow-trimmed Dominican F-47D, FAD-1113/B on the line at San Isidro with an Escuadron de Caza Ramfis P-51D and four red trimmed Escuadron de Caza-Bombardero F-47D circa 1954. (Ola Thorn)

Three of the four TEMCO refurbished F-47Ds upon arrival at Bogota, Colombia in the Spring of 1953. The fin of 44-90292 in the foreground - the only "stock" F-47DD-40-RA to go to Colombia. (Dale Mathis)

The first time Dell Toedt's F-47D-40 bent its prop at Havana, Cuba, June 1953. (LTC Dell C. Toedt)

03 at MUSAL (Brazil) is in fact Italian veteran 4109. The green upper surface was originally standard US 00. (Sandra Oliveira dos Sanatos)

Honorable retirement. Although displayed as wartime C5/44-19660 (which was in fact written off 27June 1946 after returning from Italy), it is actually 42-26757. Note Zeppelin hangar in the background, identifying the site as BASC. (MAP)

Marked as wartime 42-267621C1, but with a post-war "Ace of Clubs" insignia carried exclusively on FAB Lockheed F-80CCs and T-33As, this monument at Pirassununga is probably actually 45-49346, last serialed as 4191, an MOA aircraft supplied in September 1953. (John Kerr)

Although marked as F-474194/C1, this aircraaft, pedestal-mounted at the Museu da A.S.A. at Pirassununga, it is probably actually F-47 4191 (45-49346) which has since been transferred to the MUSAL. (Alberto Fortner via George Farinas)

Believed to be the sole surviving Thunderbolt in Peru today, FAP-450 is rather crudely pieced together, with the marks of Grupo Aerea de Caza 11 which never operated the type, on the fin. (Javier Goto)

Main float from a former Uruguayan Navy Vought-Sikorsky Kingfisher sharing a ramp with Peruvian F-470-40-RA 45-49458 (ex-FAP 451) at Howard AFB 1971. (Jimmy Stark)

One of the most colorfully marked warbirds on the airshow circuit, NX444SU was formerly N470C, FAP-115, FAP539 and 45-49181. If you count the spurious serial "226418" the aircraft has had six identities, possibly a record. (W.B. Slate)

FAC TF-470-40-RA FAC750 as noted at the "Fiesta del Aire" at Los Cerrillos in February 1989, in very good condition. (George Farinas)

iJ'

33

34

Recent view of the former PZT-1012 (44-90205), at one time named "Fantasma,"and indeed- now bearing a "fantasy" camouflage scheme, as well as a version of the Pancho Pistolas" unit insignia with yellow background instead of white, and oddly placed "PZ- T" high on the rear fuselage, at the Colegio del Aire plaza. (Dr. Ruben D. PastranaG.)

One of the two surviving F-47D-35-RAs in Mexico, the former PZT-1016 (44-90217) is displayed in quasi-wartime marks honoring her fallen aircrewat Santa Lucia's Base Aerea Militar No.1. (Guido E. Buehlmann)

Freshly repainted Colombian F-47D-30-RA FAC-861 at the FAC Museum. For reasons unknown, the aircraft has since been re-serialed FAC-826, which was a Curtiss Sea Hawk II serial. (Guido E. Buehlmann)

Bolivian FAB-007 as she appeared for years at La Paz's EI Alto military compound. Unquestionably the oldest P-47D in Latin America, she never flew in FAB service. (Guido E. Buehlmann)

Full side view of the colorfully marked monument aircraft, 8A36, with Escuadron de Caza No. 36 unit insignia on the fin, although there is no pictorial evidence that this emblem was carried on P-47s. (Jesus Antonio Aveledo)

Full right side view of 15B36. The script under the canopy is a dedicatory to the school. (Jesus Antonio Aveledo)

One of the three F-47D-30RAs surviving in Venezuela. There were four - one went to Jean Solis in France in exchange for a replica, flyable Caudron G-I1I. 10B36 is at the FA V's Maracay Museum in good condition, and was formerly TF-47D-30-RA 44-32809. (Guido E. Buehlmann)

Another view of 8A36 is in good condition at the FA V's Escuela Superior de Fuerza Aerea in Caracas. Poetic license has been taken with its markings. (Jesus Antonio Aveledo)

PUERTO RICO Readers may be surprised to see the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico included in this narrative. However, a moment's reflection on the history and international status of this proud Caribbean society and the evolution of its Air National Guard element leads to the conclusion that, by anyone's definition, it is a Latin American air force. The creation of what has since evolved into the present day 156th Tactical Fighter Group, Puerto Rico Air National Guard, can be directly attributed to two factors: Puerto Rico's emergence as a center of pro-U.S. interests in the turbulent Caribbean area, and her tremendously rich and varied contribution to the Allied war effort in WW II especially in terms of her young men. Following the end ofWW II itwas apparent that the post war Puerto Rican National Guard establishment would be able to draw on very substantial numbers of experienced military veterans of all ranks, branches and specialties, including pilots and aircrew. Included among these was one Captain Alberto A. Nido, a veteran P-51 pilot with the little known 9th Weather Reconnaissance Squadron (Provisional), Ninth Air Force, whose personal story leading up to his USAAF commission by way of the RCAF is truly fascinating and deserving of a book in its own right. Little did he know then that he would eventually become known as the "Father of the PRANG". Captain Nido and Commonwealth National Guard officials were aware that more than enough former USAAF personnel of all ranks had returned home to the island after demobilization to form an aviation unit within the well established National Guard infrastructure. After considerable effort, Federal recognition was finally extended to the proposed unit on 23 November 1947 for the creation of the 198th Fighter Squadron (Augmented) Puerto Rico National Guard (the "Air" was added later) with Captain NidI? as its first Commander. (He held the post until retirement in 1960). Equipped initially with a variety of standard USAAF types including examples of the Aeronca L-3, North American AT-6, Douglas C-47 and B-26, the primary tactical mounts for the squadron were to be Republic P-47s, primarily the longer legged P-47Ns in.vie~ of the over water distances that the Unit might conceivably be tasked to patrol.

The unit formally inherited the lineage and honors of the wartime 463rd Fighter Squadron, 507th Fighter Group, 20th Air Force, in keeping with a National Guard Bureau and USAAF practice that still continues today. Its base, through April 1958, was the Isla Grande Airport at San Juan. The earliest known tactical aircraft assigned to the squadron was a P-47D-30RA ( the only "D" model known to have carried PRNG marks). It was followed from the last half of 1947 through late 1949 by not fewer that twenty three F-47Ns of various blocks, the Thunderbolt remaining the standard mount until at least July 1954, when transition to F86Es and T-33As commenced, making this the last U.S. connected service unitto operate Thunderbolts. The unit converted to Combat Wing structure on 1 November 1950, a month after it had been mobilized by the Commonwealth Governor in a little known operational commitment. A prison break out by violently anti-U.S. Puerto Rican Nationalist elements had set the stage for what very possibly may have been the only incidence of U.S. National Guard aircraft firing their guns in anger against a genuine threat of insurrection. The Nationalists, reasonably well armed and organized, had established strongholds in the small towns of Jayuya and Utado some fifty miles southwest of San Juan, after bombing police stations in the region, killing a number of officers and setting many fires. The Governor ordered the State Adjutant General to mount two flights of four PRNG F47Ns in conjunction with PRNG ground troops equipped with tanks and heavy weapons (and directed by Doug las B-26 control aircraft carryi ng a general officer) to strafe the environs of the two towns, with explicit orders to avoid hitting any of the local populace. This was accomplished by diving low over concentrations of mainly galvanized steel roofed dwellings and firing as they pulled up, so that the shell casings hit the roofs -the electrifying effects of which can only be imagined. . This action, which amounted to a very convincing show of force, occurred early on the morning of31 October 1950, and Governor Munoz Marin declared that the "revolt" had been ended by 4 November demobilizing the Guard on the 7th. It is interesting to note that the PRNG F47s also had 5 inch HVAR rockets mounted during this exercise, but only for effect. None were fired.

MAJ Alberto Nido, CO of the 198th FS, PRNG, with Governor Luis Munoz Marin, at the time of the insurrection of October 1950. Note the cowling leading edge was painted, as were the cowl flaps, and deflection gun stripes lap over the leading edge ofthe starboard wing. (PRANG via Luis Santos)

As a precaution Governor Munoz Marin also ordered that patrols be flown along the coast around the entire island for a period, in order to interdict any subsequent landing or re-supply attempt from Cuba and from whence the original arms supplies were believed to have originated. This action carne within a year of the units' first large scale joint service exercise, "PORTREX", which had taken place in February 1950 and which was valuable training for the events of October and November. Besides the squadron, the exercise had involved major U.S. Navy and USAF elements, including Lockheed P2V Neptune, Fairchild C-82 and other regular units in squadron strength. By August 1952, the unit role had changed to fighter bomber with an appropriate alteration to the unit designation, Alberto Nido having been promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. The designation was altered once again in November 1952, when the unit began to be called the 198th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (Augmented), sole equipment still being the venerable F-47Ns. The transition to jets in 1954 was at least partially expedited by the transfer from unit strength of eight of its F-47Ns to Nicaragua at the instigation of the CIA and the U.S. State

Classic view of three PRNG F-47Ns ready to take off at R
35

From left to right, CPT Pedro B. Rodriguez, L T Radames Mejia, L T Harold Rivero and CPL Ariel Aviles load the guns of a 198th FS, PRNG F-47N during Exercise PORTREX in February 1950, the photo giving good detail of the starboard wing. (USAF via Ed Fox)

Beautifully restored ex-PRANG F-47N-25-RE 44-89320/N345GP flies over the lush island in the hands of MAJ Gabriel Penegbaricano. PRANG F104C-5-LO 56-914 just manages to stay with it long enough for a classic picture. (Luis Santos).

5

Department (see the Nicaraguan chapter for further details). Several of these veteran aircraft survived to return to the U.S. as late as 1963. One F-47 was retained initially for ground training, and later passed to a trade school, subsequently being rebuilt to become N345GP marked in the WW II colors of the USAAF unit that had inspired most of the PRNG units' markings (see photos). Another went to the USAF Museum, one to the Museum of Speed, another to Sampson AFB in New York and one other is believed to have languished as a crash crew trainer at San Juan International for some time after the jets arrived. Rumors persist that other PRNG F-47Ns went to Guatemala (see joint Guatemalan/ Nicaraguan chapter) which was at least partially true, and that one even went to Haiti for static display, but this last has not been substantiated and awaits confirmation. Like most Latin American operators, the PRNG quickly surrendered its Thunderbolts when the first of the jets arrived, and most were returned to the U.S. for disposal, exceptions being those that joined a CIA adventure and those that went to Central America. Total PRNG service spanned some seven and one half years.

The solitary Bolivian TP-47D-2-RE, in service at La Paz circa 1951, still bearing its last US civil registration under the port wing (NC 75640). Although bearing roundels in two wing positions, on the fuselage and the standard rudder stripes (plus a red cowl), the aircraft was otherwise

Bolivia's air arm, indeed, her armed forces in general, were in an extremely chaotic state at this time, and the small corps of regular FAB officers who survived the purges and political infighting of the time endeavored to modernize their crippled force as best they could, with the help ofthe frequently frustrated and exasperated U.S. Mission. BOLIVIA And help was definitely needed. Although Contrary to many published accounts, benefited greatly by Lend-Lease, with fairly the Fuerza Aerea Boliviana (FAB) did not generous shipments of North American AT-6 operate Thunderbolts in "squadron strength" variants and Curtiss Wright SNC-1 s, which and in fact, only one solitary example even had become primary tactical mounts, and a reached the country and it never flew in FAB pitiful handful of mainly Curtiss-Wright types (including Hawk lis, Falcons, CW-14 Ospreys marks. The single aircraft which actually made and CW-19Rs left over from the Chaco War the trip, the only "razor-backed" "0 model in and its aftermath), maintenance was more all of Latin America, was acquired through the than an on-again off-again government (and Texas Railroad and Equipment Company: budget) could or would cope with. The political climate simply did not· and had been flown from Clinton, Oklahoma to Washington, D.C.'s Bolling Air Force Base encourage ARP or early MDAP allotments. Not only was the FAB not able to utilize or arriving there 5 October 1949. The Bolivian Embassy then contracted care for such aircraft at the time, but there with former USAAF pilot Norman Todd, was no Iittle concern over what wou Id become reportedly then a Pan American Grace of such shipments even in token amounts, Airways pilot on furlough, to ferry the aircraft with corruption running rampant during the to Bolivia via Lima, Peru and other turbulent years in question. However, small steps were taken during intermediate stops. This Thunderbolt carried the close of the1940s and Lockheed P-38s, U.S. civil registration NC 75640. LW. Chick, Jr., who was with the USAAF North American P-51 s in small quantities, Mission to Bolivia at this time, remembers the and the single P-47 were acquired. The Bolivians attempted, with the backing rather unheralded and inauspicious arrival of this somewhat ragged Thunderbolt at EI Alto; of one group of FAB officers in particular, to "It arrived at La Paz with oil all over it and one "standardize" on P-47s and following the flat tire on one of the main gear," the shaken arrival of the ex-Texas Railroad and ferry pilot proceeding directly from the aircraft, Equipment example, negotiated with Harry "before the prop had even stopped C. Webb and Associates ("WASCO") for at windmilling," to the commercial terminal, least three more P-47s. This deal apparently was extremely frail, where he boarded the next flight out without however, and by February 1950, the Bolivians so much as a word to anyone. According to Colonel E.J. Fox (USAF,Ret.) were complaining to the U.S. State also with the U.S. Mission at the time, "He Department that they had been "gypped" by even refused to taxi it any further than off the WASCO, some down payment money having end of the runway." Todd was allegedly apparently disappeared. The three WASCO never paid for his services, which also involved P-47s have not been identified, nor has any further trace of the company been found. An ferrying in a P-38 for the Bolivians.

application for export had been processed for one of the three aircraft in question, but was never followed through. And so the single FAB Thunderbolt sat at EI Alto for years serving as a kind of instructional airframe for mechanics who were not exhausted trying to keep the other aircraft flyable. It also served as a convenient and "macho" backdrop for photos of FAB flight personnel in WW II style flying togs, but did not gain its ferocious shark's mouth (although it did sport a red cowl) nor its completely spurious (and James Bond inspired) serial number,"FAB 007" until much later when it was staked out on display in front of the entrance to the FAB section of EI Alto. Oddly, there was apparently some question (and perhaps another story) about the legality of the aircraft's transit through Peru enroute to Bolivia, as a court case was still in progress as late as December 1954, involving the sale of the P-47D to the FAB by an aircraft broker living in Lima. Numerous attempts were made on behalf of the USAF Museum to recover this aircraft fordisplay at its Wright-Patterson AFB facility, dating from 1964 through 1970 with various trade arrangements suggested, but the F470 donated by Peru finally ended that quest and the flurry of messages and correspondence between USAF, FAB and Museum officials. In one of the classic warbird rescues and rebuilding undertakings of our time, "FAB 007" was finally purchased from Bolivia (by which time the FAB had roughly painted the aircraft in a completely extemporaneous three tone camouflage paint scheme) to become NX 14519, "Big Stud". Since 1973 this beautiful and thorough restoration has thrilled air show crowds. Little would Norman Todd have thought as he turned final at EI Alto twenty-seven years earlier that his "s.o.b. of an airplane" would once again grace U.S. skies.

37

CUBA

This island nation, nestled in the shadow of the United States, had a surprisingly rich and varied military aviation heritage, having launched an air service much earlier than most other Caribbean and Central American governments. This development was aided in no small measure by U.S. benevolence toward its former protectorate in the form of an air mission during the 1920s and early 1930s (one of the very first such efforts), and the contributions of some talented mercenaries and native gentry, notably Len Povey, credited as inventor of the "Cuban Eight" aerobatics maneuver. Although equipped by 1929 with multipurpose, two-place aircraft, including versions ofthedeHavilland Boeing D.HAM and Vought Corsair, the Cuerpo Aereo de Ejercito (Army Air Corps) had acquired three Curtiss P-6S Hawks, followed by four Curtiss Hawk lis in January 1933, to establish the first purely fighter element of any air arm in Central America or the Caribbean. The Hawks, which remained in service through at least September 1937, were augmented by a single classic Waco S3HDA two place fighter/attack aircraft in August 1935 (it was lost to a crash by July 1938) and five examples of the Curtiss-Wright CW-19R light combat aircraft in July 1937. With these and supporting types, the CAEC entered the war years. During that time it benefited rather generously from Lend-Lease, although the only "combat" types received were a batch of North American AT-6Fs (the only examples of this subtype to reach Latin America). Post war plans for expansion and modernization of what eventually became known as the Fuerza Aerea Ejercito de Cuba (FAEC) were somewhat grandiose, but were inhibited by budget considerations. The first "modern" fighters acquired only came as a windfall in August 1947. The aircraft in question were a mix of six Lockheed P-38/F-5 Lightning variants which had been spirited out of the United States and flown into Cuba with the connivance of certain Cuban Government and Cuban Navy personnel, for use by mercenary pilots of a branch of the legendary Caribbean Legion, which was planning an anti-Trujillo invasion of the Dominican Republicfrom Cayo Confites in Cuba. The plot was foiled, mainly due to exceptionally poor security on the part of the insurgents, and the Cuban government quickly seized the considerable fleet of aircraft and arms amassed, including the airworthy Lightnings. The Lightnings were something of a mixed blessing. The FAEC had never operated anything remotely as "hot" as these large twin-engined fighters, and of course had no parts, manuals or pilots trained on the type. Several were lost in accidents and the plane did not remain operational with the Cubans much past October 1950. Cuba had been tentatively allocated eight P-47Ds under the ARP Interim Program, but decided not to take them, opting instead to acquire several North American B-25s, a Convair OA-1 0 Catalina, and examples of the Beech AT-7, AT-ii, and C-45, which the force could use more effectively. 38

Chilean bound F-47D-40 45-49209/FE-209 brought in semi-successfully by 1L T Bill Morris at Havana following loss of power on take off. He broke his back but survived, in spite of raw fuel pooling around the wreckage. The hulk was transferred to the Cubans and may have been used as a trainer. (LTC Dell C. Toedt)

As a member state in the MDAP program, however, and with the eventual degeneration of its P-38 "freebies", the FAEC quickly realized that modernization was overdue, and that the MDA programs offered an avenue to correct this. Cuba's 50th anniversary as an independent state was to fallon 20 May 1952, and the FAEC and its leadership very much wanted to be able to celebrate the occasion in a big way. Attempts to re-open the earlier ARP offer of eight P-47Ds, even on an "as is/ . where is" basis were declined on the advice of Colonel Fred J. Hook, Jr., Chief of the USAF Mission, who cautioned the FAEC to get the best deal they could on any aircraft acquired. . As the 50th anniversary celebration approached, the Cuban government pressed for sale of twenty five F-47Ds under the Reimbursable Aid (RMSA) program, plus a 1,000 hour stock of spares, with delivery to commence "as soon as possible". The transaction received the blessing of the U.S. State Department on 29 February 1952 and the Cubans were left feeling confident that the aircraft would be on hand by 20 May. The Cuban Military and Air Attache signed the final USAF Letter of Offer for sale of the aircraft on 5 May 1952, bureaucratic paper pushing having slowed the process considerably, and it was only through the personal intervention of the U.S. Ambassador and Colonel Hook that the first five aircraft reached Cuba, almost on time for the celebration on 21 May. Colonel Hook, in a letter to Headquarters, USAF, complained bitterly about the treatment handed the Cubans, especially considering the condition of the aircraft when received. Purchased under DIR (DissassembledInspected-Repaired) condition, Colonel Hook reported "Inspection upon arrival revealed numerous discrepancies that indicated improper DIR to parts of each aircraft." He went on to state, "I realize that considerable pressure was exerted by this Mission, at the request of the FAEC in an effort to receive the planes in time for the celebration," but the final blame was visited once again on TEMCO, which had performed the work on the first eleven FAEC F-47s. Following delivery of the first five (USAF records show official handover dates of 18 and 19 May 1952), the next aircraft did not arrive until September, followed by another in December and four more in January 1953. The remaining fourteen aircraft were all overhauled in Oklahoma City under Case No.

OMN25 at a total cost of $463,903.14. Early in 1953 for reasons that are not clear, the FAEC bought four more F-47s under RMS, possibly as a spares source, although the aircraft were in fact placed in line service and were not (so far as can be determined) used for that purpose. Soon after arrival, the FAEC took great pride in creating its first fully-equipped, combat ready fighter unit, the Escuadron de Persecucion "10 de Marzo" based at Campo Colombia near Havana. Air-Order-of-Battle reports of this period (circa· April 1953) show this unit with twentyfive F-47s - and one TF-47 two place trainer, a truly rare aircraft, the acquisition of which has not been traced, although it could have been one of the four subsequently purchased machines. Former FAEC members do not recall this aircraft, although one thought it might have been a locally modified aircraft, perhaps the aircraft bound for Chile which crashed at Campo Colombia while on delivery and which was subsequently turned over to the Cuban government. By December 1953, the squadron was still fully up-to-strength, although one aircraft had been lost to an accident. The FAEC used a unique method of calculating utilization atthis time - through measurement of 'air miles flown'. These figures, which would seem rather difficult to calculate, were as follows for the first three years of FAEC Thunderbolt service: 1952 1953 1954

390 2,265 13,260

This dramatic increase in utilization, mainly due to the influence of the USAF Mission, was not without cost. By 30 June 1954, the unit still had twenty-six F-47s (including the TF-47) on hand, but only twenty-one were judged combat ready, the others being down for parts and repairs from minor accidents. Late delivery of some of the parts originally purchased as part of the overall program inevitably contributed. Anxious to show off their new mounts and obvious competence, two FAEC F-47s flew from Havana to San Juan, Puerto Rico, on 15 July 1953, visiting with the F-47N equipped PRNG squadron at Isla Grande. They then accompanied Curtiss C-46 CU-C434 (then under FAEC control for some obscure reason) on the 3 August return flight, via Guantanamo Bay Naval Air Station. As noted in the Chilean chapter, an MDAP aircraft (45-49209) bound forthatfar Southern

Photo of a Cuban F-47D-30-RA, FA EC-464, prior to being camouflaged, but bearing late Batista-era FAEC star and bar type Cuban national insignia. (Jorge J. Suarez via George Farinas)

Latin American nation, crashed on take-off from Campo Colombia in Cuba while on its delivery flight, and was "damaged beyond repair" (see photo). It was administratively, transferred to the Cuban project (No. 974) and turned over to the FAEC for whatever parts could be salvaged. The aircraft had lost power on take-off and bellied in, sliding directly into alow, cement block wall, injuring the U.S. officer pilot. USAF Mission guidance had been instrumental inthe FAEC reorganization along the lines of a USAF Wing/Base organization, creating one Composite Tactical Group (including the fighter squadron) by April 1953. Training emphasis also progressed, initially limited to security patrols in small elements, but advancing by July to groundattack gunnery. By August 1953 considerable flying was being accomplished, and the fighter squadron pilots averaged between 150-200 hours on F-47s. The Mission Chief commented, "ail are extremely confident in themselves and in their F-47s." A by-product of the U.S. Mission influence was the lesson to the FAEC that reliabillty and maintainability were entirely dependent on a good source and use of spares. Accordingly, Cuba initiated an RAP request in October 1953 for a five year spare parts program, total charge amounting to some $726,267. This program was approved, in part, in January 1954, for support of twenty-one aircraft but was abruptly terminated in 1955 when spares supply for the type in the USAF Logistics system dwindled. Only about 50% of the parts ordered ever arrived. Total AOB strength still reflected twenty three aircraft by September 1955 ,but with the creeping spares problem manifesting itself, had dipped to seventeen by December 1956. By th is ti me the F-47s had donned a chocolate brown Cuban "khaki" paint scheme. The Cuban leadership realized by this juncture that replacement types should be sought, and, in fact, Cuba had very boldly taken a step in this direction in June 1954, when she purchased the first two of eight Lockheed T-33As under RAP, the others being delivered in August 1954 (two) and August 1956(four). The jets were a portent of things to come, but FAEC leadersh ip wanted to replace the F47s without mortgaging the investment made in the T-33s, and so a deal was struck for fifteen Hawker SeaFury F.B. Mk.11 s (as well

as two dual seattrainerversions) which arrived at the Havana docks at the height of the Castro insurgency. The dock workers who unloaded the aircraft were stripped and searched following off-loading for fear of sabotage. On 5 September 1957, an attempted revolt by Cuban Navy elements at Cienfuegos was crushed by FAEC aircraft, including most of the airworthy F-47s loyal to Batista. Practically the entire Cuban Navy had apparently planned to launch the revolt simultaneously. However, the hapless men at Cienfuegos did not receive word when the other Cuban Navy installations decided at the last moment to postpone the attempt. The Cienfuegos base and parts of the city were bombed and strafed and a number of civilians were killed. Some FAEC pilots refused to bomb civilian sectors, dropping their ordnance instead overthe bay or sparsely settled outlying areas, but they paid for their compassion when later court-martialed and imprisoned. This episode did little' to aid the Batista cause or endear the FAEC to the public and further debilitated FAEC aircraft and ordnance stocks considerably. By 1 June 1958, total FAEC F-47 strength' stood at ten aircraft, although dangerous conditions involving the turbocharger exhaust tubes, the Achilles Heel of the F-47 in Latin America, limited utilization to all but "do-or die" flights. Apparently at least two (and perhaps more)FAEC Thunderbolts survived to pass, nominally into the Castro-era Fuerza Aerea

Revolucionaria (FAR). CIA reports indicated at least one such being on hand at Havana (where one was apparently destroyed on the ground by attacking Liberation/Bay of Pigs aircraft) and Santiago at the time of the Bay of Pigs invasion attempt. None are known to have survived beyond thattime, although the fate of the one at Santiago is ponderable. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC The rapid development of military aviation in the Dominican Republic during the late 1940s and early 1950s outlined in considerable detail in North American F-51 Mustangs in Latin American Air Forces Service, can be attributed to three prime factors: 1. The paranoia of dictator Rafael Trujillo and his extraordinary efforts to create a powerful military establishment; 2. The ambivalence towards these efforts displayed by various key U.S. government agencies and 3. The willingness (and ability) of other countries to act on the resulting opportunities. The primary fear motivating Trujillo was the anti-totalitarian Caribbean Legion, which had declared among its chief goals, the eradication of his dictatorship, one of the first active steps in that direction having been the abortive, but potentially potent Cayo Confites invasion force which was to have set out from that remote Cuban coastal region in 1947. Dominican interest in acquiring Thunderbolts first surfaced in conjunction with the foregoing background, circa mid1949, when Major RamonPeralta, brother-inlaw of President Trujillo was dispatched to

FAEC Thunderbolts at one point sported colored cowls and similarly colored horizontal bands on the lower fin. Here, in order from nearest to furthest, they are green, golden-yellow, red, white and blue with the unit emblem superimposed. (Jorge J. Suarez)

39

and replaced by their own" The balance of the twenty-five aircraft however did not arrive until June and July 1953. Trujillo, somewhat mollified, and realizing that the prices (and condition) of the RAPsupplied aircraft would be hard to beat on the open arms market, immediately turned in a further request for RAP supplied equipment, this time for forty' F-51 Mustangs "if more F47s are not available." Doubtful that the AMD could effectively utilize the additional aircraft and fearful of upsetting the balance with rival Cuba, the U.S. disapproved the additional aircraft and Trujillo promptly concluded his deal with the Swedes for the initial batch of thirty- two P51 D Mustangs. The U.S. Mission Chief, learning of these events, and apparently unaware of the U.S. concern over the Cuban-Dominican balance, fired off an angry report, stating "Not only have they purchasea thirty-two F-51 s from Sweden, they are considering purchasing up to twenty-two more. These procurements are due to U.S. inability to deliver. Typical of our transaction management are the Thunderbolts, paid for in advance by the AMD in May 1952, with a contract that implied ninety day delivery - and only sixteen had shown up by 23 June 1953." AMD strength thus, in spite of everything, took a dramatic jump in the closing weeks of 1952, going from ninety to 126 aircraft, including the F-47s and the first of the exSwedish P-51 sY , Initially, the F-47s, which were fully MDAP supported, and which enjoyed the support of the small U.S. Mission, were the favored AM 0 aircraft, the Mustangs at the time bein~ serviced by a group of U.S. "contract' mechanics who had rather let things go. According to an account by Lennert Engerby, one of the Swedish contract mechaniCS who arrived at San Isidro in early 1952, "The new base had only recently been occupied, and there were no hangars yet, aircraft being spread out all over the field. A 2,000 meter runway had been built, but there were no hard stands for aircraft, and the exSwedish Mustangs stood, or in some cases, lay in a long, untidy line hacked out of the bush, having been haphazardly unpacked, with parts laying spread out over a large area. ' By contrast, the U.S. Mission reported in March 1954, by which time the F-47s and P51 s had been segregated into two distinct units, that "There appears to be a strong esprit de corps among the pilots rated on the MDAP-supported F-47 unit (the Escuadron de Caza Bombardero but referred to in this report as the 1QEscuadron de CazaBombardero) and P-51 (nonMDAPsupported) Escuadron de Caza Ramfis., TheYd'ealOusly guard their own prerogatives an it is felt tfJat each can be developed into efficient forces. The F-47 unit is now considered 50% effective." In April 1954, training on the aircraft continued, although at a modest rate (a total of eighty- two hours flown), confined mostly to touch and goes and formation flying. An accident occurred when one aircraft caught fire in the aft section, a harbinger of things to come, and almost certainly an early manifestation of the turbo-charger exhaust tube problem noted elsewhere in this narrative. The squadron by now had twenty-eight pilots, of whom twenty-three were rated on F-47s and was the only AMD unit conducting am: training atthe time, and was watched jealously by the P-51 unit. It was the opinion ofthe U.S. Mission Chief Although poor in quality, the earliest known photo of Dominican Thunderbolts shows that atthetimethat, "The P-51 personnel, although colorful markings came later. This lineup of at least eight bearing only standard national marks more highly favored, were not as well qualified as the F-47 unit". and serial on mid-fuse/age. (Jorge J. Suarez)

Miami to seek between thirty to thirty-five small USAF Mission, local U.S. officials aircraft with which to equip the Cuerpo de recognizing that this, at least, would ensure Aviacon (as it was then known). some measure of U.S. influence over the He initially attempted to obtain twenty late- course of events in coming years. model Curtiss P-40 aircraft, but the Miami Encouraged by this sign of U.S. support, based LBS Corporation (headed by L.B. Smith Trujillo, hara on the heers of the summary and also known as AERODEX), found it rejection of his attempts to purchase Mexican impossible to locate such numbers of P-40s. P-47Ds, immediately (on 22 March 1951) AERODEX suggested that it could requested tne sale of an identical number of probably locate P-5fs or P-47s in similar F-47Ns from U.S. government surplus, quantities. Mr. Ben Terry of LBS was the complete with armament and equipment. General Manager conducting the Buton the advice of some house guests at negotiations. However, the Dominicans the time (some of whom had U.S. Navy ultimately settled on several other options backgrounds) Trujillo canceled the request when details of the proposed sale could not for F-47Ns on 17 April 1951 and requested be agreed upon, some Mustangs being sales of thirty-two Chance Vought F4U-4 Corsairs instead. acquired instead, in smaller numbers. lO The fate of this request is not known, other About a year later, in early January, 1951, a Mr. Solomon Lesnow, a U.S. citizen residing than the fact that it did not happen. By June in Mexico, was actively negotiating the sale of 1951, Trujillo had forgotten about the thirtyFuerza Aerea Mexicana's (FAM) seventeen two Corsairs and instead had submitted an P-47-Os to the Dominican Republic. The sale application for thirty-two F-47s under Section purportedly had the blessing of the U.S. State 508 (d) of RAP. The request was left pending Department and was being brokered by Iba approval by the U.S. MDAP officials as late as Trading Corp. of Miami. 3 March 1952. In the meantime, twenty- five F-47Ds, The cost per aircraft of this deal, which had reached quite an advanced stage, was which had already been rehabilitated by $15,500 each flyaway ( rather high for the TEMCO "for a NATO country" (probably time), and included full armament "and France, possibly Yugoslavia) but not painting on the Dominican insignia" a nice accepted,becameavailableandwereoffered but inexpensive, touch. ' to Peru, although they were not the exact President Aleman of Mexico had block number (D-40) that Peru had requested. purportedly gone so far as to approve the The aircr~ftyvere diverted to resolve the Cuban neces~ary export licenses, which had been and Dominican RAP requests. expedited by Lic. Fernando Cortez de la' Th~ U.S. Depart~ent of Defense Peza, w~o had peen retained by Major Peralta, recognl~ed the very dellcat.e. nature of the purchasing officer for Trujillo. competing Cuban and Dominican requests, Peter Ethier a wartime USAAF both of which centered around "drog dead" Thunderbolt pilot, had been retained to direct delivery dates for .political. reasons ( uba to the ferrying of the aircraft to the Dominican cele~r~te her 50th ye~r of 1nge~e~~ence and Republic, via Miami, three at a time. in Dominica to take part In Trujillo s Inaugural" company with two other pilots. parade schedule9 for 16 Augus.t 1952.) In fact, the Mexican Government had ~pprovalwasflnallyf0r:thcomlng, and RAP !'ldvised the U.S. State Department of its P.roJect 2F-738 was assigned ~o ~over, ~he Intent to "sell" the aircraft, but the reported alrcr~f~ for the now renamed AVlaClon MIII~ar buyer had been listed as the Mitchell Mobile Domlnlcana (AMD), a separate arm of service Hangar Corp. of New York. When the actual no longer subordinate to the Dominican Army. buyer became known, the State Department When it became obvi~us that the U.S. verypolitelyinformedallpartiesthattheaircraft would not be able to deliver even a token were Lend-Lease supplied and that the number of Thunderbolts by 16 August the account for them had not been settled and decision had been made at a high level to that until such time as it was no such'sale divert DIR aircraft to try and meet the even shorter Cuban deadline of May 1952. Trujillo, could be condoned.' Thus, as it happened, Trujillo, after being furiou~ at. being snubbed once again sty~ied at every turn in acquiring quantity (especially In ~avor of Cuba) t~reaten,ed to deliveries of combatant aircraft via the U.S., cancel the e.ntlre arrangement If the aircraft turned elsewhere, and the rest is history. The were not delivered by November. ll significant quantities of ex-Royal Swedish Air . U.S. MI?AP chan~els.strain~d to meet. this Force Mustangs and de Havilland Vampire fina;l deadline, and SIX aircraft In fact arnved jets acquired during the next five years formed dUring November, followed by eig~t more in the bulk of post-war Dominican military air December. Former USAF ferry pilot Ernest strength for almost two decades to come. D. Dav.is, who flew i~ one of these aircraft to Meanwhile, due to the efforts of U.S. S~n ISidro, recalls, It .was only a matter of diplomatic personnel on the spot in Ciudad mlnu~es after our, arnval before the U.S. Trujillo, approval was finally gained for a markings on the aircraft had been removed

40

Training picked up in May 1954, with 122 hours flown and with this tempo (and Mission instruction) many of the squadron's pilots were also functioning as instructors in the AMD's Cadet Program, the unit having seven AT-6s for this purpose. The unit commander was consciously attempting to place more reliance on native AMD ground crews, hoping to forgo the expensive (and sometimes troubling) contract employees (mostly U.S. nationars). By the end of June 1954, the AMD's F-47s had flown a total of 1,175 hours, had suffered three accidents (one of which was repairable) and were still rated 50% effective. The unit also had four Convair PBY-5A Catalinas, seven AT-6s, one Beech C-45, one Curtiss C-46 a Beech AT-ii, two Boeing B-17Gs, eight Bristol Beaufighters, eight deHavilland Mosquitos and a Hiller 360 helicopter (all in various states of repair). It could still only muster twenty-three F-47 rated pilots, in addition to the fifteen contract mechan ics and fifty-three AMD personnel. The tempo and thrust oftraining continued to increase into July and August 1954, when 156 hours were flown in tactical formation and attackproblems, although actual gunnery and bombing drills had not yet commenced. One of the chief predicaments according to the Mission Chief, was the large and diverse number of aircraft in the squadron, which diverted time and energy away from the Thunderbolts. By September, the unit put eighteen F-47s in the air at one time (believed to be its maximum one-time effort attained) for the long-awaited aerial gunnery and simulated mission training. According to the U.S. Mission Chief, " it took a forced draft of maintenance personnel from the other miscellaneous types." Five Thunderbolts had been lost by the close of 1955, and another had been seriously damaged, and the AMD entered the year 1956 with nineteen still on hand, of which eighteen were "combat ready" a figure that remained unchanged through the ena of 1956 and into June 1957. Butthe winds of modernization had caught up with the F-47s. Trujillo's son, Ramfis, had gradually swayed attention and funding as well as key personnel assignments toward' "his" unit the Mustang equipped Escuadron de Caza Ramfis. This unitwas also benefiting greatly from the attention of the extraordinary group of Swedish engineers. In 1954-55 following on its highly satisfactory purchase of Mustangs and maintenance services from Sweden, the Dominicans also purchased a significant number of ex-Swedish deHaviliand Vampire F.1 s followed by a batch of Vampire F.B.50s which were destined to re-equip the Escuadron de Caza-Bombardero. With the arrival of the first of the Vampires, it was all but impossible to get an AMD pilot into a Thunderbolt, and so, from mid-1955, the aircraft sat virtually unused on the line until finally, in November 1957, the now (renamed) Fuerza Aerea Dominicana (FAD) initiated action to have its nineteen remaining F-47s declared surplus, formally requesting U.S. Mission guidance in December as to disposition of the aircraft. The Dominican Thunderbolts thus served only five years with the service, of which almost the last eighteen months they were idle. The P-47 had been preceded -and succeeded - by their old WW II stablemate the Mustang, but owed their demise in Dominican skies, as elsewhere, to ever mounting spares and maintenance problems, and the advent of first-generation jet aircraft. The remaining nineteen Jugs were pastured for a long penod and then scrapped.

NICARAGUA, GUATEMALA AND 'OPERATION SUCCESS' Undoubtedly the most complex, yet fascinating use of the Thunderbolt in Latin America involved a relatively small number of very well traveled aircraft and the governments of Nicaragua, Guatemala, the Puerto Rican Air National Guard, and the Central Intelligence Agency. The seed for a series of events which ultimately led to the introduction of F-47s into the region was the 1950 election of Jacobo Arbenz Guzman, a former Army officer, to the Presidency of Guatemala. President Arbenz set out on a stated policy of, "transforming Guatemala from a dependent nation, having a semi-colonial economy, to an independent country, replacing feudal arrangements with modern capitalism." These ambitions, probably nationalistic and earnest, were viewed by U.S. officials (including Allen Dulles, Director of the CIA under President Eisenhower) as anti-U.S. and, more specifically, anti-United Fruit Company, a powerful entity in Central America. It is also significant to note that Dulles had, for several years, served on the Board of Directors of United Fruit Company, as had the incoming Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs, John Moore Cabot. These advisors sold President Eisenhower on the need to include the alleged Communist oriented Arbenz regime in his avowed policy of "containing Communism," and steps were set in motion to depose the

Guatemalan leadership and replace it .with those more amenable to U.S interests. This plan, dubbed "Operation Success" by the CIA was headed by a Colonel Haney, operated out of Opa Locka Airport, near Miami. The project, still regarded by the CIA as ona of its covert action "successes", was very ambitious and involved, as key elements, an aerial unit detailed to make propaganda and leaflet drops; interdict key installations and political centers; perform signals activities; and conduct internal subversion. Arms, including aircraft, were transferred to the area via a number of channels, one of which, International Armament Corporation,(lnterArmco) was a "front" company, set up by former CIA employee Samuel Cummings, to expedite acquisition and positioning of arms and aircraft. Another larger undertaking, was the December 1953 transfer of up to thirty aircraft of various types to a Miami based "charitable foundation" (frequently cited in U.S. Government documents as an unnamed "Medical Institute"). The "Institute" then sold the planes to a variety of firms engaged in aerial survey, crop dusting and recreational aviation throughout the Caribbean area. This odd assortment of aircraft included a Beech C-45, a Cessna 180, a Convair PBY-5A, at least one Lockheed F-5 Lightning recon version, several North American AT-6s and six F-47Ns. The six Thunderbolts were, ostensibly, on "loan" to the CIA from the Puerto Rican Air National Guard, which in turn rented them to the Nicaraguan Government for $1.00 each. At this point they were by no means being

This Nicaraguan F-47N (ex-PRANG) sports a very faded anti-glare panel and, not surprisingly in view of its background, almost complete lack of identifying stenciling. Pilot and crew chief are Nicaraguan and Sergeant in foreground is member of USAF mission.

41

operated by the Fuerza Aerea de la Guardia Nacionale Nicaragua (FAN). These aircraft, according to Puerto Rican Air National Guards (PRNG) pilots who took part in the delivery to Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua 13 (which served as one of the primary airfields for aircraft involved in the Operation), were stripped of all U.S. markings, painted black overall, with white registration or serial numbers. In addition to the aircraft mentioned, "Operation Success" also could count on at least twelve C-47 type aircraft as available for its use, fifteen helicopters and the PRNG's 198th Fighter Squadron, which was on low profi Ie alert to assist the operation if it got into real trouble. The consequences of such an eventuality can only be conjectured. The CIA managed to gradually move this conglomeration of aircraft into the area of operations, most of them moving through Honduras, Nicaragua or U.S. bases in the Canal Zone, some under the guise of U.S. assistance to the nations of the area. Crews for the aircraft were a truly Bohemian lot, some of them former Civil Air Transport and Flying Tiger Airlines employees fresh from adventures in China and the Far East, while others were adventurers from the region. At least ten have been positively identified. Of varying experiences and background, they included "T-bone" Williams and Bob Wade, friends and former U.S. Marine Corps pilots; Joe Silverthorne, a bush pilot with wide experience in Honduras; Fred Sherwood, who atone time had been the U.S. Air Attache in Guatemala; Ferdinand Schoup, former Deputy USAF Mission Chief in Guatemala; Leo Crutcher, a U.S. citizen living in Colombia; (and hisson-in-Iaw, Douglas McLean); Carlos Cheeseman, a WW II U.S. Navy pilot who had become a Guatemalan citizen; and Jerry DeLarm, another ex WW II Navy pilot. Of these, Jerry Fred DeLarm, formerly of San Francisco, was one ofthe key performers. This slender, hardened adventurer always carried a .45 cal. pistol on his hip and had, until early 1954, been living in Guatemala

City where he gave private flying lessons and owned an automobile dealership. Code named "RoseLinda" by the CIA, DeLarm flew via PanAm from Guatemala City to Honduras only a few days before "Operation Success" was formally launched into its final phase. IroniG-ally, he had done some skywriting and aerial broadcasting for President Arbenz' election campaign in 1950, but claimed he had never been paid for the work. Leaflet flights had been flown over Guatemala City as early as January 1954. The leaflets demanded the ouster of Arbenz and threatened of the Liberation to come. The actual invasion by Castillo Armas 14 and his Army, and associated air operations, did not get under way until 18 June, when Jerry DeLarm piloted a C-47 low over the city, again dropping leaflets announcing that the invasion was imminent. At about 1600 hours the same day, two F47Ns, without marks of any kind visible from the ground (although observers could not agree on their coloring), approached the city from the south, fired a few rounds as they passed over houses near the Guardia de Honor barracks (one of five cuartels, or small forts in the city) and dropped small fragmentation bombs. . One of the F-47s then swung around and strafed the National Palace, dropping more leaflets after circling unchallenged. The pair then roared off to the Pacific coast, where they proceeded to' work over the port of San Jose, Guatemala. DeLarm is alleged to have flown one of these two aircraft, his second sortie of the day. About midnight the 18th a C-47 harassment flight over Guatemala City, from the west, received some light machine gun fire from Guatemalan Army units on the outskirts, and 20mm Bofors gun bursts from near city-center. The following morning a single F-47N flew overthe city at about 0800, strafing the Fuerza Aerea Guatemalteca (FAG) section at La Aurora airport, inflicting damage on an FAG Beech AT-11.

It should be noted that the FAG, considered unreliable by Arbenz, was largely grounded during this entire period, aside from some reconnaissance, liaison and transport flights flown by pilots known to be loyal to the government. It is just as well, perhaps, since by this date the only "combatant aircraft the FAG could muster were two Boeing P-26As (of seven obtained under Lend-Lease in 1943), four Beech AT-11 s configured as light bombers (of six acquired under ARP in 194647) and eight armed AT-6C and 0 variants. These would not have fared well against the F-47s, even in experienced hands. Government radio reported that nine citizens were injured as a result of the La Aurora strafing, including a three year old girl killed, but later found to be alive and wounded. After its attack, the lone aircraft (possibly, again piloted by DeLarm) headed off, flying over the town of Chiquimula on its way back to its secret base - attacking this small town in the process, and then continuing on to strafe the nearby provincial capital of Zacapa. Guatemalan press reports alleged that the strafing of Chiquimula had hit a girls' school. Action continued on the 19th, with the "Liberation" Cessna 180, piloted by Cheeseman and DeLarm, attacking Puerto Barrios by dropping a hand grenade and stick of dynamite out of the cabin windows on the fuel stprage tank there, while an F-47 strafed the Army barracks at Jutiapa. Air attacks on Sunday, the 20th, were aimed mainly at small southern Guatemalan towns, to give the impression of ground support to the invading Armas forces, and Although included an attack on Coban. reported by newsmen as an F-47, the Coban attacker ran out of fuel a short time after the attack and force-landed just over Guatemala's northwestern border in Mexico, near Tapachula. Two crew were rescued by Mexican authorities, one of them wounded, lending evidence that the aircraft involved was an armed AT-6. The pilot, William A. Beall, 31, ofTyler, Texas, told the local press thatthe "Liberation" airforces had lost another aircraft two days earlier (probably a C-46) in

Known as 'EI Sulfato " (the Sulphur), Jerry DeLarm's F-47N at La Aurora Field, Guatemala City, following the Castillo Armas victory, with some FA G personnel. The aircraft is in pristine condition and absolutely devoid of any markings, as of late 1954. (MAJ Rick Ibarguen) 42

the Pacific, the two crewmen having been rescued by a U.S. Navy vessel. During the attacks on the southern towns, two of the F-47s absorbed some anti-aircraft fire that rendered them unflyable, a third was hit and grounded on the 21 st. The damage was disabling in that maintenance and spares support for the aircraft was nonexistent, only fuel, oil, ammunition and ordnance being available for what was, for all intents and purposes, a "disposable" air force. By the 21st, CIA planners were acutely aware that the outcome of the operation would evolve on continued air support and widespread "hit and run" attacks, which were indeed confusing Arbenz' intelligence sources and making the Armas invasion forces, aided by some ingenious signals deception broadcasts, appear much larger and more insidious than was actually the case. The CIA executives wanted to invoke the provisions of the plan which would bring in the 198th FS, PRANG, but cooler heads realized the hazards in this, and settled on sending two ex-Texas ANG F-51 Os down instead, flown by regular USAF pilots. One of these, then Lieutenant Del Toedt, recalls the episode vividly, and although they primarily flew escort to DeLarm and others in the remaining F47Ns and other types, the Mustangs proved crucial to the show of force that toppled Arbenz. In a deal approved by President Eisenhower himself, the pair of Mustangs were "sold" to Nicaragua for $150,000, the money having been fumished to Somoza by the CIA. Meanwhile, Bob Wade in one of the F-47s sent on a mission to bomb the main Guatemalan Government radio station, hit anearby missionary station by mistake. Attacking the fuel storage tanks at nearby La Aurora airport on the same strike, he only managed to hole one ofthe tanks with machine gun fire. Guatemalan Army gunners at San Jose, alert to the possibility of air attack, scored their only "shoot down" of the entire affair on June 22,1954. Unfortunately, the aircraft downed· was a civilian Chilean Beech 35 Bonanza being ferried new to Chile from the factory, on a leg of its flight from Mexico to El Salvador. The two fliers on board, fortunately, survived. On the assumption that his resignation would end hostilities and preserve the status quo,Arbenz went on the air on the 27th, announcing that he was stepping down and relinquishing the Presidency to Colonel Carlos Enrique Diaz, Army Chief of Staff. However, the change of leadership did not satisfy the goals of Operation Success, and the approach of the British freighter, Springfjord, to San Jose harbor was the signal for further action by the mercenary air force. Somoza, through his own intelligence and that provided by his CIA contact, Rip Robertson, believed that the Springfjord was carrying arms and or aviation gas to Guatemalan forces. Robertson dispatched Ferdinand Schoup at 0700 on the 28th to attack the ship. He circled the vessel once, dropping a message to the crew warning that he was going to attack (this has not been substantiated), and then proceeded to drop his 500 pound bomb "down the stack," putting the "Springfjord" on the bottom of San Jose harbor. Only moments before the skipper had been waving cheerfully to the circling Thunderbolt.

Although not an aircraft subject per se, these worthies, Castillo Armas' bodyguards during "Operation Success", probably witnessed the F-47N's last use in anger, during the CIAorganized invasion of Guatemala, and may give a clue to the kind of company they kept. (LTC Dell C. Toedt)

U.S. Ambassador John E. Peurifoy, one of the key players in the entire operation, ordered the Liberation air force to turn up the pressure on forces loyal to Colonel Diaz, notably Fort Matamoros and the Escuela Militar Polytechnic garrisons. DeLarm, escorted by the two "Nicaraguan" Mustangs, took off from the Honduran base on the 29th and attacked these installations at 1500 hours, going on to completely destroy the Government Radio station missed by Bob Wade several days earlier.'s Ambassador Peurifoy then orchestrated the final act, persuading Colonel Diaz to accept Colonel Armas as the new head of government. Final negotiation took place on 1 July in San Salvador, the new President' arriving back in Guatemala City on board the USAF Mission's C-47 on the 3rd. On 8 July Castillo Armas formally became President in a large outdoor ceremony which, appropriately, was honored by a f1yover of an FAG C-47, escorted by two P-26As and a truly memorable low level aerobatics display put on by DeLarm in Armas'F-47N. An extension of the overall Operation Success plan was to expedite arms deliveries, including aircraft, to Guatemala's neighbors. The idea had been to further erode Arbenz' support within the Guatemalan armed forces which had always been regionally dominant. The plan included the armed forces of Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua - and specifically Nicaragua's Guardia Nacional. Nicaragua's Air Force, named the Fuerza Aerea de la Guardia Nacional, had been immersed in the CIA project to overthrow Arbenz from the beginning, and has added to the historical confusion which has surrounded these multi-national F-47Ns for years. Nicaragua's ambassador to the U.S., Sevilla Sacasawho was apprised of Operation Success and the primary combatant aircraft involved, found it necessary to dance around the issue with U.S. State Department officials,

when it came time to lend legitimacy to the aircraft. In a memo of conversation dated 28 May 1954, between Sacasa and Mr. Charles R. Borrows, MID, the latter quite unaware that the aircraft in question were probably already earmarked by the CIA for this plan, stated, "This Government [the U.S.) is in a position to make available, on a direct purchase basis, eightF-47Naircraftatapriceofapproximately $25,000 each." Ambassador Sacasa replied that his government considered, "the situation to be in the nature of a temporary emergency and would prefer to borrow the aircraft." He then spoke vaguely of Nicaragua being, "given some and sold others". On 1 June, puzzled that Ambassador Sacasa hadn't gotten back to him, Mr. Burrows called him, receiving the information that 'he hadn't heard from Somoza yet". No doubt Somoza was thoroughly enjoying the humor of knowing more about the situation than the U.S. State Department itself. Finally, details of the transaction were ironed out. Somoza knew he would get the survivors of Project Success [the F-47Ns and other types) once the project was concluded (although one remained in Guatemala), the first three of these having arrived in Nicaragua from Puerto Rico on 17 June. In sum, this amounted to two flyable aircraft and (probably) one other airworthy. Four more aircraft, also ex-PRNG, arrived in Managua on 17 June - one of which was for Operation Success use (DeLarm) and three" to remain as property of the FAN." Three mechanics were to be temporarily added to the USAF Mission to Nicaragua to service the aircraft. By 21 June, Colonel Holmberg, Borrows' contact at the U.S. Department of Defense, was distinctly ill at ease about this whole arrangement, and sensing perhaps that all was not as it appeared to be, insisted that "the Department of Defense (and the USAF) 43

require the following assurances before the By 1948, with various anti-totalitarianism final three F-47Ns can be delivered to the movements afoot and surplus equipment FAN: readily available, the FAN managed to acquire (a) that legal requirements for the two Lockheed P-38 Lightnings, although transfer to title of the aircraft have manning and maintaining them caused no been met.. end of trouble, the service at the time having (b) that USAF/ANG pilots have only one qualified pilot for the type. As early as April 1954, with Operation permission to overfly Nicaragua while delivering the aircraft from San Juan, Success planning well advanced, Nicaragua Puerto Rico. seized the opportunity to modernize and (c) that the USAF/ANG pilots and F- expand its forces. It had informally requested 47s have permission to land at Las twelve F-47s and up to four North American Mercedes. B-25 bombers. The State Department, (d) that the USAF has the permission unaware of the CIA/SomozaiNicaragua of the State Department to attach three connection, responded that neither type was maintenance personnel to the USAF then available, the USAF suggesting to the Mission TDY" State Department that it offer Lockheed FWithin forty eight to seventy two hours 80s and Douglas B-26s instead. following receipt ofthese assurances, General By this time Somoza had initiated steps Koen of the USAF promised delivery. to acquire 26 ex-Swedish Mustangs, but The last three aircraft in question were, in these did not arrive until after the fact, the only F-47Ns that Nicaragua "paid" Thunderbolts cited earlier had been for,15% down in cash, remainder in sixty nominally in FAN service for some months. days and with immediate delivery of titles, The F-47s were favored by both the USAF (total flyaway cost$14,620 each) under terms Mission (initially) and by FAN personnel, of the RAP who had been impressed by the type's These aircraft were sold with only six .50 performance during Operation Success, war caliber machine guns on each (complete with stories having run rampant for a while after 1,500 rounds per gun) and were accompanied the last shots were fired. on the flight from Puerto Rico by a Lockheed The enmity between the Somoza dynasty C-121 carrying spares. . and neighboring Costa Rica, however, which In the final analysis, it appears that had been stewing intensely since at least Nicaragua and Operation Success (it is difficult 1948, was intentionally brought to a boil by to separate the two) accounted for a total of Nicaragua in late 1954, aided and abetted by eight PRANG F-47Ns although only six of Perez Jimenez of· Venezuela and Trujillo of these (but possibly seven) ever bore FAN the Dominican Republic, the trio of dictators markings. seeing in Costa Rica, home of the Caribbean The saga of the these eight well traveled Legion, the seed of their undoing. aircraft becomes even more complicated. Under the pretext of opposing what they As noted earlier, Jerry DeLarm more or crudely termed the "Communist" regime of less resident in Guatemala, w~h business and Costa Rica President Figueres, the dictators fraternal connections, became, w~h his F-47N, provided material assistance to Costa Rican an adjunct to Castillo Armas' personal band of exile Rafael A. Calderon, a powerful political bodyguards, and a gray zone auxiliary to the exile, and his followers. FAG. In fact, this sol~ary F-47 was shown on On 11 January 1955 several hundred FAG AOB strength reports for eighteen months, "Calderonistas", members of the so-called, until it was finally traded to Nicaragua (read Authentic Anti-Communist Revolutionary Somoza) for an Ex-Swedish Mustang. Army, supported by aircraft, invaded Costa In Nicaragua, meantime, the Thunderbolts Rica from bases in Nicaragua. Moving quickly, had become first line equipment, although they captured Quesada, about 50 km from initially, only four of the aircraft were actually San Jose, and occupied positions in painted in FAN markings. 16 Guanacaste.

Just the day before Costa Rica had noted with alarm that ten fully manned Venezuelan Air Force aircraft had arrived in Managua. The flight had been billed as a good will and training mission. On the Twelfth, rebel planes, including an unmarked F-47N and at least two AT-6s (on which some observers claim to have seen Venezuelan markings) strafed wide areas from Puerto Limon to Liberia, one AT-6 boldly striking at defenseless San Jose itself. No one was hurt and damage was slight. Another AT-6s was downed by the small Costa Rican Civil Guard defenders at Los Ahogados while it attempted to destroy the Turrialbary bridge. On the thirteenth, USAF officials in the Panama Canal Zone received reports of Venezuelan aircraft, believed to be AT-6s, over Panama, although their direction was not noted, and this strange sighting has remained unexplained. The Costa Ricans reported rebel aircraft (an F-47 and an AT-6) bombed Liberia and Grecia the same day, and were last seen headed in the direction of San Jose. On 15 January Costa Rican ambassador Faci invoked the terms of a security agreement with the U.S., requesting the supply of four F47s to answer the rebel intrusion. On the very next day the U.S. sent four Mustangs to Costa Rica from Kelly Air Force Base.. They were flown on patrols almost immediately by four seconded regular USAF pilots. The American service pilots gave cockpit checks to several Costa Ricans and made a hasty departure. Meanwhile, on the 16th the Organization of American States (OAS) Commission sent to investigate the invasion, reported thatthree rebel planes had been spotted at La Cruz, including an F-47, adding that "the rebels still controlled the air over combat zones with planes from an 'unidentified' country". The F47 was in action again that same day, hitting Santa Rosa and Liberia again. A support C47 was lost at La Cruz the same day to a landing accident. Costa Rican ground forces, rallying to meet the invaders near Liberia, were attacked on the 17th by rebel aircraft, and, during the melee, an OAS observer's aircraft, carrying U.S. Navy Commander Luce, was hit by ground fire. One of the Costa Rican F-51 s flown by the ill-trained Costa Rican pilots, was lost to enemy action in uncertain circumstances. The plane crashed killing its pilot. It bore several heavy caliber bullet holes. While no one witnessed the fatal action, and it may have been caused by ground fire, there is a school of thought that says that Jerry DeLarm and his P-47N may have bushwhacked the Mustang. Somoza, still indignantly disclaiming any part in the invasion, urgently bid to the U.S. on 17 January for four additional Mustangs for the FAN, ''to match the sale to Costa Rica", claiming incredibly, that ''the transaction posed a threat to Nicaragua". By the 18th, the invasion was all but licked, mainly due to the timely and morale boosting arrival of four Mustangs, and OAS observers were able to report that two rebel AT-6s were "interned" at Rives, Nicaragua, A well traveled F-47N-20-RE, 44-89131, seen here with the Pennsylvania Air Guard (147th FS) although "the F-47 could not be located". about 1948, it passed to the PRNG that year and in 1954 to the CIA-backed Castillo Armas forces Thus ended perhaps the only known instance in Guatemala, finally becoming GN 73 with the FAN (Collect Air Photos) in which the two old comrades - Mustangs

44

and Thunderbolts - faced off against each other in the air, and coincidentally, the last known action in which an F-47 fired its guns in anger. Subsequent FAN use of its rather motley collection of F-47Ns was, by comparison, anticlimactic, although it is worth pointing out that the FAN pilots much preferred the Thunderbolts overthe ex-Swedish Mustangs, "the sorriest of which", as noted, was traded to Guatemala around December 1955 for its sole F-47N. It is a safe bet that this aircraft was the one in Costa Rica, flown by DeLarm. By December 1956, FAN AOB still included five Thunderbolts, all at Managua, these five remaining in"fair" condition as late as August 1959, when wear and tear and new pilot inexperience began to be felt. Colonel W.R. Hardee, who arrived as the new USAF Chief in March 1961 recalls that, "the FAN didn't fly the jugs as much by this time" - concentrating on the Mustangs, which were more numerous "until after the Bay of Pigs". They simply changed the oil religiously, ran them up about once a month, and pressed on, "the engines working even though they had been sitting stationary for some months". He recalled one rather major accident which reduced FAN F-47 strength to four - the result of a young, inexperienced pilot placing the trim tab wrong for take off, and continuing movement in the wrong direction [on the trim wheel] when he realized something was wrong. "It was one of the most spectacular crashes I have ever seen. The aircraft started veering off the runway, to the left, after rolling on take-off about 1,000 feet." "The pilot tried to correct, but failed. It was the dry season [late summer/early fall] so being off the runway was not really a problem - except that his direction brought up some problems with trees and buildings. He somehow pulled the old beast off the ground before it was ready to fly - it staggered along for a few hundred yards, about fifty feet in the air, turning still to the left. Suddenly it rolled left and went in almost vertically, full of internal. fuel - the resulting explosion looking like a small 'A' Bomb." The pilot's name, for the record, was Hooker. His father was "Tach ito" Somoza's' representative at Bluefields, the CIA's Bay of Pigs airstrip on Nicaragua's Caribbean coast. 17 After this crash, the FAN's F-47s were all but grounded, available funds going for fuel for the Douglas B-26s (inherited from the Bay of Pigs force after its demise) and Lockheed T-33Bs which were in process of being financed. Subsequently, one more of the remaining F-47Ns was lost when, on an extremely hard landing at Las Mercedes, the main gear was literally driven up through the wings. The fate of the carcass of this otherwise undamaged aircraft is unknown, although it was probably added to the graveyard near Las Mercedes. In 1962, Colonel Dick Disney of the Confederate Air Force, acquired the "best" of the three remaining FAN "Jugs", flying GN 71 (believed to have been DeLarm's exGuatemalan" aircraft) back to Texas. It became N47TB on 7 February 1963 WW. "Will Martin, of MACO got the last two Thunderbolts as part of the same package in September 1963, although both subsequently perished in crashes on the return flight in Mexico.

Mr. Martin stated that the two he bought "had less than 200 hours total" on them (documented), surprising in view of their age. He went on to describe the loss of the two aircraft. "On a test flight, one of my pilots [John Drew, probably flying GN 72/N6147U] made a wheels up landing because he didn't get a "safe" light indicator. We had noticed a loose dust shield and I had instructed a mechanic to remove it. The pilot took the plane up on his first hop and when the gear light didn't indicate properly he elected to belly in. We had no radio communication so I couldn't tell him the gear was down. "The loose canvas dust shield stopped the down-lock piston from engaging the microswitch for the light. "Damage was limited to the prop and belly skin which we replaced. This aircraft was then bought, while still in Nicaragua, by a Cadillac dealer in Florida named Holman, F.O.B.Managua, and he furnished a new Prop." Ben Amonds (a United Air Lines Captain) was hired by Holman to fly N6147U to the U.S., and left, in company with Martin and ) MACO four ot her pi'1 ots (.In M ustangs, on 's last trip out. Martin continues: "On take-off out of Tapachula, Mexico,he {Amonds} noticed oil smoke coming out of the enginecompartment and turned back to land. I looked him over and when I saw him going back, I buzzed the field and landed behind him. The prop stopped solid {from a broken oil line} before he completed his landing roll." Mr. Holman sent down a new engine for N6147U later and after installation, Amonds again set out for the U.S. While attempting to land on Mexico's east coast (Martin thinks at "either Tampico or Veracruz" -other sources say Merida) the hapless aircraft's engine burst into flames and Amonds jumped on final h H h t d f i b t N6147U approac. e parac u e sa e y, u landed in a swamp, only 'its tail protruding above the surface. Mexican Air Force personnel rescued Amonds and assisted him in recovering his luggage from the wing-gun bays of the aircraft. The C?ther, MACO F-47~, fared no bett~,r, as Martin relates concerning N6148U. It made a belly landing on the beach [Mexico's Caribbean coast] while flown by a retired USAF Major [named Rolfe]. I was flying . . . . . alongside I~ a Mustang ":,,he~ hiS engine qUit dead. Major Rolfe bel lie? I~ and the U.S. Coast Guard alerted a fishing group that picked him up later that same day. "The aircraft had little damage but salt t t l t' th t th · . "H water hIt It. . e wen on 0 re a e a e Conf~?erate Air Fo~ce located t~e plane fo~ parts, and made a big deal ofthelrtnp down. Thus ended the operational lives of the last airworthy Latin American P-47Ns.

SOME THINGS THAT NEVER WERE A number of books on the Thunderbolt have reported that the Honduran Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Hondurena - FAH) received as many as a dozen F-47s under the terms of the "Rio Pact". Simply stated, this did not happen. Aside from the "Operation Success" aircraft, flown by CIA mercenary pilots,

operated intermittently from Honduran and Nicaraguan airfields, no Thunderbolt ever saw Honduran service. Another report suggests that at least one Puerto Rican ANG aircraft went to Haiti following retirement - as a monument or static display aircraft. This has eluded verification, and seems unlikely to have occurred. Finally, while it is true that at least one P470 was demonstrated to officials of the Argentine Air Force after WW II (in company with a B-25), no Thunderbolts were ever sold to or otherwise operated in Argentina.

FOOTNOTES

1. See Aerofax Datagraph 1, North American F-51 Mustangs in Latin American Air Force Service by John Dienst and Dan Hagedorn. 2. In both the Portugese and Spanish language the symbol Q is used in place of st, or 1Q rather than 1st. 3. One aircraft of South Atlantic Wing, ATC, a rare C-49K,43-2002 made several flights carrying FAB personnel to Panama. 4.John, along with Disosway and Chairsell accompanied the unit from Panama through its training at Suffolk Field. 5.A Brazilian medical unit including nurses accompanied the Squadron. One of its doctors was President Vargas' son. 6.AqualificationreferencetoPilotAviator,unique to the Mexican military. 7. Hovde trained in the F-86 and scored one MIG kill in Korea. 8. Three Bristol F2Bs in December 1920 and one Morane-Saulnier Type LA Bullet in 1921 and two SPAD S VIIC-1s by June 1923. 9. Plan D-3 Operacions del Estado Mayorallegedly called for Colombian seizure ofthe strategic islands. 10. Although an official Dominican publication, the "Memoria de la Ministerio ge Guerra" states that one P-47 had actually been acquired in 1950. This has not been substantiated. 11.The U.S. State Department had attempted, in honesty, to explain to Trujillo in mid-September 1952, that delay of the contracted deliveries were due to two factors: (a) diversion of rehabilitation crews to F-47Ns for Formosa which frankly had a higher priority and (b) efforts by the contractor to eliminate certain defects discovered in the aircraft recently delivered to Cuba. . . 12. The AMD, unable to walt.forthe arnval of the full complement of USAF MIssion MAAG personnel, arranged to hire a USAF instructor pilot (for $71 0) for thirty days in November to get at least some AMD pilots checked out on the type. 13. Puerto Cabezas was thesame field used byth.e CIA-backed CUb~n liberation forces dunng the III fated Bay of Pigs invaSion. 14. A politically prominent former Guatemalan Army officer chosen as heir designate by the CIA. 15. Still unexplained is an attack on a USAF C-47, on a rescue flight, occuring this same day near Santa Ana, EI Salvador. It IS difficult to believe thiS could have been one of the 'Operation Success' aircraft, although it does not seem likely any other aircraft capab Ie of such an interception were in the area at the time. Although the C-47 was holed, the crew was uninjured. 16. The Thunderbolts were not the FAN's first modern fighters.The tiny, club-like FAN had acquired two Waco WHD two-place fighters and a single Grumman (CCF) G-23 before the war, followed by a trio of Lend-Lease AT-6s, and these more than met the needs of the Republic/Regime until the turbulent post-war period. 17. Son of Nicaragua's dictator Somoza. 18. W.w.(Will) Martin, just prior to his first trip to Nicaragua seeking to buy the survivng Mustangs and F-47s, adds to this crash account: "From what I was told, it probably happened because the mechanics had the habit of rolling up all the noseup trim when taxiing aplane following maintenance. If the pilot didn't catch it on pre-flight, he wouldn't be able to keep the nose from abruptly going up and stalling. 45

Extremely rare in-flight view of three FAP Thunderbolts, two frorr ARP batches (463 and 442) and one RAP (541). Note that the roundel is carried on the upper left wing only, opposite the serial, which was apparently painted on in smaller characters in the second batch of RAP aircraft. No rudder stripes were carried at this time. ("EI Comercio" via Javier Goto)

After spruce up, the next to last incarnation of FAP-115 was as N47DC, but with its correct USAAF serial painted on, at Arizona 31May81. (Dick Phillips)

FAE mechanics look quite busy posing for this shot with one of their ARP P-47Ds at Quito. USAAF stenciling remained on most ARP, MDA and RAP aircraft, in English, until worn off through weathering or solvent scrub-downs. (FAE COL Gary Lape)

46

A fully-marked, FAE ARP-supplied P-47D-30-RA, the fourth example received (after upgrade to D-40) in June 1947, FAE-404. Note that the anti-glare panel, running on aft ofthe canopy, splits andnarrows to fine points on either side of the dorsal fin. (FAE COL Gary Lape)

CPT J.E.M. Motta, on 41-6037s starboard wing, after flying the old bird from Afonsos to Cumbica for a mechanic's school 15Dec44. The aircraft survived then until at least 14 Sep67- its final fate is unknown. (Rui Moreira Lima)

FAB F-47 4191 while displayed, somewhat inaccurately, as wartime C3, in downtown Sao Paulo. It was destroyed during student riots there in 1969. (John M. Davis)

An Allied publicity shot showing P-47D-27-REs 42-26815 in USAAF colors and 42-26777 left rear FA EC-465 poses at Campo Columbia, Cuba with in full FAB colors. 42-26777 never served with the 1QGAvCa or the FAB, ending its days with a US four in the mid-1950s. (Jorge J. Suarez) unit and salvaged in March 1946. (Collect-Air Photos)

Good study of FAP-122, showing rocket stubs and relative positions of the two antennae types on the spine. It became N47DE and later GBLZWon the British civil register, its remains now at the Imperial War Museum in London. (AI Anderson)

The luckless N6148U, ex-PRANG and Nicaraguan GN 72, following bellying in on a Mexican beach enroute back to the US in 1963. (AI Anderson)

FAP-127 after return to Rebel Field and re-erection at CAF Harlingen, Texas. Drop tanks were among the large quantitiy of spares acquired in the deal with Peru. Note however, thatthe rocket stubs ha ve now been removed. (Jay Miller)

CPT Bill C. Redeen leads a total of24 F-47Ds in FE-515 (later FAE-416) towards Kingston, Jamaica, just prior to an unscheduled weather stop at Havana, Cuba. They landed despite Cuban objections as fuel was dangerously low. (L TC Dell C. Toedt)

47

PRANG rebuilds 44-89320. Small but essential parts for this project came from Dominican and V~nezuelanF-47D's spares sources. (Luis Santos)

48

Rare in-fligh t shot of a 198th FS, PRANG F-47N in late markings, without any of the previous embellishments. This is the aircraft restored as N345GP later. (COL Martorani via Luis Santos)

The evolution of 44-89444, last in regular service as seen here, with the PRANG in pristine condition. (H.G. Martin via Robert J. Pickett)

Lightning bolts on the fin and wheel doors of PRANG F-47s are attributed to one of the 198th's founders, Mihel Gilormini. He flew with the 345th FS in WWII which sported similar markings. Here, the unit CO, LTC Alberto Nico, taxies in "Alile IV", a name previously carried on his aircraft in WWll's 107th TRS, 67th TRG. (Jorge Suarez via Luis Santos)

F-47N-5-RE 44-88410 following its accident at Ramey AFB 9Aug48. It was one of the earliest PRNG F-47s. (COL Martorani via Luis Santos)

One of the four FAM P-47Ds cleaned up for a rather spectacular airshow (including some hair-raising low-altitude, high speed passes) at the opening of the new International Airport at Mexico City 1Jun54. (Ing. Adolfo Villasenor via Santiago Flores)

Another of 201 Escuadron 's four P-47Ds at the grand opening ceremony at Mexico City International, 1Jun54. PZT-1016 appears to have had orange bands on wings, fuselage and fin(orat least a different shade of red) while the other three aircraft were definitely deep red. (Santiago Flores)

PZT-1005 with red bands on fuselage and fins trundles past vintage Douglas DC-6 and 7 aircraft 1Jun54. It was one of the four aircraft performing at the Mexico City International grand opening. (Santiago Flores) 49

50

51

Another view of F-47N-5-RE 4488410 following bellying in at Ramey AFB, PR on 9 August 1948. Note Puerto Rican Commonwealth shield on the fuselage (incomplete). (COL Martorani via Luis Santos)

In basically authentic 198th FS, PRANG markings 44-89213, an F-47N25-RE, is seen at the Museum of Speed at Daytona Beach, FL. Fate of the aircraft is unknown. (H.G. Martin via Robert J. Pickett)

The former FAP-122 as she appeared after refurbishment, as N47DE, at an airshow in the US, marked as "2"1"5744" on the fin. (Collect Air Photos)

Decked out in a most ufllikely scheme, F-47N-15-RE N478C (ex-PRANG 44-89436 and GN71) as first exhibited by the CAF. (Thompson Productions)

Displayed at its old facility outdoors at Wright Patterson AFB, OH, 4489444 has been embellished somewhat but, aside from the spurious "invasion" stripes and ordnance, is still basically in PRANG marks. (Collect Air Photos)

FAP-116, following return from Peru as N47DB, marked as "226422" (a P-47D-25-RE- the aircraft is actually an F-47D-30-RA, brought up to D-40 standard by TEMCO) of the wartime 353d FG. (CollectAir Photos)

Former Bolivian "razorback" TP-47D-2-RE, "FAB-007," our candidate for finest restoration-to-airworthiness warbird as "Big Stud". Seen here at Mesa, AZ 1982 NX14519 is in marks of LTC Robert Baseler's 325th FG, 15AF, MTO. (W.B. Slate via Dick Phillips)

52

AppendiX B 1'GAvCa WW II Pilot Roster and Mission Record GLOSSARY OF ABBREVIATIONS Pilot BASC BASP BANT BAFZ BACG BARF PAF PSP AFA CTA CaE EOEIG EEAer EMI-CTA 1'GAvCa 2'/5'GAv 1'/4'GAv NPRF State MUSAL SOC T.O.C. MIA L-L Proj ARP MDA CAC FLC RAP

Base Aerea de Santa Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ Base Aerea de Sao Paulo, Cumbica, State of S Paulo Base Aerea de Natal, Natal, State of Rio Grande do Norte Base Aerea de Fortaleza, Fortaleza, State of Ceara Base Aerea de Campo Grande, Campo Grande, State of Mato Grosso do Sui Base Aerea de Recife, Recife, State of Pernambuco Parque de Aeronautica dos Afonsos (Afonsos Air Depot), Rio de Janeiro Parque de Aeronautica de Sao Paulo (Sao Paulo Air Depot), Marte, SP Academia da Forca Aerea, Pirassununga, State of Sao Paulo Centro Tecnologico de Aeronautica, Sao Jose dos Campos, State of SP Curso de Oficais Especialistas (Specialist Office~s Course), Curitiba, State of Parana Formerly CaE (Escola de Oficiais Especialistas e Infanteria de Guarda), Curitiba, State of Parana Escola de Especialistas da Aeronautica (Academy of Air Force Specialists), Guaratingueta, State of SP Esquadrao Misto de Instrucao do Curso de Tatica Aerea (CTA's mixed training group), at the time of its existence based on BASP l' Grupo de Aviacao de Caca (based at BASC) 2' Esquadrao do 5' Grupo de Aviacao (based at BANT) l' Esquadrao do 4' Grupo de Aviacao (based at BAFZ) Nucleo do Parque de Aeronautica de Recife (Nucleus of Recife Air Depot), Recife, of Pernambuco Museu Aeroespacial at Afonsos Field ( Campo dos Afonsos), Rio, RJ Struck Off Charge/dropped from inventory Taken On Charge/date formally turned over to unit. Missing In Action Lend Lease Project American Republics Project Mutual Defense Assistance Program Caribbean Air Command (USAF) Foreign Liquidation Commission (FLS/US) Reimbursable Aid Program

APPENDIX A DIFFERENCES BETWEEN P-47D AND P-47D-30

P-47D-40 S-1 Bomb rack installed, 1600 Ib capacity; 165 gal wing tanks could be carried. K-14B or C gun sights Five zero rail rocket launchers on each wing Shielding of reduction vibrator & primary ignition leads. Eliminated some radio

P-47D-30 B-1 0 or B-11 racks, B-7 rack on the belly, similar to S-1 in capacity Mk. VIII sights, but M3C available and could be installed. Two launchers each wing, Inboard of bomb racks. Not installed

noise. Provision for quick removal of wing tank adapters. Tail warning radar AN/APS13 Hinged rudder pedals for more leg room Provisions for anti-"G"suit Gun heat valve control

Not installed Not installed Not installed Not installed Not installed

Sorties

2 LT (AV) (Res) Alberto MartinsTorres 2 LT(Av) Helio Langsch Keller CPT (Av) Roberto Pessoa Ramos 2 LT(Av) Pedro de Lima Mendes CPT(Av) Horacia Monteiro Machado 1 LT (Av) Ruy Barbosa Moreira Lima 1 LT(Av)Alvara Eustorgio de Oliveira e Silva 2 LT(Av)Jose Rebello Meira de Vasconcelos 2 LT(Av)Renato Goulart Pereira 1LT(Av) Luiz Lopes 1LT(Av)Newton Neiva de Figueiredo 2LT(Av)Marcos Eduardo Coello de Magalhaes

99

2LT(Av} Leon Roussoul ieres Lara de Araujo CPT (Av)Newton Lagares de Silva 1LT(Av)Luiz Felipe Perdigao Medeiros da

80

95 95

Comments

Esquadrilha Cdr - lost to AA fire on 23 Apr 45 (see appendices)

95

94

Esquadrilha Cdr

94 93 93 93 89 86 85

Downed by AA 30Apr45, parachuted safely and returned to Allied lines Esquadrilha Cdr. Downed by AA22Apr 45, parachuted into enemy territory &POW in hospital for

remainder of war.

Fonseca Asp (Av)(Res)Fernando Correia Rocha Asp (Av)(Res) Diomar Menezes 2LT (Av) Paulo Costa Asp (Av) Roberto Tormin Costa LTC (Av) Nero Moura 2 LT (Av)(Res)Armando de Souza Coelho Asp (Av) Fernando Soares Pereyron Mocellin CPT (Av) Theobaldo Antonio Kopp

79

Esquadrilha Cdr - Grupo Ops Officer from 13Mar45

77 75 71

Lost in combat to AA 30Apr45

68 65 65 62 59 58

1LLT (Av) Othon Correia Netto CPT (Av) Fortunato Camara de Oliveira CPT (Av) Lafayete Canta rino Rodrigues de Souza Asp (Av)(Res)Joao Milton Prates Asp (Av)(Res) Raymundo da Costa Can aria MAJ (Av) Oswaldo Pamplana Pinto Asp (Av)(Res) Frederico Gustavo dos Santos

58

1LT(Av)Josino Maia de Assis

41

1LT(Av)lsmar Ferreira da Costa

34

1LT(Av)Joao Mauricio Campos de Medeiros CPT(Av)Joel Miranda

34

1LT(Av) Roberto Brandini

20

CPT John W. Buyers USAAF Asp(Av)(Res)Fernando de Barros Morgado

21

1LT (A V) Aurelio Viera Sampaio ASP(Av)(Res)Jorge Maia Poucinha

16

LTC Nelson Freire Lavenere-Wanderley

13

2LT(AV)(Res)Danilo Marques Moura

11

1LT(Av)Jose Carlos de Miranda Correa 2LT(AV)(Res) Helio Carlos Cox MAJ (AV)Marcilio Gibson Jacques ·1 Lt(AV)Waldir Paulino Pequeno de Mello ·1 LT(AV) Rolland Rittmeister 1 LT(Av)John Rich~rdson de Cordeiro e Silva

8

56 55 55 51 47 44

31

19

16

6 2

1'GavCa Commander Shot down by AA 9Apr45 and parachuted safely and returned to Allied lines. Lost in combat to AA 2Jan45 Esquadrilha Cdr. Downed by AA on 7Mar45,parachuted safely and hid by partisanos. Downed by AA 26Mar45, parachuted safely buit POW for remainder of war. Esquadrilha Cdr. Removed from fit. status for medical reasons 9Mar45. Esquadrilha Cdr. Removed from fit status for medical reasons 9Mar45 Removed from flight status for medical reasons 9Mar45. Downed by AA 15Feb45 and parachuted into very friendly FEB hands 1'GAvCAOps Officer. Removed from fit status for medical reasons 10Mar45 Killed in combat 13Apr45 when a munitions dump exploded under his aircraft during an attack Downed by AA 21 Jan45,Parachuted safely and taken POW for remainder of war Removed from fit status for medical reasons 9Feb45

Esquadrilha Cdr. Downed by AA on 4Feb 45 but parachuted safely, being harbored by partisanos. Downed by AA 10Feb45,parachuted safely but spent remainder of war as a POW Official U.S. Liaison officer attached to 10GAvCa during the war Arrived in the Theater only in the last month of operations and commenced ops on 11 Apr45 Killed in combat by AA 22Jan45 Arrived in the Theater only in last month of operations and commenced ops 12Apr45 FAB Liaison Officer to Allied Forces in the Mediterranean. Highly respected for his his postwar historical writing Downed by AA 4Feb45 but "walked out" nearly 200 miles through enemy territory in 21 daysl 1°GAvCa Intelligence Officer Removed from fit status for medical reasons 14Nov44 Commander of the Ground Echelon of the 1°GAvCa Killed in an accident on 16Nov44 Killed in an accident on 16Nov44 Killed in combat by AA 6Nov44

. The crash which killed these two young officrs involved a collision with a C-47 which was carrying two Brazilian photographers and the aircraft of these two pilots. The photographers, tragically, were taking photos of a formation of four of the 1)GAvCa aircraft for use at home when the C-47 was hit by one of the P-47s. See detailed appendices for more.

53

APPENDIX D .;-

MISSION DAMAGE DETAILS FOR MEXICAN ESCUADRON 201

APPENDIXC ESCUADRON 201 PILOT ROSTER AND MISSION RECORD RANK/NAME 1'CPT (PA) Radames Gaxiola Andrade 2'CPT (PA) Pablo L. Rivas Martinez

SORTIES 11 13

COMMENTS Escuadron Commander Escuadron Deputy CO; went MIA on a transport flight 19Jul45

Escuadrilla "A" 2'CPT (PA) Robert Legorreta Sicilia Lt (P.A.) Fernando Hernandez Vega LT (PA) Carlos Varela Landini LT(P.A.)Graco Ramirez Garrido SubLT(P.A.) Jose Luis Pratt Ramos Sub LT(P.A.)Miguel Uriarte Aguilar Sub LT (PA) David Ceron Bedolla

11

Escuadrilla Commander

7 10 11 12 11

Date

Claimed

4Jun45 One building damaged; m.g.nest destroyed 5Jun45 One large building destroyed 5Jun45 Buildings destroyed, possibly also some tanks 6Jun45 One building and an AA position destroyed 6Jun45 Several buildings destroyed 6Jun45 One building destroyed 6Jun45 One house burned 15Jun45 One building destroyed 15Jun45 One small ship possibly sunk 17Jun45 Vehicles destroyed and two trucks set afire 18Jun45 Two A.A. positions destroyed 20 Jun45 One m.g. position destroyed 21 Jun45 One M.g. position destroyed 21Jun45 Many building left burning at target *; Although this is the final mission in which damage records were maintained it was by no means the last mission. Intensive operations continued until 9 July 1945, inclUding four fighter sweeps against Formosa. No more missions were flown after that in July, but two more were moun1ed in August: another air attack on Formosa and a convoy escort mission north of the P.I., bringing the total missions actually flown to fOrty-two.

6 Escuadrilla "B"

LT(P.A.) Carlos Garduno Nunez LT(P.A.) Julio Cal y Mayor Suaz LT(P.A.) Reynaldo Perez Gallardo SubLT(P.A.) Miguel Moreno Arreola SubLt (P.A.)Praxedis Lopez Ramos SubLT (PA)Angel Sanchez Rebollo SubLT (PA) Fausto Vega Santander

5

Escuadrillo Commander, killed in an accident 17 June 45

12 12 11

9 11 (0)

Escuadrilla "C": LT(P.A.) Hector Espinosa Galvan ALT (P.A.) Joaquin Ramirez Vilchis LT(P.A.)Carlos Rodriguez Corona LT(P.A.)Amador Samano Pina SubLT(PA) Raul Garcia Mercado SubLT(PA) Guillermo Garcia Ramos SubLT(P.A.) Manuel Farias Rodriguez

11

APPENDIX E FAV THUNDERBOLT PILOTS

Killed in a flying accident 1Jun45

Escuadrilla Commander, killed in a ferry mission 16 Jul45

YEAR OF COMMISSION 1938

10 1941 10 1941** 11 1942 10 10

1943·* Rescued following a successful parachute jump while flying as CPT Martinez' Wingman on 20Jul45

8

1943 1945 1946 1946

Escuadrilla "D" LT(P.A.) Amadeo Castro Almanza LT(P.A.) Jacobo Estrada Luna LT(P.A.)Jose Luis Barbosa Cerda Sub LT.(PA) Mario Lopez Portillo SubLT (P.A.) Roberto Urias Aveleyra SubLT(P.A.)Jaime Zeniso Rojas SubLT(P.A.) Justina Rayos Retina

12

1947

11 12 12

1947**

Escuadrilla Commander

Killed on a ferry flight, 21 Jul45

12 14

3 USAAF Pilots Attached 1LT Sheridan Kenny, Jr. 1LT William L. Kester 1LT John J. Haley 2LT Howard B. Riggs

NAME Mayor Angel Ramirez Avaendano Mayor Carlos Alberto Maldonado CAP Nestor Porfirio Rodriguez CAP Buenaventura Vivas Guerrero CAP Alberto Delgado Ontiveros Mario Araujo Rojas Tte Jesus Eladio Torres Monsalve . TteRoosevelt Adrianza Galvis Tte Rafael Maria Ferrer Reyes Sub Tte Edgar Suarez Mier y Teran

LATER RANK First Group CO Coronel

(Killed as a Major) Lt. General Coronel (Killed in a P-47 crash, 5Sep47) Lt. General (killed in P-47 crash 25 Nov 49) Lt. General (Bailed out of an F-47 during gunnery training over Lago Valencia, aircraft lost but he parachuted safely) Coronel (Bailed out of F-47 when engine failed in Aragua state)

SubTte Alberto Vivas Serrano 1947* SubTte Humberto Colmenares Rivera 1947 SubTte Rafael Ascanio (Killed in F-47 crash 4JuI51) Gonzalez La Greca 1947 SubTte Agustus Berzales Maj. General Morales 1948 SubTte Hugo Armando Araque Coronel 1948·* SubTte Ruben Perez Arrieta Mayor 1949·* SubTte Carlos Pica Arias 1949·*&* SubTte Alvaro Bracho Rios Lt. General 1949 Sub TteOscar Ali Araque Angulo Lt. General 1950 SubTte Daniel Enrique Robayo Quintero Lt. General 1954 SubTte Luis Ivan Lt. General Martinez Lazaro A1terez Jesus Garcia Segura student pilot killed in F-47 crash 22Mar51 Notes: *These pilots were also involved in Thunderbolt accidents in which they escaped successfully but in which their aircraft were either destroyed or suffered extensive damage. **These pilots took part in "Operation Caiman" against Colombian forces in September, 1952

54

APPENDIX F FORCA AEREA BRASILEIRA THUNDERBOLTS IN ITALY USAAF SERIAL

SUBTYPE

T.O.C.

42-26450

P-47D-25-RE

280ct44

l'GAvCa Code

Notes

Subsequent FAB Serial

Accepted USAAF 15Apr44. Dpld US 9Jun44. To 12GAvCa 26 Jul44. An aircraft with this serial is displayed at Guarpes AFB, Recife but the actual 42-26450 was SOC as4104 (see) 17 Mar58

4104

41-26753

P-47D-25-RE

280ct44

(A 2)

42-26754 41-26755 42-26756 42-26757 42-26758 42-26759

P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE P-47d-25-RE P-47D-25-RE

Accepted USAAF 8May44. Dptd US Jun44. Wriuen off in a training night Montalto di Castro, 10 miles N offarquinia 7Nov44, killing 2LT Oldegard O. Sapucaia. Lost before unit code could be applied Alloted to Brasil on History Card but returned to US or Allied unit on 26 Ju144.

280ct44 280cl44 280ct44 19Nov44 28Oct44

(A3) A4 A5 unknown

Accepted Acccpted Accepted Accepted

BI

42- 26760 42-26761

P-47D-25-RE P-47 --25-RE

28Oct44 280ct44

03(2) (C6)

42-26762 42-26763

P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE

19Jan45 280ct44

CI (B 3)

USAAF 8May44. USAAF 8May44. USAAF 9May44. USAAF 9May44.

Dptd Dptd Dptd Dptd

US US US US

2Jun44. Suffered damage on take-off Pisa 18Jan45 but repaired 2Jun44. 2LTAIberto Torres'air craft, new over 100 mission in this aircrafl. 31May44 IJun44. Damaged by nak IOFeb45 but repaired Accepted USAAF 9May44. Dpld US IJun44. Shot down 4Feb45 3km SE of Castel franco, CPT Joel Miranda parachuted and was hidden

4105 4106 4107 4108

by partisans

01 01

4109

Accepted by USAAF 9May44. Dptd US 2Jun44

Crashed 7Feb45 on take~off at Pisa. Caught fire. Ensign Fernando S. Pereyron Mocelin survived. Code actually painted on the aircraft yet.

"C~6"

believed assigned but not

Accepted 9May44. Dptd US 31 May44. 3d Flight (Blue) leader's personal aircraft. (CPT Fortunato)

42-26764

P-47D-25-RE

280ct44

unknown

42-26765 42-26766

P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE

280ct44

B4

Accepted USAAF 9May44. Dptd US 2Jun44. Damaged Tarquinia 26Nov44. Shot down 26Mar45 2 miles W of Codruipo, ILT Othon

42-26767 42-26768 42-26769 42-26770 42-26771 42-26772 42-26773

P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE P-47D-25-RE

280ct44

B5

Correia Neto becoming a POW. (Same serial no. later turned up on FAB P~47 sold to Bill Destefani, Shafter, CA. Alloted to Brazil 15Jan45 on History Card but apparently diverted. Condemned and salvaged due to unknown cause 18May45. Accepled USAAF 9May44. Dptd US 2Jun44. Shot down 2Jan45 5 miles NW of Alessandria, ILT Joao Mauricio Campos de Medeiros killed. Alloted to Brazi115Jan45 on History Card but apparently diverted. Condemned due to a mid-air collision 20Aug45. Alloted to Brazil 15Jan45 on History Card but apparently diverted. LOSIIO flak 24Apr45 Alloted to Brasil 15Jan45 on History Card but apparently diverted. Condemned due to unknown cause and salvaged 13Apr45

2Jan45 28Oct44

unknown D6

42-26774

P-47D-27-RE

280cl44

(B 2)

42-26775 42-26776

P-47D-27-RE P-47D-27-RE

19Nov44

B5 (A 2)

4110

Accepted 9May44. Dptd US 31 May44. Damaged Tarquinia 61an45 and shot down 15Feb45, Ensign Raymundo da C. Canario O,K. in friendly territory. Accepted USAAF 9May44. Dpld US 11un44. Damaged extensively taking off at Pisa 21 Apr45 when tire blew oul. CPT Roberto Pessoa Ramos OK but aircraft total loss. Alloted to Brazil on History Card but apparently diverted to US unit, with whom it crashed IOMay45.

Accepted USAAF IOMay44. Optd US 3 IMay44 Accepted USAAF 10May44. Dptd US 31 May44. Shot down Scandiano.13km SE of Reggio Nell'Emilia 22Apr45. 2LT Marcos E. Coelho

4111

de Magal was taken POW. This was the last of 385 P-47D-25-REs built. Accepted USAAF 10Muy44. Dptd US 181un44. Damaged al Tarquinia 30Nov44. Overshot the runway taking off from Pisa 17Feb45 and caught fire. Ensign Joao Milton Prates OK. Aircraft condemned 20Feb45. Accepted USAAF IOMay44. Dptd US Jun44. Shot down IOFeb45 12 km E of Ostiglia. ILT Roberto Brandini badly injured and taken POW. Accepted USAAF 15May44. Dptd US 31 May44. Shot down 7Mar45 3.5 km NNE of Reggio Nell'Emilia, CPT Theobaldo A. Kopp parachuted

safely and was hidden by partisani. Code has also been given as D~l. Alloted to Brazil on Lend-Lease account 151an45 and photos exisl bearing FAB insignia. However, apparently diverted in July to a USAAF unit, with whom it served out the war until condemned and salvaged on 24Mar46,

42-26777

P-47D-27-RE

42-26778 42-26779 42-26780 42-26781 42-26782 42-26783

P-47D-27_RE P-47D-27-RE P-47D-27-RE P-47D-27-RE P-47D-27-RE P-47D-27-RE

28Oct44 28Oct44 28Oct44

(C2) C3 C4

Accepted USAAF 10May44. Dptd US Jun44. Accepted USAAF 10May44. Dptd US Jun44 Accepted USAAF 17May44. Dptd US 18Jun44. Heavily damaged by nak 25Apr45. repaired.

280ct44 280ct44

unknown

AHoted to Brazil's Lend-Lease account 15Jan45 but apparently diverted to an allied unit. Condemned and salvaged 28Nov45. Accepted USAAF IOMay44. Dpld US 41un44. Shot down Nov44 near Bologna, ILT 10hn Richardson de Cordeiro e Silva killed.

2

Accepted USAAF 17May44. Dptd US 4Jun44. History card (probably in error) gives as a P-47D-25-RE. Damaged 19Nov44 at Tarquinia. Shot down 4Feb45 2km E of Castelfranco, 2LTDaniio Marques Movia parachuted into enemy territory. Fate unknown.

42-26784

P-47D-27-RE

280ct44

Al

42-26785 42-26786 42-26787

P-47D-27-RE P-47D-27-RE P-47D-27RE

Accepled USAAF 13May44. DPld US 41un44. Shot down 9Apr45 2km W of Mandriolo, near Lake Comacchio. 2LT Annandode Souza Coelho Coelho parachuted safely into friendly territory. Alloted to Brazil on Lend-Lease account 151an45 bUI gained back to USAAF 30Jan45. Condemned in Europe.

280ct44

D4

42-26788

P-47D-27-RE

280ct44

42-26789 42-28986 42-29265 44-19659 44-19660 44-19661 44-19662 44-19663 44-19664 44-19665

P-47D-27-RE P-47D-28-RA P-47D-28-RA P-47D-28-RE P-47D-28-RE P-47D-28-RE P-47D-28-RE P-47D-28-RE P-47D-28-RE P-47D-28-RE

44-19666

P-47D-28-RE

Accepted USAAF 13May44. Dptd US 4Jun44.

4112 4113 4115

4114

Alloted 10 Brazil on Lend-Lease account 151an45 and photo exists bearing FAB insignia. Condemned by 9thAF as "missing in action" on 28Feb45, however; never served with FAB. unknown

Accepted USAAF 13May44. Dptd US 4Jun44. Damaged by nak 6Feb45. Written-off in a landing on

2Jun45 (apparently not an authorized flight, as the aircrafdt had been delivered to Capodichino on lJun45 for shipment back 10 Brazil.) ABoted to Brazil on Lend~Lease account 151an45 but apparently diverted to another allied unit. Went MIA in Europe 25Apr45, 19Jan45 12Feb45 28Oct44 28Oct44 28Oct44 280ct44 280ct44

B 6 (2) uknown unknown (C5) D2 D5 (A 6)(2)

280ct44

A6(1)

280ct44

B 6(1)

Dptd US 18Sep44. Damaged landing at Pisa 22Apr45, 2LTn R. Lara de Araujo OK.

4116

Dptd US 270ct44. Damaged landing at Pisa 14Feb45, Ensign 10rge Maia Poucinha OK 4117 Accepted USAAF 17JuI44. Dptd US 25Jul44. Crashed 16Nov44 near Tarquinia after mid~air collision with C-47 camera plane. Pilol parachuted safely. Accepted USAAF IJu144. Dptd US 25Jul44

4118

Accepted USAAF 15Jul44, Dptd US 251ul44. Shot down 29Jan45 7 km S of Piacenza. ILT Josino Maia de Assis parachuted but takcn POW. Accepted USAAF 17JuI44. Dptd US 25Jul44. Usually nown by 2LT Meira 93 missions. Accepted USAAF 14Ju144. Optd US 2Aug44.

Alloted to Brazil's Lend~Lcasc account but gained back to USAAF; lost to flak 20Mar45. AcceplCd USAAF 14Ju144.Dptd US 251u144. Damaged 21NovShol down 23Dec44 near Ostiglia, ILT Ismael da Molla Paes parachuted safely but was taken prisoner. Accepted USAAF 17Ju144. Dpld US 25Jul44. Shot down 22Jun45 3 km E of Milano, lLT Aurelio Vieira Sampaio killed.

4119 4120

FORCA AEREA BRASILEIRA THUNDERBOLTS IN ITALV USAAF SERIAL 44-19667 44-19668 44-20338

SUBTYPE P-47D-28-RE P-47D-28-RE P-47D-28-RE

T.O.C. 280<'44

l'GAvCa CODE (B2)

12Feb45

C6

44-20339

P-47D-30-RE

20Feb45

D3

44-20340 44-20341 44-20342 44-20343 44-20344 44-20345 44-20346 44-20347 44-20799 44-20800 44-20801 44-20802 44-20803 44-20804 44-20805 44-20806 44-20850 44-20854 44-21022 44-21093 44-33090 44-33093 44-33097

P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-3Q-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-3Q-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D·30·RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE P-47D-30-RE

NOTES SUBSEQUENT FAB SERIAL Accepted USAAF 171ul44. Dptd US 251ul44. Written off in training flight over Lake Massaciuccioli 7Jan45, Ensign Frederico G. Santos OK. AHoted to Brazil's Lend-Lease account Aug 4 . but gained to USAAF 5Mar45. Aircraft was apparently salvaged, reasons unknown 17Sep44. Accepled USAAF 19Sep44. Dpld US 90
Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 151a045. Fate unknown. Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 15Jan45. Salvaged in Europe. Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 15Jan45. Salvaged in Europe. 12Feb45

8Mar45 (9Nov44) (9Nov44) (15Nov44) (6Nov44) (6Nov44) 23Feb45 23Feb45 19Apr45 19Apr45 19Apr45 20Feb45 19Apr45

unknown

(B4)

DI (A I) 2 (I) 2 (2)

unknown B3 unknown

Accepted USAAP 20Sep44. Dpld US 30cl44. Temporarily diverted to USAAF bUI reallocated to Brazil Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 15Jan45. MIA 20Feb45. Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account bUI gained back to USAAP 15Jan45. Served in Europe until 19May48. Accepled to USAAF 31 Oct44Dpld US 18Nov44.Gained back from Brazil's L-L account 15Jan45. MIA 28Feb45. Accepled USAAF 31 OCI44. Dpld US 18Nov 44. Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 15Jan45. Fate unknown Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 15Jan45. Passed to Turkish Air Force by 17May48. Alloted 10 Brazil Lend-Lease accounl bUI gained back 10 USAAF 15Jan45. Spenl rest of days in USAFE. Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 15Jan45. Passed to Turkish Air Force. Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 15Jan45. Salvaged in Europe. Alloted to Brazil Lend-Lease account but gained back to USAAF 15Jan45. Salvaged in Europe. Dptd US 29Dec44 . Dpld US 6Dec44. Shot down 26Aapr45 Alessandria railroad station, ILT Luis Lopes Domelles killed Operations Officers aircraft (CPT Lagares, the second Ops Officer and former Green Flight leader.) History Card says condemned due to flak damage, but was apparently shipped home to Brazil anyway. Accepled USAAF 14Dec44. Dpld US 15Jan45 Accepled USAAF 13Dec44. Dpld US 24Jan45.

4121

4122

4125 4126 4127 4128

Farea Aerea Brasileira Postwar Thunderbolts

Readers will quickly note that the post-war FAB seriaLing sequence (consisting of the FAB designation - which usually agreed with the US designation, and which was con~idered a pan of the serial- and a four digit number) commenced with 4103 instead of the logica14100. This is because, for some reason, the FAB assigned serial 4100,4101 and 4102 to Curtiss P-40Ns and a P-40K. Serials 4148 and 4149 were also assigned to Curtiss P-40K-15s for obscure reasons. FAB Serial FAB History USAAFSerial ~ P-47B 4103 RP-47B-RE 41-6037 Aew Alfonso-Cumbica 15Dec 44. Received by lOGM17Dec45 for ground instruction. SOC from EEAer 14Sep67. P-47D4104 P-47D-25-RE 42-26450 Allocaled 7Jan46 to l"GAvCa al BASC. 10 PAF 60
U1 -..j

P-47D 4138 P-47D 4139

P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA

45-49243 45-49244

P-47D 4140 P-47D 4141 P-47D 4142 P-47D 4143 P-47D4144 P-47D4145 P-47D4146 P-47D4147 P-47D 4150 P-47D 4151 P-47D 4152 P-47D 4153

P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-40-RA P-47D-40-RA P-47D-40-RA P-47D-40-RA

45-49245 45-49246 45-49247 45-49249 45-49251 45-49252 45-49256 45-49262 44-90294 44-90334 44-90344 44-90393

P-47D 4154 P-47D4155

P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA

44-49107 44-49109

P-47D4156 P-47D4157

P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA

45-49126 45-49241

P-47D4158 P-47D4159 P-47D4160

P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA

45-49242 45-49266 45-49282

P-47D 4161 P-47D 4162

P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA

45-49303 45-49325

P-47D 4163

P-47D-30-RA

45-49352

P-47D 4164

P-47D-30-RA

45-49357

P-47D4165 P-47D 4166 P-47D 4167 P-47D 4168

P-47D-3Q-RA P-47D-3Q-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA

45-49359 45-49361 45-49380 45=49411

P-47D 4169 P-47D 4170 P-47D 4171

P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA

45-49430 45-49436 45-49485

P-47D 4172 P-47D 4173 P-47D 4174 F-47 4175

P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA F-47D-40-RA

45-49489 45-49526 45-49541 44-90460

F-47 F-47

4176 4177

F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA

45-49090 45-49095

F-47 F-47 F-47

4178 4179 4180

F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA

45-49096 45-49104 45-49110

F-47

4181

F-47D-30-RA

45-49130

F-47

4182

F-47D-30-RA

45-49135

F-47

4183

F-47D-3Q-RA

45-49149

F-47

4184

F-47D-30-RA

45-49151

F-47

4185

F-47D-30-RA

45-49168

F-47

4186

F-47D-30-RA

45-49233

F-47

4187

F-47D-30-RA

45-49269

F-47 F-47

4188 4189

F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA

45-49276 45-49300

F-47 F-47

4190 4191

F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA

45-49302 45-49346

L-L Proj. 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5-45. Allocated 7Jan46 to lQ(JAvCa at BASe. To BASe 7Oct47. Damaged 24Sep52 at BASe. To PAF 15JuJ53. To PSP 9May55. Cannibalized. SOC I7Mar58.

L-L Proj. 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5-45. Allocated 7Jan46 to I'GAvCa at BASe. To BASC 7Oct47. ToPAF 27Feb53. To BANT 27Oct54. To BAFZ IlJu157. To CTA 3Feb58 for ground instruction. Broken up. L-L Proj. 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5-45. Allocated 7Jan46 to I'GAvCa at BASC. Damaged in Territory of Amapa 1945. To PSP 70ct47 and SOC I7Mar58. L-L Proj. 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5-45. Allocated 7Jan46 to l"GAvCa al BASC. To PAF IONov47. To PSP 9May55. Cannibalized. SOC 17Mar58. L-L Proj. 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5-45. Allocated 7Jan46 to I"GAvCa al BASC. Written off 14Apr48 at Sepetiba, RJ. Officially SOC 13May48. L-L Project 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5-45. Allocated 7Jan46 to l"GAvCa at BASe. To PAF IONov47. To PSP 9May55. Cannibalized. SOC 17Mar58. L-L Project 9438t-Z ex-Kelly Fietd, 7-5-45. Allocated 7Jan46 to I"GAvCa at BASe. To BASC 7Oct47. To PSP 28Jan54. To BANT 19Sep56 but order cancelled, To BAFZ IOJan57. SOC 2Dec58. L-L Proj. 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5--45. Allocated 7Jan46 to l"GAvCa at BASC . To PAF IONov47. To PSP 9May55. Cannibalized. SOC 17Mar58. L-L Proj. 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5-45. Allocated 7Jan46 to l"GAvCa at BASC. To BASC 7Oct47. Written off at BASC 16Jan53 killing 2LTGilson da Silva Brandao. Officially SOC 170ct56. L-L Proje. 94381-Z ex-Kelly Field, 7-5-45. Last Lend-Lease Thunderbolt for Brazil. Allocated 7Jan46 to I'GAvCa at BASe. To PAF IONov47. To PSP 9May55. Cannibalized. SOC 17Mar58. ARP 73002 7Ju147. FAB records show this as 44-40294, but this was a B-24J. History Card confirms 44-90294. Allocated 3Dec47 to BASC. Written off at Cumbica, SP 19Dec48. SOC 14Jun49. ARP 73002 5Jun47. Ex-Kelly Field. Allocated lONov47 to BASC. To PAF 6Aug52. To PSP 7Jan54. To BANT 4Jun56 but order cancelled. To BAFZ IOJan57. SOC 2Dec58. ARP 73002 5Jun47 ex-Kelly Field. Allocated to BASC IONov47. Written off 25May49 at Santa Cruz. Officially SOC 9Aug 49. ARP 73002 71un47. Had suffered an accident in USAAF service 8May45 and served in tum at Strother, La Junta, Independence ATe, Tinker and KeUy Fields. Allocated lONov47 to BASe. Ditched into Sepetiba Bay near Ibieui, RJ 222May51. SOC 2lSep51. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-2AF Abilene, Independence AMC/ATC{finker, Kelly. Allocated to BASC IONov47. Written off at Santa Cruz 18Oct48. SOC 13Dec48. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-2AF Ft Sumner NM, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. May have been converted to D-40 standard. Allocated 10 Nov47 to BASC. To PSP 28Dec53. To BANT 23Jul56 but order cancelled. to BAFZ IOJan57. SOC 2Dec58. ARP 73002 5Ju047. ex-Ft Sumner NM, Independence. Tinker, Kelly. Ditched into sea near Tallahassee, Rorida 13Aug47 on delivery flight to Brazil. Marks 4156 probably assigned retroactively. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-Abilene, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. May have been converted 10 D-40 standard. Allocated lONov47 to BASC. Crashed at Santa Cruz 27Aug52 killing lLT Ruy Alvara Silveira de Araujo.SOC 170ct56 officially. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-Abilene, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated IONov47 to BASC. To PAF 24Aug53. To PSP 9May55. Cannibalized. SOC 17Mar58. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-Ft Sumner, NM, La Junta, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated IONov47 to BASC. To PSP IOFeb54. SOC 7Aug58. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-FI Sumner, NM, La JunIa, Indendence, Tinker, Kelly. Allocated 31 Dec47 to BASe. To PSP 27Nov52. To BANT 21Mar55. To BAFZ 111u157. Suffened accidents on 18Oct56 and 7May57. SOC 2lJu158. Probably upgraded to D-40. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-Abilene, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Probably upgraded 10 0-40. Allocated to BASC lONov47. To PSP 211an54, To BAFZ 14May57. To PSP 14Jan58. SOC 18Dec58. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-Strother, La Juntra, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated to BASC IONov47. Exploded in mid-air 4Dec52 during bombing praclice near Santa Cruz. ILT Carlos Braga Mafra Magalhese killed. SOC 270ct54. ARP 73002 90ct47. Ex-Abilene, Love Ad, Cincinatti, OH, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Probably upgraded to D-40. Probably a replacement aircraft for FAB 4156 (see above). Received by the FAB in the US lJan with TTl 60:20. Delivered to the ferry pilot 23Feb48. Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated 3Dec48 to BASe. Collided during take off from BASC 15Apr52 with FAB P-47 4122. SOC officially 13Aug52. 2LT Joao Carlos Carvalho Goncalves killed in the collision. ARP 73002 8Oct47. ex-Abilene, Love Ad, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Allocated 2Mar48 to EMICTA. Destroyed in emergency landing at Cumbica (BASP) 30Jan50, Killing 1LT Landulfo Alves de Almeida Fi1ho. SOC 12May50. ARP 73002 lOOct47. ex-Abilene, Love Ad, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Allocated 2Mar4810 EMICTA. To BASC 19DECSO. Written off in Caravelas, Bahia IlJul51. SOC 9Jan52. ARP 73002 lOOct47. ex-Abilene, Love Ad, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated IONov47 to BASC. To PSP 5Jan54. SOC Aug58. ARP 73002 7Ju147. Ex-Selfridge, Chicago, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated to BASC 6Oct48. To PSP 15Mar54. SOC 17Mar58. ARP 73002 7Ju147. Ex-Abilene, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Allocated 2Mar48 to EMI-CTA. To BASC 19Dec50. To PSP 5Jan54. To BANT 19Nov56 but order cancelled. To BAFZ IOJan57. ToPSP 3Feb58. SOC 18Dec58. Probably upgraded to D-40. ARP 73002 7Ju147. ExHill, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated to BASC 13May48. To PAF 5Jan53. To BANT 270c154. Written off 27Jul56 at Natal, RGN SOC 30Apr57. ARP 73002 71uI47. ex ATSC storage, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. Allocated to BASC 24Mar48. Written off near Ita Canal, Santa Cruz, 23Apr48. Soc 26May48. ARP 73002 7Ju147. ex-Kelly. Allocated to-BASC IONov47. To PSP IOFeb54. To BAFZ IIJuI57. To PSP 14Nov58. To EOEIG for ground inslrUctFranion 289. Officially SOC 2May66. Probably upgraded to 040. This is the aircraft preserved at Curitiba. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex-Kelly. Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated to BASC IONov47. To PSP 28Dec53. SOC 7Aug58. ARP 73002 5Jun47. ex Probably upgraded to D-40. Allocated to BASC IONov7. To PAF 2lJan54. to PSP 9May55. Cannibalized. SOC 17Mar58. ARP 73002 5Jun47. Ex Probably upgraded to D-40. Last ARP P-47 for Brazil. Allocaled IONov47 to BASC. To PSP 5Jan54. SOC 7Aug58. MDA570. TEMCO refurbished. Allocated to PSP 300ct53. To BANT 26Apr54. To BAFZ IlJu157. To NPRF 18Ju157. SOC 18Dec58. This is the aircraft that was displayed for some years at BARF painted as the wartime 42-26450. Transferred to MUSAL mid 1987. MDA570. TEMCO refurbished. ex-Tinker, 108th FB Wing Godman, 149th FS, VANG. Allocated to PSP 30Oct53. To BANT 26Apr54. To BAFZ IlJu157. SOC 2Dec58. MDA570. TEMCO refurbished probably to D-40. ex-Henselyand 149th FS, VANG. MDA handover date given officially as 27Jul49 but this is probably the date set aside for MDA use. Allocated 300ct53 to PSP. To BANT 5May54. Mid-air collision with F-47 4197 over Natal, RGN 311u156, both craShing. 2LT Carlos Ariel Melo de Miranda killed. SOC 28Dec56. Also assigned at one time to 108thFB Wing, ANG. MDA570 IOSep53. TEMCO refurbished. ex-Hensley, 158th FS, Hunter Field and I36th A:S, Niagara Falls. Allocated 300ct53 10 20/50 GAv at BANT. Written off taking off from BANT 8Feb54. SOC 6Jun55. MDA570 IOSep53. TEMCO refurbished, probably to D-40. ex-l04th FS, MDANG, Tinker. Allocated to PSP 300ct53. To BANT t IAug54. Written off when taking off from BANT 5Nov 54. SOC IFeb55. MDA570 30Ju149. TEMCO refurbished, probably to D-40.MDA date probably the date set aside for Allocation. ex-108th FB Wing, Godman, 149th FS, VANG, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT. Accident 130ct55. Written off al BANT 14Mar56 when it stalled during a peel off killing ILT Francisco Borges dos Sanlos Silva. SOC t l1u156. MDA570 IOSep53 TEMCO refurbished, probably to D-40. ex-105th FS, TANG, Berry, Tinker, Hensley. Ferried (as were most MDA aircraft) with full marks and "buzz" numbers as TE-130. Allocated 300ct53 to PSP. To BANT 31Aug54. To BAFZ 6Jun57. SOC 2Dec58. Monument aircraft at BAFZ. Also served with USAFs 469th FS at MGE at one point. MDA570 IOSep53 TEMCO refurbished, probably to D-40. ex-128th FS, GANG, 156thFS Douglas, 139th FS Grenier, Schnectady, Tinker. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT To BAFZ IlJu157. SOC 2Dec58. MDA570 13Aug53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-149thFS. BANG, 108th FB Wing Godman, Tinker, alloted 10 PSP 300ct 53. To BANT 31Aug 54. Damaged in an emergency landing at Aracati, Ceara 6Nov56/ SOC 19Jun57. MDA570 13Aug53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-149thFS. BANG, 108th FB Wing Godman, Tinker. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT. To PSP 23Jan57. To BAFZ IlJu157. To PSP 14Nov58. To eTA ground instruction. soc 18Sep67. To MUSAL. Now being refurbished to return to flying condition. MDA570 13Aug53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-148th FS, PANG, 149th FS VANG, 108th FB Wing Turner/Godman, 405th FB Wing Godman, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated to PSP 300ct53. To BANT 31Aug54. Written off in Natal, RGN 18Apr56, SOC 28Dec 56. MDA570 13Aug53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-149thFS. BANG, 108th FB Wing Turner, San Angelo, Godman, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct to PSP. To BANT 28Feb55. Crash landed at BANT 16Aug56, SOC 30Apr57. MDA570 IOSep53TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-I49thFS. BANG, 108th FB Wing Turner/Godman, Tinkersely. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT. To PSP 12May55. To BANT 8Feb56. To NPRF 23May57 SOC 18Dec58. MDA570 IOSep53TEMCO refurbished 10 D-40. ex-l04th FS MDANG, Dover, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated to 20/50 GAv 300ct53 at BANT. SOC 22Nov56. MDA570 IOSep53TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-I04th FS MDANG, Dover, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated toPSP 300ct53. To BANT 12Aug54. Written off 171an55 at Redinha, Natal, RGN after engine trouble; landed in a SOC 221un55. MDA570 lOSep53TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-149th FS, VANG, 108th FB Wing Godman, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT. To BAFZ IlJu157. SOC 2Dec58. MDA570 IOSep53TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex 105th FS Berry, Tiunker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv 300ct53 at BANT. To PSP 18Feb57 To BAFZ 6Juo57. To PSP 14Jan58. To CTA 14Jan6 for ground instruction. To QG4ZA 130ct66 (Hqs, 4th Air Zone). SOC 18Sep67. Monument for a period in the city of Sao Paulo later transferred to AFA where it is preserved. Reportedly will be transferred to MUSAL.

01 CO

F-47

4192

F-47D-30-RA

45-49406

F-47

4194

F-47D-30-RA

45-49451

F-47

4194

F-47D-30-RA

45-49508

F-47

4195

F-47D-30-RA

45-49535

F-47D-30-RA

45-49542

F-47

4196

F-47

4197

F-47D-30-RA

4549548

F-47

4198

F-47D-30-RA

45-49523

F-47

4199

F-47D-30-RA

45-49100

MDA570 lOSep53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-138th FS, NYANG, 141st FS, NJANG, 108th FE Wing Turner/Godman, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT. To PSP 18Feb57. To BAFZ. I 11uI57. To PSP 141an58. To CTA 14Jan60 for ground instruction. Later preserved at BACG, later transferred to BANT in 1986 where it was preserved. Now has U.S. civil registration, N7159Z eff. Ju1l990. MDA570. A mixed history. Originally allocated to CAC for FLC to Peru (ARP) 211u147 but may have been one of the aircraft damaged enroute. Apparently returned to the US for TEMCO overhaul and to Brazil in Sep53. Allocated 300ct53 to PSP. To BANT 20Dec54. To BAFZ 11 Ju157. To PSP 14Jan58 and SOC 18Dec58. MDA570 IOSep53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-149th FS, VANG, 108th FB Wing Turner, San Angelo, Godman, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT. To PSP 29Aug55. To BANT 41un56 but order cancelled. To BAFZ lOlan57. Written off BAFZ 11u157 when stalled on peel off (probably the last FAB F-47 lost in an operatonal accident), killing Ensign Carlos Montenegro Cabral Vasconcelos. SOC 2IJu158. MDA570 lOSep53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-134th FS VTANG, 141 st NJANG, 108th FB Wing Tumer/Godman,Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT. Written off when taking off from BANT 14Jun56. SOC IJu157. MDA5701OSep53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-134th FS VTANG, 141st NJAN, 108th FE Wing Tumer'Godman,Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct53 to 20/50 GAv at BANT. ToNPRF 23May57 after nosing over when landing at BANT 8Nov56. SOC 18Dec58. MDA570 IOSep53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-149th FS VANAG, 108th FE Wing Turner/Godman, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 300ct53 to PSP. To BANT IFeb55. Written off at Capim Macio, Natal, RGN 311u156 after mid~air collision with F~47 4177, both crashing. lLT Antonio Chagos da Silva kiJIed. SOC 28Dec56. MDA570 lOSep53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-134th FS VTANG, 141st NJANG, 108th FE Wing Tumer/Godman,Eglin, Tinker, Hensley. Allocated 28Jan54 to BANT. To PSP 17Aug54. To BANT 22Sep54. Damaged in crash landing 25May55. SOC 23May57 officially. MDA5701OSep53. TEMCO refurbished to D-40. ex-148th FSANG, 149th FS ANG, 108th FB Wing ANG, 405th FE Wing ANG. Allocated to PSP 28Jan54 (but already there since Nov53). To BANT 30Mar55. To PSP 14 Jan58. SOC Dec58. Last FAR MDA F-47 and last FAB Thunderbolt serial.

FUERZA AEREA MEXICANA (MEXICAN AIR FORCE) AIRCRAFT USED BY 201 ESCUADRON IN THE PHILIPPINES USAAF SERIAL 42-23109 42-23216 42-23225 42-23228 42-25395 42-25412 42-25629

SUBTYPE P-47D-11-RA P-47D-15-RA P-47D-15-RA P-47D-15-RA P-47D-21-RE P-47D-21-RE P-47D-22-RE

201 ESC CODE "9" probably "5" "15" unknown "3" "4" unknown

AIRCRAFT HISTORY Loaned from USAAF. Suffered damage 31u045 when it collided with a bulldozer while taxying. lLT Carlos C. Rodriguez OK (pilot also given as 2LT David Ceran Bedolla by FAM). Salvaged in PI after VI. Loaned from USAAF Underwent engine change l11u045. Salvaged in PI after VI day. Loaned from USAAF. Suffered damage 24May45 when prop hit the ground while taxying. LT David Bedolla OK Salvaged in PI after VI. Escuadron code also given as "8" in other documents. Loaned from USAAF. Written off lJun45 at 115 hours when it crashed in the sea while undergoing dive bombing practice. 2LT (PA) Fausto Vega Santandr killed. Location 1/2 mile SW of Tabones Island. Loaned from USAAF. Suffered damage 23Ju045 due to pilot error. Ground-looped on landing and ran off runway into the nose of 42~28054. 2LT Manual Farias Rodriguez broke an arm. Salvaged in PI. Loaned from USAAF. Collided with a lamp post on take off 2OJun45. 2LT David Ceran Bedolla OK. Fate of aircrafat unknown but probably salvaged in tbe PI. Supposedly loaned from the USAAF. However, History Card for this aircraft shown it as having gone to Russia under Lend-Lease, departing Newark,NJ30Mar44. FAM records show it undergoing an engine change on 191un45. 42-27615 "14" P-47D-23-RA Loaned from USAAF. Suffered enemy AA damage 201un45 in left wing & conduit to carbeuretor. 2LT lose Luis Pratt Ramos OK. Salvaged in PI 241un45. 42-27877 P-47D-23-RA Loaned from USAAF. Was written off 24May45 in the sea due to engine failure, !--T(pA) Mario Lopez Portillo rescued. Aircraft had not yet been assigned an Escuadron code. none 42-27904 "13" P-47D-23-RA Loaned from USAAF. Salvaged in PI after VJ. 42-27995 "15" P-47D-23-RA Loaned from USAAF. Suffered damage at Porac airstrip 1200 hrs 181un45 on takeoff, 2LT David Ceran Bedolla OK. Engine replaced. Salvaged in PI after VI. 42-28504 "12" P-47D-28-RA Loaned from USAAF. Suffered damaage 231un45 due to pilot error while taxying (hit by 42~25395), considerable damage. 2LT Miguel Mar Anneola OK. Fate unknown but probably salvaged after VI. 42-28505 P-47D-28-RA Dptd US 171ul44. Loaned from USAAF. Written off in a forced landing in vicinity of Lgag, Luzon 21May45 due to engine failure. LT(PA) Graco Ramirez Garrido status not reported. Aircraft had not yet been none assigned Escuadron code. 42-28523 P-47D-28-RA "6" Dptd US 5Aug44. Loaned from USAAF. Had engine change IOJun45. Salvaged in PI 31Dec45. 42-28528 P-47D-28-RA Dptd US via Oakland 8Aug44. Loaned from USAAF. Destroyed by fire 51un45 following loss of power on take off approximately 4 miles SE of Porac, near Florida Blanca. This had been a test flight following unknown maintenance. LT(PA) lose Espinosa Fuentes was killed. "42-28606" P-47D-28-RA unknown FAM cites this aircraft loaned from USAAF ground looped at Porac 231un45 at lOlO hrs piloted by 2LT Miguel Moreno Arreola, suffering considerable damage. History Card sayas -28606 was assigned to 9th AF and was condemned and salvaged2Mar45. 42-29051 P-47D-28-RA Dptd US 22Nov44. Loaned from USAAF Written off prior to assignment of Esc. code on 22May45in a forced landing due to engine failure near Pueblo de Tarlac, 2LT(PA) Guillermo Garcia Ramos walked in from none the wreck. 42-29052 P-47D-28-RA "I" Dptd US 50ct44. Loaned from USAAF. Probably flown exclusively by 201 Esc Co. Survived to be salvaged after VJ on 30Apr47 in PI. 42-29077 P-47D-28-RA "2" Dptd US 22Nov44. Loaned from USAAF. Had engine change 6Jun45. Salvaged in PI after VJ. 42-75889 P-47D-16-RE "II" Loaned from USAAF. Underwent engine change 24Jun45. Salvaged in PI after VJ. 42-75894 P-47D-16-RE "7" Loaned from USAAF. Lost power on take off at Porac 171un45, crashed and burned but ILT Carlos Garduno Nunez was only slightly burned. 43-25629 P-47D-21-RA "10" Loaned from USAAF. Salvaged in PI after VJ. 44-33679 P.47D-30-RA "22" L-L aircraft, Mexico account. Dptd'US 24Apr45. Salvaged in PI 25Feb47. 44-33710 P-47D-30-RA "2"(2) L-L aircraft, Dptd US 16Apr45. Salvaged in PI 13Ju149. 44-337i I P-47D-30-RA (possibly "II ") L-L aircraft, Dptd US 16Apr45. History Card says "missing from ADR 25JuI45." Nothing else known. 44-33713 P-47D-30-RA "3" L-L aircraft, Dptd US 12Apr45. Salvaged "overseas" 13Ju149. 44-33715 P-47D-30-RA (possibly "13") L-L aircraft, Dptd US 16Apr45. Was a replacement aircraft for 44-33717. Salvaged 12Aaug45. 44-33716 P-47D-30-RA "16" L-L aircraft, Dptd US 12Apr45. Salvaged "overseas" 13Ju149. 44-33717 P-47D-30-RA "4" L~L aircraft,Dptd US 22Apr45Apparently diverted to another Allied unit, as it was replaced in 201 Esc. by 44-33715 after short use. Salvaged overseas 131u149. 44-33718 P-47D-30-RA "10" L-L aircraft, Salvaged overseas 13JuI49. 44-33720 P-47D-30-RA "5" L-L aircraft, replaced 44~33728 Esc. code also reported as "12" in some documents. Salvaged overseas 131u149. 44-33721 P-470-30-RA "I "and "18" L-L aircraft, FAM records show this aircraft carried code "I" at some point. However, photos show it clearly bearing "18". Salvaged overseas 131u149. 44-33722 P-47D-30-RA "20" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 12Apr45. Salvaged overseas. 44-33725 P-47D-30-RA "25" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 16Apr45. Salvaged overseas 29Ju149. 44-33727 P-47D-30-RA "23" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 12Apr45. Salvaged overseas. 44-33728 P-47D-30-RA (possibly "12") L-L aircraft. Dptd US 20Apr45. Replaced by 44-33720. Condemned following an accident 11Aug45. 44-33730 P-47D-30-RA "7" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 20Apr45. Salvaged overseas 13Ju149. 44-33732 P-47D-30-RA "8" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 16Apr45. Salvaged overseas 13Ju149. 44-33733 P-47D-30-RA "19" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 20Apr45. Salvaged overseas 13Ju149. 44-33735 P-47D-30-RA "17" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 12Apr45. Salvaged overseas. 13Ju149. 44-33737 P-47D-30-RA "21" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 12Apr45. Salvaged overseas. 13Ju149. 44-33738 P-47D-30-RA "9" L-L aircraft. Dptd US 16Apr45. Salvaged overseas 13Ju149. Also given as a Lend~Lease (L-L) aircraft was "44-33523", which purportedlycarrioed Esc. code "6". Note that the loaned aircraft with Esc. code "6" was 42~28523. "44-33523" is not a valid P-47 serial number, thus 42-28523 was probably carried over to the L-L account. Five other Esc. numbers, known to have been positively assigned to L-L account P-47D-30-RAs were 11,13,14,15, and 24. Two of these, noted as "possibles" in the table, are thus accounted for. It seems likely that the "missing" three codes were probably assigned among the following candidates: 44-33712,44-33714,4433719,44-33723,44-33724,44-33726, or 44-33729, which cannot be positively accounted for.

FUERZA AEREA MEXICANA POSTWAR THUNDERBOLTS. It should be noted that the FAM serials and USAAF linkups are not 100% conclusive, but are based on delivery/hand-over dates to the FAM. FAM records reportedly no longer exist to make confirmation 100%. FAMSERIAL PZTlool PZT 1002 PZTloo3 PZT 1004 PZTloo5 PZT 1006 PZT !oo7 PZT 1008 PZT 1009 PZT 1010 PZTlOll PZT 1012 PZTI013 PZT 1014 PZT 1015 PZT 1016 PZT 1017 PZT 1018 PZT 1019 PZT 1020

SUBTYPE P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P-47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA P47D-35-RA

USAAF SERIAL 44-90194 44-90180 44-90210 44-90183 44-90008 44-90165 44-90170 44-90196 44-90198 44-90199 44-90202 44-90205 44-90209 44-90211 44-90214 44-90217 44-90226 44-90049 44-90190 44-89945

DELIVERY DATE 2Nov45 4Nov45 4Nov45 6Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 7Nov45 SNov45 SNov45 IONov45

NOTES Previously assigned USAAF 2l26th Base Unit, Laredo, TX, Survived in service as late as l1u054. History card says "depaned US 23Apr45" but this must have been amended. Survived in service as late as lJun54 Survived in service as tale as 11u054.

Later carried name "Chamaca". Suffered damage, Dec 1950 at Balbuena Field, Mexico City (pilot error). Probably used for spares.

Survived in service as late as Sep53. Later named "Fantasma", Aircraft now displayed at Colegio del Aire.

Later named "Exotica". Survived in service as late as 11u054. "Pancho Pistolas"-possibly the first aircraft to carry this insignia. Squadron Co's aircraft at one time. Now at BAM#l. Po~sibly named "Trigolele" at one point while still serialed 490049. Suffered damage, Apr1950 at Balbuena Field, Mexico. (pilot error) Probably used for spares. This aircraft, while still bearing 489945, had a numeral "2" on it also. It is not known if this was a very early FAM unit number or an old USAAF marking. This aircraft was assigned to Lar¢o AAF on 5Nov45 "for mechanic's training" - probably for FAM personnel.

PZT 1021 P47D-35-RA 44-901S5 IONov45 PZT 1022 P47D-35-RA 44-S9992 13Nov45 History card shows the aircraft "departing US 3May45", probably amended, serial clearly appears in an early FAM lineup photo. P47D-35-RA 44-90192 13Nov45 Later carried the name :"Martha". PZT 1023 13Nov45 FAM serial may never have been carried, only assigned retroactively. No photo proof of use. (PZT 1024) P47D-35-RA 44-90204 (PZT 1025) P47D-35-RA 44-90208 ,13Nov45 As PZT 1024. Other post-war FAM P-47 aircraft names which have not been linked positively with serials included "Adena't, "Minanao", "Luzon", "Cigarra", "Aracuany", and "Jujuzarat". FUERZA AEREA ECUATORIANA (ECUADORAN AIR FORCE) FAE SERIAL SUBTYPE USAAF SERIAL DELIVERY DATE NOTES 401 P47D-30-RA 454915S 5]un47 ARP 73001. ex-Strother, LaJunta, Independence ATS, Tinker, Kelly. Upgraded to D-40 at either Tinker or Kelly prior to delivery. 402 P47D-30-RA 4549334 5]un47 ARP 73001. ex-Strother, Ft Sumner, NM, LaJunta, Independence, Tinker, Kelly. UPsraded to D-40. 403 P47D-30-RA 4549360 5]un47 ARP 73oo!. ex-Abilene, Love Fld, Independence,Tinker, Kelly. Upgraded to D-40. 404 P47D-30-RA 4549421 5]un47 ARP 73001. Not known if upgraded to D-40. 405 P47D-30-RA 4549439 5]un47 ARP 73001. A very used aircraft, last USAAF assignment at Kelly.Not known if upgraded to D-40. 4549470 5]un47 ARP 73001 l.ast USAAF assignment at Kelly.Not known if upgraded to D-40. 406 P47D-30-RA 407 P47D-30-RA 4549517 51un47 ARP 73001 Last USAAF assignment at Kelly.Not known if upgraded to D40. 40S P47D-30-RA 4549550 5]un47 ARP 73001 Last USAAF assignment at Kelly.Not known if upgraded to D40. 409 P47D-30-RA 4549551 5]un47 ARP 7300 I Last USAAF assignment at Kelly.Not known if upgraded to D40. 410 F47D-40 44-32797 May49 MDA. 411 F-47D40 44-32873 May49 MDA. 412 F47D40 44-32S97 May49 MDA. 413 F47D40 44-32913 May49 MDA. 414 F47D-3O-RA 4549309/FE-309 ISMay53* MDA 767. TEMCO upgrade to D-40. ex-Tinker, Hensley. 4549403/FE403 ISMay53* MDA 767. TEMCO upgrade to D40. ex-Tinker, Hensley. 415 TF-47D-30-RA 416 TF47D-30-RA 4549515/FE-515 ISMay53* MDA 767. TEMCO upgrade to D40. ex-Tinker, Hensley. MDA 767. TEMCO upgrade to D40. Suffered damage enroule at Kingston, Jamaica. Reaired and flown in later, although History Cards show a date of IS May for "fonnal" handover. 417 F47D-30-RA 4549525/FE-525 (lSMay53)* 41S TF47D-30-RA 4549367/FE-367 19May53* MDA 767. TEMCO upgrade to D-40. ex-Tinker, Hensley. 419 F47D-30-RA 45-49227/FE-227 21May53* MDA 767. TEMCO upgrade to D-40. ex-Tinker, Hensley. 420 TF47D-30-RA 454926l/FE-261 25May53* MDA767. Originally intended for Brazil. TEMCO upgrade to D40. ex-Tinker, Hensley 421 F47D-30-RA 4549372/FE-372 25May53*' MDA 767. TEMCO upgrade to D-40. Note'" Some of the l2MDA aircraft had been assigned USAAF designations"lF-47D", but this does NOT indicate they were two seat conversions; merely that the USAAF/USAF had relegated to TrainerlFighter status. One of these aircraft may have been diverted to Chile or Peru, as nine of them, positively, arrived at Quito (fonnally) on 12-13 June 1953, in company with a USAF Douglas B-26. The "missing" aircraft may have been the one damasaed at Kingston, Jamaica (see photo). Two other P-47D40-RAs (44-902S7 and 44-90359) were eannarked for ARP 73001 on 30 April 1947 but apparently did not reach Ecuador. Their fate is unknown and no replacement aircraft have been traced. FUERZA AEREA DEL PERU (PERUVIAN AIR FORCE) FAP Thunderbolts were delivered in two (or, perhaps better expressed, two and one·half) distinct batches, some years apart, and were serialed in a strict, on-going, three·digit series that included other types in between. Some time after WW II, for administrative purposes, the FAP also assigned a twodigit year-of-acquisition prefix to each serial, although these were not actually carried on the aircraft(e.g., P-47D 47-442), similar to the USAAF Fiscal Year prefIx practice. Much later, when the FAP reorganized its serialing procedures, the survivors of the second (and "youngest") FAP Thunderbolt batch were once again re-serialed, this accounting for the third set of known serials. Links of FAP and USAF serials are not 100% confinned, except when indicated by an asterisk ("'), but are believed to be very nearly correct. Note: At least a few, and possibly all of the ARP batch appear to have been upgraded to D-40 standard at Tinker or Kelly, although all were built as D-305.

(Jl

<0

Ol

o

FUERZA AEREA DEL PERU CONTINUED FAPSERIAL 442* 443 444

445 446 447 448 449* 450 451* 452 453 454 455* 456 457 458* 459* 460* 461* 462* 463* 464* 465* Note: 522 523 524 525 526 527 528 529 530 531 532 533 534 535 536 537 538 539 540 541 542 543 544 545 546 547 548 549 550 551 555

SUBTYPE P-47D-30-RA P-47D-3Q-RA P-47D-3Q-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA

USAAF SERIAL 45-49326 45-49404 45- 49408 45- 49424 45- 49426 45- 49427 45- 49434 45- 49437 45- 49451 45- 49452 45-49458

DELIVERED 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47 2iJul47

NOTES ARP 94498-S. ex-Strother, Galveston, Abilene, IndependenceATS, Olmsted, Kelly. Crashed 12Apr55 at Callao or Chilca. ARP. ex-Ogden,Otmsted, Kelly. ARP ex-Ogden,Independence. Olmsted, Kelly. ARP ex-Ogden,Independence, Otmsred, Kelly. ARP. ex-Hill, Independence, Olmsted, Kelly. ARP. From storage 26Jun45 toIndependence, Olmsted, Kelly. ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly, CAC (Albrook). ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly, CAC ARP. Intended for Peru (on History Card) but diverted by CAe to Brazil.

ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly. CAe. Believed to be the aircraft marked as such now preserved in semi-complete, towable condition at Las Palmas. ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly, CAe. Donated by the FAP to the USAF Museum, freight delivered disassembled thru Howard AFB, CZ 15Oct71. To Bradley Air Museum/Conn Aeron Hist.

Society in marks of 65th FS, 57lhFG, 12th AF "54"I"Norma". ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly, CAC 45- 49461 2iJul47 P-47D-30-RA ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly, CAC 2iJul47 45- 49465 P-47D-30-RA ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly, CAC 2iJul47 45- 49469 P-47D-30-RA ARP. Very used aircraft, with many pre-ARP USAAF detachments. last being Kelly, CAe. 211ul47 P-47D-30-RA 45- 49476 ARP. As455 2 1Jul47 P-47D-30-RA 45- 49478 ARP. As455 211ul47 45- 49486 P-47D-30-RA ARP. As455 45- 49492 2iJul47 P-47D-30-RA ARP. As455 P-47D-30-RA 45- 49493 2iJul47 ARP. As455 2iJul47 45- 49494 P-47D-30-RA ARP. As 455 2iJul47 P-47D-30-RA 45- 49501 ARP. Apparently a replacement aircraft for one of two lost enroute from CAC. ex-Strother, LaJunta,lndependence, Olmsted, Kelly, CAe. Had been in CAe since 15Apr46. 2iJul47 P-47D-30-RA 44- 90399 ARP. Apparently a replacement aircraft for one of two lost enroute from CAC. ex- Amarillo, Albuquerque, Strother, LaJunta, lndependence, Olmsted, Kelly, CAC. (where it had been 2iJul47 P-47D-30-RA 44- 90402 assigned since II Apr46) P-47D-30-RA 45- 49133 220ct47 ARP. Originally for Venezuela but diverted to Peru. May also have been a replacement for an aircraft lost enroute. ex-Kelly, CAC. P-47D-30-RA 45- 49156 22Oct47 ARP. As 464. ex-Selfridge,Olmsted, Kelly, CAC. The 25th and last Peruvian ARP Thunderbolt has not been positively traced, although there are a number of candidates. It was almost certainly serialed FAP 466 or 467. F-47D-40-RA 44- 90293 Ooc52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90298 Dec52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90332 Ooc52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90413 Ooc52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90425 Dec52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90442 Dec52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90444 Dec52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90455 Ooc52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90456 Dec52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90459 Ooc52 RAP Ooc52 RAP ex-Hensley, Kelly. MAP304. To FAP-114. F-47D-40-RA 44- 90471 F-47D-40-RA 44- 90477 Dec52 RAP F-47D-40-RA 44- 90479 Ooc52 RAP ex-Hensley, Kelly. F-47D-40-RA 44- 90483 Dec52 RAP MAP 304 ex-Hensley, Kelly. TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49125 Mar53 RAP Proj. 304. TEMCO upgraded to D-40. ex-Tinker, Kelly. TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49113 30Mar53 Rap Poject 304. As 536 TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49125 30Mar53 As 536. Apparently intended to have been in the Dec 52 batcli. F-47D-40-RA 45- 49181 Mar53 As 536. Frequently reported in error (in many documents as 45-49131) to FAP-115. As 530. To FAP-116 F-47D-40-RA 45- 49167 16Mar53 F-47D-40-RA 45- 49169 Mar53 As 536. GA TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49176 Mar53 As 536. GA F-47D-30-RA 45- 49187 Mar53 As 536. GA ex-105th FS(SE), TANG (1947-52) TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49191 Mar53 As 536. GA TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49192 Mar53 As 536. GA To FAP-119 TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49204 Mar53 As 536. GA As 536. GA to FAP-122. TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49205 Mar53 F-47D-30-RA 45- 49304 Mar53 As 536. GA MDA504 F-47D-30-RA 45- 49385 Mar53 As 536. GA To FAP-127. As 536. MDA 766 TEMCO upgraded to D-40. ex-Tinker. F-47D-30-RA 45- 49349 27May53 TF-47D-30-RA 45- 49224 4Jun53 As 536. MDA 504 TEMCO upgraded to D-40. ex-Tinker. As 536. MDA 504 TEMCO upgraded to D-40. ex-105th FS(SE), TANG (I947-52)Delayed in delivery due to maintenance problems associated with damage. F-47D-30-RA 45- 49308 8Jun53(Nov53)

Two other aircraft, attributed to Peru by another source - 45-49529 and 45-49522 - actually went to Chile in the delivery shuffle.

About the end of 1954 or early 1955, the FAP reorganized its serialing system. The "best" remaining 29 F-47Ds from the 56 received were reserialed in the following group. Little is known about the order of these serials, except as shown, as records apparently no 190nger exisl. FAP SERIAL SUBTYPE USAAF SERIAL DELIVERED NOTES 101 F-47D 102 F-47D 103 F-47D 104 F-47D 105 F-47D

FUERZA AEREA DEL PERU (continued) FAPSERIAL 106 107 108 109 110

113 114

SUBTYPE F-47D F-47D F-47D F-47D F-47D F-47D F-47D F-47D F-47D-40-RA

115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127

F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D F-47D IF-47D-30-RA F-47D F-47D IF-47D-30-RA F-47D F-47D F-47D F-47D IF-47D-30-RA

III

112

USAAF SERIAL

DELIVERED

44-90471

NOTES

45-49181 45-49167

ex-FAP-532. To Canfederale Air Force 24Ju169 as N47DA. Cr. Barslaw, CA 3-7-80, on display at Republic Airport, E. Fannlngdale, NY in marks of 63d FS,56th FG, 8th AF coded "UN-Z" ex-FAP-539. Often reported in error as 45-49131. To CAF 24Jul69 as N47DC, named "Grumpy" coded "F-TL", later NX444SU. ex-FAP. TEMCO upgraded to D-40. To CAF 24Jul67 as N47DD marked as "42-266422" of 353d FG, coded "E-LH." Now at USAF Museum.

45-49192

ex-FAP-545.TEMCO upgraded to D-40. To CAF 24Jul67 as N47DD marked as "42-26641 ". Crashed 9Feb80. Parts used to rebuild NX47DD

45-49205

ex-FAP-547. Up8raded 10 D-40. To CAF 24Ju169 as N47DE. Since to G-BLZW (Doug Arnold) and British Imperial War Museum.

45-49385

ex-FAP-549. TEMCO upgraded 10 D-40. Onen qualed erroneously as 45-49335 and originally intended for Ecuador but diverted to Peru. Sold 10 CAF 24Jul69 as N47DF named "Unadilla Kllla". FUERZA AEREA COLOMBIANA (COLOMBIAN AIR FORCE)

FAPSERIAL 830 831 832 833 834 835 836 837 838 839 840 841 842 843 844 845 846 847 848 849 850 851 852 853 854 855 856 857 858 859 860

1?? 861 862 863

SUBTYPE P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA P-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-3Q-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-3Q-RA IF-47D-30-RA IF-47D-3Q-RA IF-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA

USAAF SERIAL 45-49412 45-49444 45-49445 45-49446 45-49448 45-49455 45-49490 45-49497 45-49182 45-49183 45-49184 45-49185 45-49188 45-49189 45-49190 45-49193 45-49196 45-49197 45-49198 45-49200 45-90292 45-49175 45-49207 45-49215 45-49217 45-49260 45-49299 45-49316 45-49328 45-49389 45-49390 45-49355 45-49102 45-49339 45-49354

DELIVERED 2IJul47 2IJul47 2IJul47 2IJul47 2IJul47 2IJul47 2IJul47 2IJul47 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 8Apr53 May53 May53 May53 May53 May53 May53 May53 May53 May53 May53 3Jun53 12Sep54 12Sep54 12Sep54

NOTES ARP 490. ex-105th FS (SE),TANG ARP. ex-Ogden, Kelly, CAC ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly, CAC ARP. ex-Hill, Kelly, CAC ARP. ex-Kelly CAC ARP. ex-Kelly CAC ARP. ex-Ogden, Kelly, CAC. ARP. ex-Ogden, Kelly, CAC.

ARP45. ex-Greenville, IndependenceATS, Tinker. As 838 As 838 As 838 As 838 As 838 As 838. Also ex-149th FS. VANG. As 838 As 838 As 838 As 838 As 838 GA/MDA. TEMCO upgraded to D-40 • MDA767,766 Originally intended for Chile. TEMCO upgraded 10 D-40. As 851 As 851 As 851 As 851 except MDA 768 As 851 As 851 As 851 As 851 As 851 GA/MDA 768. ex-Tinker, Hensley. May have been a replacement aircraft issued an old FAC serial retroactively. MDA 015LI. ex-1581h FS, Chatham, 1391h FS, NYANG, displayed in error at FAC Museum marked as "FAC-826" for reasons unknown. Should be FAC-861. MDA 015LI. ex-I 58th FS, Chatham, 1371h FS, NYANG, TEMCO upgraded 10 D-40. MDA 0151. ex-I 37thFS, 106th Camp Wing NYANG, TEMCO upgraded to D-40 FUERZA AEREA VENEZOLANA (VENEZUELAN AIR FORCE)

Although the USAAF serials of the FAY Thunderbolts are 100% accurate, the corresponding FAY codes are-although given as officially aceurale by the FAY - somewhat suspect. The first six ARP aircraft, for instance, apparently carried their abbreviated USAAF serials (e.g."549121 ")far a time, then received simple one digit, in-series numbers (e.g., "1 ","2","3", etc.). When the Escuadron de Caza No. 36 was organized, most of the P-47s were coded as shown below. FAV officially credits the codes as l-A-36 to 15-A-36 and I-B-36 to 15-B-36. However, the codes 22-8-36 and 25-A-36 are also known - whiJe some aircrafl appear to have not been coded al all. The explanation for this is simple, although frustrating to historians: The FA V was simply attempting to "multiply" the size of its fighter contingent for the benefit of prying foreign intelligence services. Since the FAY's P-47 records were lost in a flood, the true relationships may never be known. Therefore. only positively identified relationships are noted below.

FAVSERIAL

SUBTYPE

USAAF SERIAL

DELIVERED

NOTES

549121/"1" 549414('2" 549460/"3" 490282('4" 4904101"5" 4903681"6"

TP-47D-30-RA TP-47D-30-RA TP-47D-30-RA TP-47D-30-RA P-47D-40-RA P-47D-40-RA

45-49121 45-49414 45-49460 44-90282 44-90410 44-90368

28Aug47 28Aug47 28Aug47 28Aug47 22Aug47 280<:t47

unknown unknown unknown unknown

F-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA TF-47D-3Q-RA TF-47D-30-RA

44-32798 44-32799 44-32800 44-32801 44-32803 44-32805 44-32806 44-32809 44-32810 44-32811 44-32812 44-32814 44-32816 44-32817 44-32818 44-32819 44-32820 44-32821 44-32681 44-32684 44-32685 44-32686

5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 5Apr49 6May49 6May49 6May49 6May49

ARP 94547-5. ex-Majora, Independence, Olmsted, Kelly, CAe. Originally intended for Colombia. Believed lost in a crash. ARP. ex-Kelly, CAe. ARP. ex-Kelly, CAC. ARP. ex-AMAC, CAC ARP. ex-JeffersonPG, Williams, Randolph, Columbus, Independence, Tinker, Memphis, Independence, Ohnsted, Kelly. Was probably the actual "first"FAV ARP bird. ARPI ex-CAe. Had been in CAe since 3Dec46. Sold to France (Jean Solis) and now being rebuilt to airworthy condition in Tennessee. Last coded 22-B-36, but sources disagree on this. Possibly carried more than one Escuadron 36 code. ARP-46. ex-Tinker Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid. Now in FAV Museum at Maracay in excellent condition. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Now on display at the Escuela Superior de la Fuerza Aerea (Caracas) Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid ARP-46 ex-Tinker Ibid Ibid Ibid

unknown unknown unknown IO-B-36 unknown unknown

unknown 8-A-36 unknown unknown unknown unknown

unknown unknown unknown unknown unknown unknown

FUERZA AEREA DE CHILE (CHILEAN AIR FORCE) FACh SERIAL 750(1) 750(2) 751(1) 751(2) 752 753 754 755 756(1) 756(2) 757 758 759 760 761 762 763* 764* 765 766 767 768* 769* 770 771 772

SUBTYPE P-47D-35-RA TF-47D-30-RA P-47D-40-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA not used not used F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA not used not used F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA TF-47D-30-RA

USAAF SERIAL 44-90193 44-49219/FE-219 44-90336 44-49221 44-49337 45-49343 45-49353 44-49391 44-49438 45-49250/FE-250 45-49442 45-49471 45-49481 45-49509 45-49229 45-49304

DELIVERED 3Nov47 18Jul53 13Nov47 18Jul53 13Nov47 13Nov47 13Nov47 13Nov47 13Nov47 18Ju153 13Nov47 13Nov47 13Nov47 13Nov47 13Nov47 18Jul53

NOTES ARP 94457. ex-CAC. Probably crashed. MDA. ex-Tinker. TEMCO upgraded to D-40. Withdrawn from use 21Apr59. To Escuela de Especia1idades & now in FACh Museum. ARP. ex-CAe. Originally intended for Venezuela. Lost to accident. MDA. ex-Tinker, Hensley. TEMCO upgraded toD-40. Fate unknown ARP. ex--Strother, Independence ATS, Olmsted, Memphis, Kelly. SOC 21Apr59 ARP. ex--Strother, Independence ATS, Memphis, Kelly. Fate unknown ARP. ex-Strother, 105th FS(SE) TNANG. Fate unknowo ARP. ex-CATSC, Independence ATS, Olmsted, Long Beach, Kelly, CAe. Fate unknown. ARP. ex-CATSC, Kelly, Topeka, CAe. Wrecked at Quintero 12Mar49. MDA767.TEMCO upgraded toD-40. Originally intended for Ecuador. Fate unknown. ARP. Very used aircraft, many USAAF stops last at Kelly, CAC. SOC 21Apr59. ARP. ex-Kelly, CAe. Fate unknown. ARP. ex-Kelly, CAe. SOC 9Jun58. ARP. ex-Kelly, CAC. Fate uncertain but variously reported as,a gate guard at an unidentified FACh base. ARP. ex-149th FS, VANG. Crashed at Quintero 8Jun49. MDA766,504.TEMCO upgraded toD-40. Originally intended for Peru. SOC 21Apr59.

44-49345 45-49379(possibly) 45-49356

18Ju153 18Jul53 18Jul53

MDA767,766. ex-Tinker, HensleyTEMCO upgraded toD-40. SOC 21Apr59 MDA767 TEMCO upgraded toD-40..0riginally intended for Ecuador Fate unknown. MDA767.TEMCO upgraded toD-40. ex-Tinker, Hensley. SOC 21Apr59

45-49506 45-49529 45-49552

18Jul53 18Jul53 18Jul53

MDA767.TEMCO upgraded toD-40ex-Tinker, Hensley. Originally intended for Ecuador but diverted. SOC 21Apr59. MDA 504. ex-13 1st FS, MAANG. SOC 21Apr59 MDA 504. ex-Tinker, Hensley.TEMCO upgraded toD-40. Originally intended for Peru but diverted. SOC 21Apr59

FACh Thunderbolt serials are relatively straightforward and links as shown with USAAF serials are confirmed by the service as shown. A number of the serials assigned early to ARP ircraft which were lost to various causes were re-issued to later MDA deliveries. It appears possib Ie that at least two (and probably four) additional P-47D-30-RAs were alloted to Chile to replace early ARP losses. Two of these, which appear to have in fact been delivered, were 45-49484 and 45-49533. These,in tum, seem to have been replacements for two which crashed enroute (45-49410 reclaimed on 9Dec47 and 45-49505). Additionally, Chile "lost" 10 TF-47Ds to Colombia by diversion in 1953, and one to Cuba due to a crash. These were probably already tentatively issued serials 762 to 771 but, as noted above, this serial range was in fact alloted to the eight aircraft shown, two of them, perhaps for sentimental reasons, being reserialed to the earlier used 750 and 751 and several (according to FACh)not used at all. PUERTO RICAN NATIONAL GUARD/AIR NATIONAL GUARD USAAFIUSAF SERIAL 44-33103

SUBTYPE P-47D-30-RA

TAKEN ON CHARGE unknown

44-88410

F-47N-5-RE

INov49.

NOTES Almost certainly the first NG Thunderbolt, on strength by IMay47. Has been said to have been the "personal" aircraft of the Active USAAF Advisor, a full Colonel, but wore PRNG marks. A European Theater veteran aircraft, it was redaimed(salvaged) 2lSep50, probably following an accident at Isla Grande. Ex-CAC, Hill Field. Reclaimed 9Dec53.

AVIACION MILITAR DOMINICANAIFUERZA AEREA DOMINICANA DOMINICAN AIR FORCE AMDIFAD SERIAL SUBTYPE USAAF SERIAL DELIVERED NOTES 1101 F-47D-30-RA Nov52 MAP 2F-738/RAP. Coded red "A" on fin. SOC 19Nov57 1102 F-47D-30-RA Nov52 Coded blue/green"A "on fin. SOC 19Nov57 1103 TF-47D-30-RA 44-32797 30Nov52 Coded blue/green"B" on fin. SOC 19Nov57 1104 TF-47D-30-RA 44-32796 30Nov52 SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished 1105 F-47D-30-RA 44-32676 30Nov52 Wrillen off9Sep55.TEMCO refurbished 1106 TF-47D-30-RA 44-90281 30Nov52 ex-Tinker. Suffered damage 3Feb53, 2LT Osvaldo EmeSlo Dujaric Moll pilot. Not known if repaired. 1107 TF-47D-30-RA 44-90280 3Dec52 ex-Tinker.TEMCO refurbished SOC 19Nov57. 1108 TF-47D-30-RA 44-90150 3Dec52 ex-Tinker. Coded "A" on fin, color not conclusively traced. Written off IIMay55. 1109 TF-47D-30-RA 44-90155 3Dec52 ex-Tinker. SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished. 1110 TF-47D-30-RA 44-32673 12Dec52 SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished 1111 F-47D-30-RA 44-32902 28Dec52 SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished. ex-414th FG. 1112 TF-47D-30-RA 44-32830 28Dec52 Suffered damage in an accident 21 Oet53 piloted by 1LT Gustavo Adolfo Jiminez but repaired and returned to service. SOC 19Nov57 1113 TF-47D-30-RA 44-32823 28Dec52 Coded "yellow" "B" on fin. SOC 19Nov57 1114 F-47D-30-RA 44-32679 28Dec52 SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished 1115 F-47D-30-RA 44-32885 25May53 SOC 19Nov57 ex-137th FS, NYANG. TEMCO 1116 F-47D-30-RA 44-32878 15Jun53 SOC 19Nov57 ex-I04th FS, MDANG. TEMCO. 1117 F-47D-30-RA 44-32877 3Jun53 Coded "D" on fin, color not conclusively traced. SOC 19Nov57. 1118 F-47D-30-RA 44-32875 9Jun53 SOC 19Nov57 ex-I 37th FS, NYANG. TE¥CO 1119 TF-47D-30-RA 44-32867 15Jun53 SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished 1120 F-47D-30-RA 44-32861 121un53 SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished 1121 F-47D-30-RA 44-32849 16Jun53 SOC 19Nov57 ex-137th FS, NYANG. TEMCO. 1122 TF-47D-30-RA 44-32836 221un53 SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished 1123 F-47D-30-RA 44-32697 25Jun53 SOC 19Nov57 TEMCO refurbished 1124 F-47D-30-RA Jun53 Coded "A" on fin, color not conclusively traced. SOC 19Nov57. 1125 F-47D-30-RA Jun53 Coded black "A" on fin. SOC 19Nov57 Note:* These aircraft have not been positively traced, as the paper trail is completely lost. However. it seems very likely that they were a batch ofF-47D·35-RAs originally offset in September 1952 for MAPOO6 (Yugoslavia) and included 44-90285, 90312, 90320, 90350, 90367, and 90374. FUERZA AEREA DE LA GUARDIA NACIONAL DE NICARAGUA (NICARAGUAN AIR FORCE) Although a total of at least eight ex-PRANG F-47Ns eventually reached Central America, at least two of them were lost to attrition while still in the hands of the "Castillo Annas" revolutionary forces - and prior to ever officially donning FAN marks. The single example credited as having been Guatemalan property probably never actually wore FAG marks or serials, as absolutely no such record could be located. GN/FAN USAAF DELIVERED SERIAL SUBTYPE SERIAL TAKEN UP NOTES none F-47N-25-RE 44-89400 (May54) Lost to damage in Castillo Armas' invasion of Guatemala. Probably abandoned at one of the "secret" fields. ex-PRANG and 146th FS, ANG. none F-47N-20-RE 44-89265 (May54) Ibid GN 69 F-47N-20-RE 44-89259 (May54) To FAN after Castillos Armas' use 9Jun54. Crashed and burned at Managua during dry season of 1960 GN73 F-47N-20-RE 44-89131 (May54) To FAN after Castillos Armas' use 9Jun54. ex-PRANG and 147 FS, PA ANG. Accident at Managua in which undercarriage legs were pushed up through wing, scrapped. GN 71 F-47N-15-RE 44-89436 16Jun54 Often given in error as "44-53436" or "45-3436". To Confederate Air Harce 7Feb63 as N478C, later N47TB. ex-PRANG. ex-"Guatemalan" aircraft. GN 70 F-47N-25-RE 44-89439 16Jun54 Sold to MACO 2Sep63. ex-PRANG. to N6147U, then Holman. Crashed after engine fire in Mexico while enroute to the US 27Aug65. Sold to MACO 2Sep63 as N614U. ex-Prang. Crashed on beach in Mexico while enroute to US, later salvaged. Often given only by manufacturer's number, "5496765C" or "549C6765". GN 72 F-47N-5-RE 44-88548 16Jun54 Probably the aircraft wriuen off in early 1965 at Las Mercedes GN 74 F-47N-15-RE 44-88974 16Jun54 OTHER LATIN AMRICAN THUNDERBOLTS USAAF SERIAL 44-90361 45-49150 45-49153 45-49155 45-49126 45-49311 45-49322 45-49378 45-49413 45-49449 45-49450 45-49368 45-49456

en

w

INTENDED FOR ARP-73000 ARP-73000 ARP-73000 ARP-73000 "Dom 932

SUBTYPE ACTUAL FATE To MD ANG, 121S1 FS 1Apr47. Reclaimed 20May49. F-47D-40-RA Last at Tinker. To Project "For-5" 221un48 (Formosa) F-47D-30-RA Ibid F-47D-30-RA Last at Tinker. To 128th FS, ANG 31Mar47. F-47D-30-RA Last at Tinker. To Project "FOR-5" via FLC 22]un48 (Formosa) F-47D-30-RA Ibid. F-47D-30-RA ? Ibid. F-47D-30-RA Ibid. F-47D-30-RA Ibid. F-47D-30-RA Ibid. F-47D-30-RA Ibid. F-47D-30-RA Probably crashed at sea on delivery to one of these, under ARP. This and 45-49409 and 45-49428 are believed to be the trio that dived into the sea in fonnation. Chile, Peru, or Ecuador F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA Chile, Peru, or Ecuador Crashed somewhere enroute, ARP prior to 60ct47. INTER-AMERICAN AIR FORCES ACADEMY (ALBROOK AIR FORCE BASE) A little known but important Thunderbolt "operator", the IAAFA was organized during WW n and, evolving through the 5700th Air Base Group at Albrook Field, Panama Canal Zone, this unique organization prepared literally thousands of Latin American air and ground crews to maintain MAP and MDA-supplied types, and continues to do so today. Its first Thunderbolt, F-47D-30RA 45-49388, was delivered to the Caribbean Air Command 3 January 1954 ex-Tinker, and immediatelydeclared Class 26 as an instructional air frame with the 5700th AB Group (later IAAFA). It eventually ended its days as a crash-crew fire training hulk. It seems likely that at least one other P-47 or F-47 was Class 26 to the IAAFA earlier, but it has elluded identification.

PUERTO RICAN NATIONAL GUARDI AIR NATIONAL GUARD (CONT) USAAFfUSAF SERIAL 44-88548 44-88818 44-88977 44-89098 44-89131 44-89213 44-89259

SUBTYPE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE

TAKEN ON CHARGE 49 23Jul48 49 . 48 c.INov49 48 48 48

44-89265 44-89320

F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE

48 48

44-89337 44-89360 44-89374 44-89400 44-89425

-F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE

48 48 48(15Jul) 48 48

44-89436 44-89439

F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE

48 48

44-89444

F-47N-5-RE

48?

Ex-146th FS ANG. This was the last standard P47 built by Republic in November 1945 and it has been on display at Langley AFB, VA, USAF Museum, Pittsburgh Int'l Airport and the Cradle of Aviation Museum, Mitchell Field, NY, June 1978 where it is marked as 333 FS, 318FG, 7th AF "Ie Shima". It has, because of the Pittsburgh display, frequently been associated with use by the Pennsylvania AANG but this is not COrrect.

45-49977 45-49995 45-50019

F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE F-47N-5-RE

48 48 48

Probably the fIrst PRNG F-47N. Ex-CAe. Reclaimed 9Mar50. Reclaimed. Nothing further known. Reclaimed. Notbing further known.

44-~8.924

NOTES To Nicaragua mid-1954 later to N6148U in 1963 (MACO) Ex-Ogden Field; Reclaimed 2lJu150. To Nicaragua mid-1954.

Ex-Tinker. To IOlst FS, MAANG.

Fate unknown. To Nicaragua mid-1954. To Museum of Speed. Nothing further known. To Nicaragua mid-1954. To Nicaragua mid-1954.

Sold to the Puerto Rican Department of Education surplus for instructional use in 1955 and used at Miguel Such Vocational School, San Juan. Loaned back to PRANG for 20th Anniversary in 1967. Restored to flying condition for25th Anniversary by MAJ Gabriel Penegaricano and registered N345GP. Impounded by US Government at Myrtle Beach, SC following taxi accident there due to breach of conditional sale. To USAF Annament Museum Nov78, now moved indoors and painted to a spurious camouflage scheme. Fate unknown. In service as late as 1950. Ex-Massachusetts ANG. Reclaimed 21Mar49 Reclaimed at Tinker, date illegible. To Nicaragua mid-1954. Also served with 199th FS(?) and 146th FS, ANG, as "Wild Hair". Assigned to PRANG until 1955. Has been on display at several locations since deactivation starting as a gate guard at Sampson AFB, NY and later at Stewart AFB, NY, Perrin AFB, TX, and Peterson AFB, CO. To Nicaragua, mid-1954. This is the aircraft frequently cited as sin 45-3436.

To Nicaragua, mid-1954.

This is believed to be the most accurate and complete listing of PRANG Thunderbolts extant, but perhaps as many as five additional aircraft were also assigned at one time or another that have not been traced. Many F47N History Cards are not accounted for.

FUERZA AEREA BOLIVIANA (BOLIVIAN AIR FORCE) FAEC SERIAL "FAB-ooT'

USAAF SERIAL & SUBTYPE PREVIOUS IDENTITY TP-47D-2-RE 42-8205,NC75640

DELIVERED 100CT49

NOTES Bought from Texas Railway Equipment Co. (Universal Air & Marine Supply Co.) Sold 9Ju173 to Westair International of Broomfield, CO and became Nl4519 and is now marked as LTC Robert Baseler's No. 88 "Big Stud" as flown when he was in Europe in WWII, while CO of the 325th FG,}5th AF, MTO. It should be noted that the FAB "serial" is a myth.

FUERZA AEREA EJERCITO DE CUBA (CUBAN ARMY AIR FORCE) FAEC SERIAL 450 451 453 454 455 456 457 458 459 460 461 462 463 464 465 466 467 468 469 470 471 472 473 474 475 476 477 478'

SUBTYPE F-47D-35-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-30-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA TF-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA F-47D-35-RA TF-47D-35-RA F-47D F-47D F-47

USAAF SERIAL 44-90272 44-32941 44-32891 44-32824 44-90270 44-32674 44-32844 44-90206 44-90260 44-32840 44=33724 44-89734 44-89770 44-33518 44-33784 44-33584 44-90069 44-89752 44-33190 44-33438 44-89978 44-21106 44--33835 44-32886 44-90243 untraced untraced untraced

DELIVERED 19May52 19May52 19May52 19May52 25Sep52 5Dec52 5Jan53 5Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 13Jan53 l3Jan53 l3Jan53 13Jan53

NOTES RMSAjMDA/ TEMCO refurbished. Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid MDP 698. Ex-Tinker TEMCO refurbished MDA TEMCO refurbished Ibid MDA698. Ex-Tinker TEMCO refurbished Ibid Ibid Ex-149th FS, VANG. Overhauled at Tinker Overhauled at Tinker

Ibid Ibid Ibid Written off llApr58 at 0800 hrs on take off from runway 8, Teniente Brihuega AB. 2LT Oscar Mas Machado killed.

Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid Ibid ex-149th FS VANG, and 147th FS,NG. Overhauled at Tinker

Ibid Ibid IbidMDA912.

Additionally, the remains of 45-49209, an F47D-40, were transferred to the Cuban project on l11un53 after the aircraft crashed on take off while on delivery to Chile, at Campo Colombia. This could be FAEC 478.

Back Cover Photo: Probably the apex of Latin American Thunderbolt color, Dominican FAD 1124/A in her glory days at San Isidro about 1954. (Ola Thorn via Leif Hellstrom)

DAN HAGEDORN An Ohioan, Dan soloed at 16, gaining his pilot's license before his driver's license. During 25 years of government service, mostly in Latin America, Dan completed his formal education at Villa Maria College and State University of New York as well as attending U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. Presently a Reference and Research Technician (Aeronautics) with the Archives Division of the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., he has written extensively for aviation journals and periodicals. Two prior books were CIVIL REGISTERS OF THE CARIBBEAN AND CENTRAL AMERICA and NORTH AMERICAN F-51 MUSTANGS IN LATIN AMERICAN AIR FORCE SERVICE. The 45 year old author and his wife Kathleen reside in Centreville, Virginia where they enjoy their five children and two grandchildren.

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