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Historic Military Aircraft Incidents

Images of damaged military aircraft, including B-17s and P-51s, featuring ground crews and asking for assistance at bases during WWII.

Ground Crew Work On Engine Of The Boeing B-17 'Judy' Of The 379Th Bomb Group At An 8Th Air Force Base In England. 24 November 1943.

The Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" "Helno Gal" (A/C No. 085) Of The 322Nd Bomb Squadron, 91St Bomb Group, Made A Crash Landing At Its Base In Bassingbourne, England, As A Result Of Damage Inflicted During A Mission Over Berlin On 27 May 1943.

The North American P-51 'Is This Trip Necessary' Was Almost Junk It Crashed On Runway On Iwo Jima, Bonin Islands. The Left Landing Gear Collapsed As The Plane Lande; It Was Returning From The First Fighter Escort Over Tokyo, Japanesean. 28 May 1945.

Four Crew Members Of The 401St Bomb Group In Front Of The Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" "Fancy Nancy" At An 8Th Air Force Base In England, 20 January 1945.

Ground Crew Of The 381St Bomb Group Beside The Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" "Via Panola Express" At 8Th Air Force Base 167, England. 18 June 1944.

Maintenance Men Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group Work On A Lockheed P-38 Lightning At An Airfield Somewhere In Italy.

This North American P-51 Mustang "Hangar Queen" Has Been Turned Over To A Salvage Crew Of The 353Rd Fighter Group Based In England. 4 September 1944.

British "Spitfire" lands on airstrips in Corsica.

Ground Crew Work On Engine Of The Boeing B-17 'Judy' Of The 379Th Bomb Group At An 8Th Air Force Base In England. 24 November 1943.

Aircraft, Burma, India & INDIA,ARMAMENT War

Specially trained air evacuation units of the 9th US Air Force are shown loading a Troop Carrier transport preparatory to moving soldier patients to a general hospital several hundred miles distant. February 1944.

The Flying ofrtress "Memphis Belle" has flown back from England, where during almost eight months it has taken part in 25 missions of the Eighth Air force over occupied France and Germany. It is the first combat bomber to be retired from active

Damaged German Aircraft Left By Retreating Nazi Luftwaffe On An Airfield At Erfurt, Germany.

These 8th Air Force Boeing B-17s on Poltava Airfield, Ukraine, Russia, having just completed their first shuttle-bombing msision from England, were destroyed on the ground in a perfectly timed and well executed attack by the German Air Force on the

Maintenance Crew Working On Consolidated B-24 'Dead End Kids' At Station 505, England, 16 May 1945. (Aircraft No. 42-94992).

Colonel Robert L. Scott, Jr. (Macon, Georgia) Of The 23Rd Fighter Group, Helps S/Sgt. R. Fuller Of Texas And Sgt. J. Teague Of La Follette, Tennessee, Load His Guns Prior To Colonel Scott's Final Japanese Hunt Before Leaving Kunming, China For The United State

A Tractor Is Hooked Up To This North American B-25 Of The 340Th Bomb Group And It Is Towed To The Salvage Area For Repairs After Being Damaged By Ashes And Cinders Which Were Blown Down During The Eruption Of Mt. Vesuvius On 23 March 1944.

Nurse from the Air Evacuation Unit checks litter cases to be flown to Lae and Nadzab, New Guinea.

Douglas A-20 Havocs Of The 410Th Bomb Group Line Up On The Runway At A 9Th Air Force Base In France.

Three Fighter Pilots Of A 9Th Air Force Squadron Based At Boxted, England, Discuss Plans Just Before Take-Off On A Mission. They Are, Left To Right: 1St Lt. Franklyn E. Hendrickson Of Springfield, Long Island, 1St Lt. William E. Pitcher Of Spokane, Wash.

The Douglas C-47 "The Charlotte M" of the 318th Troop Carrier Commandos is refueled at the Lingayen Air Strip for a flight to Laoag Air Strip on Luzon, Philippine Islands. 20 May 1945.

Republic P-47 'Thunderbolt' Visits The 381St Bomb Group Base At 8Th Air Force Station 167.

Flak Cut The Main Oil Line Of His Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, So 1St Lt. Edwin L. King, New Lebanon, Ohio, Flew Back On A Prayer Only. Oil Backed Out His Canopy And Drenched Him Completely. But He Landed Safely Just As The Engine Froze. He Got The Flak

With Only The Nose Wheel Down, The Crippled North American B-25 Mitchell Bomber 'Angel Of Mercy' Comes In For A Belly Landing After A Rough Mission. Enemy Flak Wrecked The Hydraulic System And The Main Landing Gear Would Not Go Down, So The Crew Decided

Wreck Of The Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" At The 91St Bomb Group Base In Bassingbourne, England.

Republic P-47 Of The 1St Air Commando Group, Parked Along The Runway At Asansol, India, Before Taking Off On Their First Mission Over Enemy Territory. 15 October 1944.

Lt. William P. Hess Of The 364Th Fighter Group, Poses Beside His North American P-51 'Bergie Iii' At An 8Th Air Force Base In England. 15 December 1944.

Gliders And Douglas C-47S Of Troop Carrier Group, Lined Up Prior To Taking Off On A Mission. Italy, 12 August 1944.

Italy - Mickey Operator Of Lockheed P-38 'Droopsnoot' Literally Crawls Into The Aps-15, Components Of Which Surround Him.

This Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" (A/C No. 337622) Of The 379Th Bomb Group Crashed When It Came In For A Landing At Its 8Th Air Force Base In England On 5 August 1944.

Major General Robert W. Douglass, Jr. (Right) And Colonel Lawrence J. Carr Watch The Consolidated B-24 Liberator 'Bolivar Jr.' As It Taxies To Hardstand On Saipan, Marianas Islands, 19 May 1945.

Crew members supervise loading of a Douglas C-47 preparatory to taking off to drop supplies at besieged Hengyang, China. They are, left to right: Sgt. Burton H. King or Belvedere, New Jersey, Lt. Lewis Helm of St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sgt. Leonard

Republic P-47 (A/C 42-74672) Of The 353Rd Fighter Group Nosed Over The Runway At Its Base In England On 24 May 1944.

S/Sgt. Charles N. Culver, P.O. Box 283, Rosser, Texas, examines a 40 MM Cannon attached to the wing of a German JU-87 Stuka, used as an Anti-tank gun, at an airfield in Pilsen, CZECHOSLOVAKIA.

Lockheed P-38 Lightning Taking Off From An Airfield In Luxemburg, Germany. 10 April 1945.

Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" Parked In The Dispersal Area At The 91St Bomb Group In Bassingbourne, England. 15 October 1943.

Douglas C-47'S On The Runway At Myitkyina, Burma. 2 October 1944.

Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortresses"Of The 381St Bomb Group, Parked In Dispersal Area At 8Th Air Force Station 167 In England.

Wounded Personnel Of The 439Th Troop Carrier Group Are Removed From A Douglas C-47 At An Air Base Somewhere In France. 4 May 1945.

Enemy on Kiska.

Equipment Is Loaded Aboard Douglas C-47S At A 9Th Troop Carrier Command Base In England. 6 June 1944.

INDIA-A North American B-25 Mitchell of the Third Tactical Air Force, Eastern Air Command, lands on a water soaked runway during a heavy shower.

American And British Pows Unload Cans Of Gasoline From A Douglas C-47 At An Airbase Somewhere In Germany. 7 April 1945.

Aircraft, Burma, India & INDIA,CREWS War

Curtiss P-40 "Warhawks" on the line somewhere in North Africa.

Wreckage Of The North American P-51 'Dana Kay' (A/C 44-11567) Of The 364Th Fighter Group, 67Th Fighter Wing, Which Crashed At Its 8Th Air Force Station F-375, Honnington, England. 15 January 1945.

Armorers Check .50 Cal Machine Guns Mounted On A North American B-25 Prior To A Mission. Tarawa, Gilbert Islands, 6 January 1944. 820Th Bomb Squadron, 41St Bomb Group.

What goes up must come down-and this 1,000 lb bomb is to be no exception to that rule. Members of an Ordnance crew loading a Liberator before she takes off on a mission over enemy territory. This Liberator is the "Shot Luke" and has been on 27

Ground Crewmen Of A Lockheed P-38 Of The 38Th Fighter Squadron, Based At Nuthampstead, England, Get It Ready For Another Mission. The Crewman In The Rear Is Putting A Parachute In The Cockpit Which Is Too Small For The Pilot To Enter With It On. 16 Octo

Men Of The 91St Bomb Group At Bassingbourne, England, "Kill Two Birds With One Stone". Here, They Refuel A Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" And Load Bombs On It At The Same Time, A Few Minutes Before Take-Off On A Mission. 16 January 1944.

Mechanics Repair One Of The Engines On A Consolidated B-24Of The 65Th Bomb Squadron, 43Rd Bomb Group, At An Airbase Near Nadzab, New Guinea. 1944.

Armorers put tape on the ends of the barrels of .50 cal side guns on a Douglas A-20; this is done to prevent dust from collecting in the barrels after they have been cleaned. The tape is removed just before the plane takes off on a mission.

Useable Parts Are Salvaged From A Disabled Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" Of The 390Th Bomb Group At An 8Th Air Force Base In England. 28 July 1943.

Aircraft, Burma, India & INDIA,SALVAGE War

A Chinese Crew Of The China Air Task Force Putting A Belly Tank On A Curtiss P-40 As Crew Chief S/Sgt. Stewart Macarthur, At Left, Looks On.

Boeing B-29 "Superfortress" After Crash Landing On Saipan, Marianas Islands. 500Th Bomb Group.

Rear view of the plane, with its stinger tail snipped off. Remnants of the ship are scattered about on the wheat field. WITH MAJOR GENERAL DOOLITTLE'S STRATEGIC AIR FORCE, June 15.-This is the way one Martin Marauder looked after it got home from a

Liberator'S Arrival - A B-24 Of The Jungle Air Force Lands On Newly Repaired Puerto Princesa Airstrip. The Appearance Of Heavies On Palawan Forshadowed Troublous Days For Japs In The Southern Regions Of Indo-China, Borneo And Malaya.

Crash of flak damaged Consolidated B-24 H on 19 April 44.

An ambulance of the 37th Field Hospital brought this patient to the waiting Douglas C-47 "Skytrain," 65th Troop Carrier Squadron, for evacuation to a Leyte General Hospital. This soldier was wounded fighting in the hill positions of Negros

Republic P-47 'Thunderbolt' Visits The 381St Bomb Group Base At 8Th Air Force Station 167.

ENGLAND-S/Sgt. Walter R. Newbury, top turret gunner on a B-24, of Batavia, N.Y., has 30 missions to his credit and holds the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters. (Kodachrome #2395)

Motors Of A North American B-25 Of The 340Th Bomb Group Are Tested After They Were Overhauled To Remove Dust And Ashes Which Were Blown During The Eruption Of Mt. Vesuvius On 23 March 1944. Note The Broken Plexi-Glass In The Nose Compartments.

Air Force Mechanics Remove The Protective Grease Coating From Newly-Arrived North American P-51S At An Air Force Assembly Station At Filton, England. 18 April 1944.

Japanese "George"captured by our forces, shown at Clark Field being put into flying condition by Technical Air Intelligence Unit, SWPA. 1945. Luzon, Philippine Islands.

Lt. Ody And Ground Crew Of The Lockheed P38 'Bar Fly' At An Air Base Somewhere In France. 7 October 1944, 367Th Fighter Group.

A Consolidated B-24 with the crew all set and ready to go. The props are hand turned over once or twice, the crew climbs aboard, and it is off to bomb the Japaneses. 27th Divisional Squadron, Umnak Island, Alaska.

A Japaneseanese Bomber 'Judy' On Atsugi Airdrome, Japanesean. 5 September 1945.

Close-Up Front View Of Nose Section, Martin B-26 "Marauder", American Twin-Engined Medium Bomber. Visiting 8Th Air Force Station 167. 27 November 1943.

Two Men Inscribe A Note To Hitler On A Bomb Which Was Purchased Through The Sale Of War Bonds. Soon This Bomb And Others Will Be Loaded On The Martin B-26 'Hell's Angels' (Background) Of The 386Th Bomb Group For Another Devastating Raid On An Enemy Targe

Consolidated B-24 'Liberator' Of The 376Th Bomb Group At An Air Base Near Bengasi, Cirenaica, Libya Shortly After Return From The Ploesti, Roumania Bombing Raid.

These 8th Air Force Boeing B-17s on Poltava Airfield, Ukraine, Russia, having just completed their first shuttle-bombing msision from England, were destroyed on the ground in a perfectly timed and well executed attack by the German Air Force on the

England - Lethal Combination At Reducing German Cities Has Been The Lancaster And 12,000 Lb 'Cookie' Or Blast Bomb Shown Here.

Air Force Personnel Enjoy The Opportunity Of Inspecting The British 'Lancaster' At An 8Th Air Force Base In England, 1 May 1944. 401St Bomb Group.

The Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" "Fort Worth Gal" Of The 381St Bomb Group Stationed At An 8Th Air Force Base Near Ridgewell, Essex County, England, 6 Sept 1944.

Lt. Bernard L. Ball, Rfd #1, Kawcity, Oklahoma, While Flying A Consolidated B-24 Liberator Bomber Of The 15Th Af, Based In Italy, On A Pinpoint Bombing Mission To Destroy A Bridge In Yugoslavia, Received Direct Flak Burst In The Waist Section Forward. Th

2nd Lt. John R. Stricker, Cleveland, Ohio, at the controls of his North American P-51 "The Green Hornet" is guided down the wire mesh of the runway by his crew chief, S/Sgt John L. Ross (on Wing) of Perry, Mo., for his take-off on his 28th mission

A ground crewman riding the wing of a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt direct the pilot, a member of the 354th fighter-bomber group, taxiing his plane on the runway of a front line Ninth Air force field. The pilot, his vision obscured, receives inofrmation

Tripolitania, Libya-British Bostons stand at readiness for the start of another Shuttle Service raid against the Axis armies, while fitters, riggers and armorers go about their routine work with calm efficiency. Ground crews keep the engines at top

Vultee L-5 Of Flight 'A', 163Rd Liaison Squadron Attached To The 10Th Army, On Line At Cub Field No. 10 On Okinawa, Ryukyu Retto. 1945.

Aircraft, Burma, India &Troops & PARATroops,MEIKTILA War

'Bones' Was The Last North American B-25 To Come Off The Assembly Line At North American Aviation Co'S Plant At Inglewood, Calif. Changing To A Different Type Of Production, After Months Of Rolling Out B-25'S, Employees Covered The Plane From Nose To Tail

Lt. Cely and Lt. Churchill.

Capt. Levings and his crew of a Douglas C-47 point out features of the plane to Russian personnel at Poltava Airbase, a shuttle mission base in Russia. 2 May 1945.

Lockheed P-38 "Lightnings" Warm Up Prior To Take Off From The 91St Bomb Group Base At Bassingbourne, England, For A Fighter Escort Mission On 12 December 1943.

Sikh tribesman guarding a North American B-25 of the 341st Bomb Group in revetment illustrates phase of reverse lend-lease. India.

Aircraft, Burma, India & INDIA,SALVAGE War

The Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" "Our Boarding House" Of The 381St Bomb Group Stationed At An 8Th Air Force Base Near Ridgewell, Essex County, England, 6 September 1944.

Aircraft, Burma, India &Troops & PARATroops,MEIKTILA War

Ground Crew Of Boeing B-17 "Yankee Doodle", Which Has Taken Part In Two Raids Over Enemy Territory, Work At Their Base At High Wycombe, England. 4 September 1942.

Lockheed P-38 Lightning Of The 475Th Fighter Group, Equipped With Two Auxiliary Gas Tanks. One Tank Has A Capacity For 310 Gallons, The Other Holds 165 Gallons. Lingayen Airstrip, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 25 August 1945.

Two Republic P-47's On The Line At 11Th Combat Crew Replacement Center, Aaf Station 112, England. February 1943.

Aircraft, Burma, India &Troops &Paratroops

11 Airborne Personnel Going Through The Extremely Difficult Job Of Loading A Piper L-4 Liaison Airplane On An Air Transport Command Douglas C-54 'Skymaster'. Kadena Airstrip, Okinawa, Ryukyu Retto. 30 August 1945.

Douglas C-47 of the 394th Bomb Squadron, 5th Bomb Group "Bomber Barons," at an airfield on Borneo, Netherlands East Indies. July 1945.

Ground Crew Members Of The 9Th Fighter Command, Based At Boxted, England, Overhaul And Re-Arm A Fighter Plane For Its Next Mission Over Enemy Territory. They Are: Sgt. Marvin Lippoff Of Bronx, New York (Foreground); Sgt. Robert L. Seager Of Flint, Michig

These Douglas C-47S Of The 9Th Troop Carrier Command Have Just Arrived At Le Bourget Field, France With Battle Casualties From The Frontlines. Waiting Ambulances Will Rush The Wounded To Nearby Hospitals For Treatment. 18 March 1945.

Crash landing of North American B-25.

Bombing of Cairo, Egypt...

Lt. Rutan And The Crew Standing Beside His Plane The 'Whistler'S Wings'. England. 10 June 1944.

This Shot Was Made On An Airfield Near Brunswick, Where Retreating Germans Set Fire To A Number Of Me-100 Fighter Aircraft Because There Was Not Enough Fuel To Fly Them. Incendiary Bobms Were Placed In The Cockpits Of The Twin Engined Fighters By Their O

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