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| Signatures on this item | |
| *The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare. | |
| Name | Info |
 Henry W Brown *Signature Value : £40 | Col. Henry William Brown. Brown, born in 1923 and a native of Dallas Texas, flew a P-51B nicknamed the Hun Hunter from Texas. Brown had been assigned to the 355th Fighter Group of the Eighth Air Force in 1943. His first combat tour, flying the P-47 Jug, yielded 4.5 enemy aircraft destroyed on the ground. On his second combat tour Brown began flying the Mustang. Brown became the first Eighth Air Force pilot to destroy more than three aircraft in a day when on 8th March 1944 he strafed Hosepe airfield, destroting three Ju88s and sharing an Me110. He attained 14.2 confirmed aerial victories, and a total of 28.7, prior to being shot down by German flak at Nordlingen Aerodrome on 3rd October 1944. The CO of 354th Fighter Group, Major Charles Lenfest, attempted a rescue by landing to collect him, but became stuck in wet ground and both were captured. Following the war, and his release from prisoner of war camp, Brown remained in the Air Force. He commanded a number of fighter units prior to his retirement in 1974. Col. Henry W. Brown died on February 19th 2008 in Sumter, South Carolina. |
| The Aircraft : | |
| Name | Info |
| Mustang | The ubiquitous North American P-51 Mustang, which many consider to be the best all-around fighter of WW II, owes its origins to the British Air Ministry. Following Britains entry into WW II in 1939, the RAF was interested in purchasing additional fighter aircraft from American sources, particularly the Curtiss P-40. Curtiss, which was busy, was unable to guarantee timely delivery so the British approached North American Aviation as a possible second source for the P-40. North American chose to propose its own fighter design which would use the same Allison engine as the P-40. Utilizing new laminar flow wings, the North American fighter was expected to have performance better than the P-40. Developed in record time the new aircraft was designated as a Mustang I by the Brits, whereas the USAAF ordered two for evaluation which were designated XP-51 Apaches. Intrigued with the possibility of using this aircraft also as a dive bomber, North American proposed this to the USAAF which decided to order 500 of the P-51 aircraft to be modified for dive bombing use. Designated as the A-36 Invader, this version of the Mustang utilized dive flaps, and bomb racks under each wing. Some reinforcing of the structural members was also required because of the G-forces to be encountered in dive bombing. A-36s entered combat service with the USAAF prior to any P-51s. In early 1943 the 86th and 27th Fighter Bomber Groups of the 12th Air Force began flying A-36s out of Northern Africa. Despite some early problems with instability caused by the dive flaps, the A-36 was effective in light bombing and strafing roles. It was not, however, capable of dog fighting with German fighters, especially at higher altitudes. Despite these drawbacks one USAAF pilot, Captain Michael T. Russo, who served with the 16th Bomb Squadron of the 27th Fighter Bomber Group, was credited with five confirmed aerial victories in the A-36, thereby becoming the first mustang ace. |
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Brown, Henry W