Original painted A-2s

[bombs away]

Hello,

I've finally taken the time to show all the A-2 pictures I've found mostly on Footnote.
You'll find the album there :
http://www.flickr.com/photos/43440107@N ... 549418326/

I'm sure you'll enjoy, even if you must already know some of them.

All the best,
Tim.

 

[navvet]

Thanx for the great selection.

 

[Cobblers161]

That's cracking, many thanks indeed!

Some beautiful artwork.

 

[TankBuster]

Nice pictures Tim! Most of these are from the 401st BG.

 

[dujardin]

helloooooo,

good work, thanks taking the time to realise this album.
there are some i have not yet in my file; i will complete.
maybe a day i will do the same; it's a great idea you had there.

friendship from the other side of the border

marcel

 

[better duck]

Nice collection!
Like Marcel, I know most of them, but it's always nice to see them grouped together!

Anybody know what the duck that's on several jackets symbolised?

 

[bombs away]

Anybody know what the duck that's on several jackets symbolised?

These were for "decoy mission, to divert the enemy from actual mission target".

Tim.

 

[rich]

Superb Tim, thank you very much.

 

[dujardin]

Like Marcel,

helloooooo Peter,

Jeff remarks that those photos were well knowed.

i already had most of those in my file but not all.

i just count how many i already had and result is approximately 600.

a day i will take the time to make an album somewhere as BombsAway did. and share it with all.

but as already remarked, most of the photos are already knowed, viewed; it's just good to have the data in a same place (file).

what could be great, it's to have a file here on the forum or reachable by all members where everybody may bring his contribution, a new photo, information on the photo regarding unit, pilot, crew-member, a date, a location, telling repro or original, aso aso aso..... something interactive. something like a big ''photo-library''.

everytime, when i discover a new painted jacket; i place a copy in my file.
i discover that on internet, on ebay, maybe also a post of one of us.

so, when i will take time to realise an album, maybe your jacket or your photo will appear.

or maybe that i can work in connection with BombsAway to complete what he already started.
he start the post, he was the first to realise something, i don't want to take his idea.

byeeeeeeee marcel

 

[Burnsie]

Thanks!

 

[Hamsterbear]

I sent the painted jacket link to my good friend, Lt. Walter F. Hughes who flew 35 missions with the 330th BS 93rd BG 1944-45, and I asked him about the jackets, if his was painted, and so on... ( Walter will be 88 years young in January)
This is his reply:
H I Brian,

I don’t think I had any pictures taken of me in England with the exception of the crew picture on the morning of the Mar 24- 45 resupply mission. I was too poor to own a camera and did’nt associate with anyone who had one. My folks had Kodak bellows cameras for many years and took millions of pictures but none of us had any experience with the new box Brownies which were cheap and plentiful.

I think even more important, I was involved in something so important novel and totally absorbing that the idea of recording it never entered my mind.

My A-2 jacket had no markings on it. I have no idea how guys got their jackets home. They were Govt. issue and were suppose to be turned in before we left the group (where they were issued.

The commonest way to get around this was to “Survey them”, Meaning ’ They got sucked out of a window on a mission, or anything war connected because if you just lost it in London or negligently ruined it, you were supposed to pay for it. This same rule applied to binoculars, side arms, high altitude clothing and electric suits. Of course these items had nowhere near the ownership interest of the A-2., even so lots of binoculars and pistols got surveyed.

They of course told us our baggage would be inspected when we left and it never was.

Those who knew the system knew how to work it, including the guy mailed home a jeep one piece at a time.

There certainly never was a regulation permitting the defacing (painting) of A-2 jackets (government property) but apparently there was no penalty and possibly that became a basis for surveying them.

I suspect that my A-2 was handed to someone by the supply sergeant, as a surveyed item, when the group packed up to return to the states.

Walt

 

[TankBuster]

Poor guy! Some groups were stricter than others about personnel turning in their jackets after their tour was over. The same goes for painting and patching jackets. I'm sure he wishes that he still had it, or at least was able to have kept it.

 

[Django]

Great thread!