Douglas A-20 Havoc, from the factory to the field ...

[Invader26]

Gemmer, no picture found!

My father worked on RAAF Bostons and told me about turning the earlier DB-7/A-20A into "Havocs"...here in Australia..

[Lightning]

Howdy All

Don't suppose anybody saw this in Oz the other week

https://www.facebook.com/RAAF.Museum/ph ... =3&theater

People traveling on the Hume Highway north from Melbourne would have noticed aircraft fuselages and other large components moving north on low-loaders. They were Boston aircraft fuselages moving to their new home at Precision Aerospace at Wangaratta. The fuselages have certainly travelled some miles in their life. Recovered in PNG and moved to Wagga, then to Amberly and onto Point Cook and now to Wangaratta.

Lightning

[TAdan]

I noticed the Facebook posts, and was hoping someone would chime in with a bit more detail about their airframes and the future.

[Mark Allen M]

Great find.
This is my father's plane with him at the controls.
"Little Hellion"
Lt. Kenneth A. LaBarre
5th AAF, 417th BG.
He was eventually assigned to the 673th Bombardment Squadron "Flying Cowboys".

Ahhh! just lovely! ... makes my day whenever someone comes along and has a personal connection to these old photos. Thank you kindly for posting. Wonderful indeed and thank you for your father's service. Another "hero" comes to the fore front where he belongs.

Please post more about your father. I know many of us would love to sit back and read and learn with appreciation.

M

[Mark Allen M]

More interesting info here ...

https://airwarworldwar2.wordpress.com/2 ... g-special/

[eallen]

First off...Thank you to Mark for starting this! Thank you for sharing all of the pictures you put up here for us to see! Thank you to all the contributors so far! Very neat to see the connections evolve and real family history! I was fortunate to meet an A-20 pilot who flew in the South Pacific through a family friend. I have since become friends with his family and visa versa. It has been an amazing experience for all of us. Bob Vanderhagen flew A-20s in the 417th Bomb Group. A few of us were able to connect Bob with Rod Lewis's newly restored A-20 before it flew to it's new home in Texas. It was the first time Bob had seen, touched, sat in, or saw one fly in over 70 years. I ended up writing a small article on Bob and the "new" A-20 for Warbird Digest (issue #65 March/April if you want to get it). During the research for the article I was able to gain access to Bob's scrapbook which was full of pictures and other historical items. I scanned a few and thought I would share some that did not make it into the magazine. Hope you guys like the pics!

Bob standing next to his plane.


A-20s lined up on Mindoro Island...even a P-38 snuck in this picture.


A couple of pictures from the bomb bay camera.




Bob standing in front of the newly restored A-20. He never thought he would see one again.


Watching it start up for a test flight.


Back in the cockpit after 70+ years.


2 other A-20 pilots showed up later in the day...Capt. John Minech 410th BG, Lt. Raymond Holmes 417th BG, and Lt. Bob Vanderhagen 417th BG

[ALOHADAVE]

more about A-20 Little Hellion 0166 reference http://www.pacificwrecks.com/aircraft/a-20/40-166.html
and "Steak and Eggs" Reference http://www.ozatwar.com/ozcrashes/qld231.htm
wreck remains still on the beach

Attachments

[Zac Yates]

Standard Oil A-20G B Larkin collection

Whilst owned by Hughes this aircraft was modified to test a vertical stabiliser and fin for the XF-11. Real long shot: have any photos of it in this configuration come to light?

[Chris Brame]

And while we're at it, anyone know about an A-20 that survived the war and ended up as a hack in Occupied Japan? My dad and six of his friends crammed into it in Osaka and flew down to Tokyo to watch a football game in October 1948. And no, it wasn't an A-26 - he flew in many of those as a weather observer and knew the difference. Over to the experts...