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Brigadier General Thomas L Hayes Thomas Hayes was born in Portland, Oregon. In his career he was credited with a total of 10.5 victories - 8 and a half of these were German and two Japanese. During 1942 he was based in the South Pacific, at Java. During this time he was shot down by a Japanese Zero fighter over the island of Bali. Later in the war he was sent to Britain as a Squadron Commander, flying P51 Mustangs with the 357th Fighter Group - the Yoxford Boys. On 6th March 1944 he led his squadron on one of the first successful daylight raids on Berlin, where twenty enemy aircraft were shot down by the squadron, with all aircraft of the 357th Fighter Group returning safely. In his career he was awarder the Distinguished Flying Cross, Silver Star and the Purple Heart. Sadly, Thomas Hayes passed away on 24th July 2008, aged 91. |
| Brigadier General Thomas L Hayes - Signed Aviation Art Prints, Paintings and Drawings Pilot and Aircrew Signatures |
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| Aircraft for : Brigadier General Thomas L Hayes (deceased) | |||
| A list of all aircraft associated with Brigadier General Thomas L Hayes (deceased). A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name. | |||
| Squadron | Info | ||
Manufacturer : North American | 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. | ||
| Squadrons for : Brigadier General Thomas L Hayes (deceased) | ||
| A list of all squadrons known to have been served with by Brigadier General Thomas L Hayes (deceased). A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name. | ||
| Squadron | Info | |
Country : US Yoxford Boys Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of 357th Fighter Group | 357th Fighter Group Full profile not yet available. | |
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