78th Fighter group Web References

78th Fighter Group

Searching the Internet for 78th Fighter Group References . . .

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The webmaster recently searched the internet for references to the 78th Fighter Group. In addition to locating a number of historical reference sites, it was surprising to find a number of web articles and postings regarding 78th Fighter Group personnel . These findings are posted on the next few pages along with appropriate source credits and web addresses.

" We feel it necessary to include these references on the "History and Tribute" site because they do contribute in part in telling the complete story of the "Eagles of Duxford" ."

Contents ( Page 2 ):

1st. Lt. Cyril Thomas Bendorf, 84th Fighter Squadron, from 11-10-44 to EOW, Crash Site Recovery Project Report

2nd. Lt. Vernon Y. Jones, 82nd Fighter Squadron, from 11-43 to 2-10-44, KIA, Biography

1st. Lt. John A. Kirk, 83rd Fighter Squadron, 11-30-44 to EOW, Modelling Club Article / Obituary

1st. Lt. William F. Neel, 82nd Fighter Squadron, from 2-16-43 to 1-24-44, MIA, Biography

1st. Lt. Hayden E. Richards, 82nd Fighter Squadron, 5-44 to 9-44, To US, D-Day Ceremony Interview, Duxford, 2004

1st Lt. Cyril Thomas Bendorf, 84th Fighter Squadron, from 11-10-44 to EOW

On January 4, 1945, Lt. Cyril(Tom) Bendorf, 84th Fighter Squadron, during the 78th Fighter Group transition from P-47 Thunderbolts to Mustangs, took his newly acquired P-51D on a shake down flight. After his engine unexpectantly quit, Lt. Bendorf bailed out over the English countryside. Lt. Bendorf survived the event and proceeded to fly a total of 46 combat missions with the Group to the end of the war. He was reassigned a new P-51D, after the January 4th incident, P-51D, WZ-F, s/n 44-12325. Years later, the East Anglian Aircraft Research Group located Lt. Bendorf's Mustang crash wreckage. Durng the recovery, the East Anglian Aircraft Research Group contacted Tom Bendorf. He joined the recovery activity. The following report was filed and posted on the internet.

" Brief Encounter"

Posted by the East Anglian Aircraft Research Group

" Flying from Duxford, the 78th Fighter Group were the last 8th Air Force group to convert from Thunderbolts to Mustangs. Lt Cyril (Tom) Bendorf was assigned his first personal P51 in January 1945. On the 4th there were no fighter operations so Tom took the opportunity to take his brand new aircraft for a shakedown flight. He climbed to altitude and headed out over the coast. After enjoying himself with some aerobatics he let down towards sea level and emptied out his guns. Climbing back up to head for home he noticed the oil pressure dropping fast, throttling back he knew the engine would have to be nursed gently to the first airfield he saw. It didn't last though. Putting the Mustang into a shallow dive, Tom went through the start procedure, but after a couple of attempts he realised the prop was stationary. No choice then but to bail out. "

An official photograph of the crash site of Lt. Tom Bendorf's P-51D lost on January 4, 1945. It was located on Broadway farm, Monk Soham, in Suffolk. ( Source Credit: East Anglian Aircraft Research Group Archives)

" He jettisoned the canopy and trimmed the aircraft nose down. Halfway out of the cockpit the front of his flying overalls snagged on the gunsight and with the top of the seat armour in the small of his back; he was stuck. What seemed an eternity passed before the overalls ripped and he was free. He landed a couple of fields away from where the Mustang buried itself in a ditch, on Broadway Farm, Monk Soham, in Suffolk. A passing local policeman got off his cycle and waited as Tom struggled to cross a barbed wire fence whilst carrying his chute, flying helmet and trying to hold his overalls together to preserve his dignity. Just as he told the bobby that there were no ammo or bombs in the burning wreck some rounds of .50 calibre ammo started to explode in the heat. Evidently he had had a stoppage but, as Tom put it the policeman probably thought 'another stupid yank'. "

" After hearing about a buried Mustang engine and finding the pilots name from surviving records we were able to contact Tom Bendorf in America. He was surprised but keen to be reunited with his plane. Once the recovery was organised he flew over especially to join us. Some wreckage had been removed from the ditch as it was cleaned out by the farmer but the engine and propeller hub, with three blades still attached were found. Also the throttle quadrant and rudder pedals from the cockpit came to light. When the mud was pressure washed out of the engine it could be seen that it had suffered a catastrophic failure, all twelve con rods had been thrown from the crankshaft and through the engine casing. "

Tom Bendorf(right) and a member of the East Anglian Aircraft Research Group recovery team at the crash site on Broadway Farm. The item being held is a rudder peddle from Bendorf's P-51. (Source Credit: East Anglian Aircraft Research Group Archives)

For more details on the rcovery and additional pictures, please visit the East Anglian Aircrsft Research Group web site.

2nd. Lt. Vernon Young Jones, 82nd Fighter Squadron, from 11-43 to 2-10-44, KIA

2nd. Lt. Vernon Young(V.Y.) Jones, 82nd Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group. (Source Credit: Claiborne County, MS, veteran photo archives)

This information on 2nd. Lt. Vernon Young(V. Y. ) Jones, came from a biography posted on the Claiborne County, MS, General, veterans web site.

" 2nd. Lt. Vernon Y. Jones "

" In 1923, V. Y. Jones, Jr., was born in rural Claiborne County, MS, into the pioneer George Jones family which had lived there in the Natchez District since 1791. As a boy, he had walked many miles behind a mule down the furrows of the family's small farm near McBride, before he ever entered a cockpit, and he talked with a long, slow Southern drawl that belied his high intelligence and natural ability.

His parents were Vernon Young Jones, Sr., and Una Jacob Jones, and his only sibling was his younger brother Elmo C. Jones. Both boys joined the service during the war, with V. Y. going into the Army Air Corps and Elmo enlisting in the Navy. The family were staunch Baptists, attending the Beech Grove Baptist Church, founded almost a hundred years earlier by their ancestors a place where V. Y.'s dad and uncle were deacons, his mother played the piano, and the boys and their numerous cousins were members also. The boys attended the Pattison School.

After his initial training, V. Y. was assigned to the 82nd Fighter Squadron of the 78th Fighter Group in 1943. His roommate in Duxford, England, was Richard A. "Dick" Hewitt. According to Hewitt's, " Target of Opportunity - Tales and Contrails of the Second World War, Chapter 10 - Memorable Missions Brunswick," 2nd Lieutenant, V. Y. Jones's flew his last mission in his P-47D on February 10, 1944. His group was sent to escort the B-17's in their bombing of the medieval town of Brunswick, a major center of the German war machine located in the heavily industrialized Ruhr Valley, about 120 miles south of Berlin. The target, therefore, was heavily defended, and the bombers faced tremendous flak, as well as attacks from the German Me-109s and Fw-190s. The P-47 Thunderbolts were there to see that our bombers delivered their loads and made it back to England safely.

Chuck Clark was the "White Flight" leader, according to Col. Hewitt, and V. Y. was his wingman. When the German fighters arrived on the scene, they were the first to peel off in pursuit of two 109's. In Col. Hewitt's own words, he describes what happened shortly thereafter: "Then I heard Jonesy's voice. He sounded frantic as he called 'someone get down here! I've got a 109 on my tail and I can't shake him!' The Jug was about an even match for the 109 or 190 at high altitude, with it's dive and zoom advantage, but not at lower altitudes and especially at treetop level. At slower speeds, either enemy aircraft could out turn the '47. It was just not a good place to get caught. I called for V.Y., but got no answer. Apparently alone, at 15,000 feet, I was not about to go searching blindly. Munson, Clark, Swanson or Ludwig had to be closer than I and perhaps heard his plea for help. Not sure who the #3 or #4 were in Clark and Jonesy's flight, but they should also be in the area and have heard him." Amidst the heat of the battle and in the act of simply surviving, Hewitt brought down his first enemy plane, and somehow lost track of V. Y. He remembered the call for help when he returned to the "Duck Pond": "Then I remembered Jonesy. With Ludwig's plight, I had almost forgotten about him. His plea to 'get that 109 off my tail', I'd never forget. He, Paul Kellor, Grant Turley, and I had 'roomied' since Granger's loss. Was I gonna lose another room mate? And how many other 78th pilots would be lost today?"

As it turned out, V. Y. Jones never came back - KIA, lost over Germany, at the age of 21. His tour had lasted only three short months. His body was never recovered, but his name is recorded and remembered on a marble wall, in the Tablets of the Missing, at the Cambridge Military Cemetery, Cambridge, England, about six miles from Duxford, along with many other fine young Americans who died that fateful day and other similar days protecting their comrades and the freedom of others.

He was credited with 1.5 air victories confirmed and 1 air victory probable while he flew with the 78th Fighter Group. He was aboard P-47D, MX-X, s/n 42-7883 ,when downed over Tongren, Germany, on his final mission. V. Y. Jones was posthumously awarded the Air Medal with five Oak Leaf Clusters. "

See Lt. Col. Richard A. Hewitt's report of the events surrounding Lt. V. Y. Jones's loss on this web site at "Portraits and Profiles, Lt. Col. Richard A. Hewitt".

1st. Lt. John A. Kirk, 83rd Fighter Squadron, from 11-30-44 to EOW

1st. Lt. John A. Kirk, a pilot in the 83rd Fighter Squadron, 11-30-44 to the EOW, shown with his assigned P-51D, HL-C, s/n 44-63620, "Small Boy Here". (Source Credit: "Eagles of Duxford", Garry L. Fry via Sam Beckley, 1991, Phalanx Publishing,ltd.)

The following article on John A. Kirk was located in the archive web page of a Maryland RC Modelling club

" Will the real Captain Kirk please stand! "

Written by Achille Silvestri, Central Maryland RC Modeling News, October, 2000

" It was my greatest pleasure this day to be introduced to John Kirk. John is a flying Ace from WWII.

He was in the 78th Fighter Group of the 8th Air Force, which was stationed at Duxford, England. This is where the "Brits" fought the Battle of Britain off a simple grass runway. Today it's the site of the Duxford Imperial Museum, which houses many of those vintage planes. John flew 12 missions at Duxford as a P-47 Thunderbolt pilot. Then he was assigned a P-51D Mustang and flew an additional 60 missions. In the course of his tour John was credited with 6 kills, which included a Messerschmidt Me-262, one of the first German jet fighters put into service. I can't tell you what a tremendous sense of history I felt in talking with John. I was able to connect with one of the most significant periods of the 20th century.

John has been in modeling all his life. He was a member of the Aero Craftsman, one of the oldest flying clubs in the country; it still exists today for free flight. In addition to RCMB, John flies with the Bonita Flyers in Naples, FL.

When the club lost its field 10 years ago, John and his associates were instrumental in acquiring property from the county, designing and building a field. His friends were so appreciative of his efforts that they elected to name the field after him. More recently, they built a weather vane using the profile and markings of his old P51D Mustang.

John A. Kirk and the weather vane erected by members of the Central Maryland RC Modelling Club depicting a profile of John's P-51D Mustang in honor of his efforts in locating and developing the club flying field(named Kirk Field in John's honor). ( Source Credit: Central Maryland RC Modelling Club Archives)

Did I say John's rank in the Air Force was captain? No need to stand, John, we know who the real Captain Kirk is. We're pleased that you shared your experiences with us."

John A. Kirk III passed away in March, 2004. The following obituary was published in the Baltimore Sun.

" John A. Kirk III, 80, World War II Ace Pilot "

Frederick N. Rasmussen, Baltimore Sun Staff, Published on March 4, 2004

" John A. Kirk III, a highly decorated World War II fighter ace whose 70 missions included shooting down an early Luftwaffe jet and on another occasion nursing his shot-up P-51D Mustang back to England, died of cancer Monday at Gilchrist Center for Hospice Care. The Towson resident was 80.

Because most of the men in his group never made it home, he always said, " I've lived a free life." And at the end, " he faced his own death with great majesty," said Dr. Mark A. Lamos, his Baltimore internist, who shared an interest in flying radio-controlled airplanes. "He was not the type of man who talked about his World War II days. He thought of himself as an ordinary man who had lived in extraordinary times, and this seems to be a common thread of people who participated in World War II."

Mr. Kirk was born in Rochester, Pa., and moved with his family in 1936 to a home near the old Municipal Stadium on East 33rd Street. His romance with aviation began as a 12-year-old when he and his father flew gasoline-powered model planes attached to wires. He left City College in his junior year to enlist in the Army Air Forces in 1943. After completing pilot training, he was sent to England to join an Eighth Air Force fighter squadron at Duxford. Its mission was to escort B-17 Flying Fortress bombing runs into Germany.

Given the nickname Junior by veteran pilots, Mr. Kirk was 20 when he embarked on his first combat mission, flying a P-47 Thunderbolt. He scored a double kill, shooting down a Messerschmitt and a Focke-Wulf. By war's end, he had downed eight additional enemy aircraft.

He later was assigned a Rolls-Royce-powered P-51D Mustang that he named "Small Boy Here." He had its engine cowl painted in a distinctive checkerboard pattern.

On March 21, 1945, he came to the rescue of a B-17 pilot whose plane was under attack by a twin-engine German ME 262, the world's first jet fighter. Mr. Kirk fired his 50-caliber machine guns and hit the plane's engine, which began to smoke. "It slowed him down, and I started to gain," Mr. Kirk told The Sun in 1992. "He turned right and I fired again. I could see the sparks when the lead hit the aluminum. The pilot bailed out, and I flew right past him." He spoke about it at the time of a reunion by telephone with Richard L. Roberts, the Nebraska pilot of the B-17 whose life and whose fellow crew members he had saved. "I sure did appreciate it, John. I didn't know it was you at the time, and I didn't get a chance to thank you, but I sure will now -- for knocking that guy off us," Mr. Roberts told him. "You're sure welcome. He won't bother you any more," said Mr. Kirk, a member of a select group of wartime pilots who destroyed German jets in combat. "We were up against a competent enemy and weren't always the aces we thought we were," Mr. Kirk told Time-Life Books in an interview several years ago.

While attempting to destroy a train, Mr. Kirk's plane was hit with a 20 mm shell from a cannon that damaged his right wing and compass. He contemplated bailing out, then decided to try to reach France. "I was in a spot. A busted-up aircraft, no compass, late in the day, separated from the rest of the group and still fairly deep in Germany," he said. Limping along and trying to elude detection, he sighted the English Channel in the distance. Once he was on the ground at Duxford, a crew chief asked Mr. Kirk, then a captain, whether he had destroyed the target. The pilot wasn't sure. "He was mad as hell and said, `You go out and get all that damage and I got to spend the whole night changing this wing, and you didn't even get anything,'" Mr. Kirk recalled.

Mr. Kirk was shot down twice, over France and Holland, making his way back to England each time with help from underground resistance fighters. On Christmas Day 1944, he sent his worried mother in Baltimore a Western Union telegram: "Disregard Missing In Action Telegram. Am All Right. Shot Down Two Jerries. Happy New Year. Love, John Kirk." " His fellow fliers thought he was lost and divided up all his stuff. When he got back to Duxford, he had to go around gathering up his possessions," said his wife of 56 years, the former Jean Douglas, a retired vice president of T. Rowe Price Group.

Mr. Kirk's decorations include the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Silver Star, the Purple Heart and the Air Medal with 17 oak leaf clusters.

Though he never made it to senior year, Mr. Kirk was mailed his City College diploma while in the service. He returned to Baltimore after the war and studied industrial engineering on the GI Bill at the University of Maryland, earning his bachelor's degree in 1952. He was an engineer at Bethlehem Steel Corp.'s Sparrows Point plant until he retired in the late 1980s. Mr. Kirk continued to fly small aircraft occasionally and was an active member and former president of the Radio Control Modelers of Baltimore, whose Kirk Field in Parkton was named for him.

He was a 55-year member of Towson United Methodist Church.

In addition to his wife, Mr. Kirk is survived by two sons, John D. Kirk of Towson and Thomas A. Kirk of Sterling, Va.; a daughter, Mary E. Walton of Bel Air; a brother, James W. Kirk of Fallston; a sister, Dona K. Wylie of Crofton; and three grandchildren. Another daughter, Nancy Kirk Walker, died in 2000.

Sun staff writer William Patalon contributed to this article. © 2004- The Baltimore Sun

More information on John A. Kirk, covering his WW II combat experiences, will be posted on this web site in the near future in the "Portraits and Profiles" section.

1st. Lt. William F. Neel, 82nd Fighter Squadron, from 2-16-43 to 1-24-44, MIA

1st Lieutenant William F. Neel, 82nd Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group, was lost on a January 24, 1944 mission. (Source Credit: Newspaper picture - Mecklenburg County, NC Veteran Record Archives)

1st Lt.William F. Neel, 82nd Fighter Squadron, was lost returning from a January 24, 1944 mission. The following information was summarized from the data posted on the internet by the Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, NC. This web site is dedicated to the memory of Mecklenburg County, NC Veterans who died during World War II.

"William F. Neel was born in 1917 in North Carolina. He was educated at Central High School, Charlotte, NC, graduating in 1934. He attended the University of Georgia and Syracuse University, where he obtained his Masters degree. He was married to Sara belle Barfield in the Fall of 1942. His service records indicate that he was assigned as an engineer in the US Army Air Corps on 12-31-41. On 2-16-43, he was assigned to the 82nd Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group at Duxford. William F. Neel flew 50 combat missions before his death. He was awarded the Air Medal with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters, the Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart. His name is listed on the Memorial Tablets of the Missing in the American Military Cemetery, Cambridge, England.

More information is available in the Robinson - Spangler Carolina Room, Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County, Charlotte, North Carolina

© 1999,2000 Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County, Charlotte, North Carolina

Records indicate that on January 24, 1944, the 78th Fighter Group was assigned escort duty for a bombing mission to Eschweiler, Germany. The bombers aborted the mission due to poor weather conditions. The 78th then carried out an alternate diversionary patrol of the Malmedy-St Vith, Belgium area. Some contact was made with enemy aircraft and a running fight ensued forcing the Group to split up. Lt. Col. Robert Eby, who was an element leader for Red Flight reported in the "Eagles of Duxford" *:

" I was leading the element in Red Flight and on the way home I identified from French checkpoints that we were drifting west while holding course on our flight plan compass heading as briefed before the show. The aloft winds were much different than we expected. I called the Flight leader and he invited me to lead the flight as he had more confidence in my navigation than his own. We eventually caught up with two of the squadron planes in Black Flight who were throttled back because one of them had apparently been shot up and neither of their radios were working, as we couldn't contact them. They were headed on a course at least thirty degrees left of us when they spotted us and we throttled back also and they tagged along for awhile. Evidently they decided we were on the wrong course for home and they turned thirty degrees west again and we were unable to get their attention or contact them about the strong winds aloft affecting their course They drifted far enough west that they were actually over the Atlantic instead of the English Channel and British radar tracked them west over Dieppe, France heading out to sea where they ran out of gas and perished."

( The two Black Flight pilots were Lt. Clifford B Hahn and his wingman Lt. William F. Neel of the 82nd Squadron)

* - "Eagles of Duxford", Garry L. Fry, 1991, Phalanx Publishing Ltd., ISBN 0-9625860-2-1

A 82nd Squadron mate of both Lt. Hahn and Lt. Neel was 2nd. Lt. Jerry Brasher. He recalled the following information regarding the incident:

" The Loss of 1st. Lt. Clifford B. Hahn** , 82nd Fighter Squadron 1 -24 - 44"

...a personal recollection by Jerry Brasher ( 82nd Fighter Squadron )

" I thought you might be interested in how or why Clifford Hahn was lost. I flew with the 82nd and on this particular day I was separated from my Flight and on the way out I joined with Hahn and his wingman and the three of us headed for Duxford. As we approached the coast of France, I checked my map and our compass course and knew that we were on the wrong course. I contacted Hahn on the radio and we discussed the compass course at length. I could not convince him that his heading was going to miss England. He was convinced that he was right and I knew he was wrong. I bid them goodbye and set my own course. Shortly after landfall I was back at Duxford and reported the conversation at debriefing. It was a hollow feeling to know that two friends were headed for a watery grave and there was absolutely nothing I could do. I knew that Hahn's radio was operational but I never did talked to his wingman. "

" I am sorry that the outcome was such a tragedy. Hahn was a friend. I am sorry that I no longer remember the name of his wingman. "

( Jerry Brasher reports that at least Hahn's radio was operational befor crossing the coast of France. Red Flight and British Ground Control could not establish contact. )

** - 1st. Lt. Clifford B. Hahn was a pilot assigned to the 82nd Fighter Squadron. He was KIA on 1-24-44. It was reported( and tracked by radar ) that Lt. Hahn and Lt. William F. Neel were 30 degrees off course departing Dieppe, France and flew out over the Atlantic. No radio contact could be made by Ground Control. Lt. Hahn was flying P-47, MX-J, s/n 42-7923. Lt. Neel was flying P-47, MX-Y, s/n 42-2467, " Sally II". (Data source: "Eagles of Duxford", Appendix 4, Personnel Losses, Garry L. Fry, Phalanx Publishing, Ltd., 1991,ISBN 0-9625860-2-1 )

1st. Lt. Hayden E. Richards, 82nd Fighter Squadron, 5-44 to 9-44, To US

Hayden E. Richards was a pilot with the 82nd Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group during D-Day. He was in attendance for the D-day anniversary ceremony at Duxford on June 6, 2004.(Source Credit: Ron Jensen, "Stars and Stripes" Archive Collection")

The following article was located on the "Stars and Stripes" web site. It was published in the June 6, 2004 European edition.

" Veteran recalls World War II mission "

By Ron Jensen, Published in the " Stars and Stripes" European edition, Sunday, June 6, 2004

" Hayden Richards flew a P-47 Thunderbolt on D-Day from a base at Duxford, England. He will spend the anniversary of the day at his former base."

" DUXFORD, England - Hayden Richards didn't quite touch French soil 60 years ago on the day the Allies invaded Nazi-held Europe. That's a good thing. Had he done so ... well, it would have meant trouble for Richards, now 82 and living in Tucson, Ariz.. He spent D-Day flying hedgerow-high across the French countryside in his P-47 Thunderbolt named Judy looking for targets to strafe."The squadron flew three missions, most of which were to attack German airfields in France, in addition to rail lines, military vehicles - any target that would have been of immediate support to the Germans," Richards said Friday afternoon at the Imperial War Museum at Duxford, England, home to one of the best airplane collections in the world. Duxford was an air base during the war and home to Richards' 82nd Fighter Squadron, part of the 78th Fighter Group. Richards flew two of his 67 wartime missions on D-Day and he will spend this weekend's anniversary of the event back at Duxford, where an air show Sunday will honor the veterans who fought on June 6, 1944. "It was a sense of elation in a way," Richards said of being part of the historical moment six decades ago. "We were always thinking, 'When is the big day coming?' ". When it arrived, he said, "We were all intent on doing a good job." Low-level strafing is a tough task. As Richards explained it, the aircraft itself is like a gun and the pilot aims it at the target. The closer the aircraft gets to the target, the steeper the dive must be. "You had a tendency to push the stick forward. You could fly into the ground," he said. Plus, he said, flying low presented the enemy with an inviting target. "As a general rule, you made one pass and got out of there," he said. "To do more than that, you were tempting fate." Fate was kind to Richards. "I kept the same aircraft from Day One until the day I left," he said. His P-47 was named for his niece, the daughter of his brother Edryd, who was with the 3rd Armored Division during the war. Richards said he often wondered as he flew combat missions if Edryd was somewhere below him. The brother survived the war, but has since passed away. Richards, who spent 23 years in the Air Force and retired as a lieutenant colonel, was supervisor of the Arizona Department of Insurance for another 23 years. He and his wife, Jean, a native of Wales, are in England this week instead of Normandy, where big celebrations are planned with thousands of veterans returning, because Duxford holds a special place for him. Jean Richards said, "I think it's important for him to be here during the 60th anniversary." He served at the base from May to September 1944. While there are many fond memories, there are sad and tragic ones, as well. "My roommate - I saw him get killed on a mission. Louis Dicks from Cincinnati, Ohio," Richards recalled. "We were strafing a train. As we went over the train, he was able to clear the train, but, for some reason, he went in." Richards doesn't dwell on his wartime exploits. He packed a lot of flying into a short time overseas, but it was a long time ago and he has done much since. But on this weekend, he said, it is hard not to recall one special day. "You can't help but try to relive that particular day," he said. "There are certain events in life you can't help but recall.' ".

"Fly Past" aviation magazine featured the following pictures of Hayden Richards at Duxford's D-Day anniversary event in their August, 2004 issue.

Hayden Richards at the 2004 D-Day Memorial event posing next to the "Fighter Collection's" P-47D, "No Guts, No Glory", at Duxford. The inset photo shows 1st. Lt. Hayden Richards at Duxford in a similar pose sometime in 1944. (Source Credit: Imperial War Museum Archives)

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