This is the place where the majority of the warbird (aircraft that have survived military service) discussions will take place. Specialized forums may be added in the new future
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Saratoga Air Ops Indian Ocean 1944

Thu Oct 09, 2008 8:25 pm

Image
Air Ops onbaord the Saratoga during March 1944 when she was operation with HMS Illustrious in the Indian Ocean. VF-12 Hellcays in the foreground with a VT-12 Turkey taking a cut.

Thu Oct 09, 2008 8:32 pm

Speechless!!!! .... Anything USS Franklin? or USS Hornet? second Hornet .... and then I'll shut up ....

Thu Oct 09, 2008 9:56 pm

Sweet Sara ... and I've been wanting to do a Hellcat picture for a while, been accumulating refs for ages, but the commissions in other areas keep piling up.

If you have Chuck Self's book on CV/CVA/CVS-12, just ignore the stray aviation artist in some of those pics. We spent a week onboard in 1995 before she was a museum ... Chuck spent MUCH more time over many other trips to SF and even before when she was docked in the mothball fleet in Bremerton, IIRC. I loved going through the ready rooms and living spaces in particular. I wondered how many Hellcat jocks - among many others - walked those same spaces. A lot, I'm sure ... and Apollo Recovery stickers all over the place.

Those VF-27 snarling teeth cowlings are dang attractive. May start off with one of those if I ever get to the F6F project. Who needs sleep?!

Wade

Thu Oct 09, 2008 10:40 pm

Great pic of one of the more overlooked aspects of the Pacific War. Sara never quite got the press the Big E got.
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