This first section is B-24 Liberators, probably from the US 15th Air Force based in North Africa in WWII. They are camouflaged, modified and individualized with sexy nose-art and mission markings. This was Uncle Eddie’s outfit but we don’t know much about his service. 

Dragon Lady has 43 bomb symbols, two sunken ships and a camel marked ’54’. Black camo paint underneath, shark’s mouth, front gun turret faired over.

Fabulous Fannie features full rear nudity, bit rare on even raunchy Army planes in 1943.

Lassie, I’m Home. Must have meant something back then. No belly camo here, front turret but no guns fitted.

Black Magic is black indeed with all black camo, white side-wall tires. Marked Lt. F. V. Rakela. Note veteran B-24 behind with wavy belly camo, shark’s mouth.

This Liberator had two names, Sentimental Journey and Am I Ready? Crew, Lt. Townsend, Lt. Michalek, Lt. Kulow, Ssgt, Weisbrot, Ssgt Weronke.

Squeeze sports 28 bombing mission symbols and 24 camel mission symbols (supply?), black belly camo, shark’s mouth, turret faired over.

 Selum Imvele, whatever that means, is a B-26 Martin Marauder with shark’s mouth. Buck Sgt. Edward Whalen is 2nd from left with sunglass case on belt and three stripes.

Glacier Girl and big friend on final approach.

Successful landings were achieved by all aircraft and all crew members were rescued from the ice.

Mig-17PF, ‘Fresco D’. Was it a coincidence that the North Vietnamese national aircraft insignia looked eerily like the US Star and Bar? A cheap little hotrod of a jet, turning rings around bomb-laden F-105 Thuds, shooting down and damaging them with heavy canons and making them jettison munitions. Great for hit and run guerrilla air wars like Vietnam.

F-100 Super Sabre, The Hun, with F-86D all-weather Dog Sabre behind. For a few seconds you might think the Mig-17 was a Hun joining formation with you.

Republic F-84F Thunderstreak, a long-serving 1954 development of the earlier straight-wing F-84D and F-84E, Thunderjet, which proved quite useful for ground attack in the Korean war.

Recreation of a Granville Brothers GeeBee Sportster, shot at Lincoln Harder airport (LHM). It looked about as hard to fly as the originals. Slides projected on screen and photographed for the vintage look.

ERCO Ercoupe.

Training aid AG452.9 (4-21-42), Identification of Warplanes, US Govt Printing Office, RESTRICTED.

Thankfully I missed him at the air museum.

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