Aces Of The 78th Fighter Group (aircraft Of The Aces)
by Thomas Cleaver /
2013 / English / PDF
3.1 MB Download
Eighth Air Force 78th FG flew P-38 Lightning, P-47 Thunderbolt, and
P-51 Mustang fighters in air combat against German Luftwaffe
Me-109, Fw-190, and Me-262 aircraft.
Eighth Air Force 78th FG flew P-38 Lightning, P-47 Thunderbolt, and
P-51 Mustang fighters in air combat against German Luftwaffe
Me-109, Fw-190, and Me-262 aircraft.
The 78th FG was originally established as the fourth of the P-38
fighter groups that were expected to perform fighter escort in the
newly formed Eighth Air Force. Arriving in England in November
1942, the group lost most of its personnel and all of its aircraft
as attrition replacements to units in the North African theatre in
February 1943. Left with no flying personnel other than flight
leaders, and no aircraft, the group was re-equipped with the P-47
Thunderbolt and newly trained P-47 pilots in March 1943. The 78th
flew its first sweep along the Dutch coast in April in company with
the 4th FG. Along with the 56th FG, these groups would be the first
units in VIII Fighter Command, and as such "wrote the book" on long
range fighter escort in the ETO. The 78th FG would ultimately prove
to be the only Eighth Air Force fighter group to have flown the
P-38 Lightning, P-47 Thunderbolt, and P-51 Mustang in its
operational career. Flying from Duxford, in Cambridgeshire, the
group's pilots shot down 316 enemy aircraft in air combat, with a
further 144 claimed as probables or damaged. Once turned loose in
1944 to attack German airfields, the 78th was also credited with
the destruction of 320 aircraft by strafing. The story of the 78th
FG will be researched through extensive first-person interviews
with eight surviving pilots and ground personnel of the unit, and
also using previously recorded interviews with two leading ace
pilots who are no longer alive. Photos will be gathered from
surviving group members where possible, with emphasis on
never-before-published imagery, in addition to other photos from
historical collections.
The 78th FG was originally established as the fourth of the P-38
fighter groups that were expected to perform fighter escort in the
newly formed Eighth Air Force. Arriving in England in November
1942, the group lost most of its personnel and all of its aircraft
as attrition replacements to units in the North African theatre in
February 1943. Left with no flying personnel other than flight
leaders, and no aircraft, the group was re-equipped with the P-47
Thunderbolt and newly trained P-47 pilots in March 1943. The 78th
flew its first sweep along the Dutch coast in April in company with
the 4th FG. Along with the 56th FG, these groups would be the first
units in VIII Fighter Command, and as such "wrote the book" on long
range fighter escort in the ETO. The 78th FG would ultimately prove
to be the only Eighth Air Force fighter group to have flown the
P-38 Lightning, P-47 Thunderbolt, and P-51 Mustang in its
operational career. Flying from Duxford, in Cambridgeshire, the
group's pilots shot down 316 enemy aircraft in air combat, with a
further 144 claimed as probables or damaged. Once turned loose in
1944 to attack German airfields, the 78th was also credited with
the destruction of 320 aircraft by strafing. The story of the 78th
FG will be researched through extensive first-person interviews
with eight surviving pilots and ground personnel of the unit, and
also using previously recorded interviews with two leading ace
pilots who are no longer alive. Photos will be gathered from
surviving group members where possible, with emphasis on
never-before-published imagery, in addition to other photos from
historical collections.
