P-35 Why no nickname?

[PinecastleAAF]

I have a buddy that confused the P-36 and the P-35. I was explaining the differences and it got me wondering if there was ever a nickname for the P-35? I never heard of one and can't find anything. Any idea why? The P-26 had a nickname so why not the P-35?

[JohnB]

One possible explanation...

Back in the day, many/most, nicknames were usually given by the company as marketing tools.
Best known are the Curtiss "Hawk" and Falcon series.
Boeing trademarked "Flying Fortress".
Other nicknames...like the P-26 Peashooter, were unofficial names bestowed by air/ground crews.

So, it's possible Seversky never got around to thinking up a name (possibly because they had the P-43 in the pipeline), and with so few built and it's short operational life, the crews or the AAC never got around to naming it.

[marine air]

Seversky P-35 had the logo "Sever the Sky". That's a cool play on words. The trainer version, AT-12 is called the "Guardsman." I like the imagery of a silver P-35 slicing through the sky.

[marine air]

Seversky P-35 had the logo "Sever the Sky". That's a cool play on words. The trainer version, AT-12 is called the "Guardsman." I like the imagery of a silver P-35 slicing through the sky.

[Mark Sampson]

It's also true that many WWII aircraft names came from the designations the British gave them, and then adopted by the USA. The P-35, of course, was never bought by the RAF... I wonder if the Swedes had a name for it?
And I see in a recent video that Kermit Weeks is restoring a P-35 to fly. Wonder if we'll ever see it in the air?

[Duggy009]

In Swedish service it was known as the J-9.

[JohnB]

In Swedish service it was known as the J-9.

If I remember my college Swedish...
J stands for Jakt...fighter.
A for attack, B for bomber.
Hkp, helicopter.
Their B 17 has no relation to the Flying Fortress.

The Swedes kept their P-35s around for awhile, Wiki says 1952, I'm sure there was a local nickname for it, (like the J 29 Gunman "barrel") but I have never heard of it.

[Noha307]

The Army Air Force "official guide" lists the "approved names" for a number of aircraft, but the P-35 is not among them:

        MILITARY AIRCRAFT
 DESIGNER     AAF DESIGNATIONS   APPROVED NAME
BOMBERS
 Boeing . . . . B-17 . . . . Fortress
 Douglas . . . . B-18 . . . . Bolo
 Douglas . . . . B-23 . . . . Dragon
 Consolidated . . B-24 . . . . Liberator
 North American. . B-25 . . . . Mitchell
 Martin . . . . B-26 . . . . Marauder
 Boeing . . . . B-29 . . . . Superfortress
 Vega. . . . . B-34 (O-56) . . Ventura
 Douglas . . . . A-20 (P-70) . . Havoc
 Douglas . . . . A-24 . . . . Dauntless
 Curtiss . . . . A-25 . . . . Helldiver
 Lockheed . . . A-29 (AT-18) . . Hudson
 Martin . . . . A-30 . . . . Baltimore
 Vultee . . . . A-31, A-35 . . . Vengeance
 Brewster. . . . A-34 . . . . Bermuda
 North American. . A-36 (P-51) . . Mustang

FIGHTERS
 Lockheed . . . P-38 . . . . Lightning
 Bell . . . . . P-39 . . . . Airacobra
 Curtiss . . . . P-40 . . . . Warhawk
 Republic . . . P-47 . . . . Thunderbolt
 North American. . P-51 (A-36) . . Mustang
 Northrop . . . P-61 . . . . Black Widow
 Bell . . . . . P-63 . . . . King Cobra [sic]
 Douglas . . . . P-70 (A-20) . . Havoc

LIAISON
 Taylorcraft . . . L-2 (O-57) . . . Grasshopper
 Aeronica [sic]. . . . L-3 (O-58) . . . Grasshopper
 Piper. . . . . L-4 (O-59) . . . Grasshopper
 Vultee . . . . L-5 (O-62) . . . Sentinel

OBSERVATION
 Vultee . . . . O-49 . . . . Vigilant
 Curtiss . . . . O-52 . . . . Owl
 Lockheed . . . O-56 (B-34) . . Ventura
 Taylorcraft . . . O-57 (L-2) . . . Grasshopper
 Aeronica [sic]. . . . O-58 (L-3) . . . Grasshopper
 Piper. . . . . O-59 (L-4) . . . Grasshopper
 Vultee . . . . O-62 (L-5) . . . Sentinel

TRAINERS
 North American. . AT-6 . . . . Texan
 Beech . . . . AT-7 . . . . Navigator
 Beech . . . . AT-10 . . . . Wichita
 Beech . . . . AT-11 . . . . Kansan
 Boeing . . . . AT-15 . . . . Crewmaker
 North American. . AT-16 . . . . Harvard
 Cessna . . . . AT-17 . . . . Bobcat
 Lockheed . . . AT-18 (A-29) . . Hudson
 Vultee . . . . AT-19 . . . . Reliant
 Fairchild. . . . AT-21 . . . . Gunner
 North American. . BT-9, BT-14 . . Yale
 Fleetwing [sic] . . . BT-12 . . . . Sophomore
 Vultee . . . . BT-13, BT-15 . . Valiant
 Stearman . . . PT-13, PT-17
          PT-18, PT-27 . . Cadet
 Fairchild. . . . PT-19, PT-23
          PT-26 . . . . Cornell
 Ryan. . . . . PT-21, PT-22 . . Recruit

TRANSPORTS
 Beech . . . . C-43 . . . . Traveller
 Beech . . . . C-45 . . . . Expediter
 Curtiss . . . . C-46 . . . . Commando
 Douglas . . . . C-47 . . . . Skytrain
 Douglas . . . . C-49, C-53. . . Skytrooper
 Douglas . . . . C-54 . . . . Skymaster
 Lockheed . . . C-56, C-60 . . . Lodestar
 Lockheed . . . C-63 (AT-18)
          (A-29) . . . . Hudson
 Lockheed . . . C-69 . . . . Constellation
 Curtiss . . . . C-76 . . . . Caravan
 Consolidated . . C-87 . . . . Liberator
 Grumman     OA-9 . . . . Goose

(Source: AAF: The Official Guide to the Army Air Forces (New York, NY: Pocket Books, Inc., 1944), 126-127.)

In addition to the P-35, also notably absent is the AT-9 and P-43. The origin of the "Texan" nickname is actually mentioned in a newspaper article. According to a magazine article, the A-31 was christened "Vengeance" by Lady Halifax.

Boeing trademarked "Flying Fortress".

For anyone who missed the discussion of that, see the Flying Fortress etymology thread. (Or, for a similar discussion of nickname origins, a thread about "Mustang".)

It's also true that many WWII aircraft names came from the designations the British gave them, and then adopted by the USA.

For reference, the nicknames were made official in January 1943, as mentioned in a newspaper article.

Last edited by Noha307 on Mon Jun 06, 2022 3:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[marine air]

I think we should just call it the "Guardsman" as it had almost no combat history , and faired poorly. The U.S. types were almost exclusively used stateside and during peacetime.

[PinecastleAAF]

I should have mentioned in my op that one of the main reasons I was surprised it didn't have a nickname was the fact that the AT-12 did. Just one of those things I suppose. The Sever the Sky slogan is cool first I've heard of that. Thanks for all the responses.

[Noha307]

The Sever the Sky slogan is cool first I've heard of that.

For reference: AP-1, Seversky logo on fuselage

[Noha307]

I was reading about the XB-28 today when I realized that there were two airplanes with the Dragon nickname - it and the B-23. It made me curious as to whether the Dragon nickname for the B-28 was official, so I decided to look into it. In the process I found another newspaper article mentioning the start of official nicknames, but this one laid them out in a nice format like the official guide above:

Army And Navy to Designate
Warplanes By Popular Names

   So that the general public may have a better idea of the
character of military aircraft and more readily identify them,
every American warplane-bomber, fighter, transport, trainer
or other type-will hereafter have a name of its own instead of
being a mere number. In adopting this policy, the Army and
Navy will follow a practice which has long been in effect in
England and which has made certain plane names household
words throughout the world.
   Many American combat planes are already widely known
by a particular name, but certain minor changes have been
made, as in the case of the Curtiss P-40 series of fighters,
models of which have been known as the "Tomahawk," "Kitty-
hawk" and "Warhawk," but which hereafter will be known
only as the "Warhawk." The new names of the United States
combat planes, together with the old letter-numeral designa-
tions and the companies manufacturing them are the following:

        Navy and
 Army    Marine Cps    Manufacturer   Name
            HEAVY BOMBERS
B-17               Boeing      Flying Fortress
B-24     PB4Y       Consolidated   Liberator

            MEDIUM BOMBERS
B-18               Douglas     Bolo
B-23               Douglas     Dragon
B-25     PBJ        North American  Mitchell
B-26               Martin      Marauder
B-34     PV         Vega       Ventura

            LIGHT BOMBERS
A-20     BD         Douglas     Havoc (Attack)
A-24     SBD        Douglas      Dauntless (Dive)
A-25     SB2C        Curtiss      Helldiver (Dive)
A-29     PBO        Lockheed     Hudson (Patrol)
A-34     SB2A       Brewster      Buccaneer (Dive)
A-35               Vultee       Vengeance (Dive)
       SB2U        Vought-Sikorsky Vindicator (Dive)
       TBD        Douglas     Devastator (Torpedo)
       TBF        Grumman     Avenger (Torpedo)

            PATROL BOMBERS
             (Flying Boats)
OA-10    PBY        Consolidated    Catalina
       PB2Y        Consolidated    Coronado
       PBM        Martin        Mariner

                 FIGHTERS
P-38               Lockheed     Lightning
P-39               Bell        Airacobra
P-40               Curtiss      Warhawk
P-43               Republic     Lancer
P-47               Republic     Thunderbolt
P-51               North American  Mustang
       F2A        Brewster     Buffalo
       F4F        Grumman    Wildcat
       F4U        Vought-Sikorsky  Corsair

            SCOUTING OBSERVATION
                (Seaplanes)
       SO3C       Curtiss       Seagull
       OS2U       Vought-Sikorsky  Kingfisher

                TRANSPORTS
C-43    GB         Beech       Traveler
C-45A   JRB         Beech       Voyager
C-46    R5C         Curtiss      Commando
C-47    R4D1        Douglas      Skytrain
C-53    R4D3        Douglas      Skytrooper
C-54    R5D         Douglas     Skymaster
C-56    R5O         Lockheed     Lodestar
C-61    GK         Fairchild      Forwarder
C-69               Lockheed     Constellation
C-76               Curtiss      Caravan
C-87               Consolidated   Liberator Express
      JR2S         Vought-Sikorsky Excalibur

                TRAINERS
PT-13 & 17  N2S1 & 3      Boeing      Caydet [sic]
PT-19 & 23            Fairchild     Cornell
PT-22     NR        Ryan       Recruit
       N2T       Timm       Tutor
BT-13 & 15  SNV       Vultee       Valiant
AT-6     SNJ        North American  Texan
AT-7     SNB2       Beech       Navigator
AT-8 & 17            Cessna      Bobcat
AT-10              Beech       Wichita
AT-11     SNB1       Beech       Kansas [sic]
AT-13 & 17 [sic]         Fairchild      Yankee Doodle
AT-15              Boeing       Crewmaker
AT-19              Vultee       Reliant
       SNC        Curtiss      Falcon

                LIAISON
L-1              Vultee       Vigilant
L-2              Taylorcraft     Grasshopper
L-3              Aeronca      Grasshopper
L-4     NE (Navy     Piper       Grasshopper
       Trainer)

Source: Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce of America

(Source: "Army and Navy to Designate Warplanes by Popular Names," Morning Call, January 25, 1943, 20.)

Particularly interesting is the fact it was sourced from the Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce of America. It makes me wonder if they had something to do with the official naming effort. Also, note that neither this table nor the previous one spelled the name of the PT-17 as "Kaydet". Still no mention of the P-35 or AT-9, but the P-43 is included - along with a AT-13/AT-14 "Yankee Doodle".

[warbird51]

AT-9 Jeep

[Noha307]

AT-9 Jeep

The thing about the "Jeep" moniker for the AT-9 is that it is very likely an unofficial nickname. NMUSAF's page on their example mentions it, but suggests that the official nickname was "Fledgling". This seems a lot more likely to me considering that a number of the other nicknames for trainers on the list above - Sophomore, Recruit, Kaydet - carried the connotation of a novice or student. This was a trend followed both outside the military (e.g. Interstate S-1 Cadet, Porterfield CP-50 Collegiate) and the United States (e.g. Bücker Bü 133 Jungmeister).

[shrike]

AT-9 Jeep

The thing about the "Jeep" moniker for the AT-9 is that it is very likely an unofficial nickname. NMUSAF's page on their example mentions it, but suggests that the official nickname was "Fledgling". This seems a lot more likely to me considering that a number of the other nicknames for trainers on the list above - Sophomore, Recruit, Kaydet - carried the connotation of a novice or student. This was a trend followed both outside the military (e.g. Interstate S-1 Cadet, Porterfield CP-50 Collegiate) and the United States (e.g. Bücker Bü 133 Jungmeister).

Perhaps semi-official. I have a Lycoming poster - 1943- on the wall that calls it out as 'Jeep'