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52nd Fighter Group |
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Name : 52nd Fighter Group Country : US |
Known Service Details : | |||||||
Pilot or Aircrew | Rank | Start of Service | End of Service | Known Dates | Aircraft | Airframes | Notes |
January 1943 | unknown | ||||||
| Sub-Squadrons for : 52nd Fighter Group | |
| Squadron | Info |
5th Fighter Squadron Country : US Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of 5th Fighter Squadron | 5th Fighter Squadron Full profile not yet available. |
| Pilots and Aircrew for : 52nd Fighter Group | ||
| A list of all aircrew from our database who are associated with this squadron. A profile page is available by clicking their name. | ||
| Name | Info | |
| Alexander, Richard Click the name above to see a profile of Alexander, Richard
| Alexander, Richard Alexander joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in October 1940, and was awarded his pilot wings on September 15, 1941, joining the 133 Eagle Squadron in England. Alexander was credited with destroying 1 enemy aircraft, plus 1 probable, On 23rd September 1942 he transferred to the U.S. Army Air Forces and joined the 4th Fighter Group. He joined the 109th Observation Squadron in January 1943, and then the 2nd Fighter Squadron of the 52nd Fighter Group in North Africa in April 1943. Lt Alexander destroyed another 4 enemy aircraft, giving him a total of 5 destroyed and 1 probable. He was shot down and taken as a Prisoner of War on May 30, 1944, and was held until his camp was liberated in May 1945. While serving with the 60th Fighter Squadron of the 33rd Fighter Group in Germany in January 1947, he was involved in an accident and lost his right arm. On February 7th 1948 Capt Alexander was medically retired from the Air Force | |
| Curtis, Robert Click the name above to see a profile of Curtis, Robert | Curtis, Robert Bob Curtis arrived in North Africa in 1943, moving to Sicily soon after, flying Spitfires with the 52nd Fighter Group. He scored his first air victory over an Me109 flying his Spitfire, amd later survived a bail out when his fighter was badly damaged after a building he straffed exploded beneath him Moving across to the 15th Air Force, the 52nd Fighter Group re-equipped with the P-51 and Bob Curtis became a Squadron Commander. He added 13 more to his score flying the P-51, ending his war with 14 victories. | |
| Karr, Robert Click the name above to see a profile of Karr, Robert
| Karr, Robert Robert Karr was born on January 11, 1924, in Waterloo, Iowa. Robert enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve on July 31, 1942, and entered the Aviation Cadet Program of the U.S. Army Air Forces on February 8, 1943, receiving his commission as a 2d Lt and pilot wings at Spence Field, Georgia, on November 3, 1943. After completing P-47 Thunderbolt training and serving with the 536th Fighter Squadron of the 87th Fighter Group, Lt Karr was assigned as a P-51C Mustang pilot with the 5th Fighter Squadron of the 52nd Fighter Group in North Africa and Italy from May 1944 to June 1945. Operating out of Madna Airfield in Italy, he got his first victory when he downed an Me109 near Udine on 9th June, adding two more a few weeks later. On 17th July, leading a flight of P51Ds, he shot down three more Me109s in a day near Blata, Poland. A P51 Ace with 6 victories plus 2 more damaged in the air to his credit, he retired from the service in 1976. | |
| Ohr, Fred Click the name above to see a profile of Ohr, Fred | Ohr, Fred Probably the only World War II flying ace of Asian descent, Fred F. Ohr overcame widespread distrust of Asian Americans in the United States military to become a fighter squadron commander and a fighter ace with six victories in the Mediterranean Theatre. Ohr claimed his first victory as a fighter pilot, flying Spitfires over North Africa in 1943. While in Africa, he joined the famed 2nd Fighter Squadron, called the “American Beagles” and began flying a P-51 Mustang with the 52nd Fighter Group. When the African campaign ended, Ohr found himself transferred to Italy, flying cover for bombers attacking Italian and Eastern European targets. After becoming squadron commander of the 2nd Fighter Squadron, Ohr and his fighter group were flying cover for the B-24’s making the famous attack on the oil fields at Ploesti, Romania. While making one final pass to ensure that his squadron was out of harm’s way, Ohr spotted one of his men flying the opposite direction. As Ohr turned back to retrieve the confused pilot, a German Me 109 appeared and attacked what he thought was a lone Mustang. Ohr, unseen by the German, came to the pilot’s aid, shooting down the German and escorting the pilot and his damaged plane back to base. By the end of his tour in December of 1944, Ohr had flown 155 missions and shot down a total of six German planes in aerial combat, in addition to destroying 17 planes on the ground. Among the decorations Ohr received are the Silver Star with two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Distinguished Flying Cross with two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Bronze Star, and the Air Medal with 18 Oak Leaf Clusters. | |
Died : 19 / 4 / 1993| Aircraft for : 52nd Fighter Group | ||
| A list of all aircraft associated with 52nd Fighter Group. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name. | ||
| Aircraft | Info | |
Mustang 
Manufacturer : North American | Mustang The ubiquitous North American P-51 Mustang, which many consider to be the best all-around fighter of WW II, owes its origins to the British Air Ministry. Following Britains entry into WW II in 1939, the RAF was interested in purchasing additional fighter aircraft from American sources, particularly the Curtiss P-40. Curtiss, which was busy, was unable to guarantee timely delivery so the British approached North American Aviation as a possible second source for the P-40. North American chose to propose its own fighter design which would use the same Allison engine as the P-40. Utilizing new laminar flow wings, the North American fighter was expected to have performance better than the P-40. Developed in record time the new aircraft was designated as a Mustang I by the Brits, whereas the USAAF ordered two for evaluation which were designated XP-51 Apaches. Intrigued with the possibility of using this aircraft also as a dive bomber, North American proposed this to the USAAF which decided to order 500 of the P-51 aircraft to be modified for dive bombing use. Designated as the A-36 Invader, this version of the Mustang utilized dive flaps, and bomb racks under each wing. Some reinforcing of the structural members was also required because of the G-forces to be encountered in dive bombing. A-36s entered combat service with the USAAF prior to any P-51s. In early 1943 the 86th and 27th Fighter Bomber Groups of the 12th Air Force began flying A-36s out of Northern Africa. Despite some early problems with instability caused by the dive flaps, the A-36 was effective in light bombing and strafing roles. It was not, however, capable of dog fighting with German fighters, especially at higher altitudes. Despite these drawbacks one USAAF pilot, Captain Michael T. Russo, who served with the 16th Bomb Squadron of the 27th Fighter Bomber Group, was credited with five confirmed aerial victories in the A-36, thereby becoming the first mustang ace. | |
Spitfire 
Manufacturer : Supermarine Production Began : 1936 Retired : 1948 Number Built : 20351 | Spitfire Royal Air Force fighter aircraft, maximum speed for mark I Supermarine Spitfire, 362mph up to The Seafire 47 with a top speed of 452mph. maximum ceiling for Mk I 34,000feet up to 44,500 for the mark XIV. Maximum range for MK I 575 miles . up to 1475 miles for the Seafire 47. Armament for the various Marks of Spitfire. for MK I, and II . eight fixed .303 browning Machine guns, for MKs V-IX and XVI two 20mm Hispano cannons and four .303 browning machine guns. and on later Marks, six to eight Rockets under the wings or a maximum bomb load of 1,000 lbs. Designed by R J Mitchell, The proto type Spitfire first flew on the 5th March 1936. and entered service with the Royal Air Force in August 1938, with 19 squadron based and RAF Duxford. by the outbreak of World war two, there were twelve squadrons with a total of 187 spitfires, with another 83 in store. Between 1939 and 1945, a large variety of modifications and developments produced a variety of MK,s from I to XVI. The mark II came into service in late 1940, and in March 1941, the Mk,V came into service. To counter the Improvements in fighters of the Luftwaffe especially the FW190, the MK,XII was introduced with its Griffin engine. The Fleet Air Arm used the Mk,I and II and were named Seafires. By the end of production in 1948 a total of 20,351 spitfires had been made and 2408 Seafires. The most produced variant was the Spitfire Mark V, with a total of 6479 spitfires produced. The Royal Air Force kept Spitfires in front line use until April 1954. | |
Last edited : 19:38, January 6, 2018
Last editor : HMS
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