Current combat history Warbirds

Hi folks .... hope this hasn't been asked before, probably has though .... But since I'm still new .....

1. What is the current, flying Warbird fighter with the most documented combat history. Is there one?

2. What is the current, flying Warbird bomber with the most documented combat history. Is there one?

3. What is the current, non-flying Warbird fighter and/or bomber with the most documented combat history in a museum or elsewhare.

I know of "flak-Bait" and a few others bombers either fully assembled or in crates. I do not know of any fighters either flying or in museums that have actual combat kills.

Mark (not an F6F Hellcat Driver)

[corsair166b]

The B-25 'Pacific Warrior' which recently visited Colorado has combat history with Kenney's 5th air force in the S. Pacific....as denoted by its kill marks....it was rather impressive to actually read about the history of THAT particular plane at the show we saw it at as opposed to some B-25 that had 'adopted' a history by way of its paint job!

M

[rwdfresno]

Possibly the Flying Heritage Collection P-51D that has a documented ME-262 kill and B-25J "How `Boot That!?" from the Cavanaugh Flight Museum.

[gregv]

Spitfire V EP120, seven confirmed kills, flies with TFC:

http://www.fighter-collection.com/pages ... /index.php

Spitfire IX MH434, flys with the OFMC, several kills:

http://www.ofmc.co.uk/aircraft/spitfire_hist.htm

I'm sure there are other flying Spitfires, and as mentioned above definitely some Mustangs, probably some Hurricanes as well with kills; I'd be surprised if the two flying Me109E's (OK, one is flying, one will some day) as well as the soon to fly FHC Fw190 didn't have a few kills between them, although documentation could be an issue. Then there's the four Tonys under rebuild in Australia, perhaps a few kills there? Again, documentation could be an issue.

cheers

greg v.

Last edited by gregv on Wed Jul 25, 2007 2:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[Dan Newcomb]

Pacific Warrior? I am not familiar with it. Who owns it?

[gregv]

If I am to understand that by combat history you mean number of missions flown and/or enemy aircraft destroyed, then the static bomber with the most could well be the Lancaster at the RAF museum Hendon, with 137 sorties:

http://www.warbirdregistry.org/lancregi ... r5868.html

(edit: you are correct, Flak Bait has 202 sorties sorties to her credit; that's got to top them all I'd bet.)

If you are talking about most famous conventional static bomber period, I'd have to say the Memphis Belle.

And if you are referring to a static bomber which had the greatest combat impact, then I personally would think that the Enola Gay and Bockscar are both very much in a league of their own...

cheers again

greg v.

[Pat Carry]

Doesnt "Chuckie" have time on it as a pathfinder aircraft?

[Shay]

Doesn't just about every P-39 and A-20 still in existance have combat time? Being that most were hauled out of the jungles of PNG. Or Russia with respect to the P-39 and P-40s aswell.

I would also guess you could assume every surviving Axis aircraft has comabt time as well.


http://www.preservedaxisaircraft.com

Shay
____________
Semper Fortis

[Jack Cook]

F6F-3 B/N 08825 owned by Bill Compton servedin VF-37 on the jeep carrier Sagamon during the Philippines Campaign . It scored 2 kills being flown by Lt Jim Ritchie who was awarded the Navy Cross

[gregv]

Doesn't just about every P-39 and A-20 still in existance have combat time? Being that most were hauled out of the jungles of PNG. Or Russia with respect to the P-39 and P-40s aswell.

I would also guess you could assume every surviving Axis aircraft has comabt time as well.


http://www.preservedaxisaircraft.com

Shay
____________
Semper Fortis

I think with the axis and Russian-operated types it is the documentation that is the problem; we can safely assume that if the aircraft came out of the combat zone that it more than likely has combat hours, but without logs & records there is no way to definitively prove what it did.

gv

I wonder if the spitfires and any other flying combat vet is wearing the same colors?

[rwdfresno]

I wonder if the spitfires and any other flying combat vet is wearing the same colors?

B-25J "How `Boot That!?" has the original paint scheme down to having the original nose art artist paint the nose art on the restored aircraft.

[Nathan]

Are there any P-40's flying that have combat action? When I think of combat action I think of when that aircraft was actually over hostile skies/territories.

[gregv]

Are there any P-40's flying that have combat action? When I think of combat action I think of when that aircraft was actually over hostile skies/territories.

here's a few:

http://www.pioneeraero.co.nz/

gv

[Cindy]

the P40 at POF may not have the most extensive combat record, but it probably has one of the more interesting kills - it shot down a Japanese incendiary balloon over Vancouver, BC.

several of the POF aircraft have combat records and intersting histories. back in the old days the POF website had the more interesting histories available. can't say if that's the case anymore - but you can always check out the site and see what's there.