Warbird Information Exchange

On P-39's the data block is usually on the lower keel with the serial number and fuel information but for some reason on this one its on the cab.

i am trying to work out why and what the other letters mean.

in the data block it says:

-P-30D (or P-39D?)
then under that it has AAF *a few inches missing here* 103
then under that it just has 100
and then the usual fuel information.

i am puzzled as to why this is up on the cab and not the keel and what it means?

i believe it to be 41-7103 based on where it was recovered from and the aaf number but any help is welcome as some mongrel has again stolen the main data plate.

It's definitely a P-39D, and based on what's visible, I'm going out on a limb to suggest this would be 41-7103 based on Joe Baugher's production block info for the D model:

40-2991/3050 Bell P-39D Airacobra
60 planes
41-6722/7115 Bell P-39D Airacobra
394 planes

The AAF ______103 would definitely be the serial block, and there's really no other sequence ending in 103 that would fit. 41-7103 appears to have stayed stateside per Baugher (7103 condemned Jun 15, 1944) so where is this beastie?

Cheers,

Lynn

hi, 41-7103 crash landed at Nadi airport in Fiji

Nandi Airport, FIJ LAC 5 Jones, William A. FIJ Nandi Airport, FIJ, 70th ps?

it looks like it says -P30D not P-39D thats why im a bit confused

also have you ever seen the data block applied to a cab as opposed to the keel?

P-30 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consolidated_P-30 would be so much rarer than a P-39. Also impossible to mistake for one.

The data block is always near the cockpit/cabin, and theoretically at least, always in the same format

_________________
Lest Hero-worship raise it's head and cloud our vision, remember that World War II was fought and won by the same sort of twenty-something punks we wouldn't let our daughters date.

its a P-39 just wondering what -P-30D means, and ive never seen the data block on the cab as the keel is the plane

1 - Why'd you remove the pic?

2 - I looked REAL closely at it and was going to run it through Photoshop to invert the colors and check a theory... I thought I saw a hint of the middle line of the "9" in that splotch of dark paint (hence, P-39D, not P-30D... there was never a P-30D anyways).

Lynn