[Tundra04]

.


I'd like ANY P-61, but JP, I think you're right on the money!!

[STARMAN 352ND]

Well so far the count for the best P-61 Noseart.
Lady in the Dark 3
Roses Raiders 3
Borrowed Time 1
Lady Gen 1

[conemaugh]

Moon Happy





Times'A'Wastin", was the plane of Maj. Carrol C. "Snuffy" Smith and his R/O, Lt Philip Porter.Maj. "Snuffy" Smith was the highest ranking American nocturnal ace in World War II with the total of 7 kills. Four of them were achieved in this plane during the course of one night, December 29, 1944, when he shot down two Irvings, one Rufe, and one Frank, expending only 382 rounds!

[Hoverbug]

Has to be "Lady in the Dark"!

[Liberando]

I would go for Lady in the Dark.

[STARMAN 352ND]

Times a Wastin is one of my favorites too
I built the model of it years ago.
JP

[Bluenosed Bastard]

At this point I would go for any good quality 1/72 P-61 Black Widow!!!!

[Cruver Collecter]

Just curious, anyone know how many P-61 aces there were?

[STARMAN 352ND]

The first recorded "kill" came on July 6, 1944, when 1st Lt. Francis Eaton (pilot), 2d Lt. James E. Ketchum (radar operator), and SSgt. Gary Anderson (gunner) intercepted and shot down a Japanese "Betty" bomber. P-61 crews accounted for 127 confirmed victories, including 18 V-1 "buzz bombs" in Europe. Four Black Widow crews became aces.

The last kill by a P-61 was made by Major Lee Kendall to whom "Lady in the Dark" was assigned. The nose art was commissioned by Major Kendall on Iwo Jima. Major Kendall, a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross, on August 15, 1945 while on CAP caused a Tojo aircraft to crash - the Japanese fighter crashed into the Pacific without a shot being fired. At that time Kendall was known as Captain Solie Solomon

[STARMAN 352ND]

In accounting for Black Widow aces, there is a complication since the aircraft had more than one crew member. Does only the pilot get credit for the kill, or does the radar operator get credit as well? What happens if the pilot has had different radar operators on different missions? What if a radar operator has had more than one pilot? In the European theatre, there was an additional complication because some of the Black Widow kills were against unmanned V-1 'buzz bombs". Should these V-1s kills be included in the count? If V-1s are included, and if both pilots and radar operators are to be given credit for the kill, in Europe, there were two sets of pilots and radar operators who achieved six victories. These were the pair 1st Lt. Herman E. Ernst (pilot) and 2nd Lt. Edward H. Kopsel (radar operator) and the pair Lt. Paul A. Smith (pilot) and Lt. Robert E. Tierney (radar operator). One V-1 is included in the count for each pair of crew members. All of these crew members were from the 418th Night Fighter Squadron. The leading Black Widow crew in the Pacific was the pair Major Carrol C. Smith (pilot) and Lt. Philip B. Porter (radar operator) of the 418th Night Fighter Squadron, who destroyed five Japanese aircraft.