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Lockheed P-38J Lightning

by Roy Richard

The 1st Fighter Group is the oldest and one of the most famous fighter groups in the USAF. 

During WWII the Group, consisting of the 27th, 71st and 94th Fighter Squadrons, flew the P-38 Lockheed Lighting fighter in campaigns in Europe and North Africa.

The Commanding Officer of the 1st Fighter Group from September 1943 to November 1944 was my father, the late Colonel Robert B. Richard, USAF.  The photo to the right shows my father standing in the cockpit of a P-38J assigned to the 27th Fighter Squadron and was taken sometime during the summer of 1944 at the air base in Salsola, Italy. The Hasagawa 1/48 scale model of the Lockheed P-38J was built essentially out of the box. The model was painted with SnJ spray metal and India ink was used to bring out the panel lines.

At the time the 1st Fighter Group was part of the 15th Air Force and all of their aircraft had red spinners. Aircraft assigned to the 8th Air Force had their spinners painted yellow. Very little weathering was applied since the Group’s P-38Js were almost brand new at this time.

Model, Images and Text Copyright © 2001 by Roy Richard
Page Created 07 March, 2001
Last Updated 18 July, 2001

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