World War 2 In Review: October 2026

World War II in View: De Havilland Dominie (Dragon Rapide) Album #1

Dominie C Mark 1, X7382, which served with the Air Transport Auxiliary, on the ground at Hatfield, Hertfordshire. Imperial War Museum photo MH 4576.

de Havilland Dragon Rapide.

Dominie Mark II, X7372, of No. 1680 (Transport) Flight based at Prestwick, Ayrshire, flying over the coastline of Barra Island. Imperial War Museum photo CH14714.

DH.89A Rapide ambulance aircraft, Z7258 “Women of the Empire” and Z7261 “Women of Britain”, at Hendon, Middlesex, the day before they were presented to No. 24 Squadron RAF by the “Silver Thimble Fund”. Originally civilian aircraft, Z7258 (formerly G-AFMH) and Z7261 (G-AFMJ) were impressed for the RAF in July 1940 Imperial War Museum photo CH 2729.

DH.89A Rapide ambulance aircraft, Z7258 “Women of the Empire” and Z7261 “Women of Britain”, flying low over Hendon, Middlesex, the day before they were presented to No. 24 Squadron RAF by the “Silver Thimble Fund”. Originally civilian aircraft, Z7258 (formerly G-AFMH) and Z7261 (G-AFMJ) were impressed for the RAF in July 1940. Imperial War Museum photo CH 2731.

De Havilland DH.89 Dominie (NR680) Imperial War Museum photo MH 4577.

A North American Mustang of No. 2 Squadron RAF, takes off from Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, past a Commer Q2 mobile wireless van providing air to ground communications. To the left, a De Havilland Dragon Rapide communications aircraft is parked in on o fhe dispersals. Imperial War Museum photo CH 17402.

World War II in View: Queen Mary Trailer Album #1

Commer Q2 with a Queen Mary trailer hauling aircraft parts.

Republic Thunderbolt in RAF service being transported on a Queen Mary trailer.

World War II in View: Hawker Hurricane Album #1

Hawker Hurricane Mk I Trop V7476 painted with Temperate Land Scheme, Photo was taken on 29 August 1941 over Laverton/Melbourne. Pilot: Group Captain Allan Leslie “Wally” Walters.

Testing radio of a Hawker Hurricane.

Hawker Hurricane Mk. I serial number P3757 codes YO-G of No. 401 Squadron RCAF in a rather unglamorous pose. The pilot was an American citizen, Flying Officer E. de P. Brown of Coronado, California. He later transferred to the USAAF.

Hawker Hurricane YO-J of No. 401 Squadron RCAF.

Pilots of No. 33 Squadron, at Larissa, Greece, with a Hawker Hurricane Mark I serial V7419 in the background, circa 1941. Squadron code letters were NW; the aircraft code letter is not visible. (Imperial War Museum photo ME(RAF) 1200)
Standing (left to right);
Pilot Officers W Winsland
R Dunscombe (p.o.w 22 May 41)
C A C Chetham (k.i.a. 15 April 41)
P R W Wickham
Flying Officers D T Moir
H J Starrett (died of burns 22 April 41)
Sitting (left to right)
Flying Officer E J "Timber" Woods (k.i.a. 17 June 41)
Flying Officer F Holman (k.i.a. 20 May 41)
Flight Lieutenant A M Young
Flying Officer V C "Woody" Woodward
Squadron Leader M St J "Pat" Pattle (Squadron Commanding Officer, k.i.a. 20 May 41)
Flying Officer E H "Dixie" Dean
Flight Lieutenants J M "Pop" Littler
G Rumsey (Squadron Adjutant)
Pilot Officer A R Butcher (p.o.w. 22 May 41)

A Hawker Hurricane tank buster fighter aircraft flying above a shot up self-propelled anti-tank gun in Tunisia. May 1943.

At a Royal Air Force air station (Northolt) west of London, pilots rush out to their Hawker Hurricanes of No. 504 (City of Nottingham) Squadron during a practice for the great exercises which began on August 8, 1939. Nice scene, staged for the press. Lots of light colored pre-war flight suits, which you'd expect. Eleven of the squadron's pre-war pilots had been killed in action by mid-September 1940, so there's a good chance that roughly half the pilots in that photograph would be dead in a year or so. Biplane just visible at left is possibly a Gauntlet

A newly delivered Hawker Hurricane Mk I being armed at an RAF airfield in the UK, probably North Weald, April 1940. A Blenheim Mk IF of No. 25 Squadron can be seen in the background.

Aircraft of Fighter Command displayed at Grangemouth, Stirlingshire, during a visit by Scottish newspaper correspondents. In the foreground is a Hawker Hurricane Mark I of No. 315 Polish Fighter Squadron RAF based at Speke, Liverpool; in the background a Bristol Blenheim Mark IF of No. 23 Squadron RAF based at Ford, Sussex, while, overhead, three Supermarine Spitfires, flown by the flying instructors of No. 58 Operational Training Unit based at Grangemouth, prepare to give a flying demonstration.

An air convoy of Hawker Hurricane Mark IIs led by a Bristol Blenheim Mark IV 'mother' aircraft, in flight along the West African Air Reinforcement Route to Egypt. Note the long-range fuel tanks fitted to the Hurricanes. Aircraft reinforcements for the North African theatre were shipped to Takoradi, in Gold Coast Colony, assembled there, then flown in stages along the coast line of the Gold coast and French Dahomey, across Nigeria, French Equatorial Africa and Sudan to Khartoum, before following the course of the River Nile to Cairo. (Imperial War Museum ME(RAF) 3540)

Hawker Hurricanes being assembled for dispatch to the North African and Mediterranean theatres, at Takoradi, Gold Coast. In the foreground Hawker Hurricane fuselages are pulled by civilian laborers from their packing crates for assembly, after being shipped from the United Kingdom. Behind them are parked aircraft in various stages of assembly. In the background, a line of completed Hurricanes, with white recognition panels painted on the tops of their fuselages, wait by the main runway before being ferried to Egypt, headed by two similarly painted Bristol Blenheim Mark IV 'mother' aircraft which will guide them along the West African Air Reinforcement Route. (Imperial War Museum CM 3022)

Trainee airframe fitters are taught repair procedures on Hawker Hurricane instructional airframe, 1359M, in a hangar at No. 2 School of Technical Training, Cosford, Shropshire. The Hurricane (formerly L1995) flew with No. 111 Squadron RAF before crashing during a forced landing in January 1939. More instructional airframes, including Bristol Blenheim Mark Is and a Fairey Battle, can be seen in the background. (Imperial War Museum C 851)

A Republic P-47D Thunderbolt of the 80th Fighter Group, 10th USAAF, taxies past Hawker Hurricane Mark IIC, s/n LB395 'L' of No. 34 Squadron RAF, at Palel, Burma.

Commer Q2 vehicle tenders of No. 53 Repair and Salvage Unit, transport salvaged Hawker Hurricane fuselages through the Western Desert for repair at the Hurricane Repair Section, Helwan, Egypt.

Personnel of No. 53 Repair and Salvage Unit brew tea and stretch their legs in the Western Desert while transporting salvaged Hawker Hurricane fuselages to Helwan, Egypt. A Commer Q2 with trailer is in the background.

Five Royal Navy Hawker Sea Hurricanes and a single Supermarine Seafire lined up in the hangar of HMS Argus (I49), with several mechanics working on them.

Although the Royal Australian Air Force used Hawker Hurricane fighters during the Second World War, only one aircraft of this type was delivered to Australia. It was Hawker Hurricane Mk.I Trop/V7476 and was shipped there in 1941, when this version was found obsolete and Hawker Hurricane Mk.II with Rolls Royce XX engine was replacing its older brother.

The beginning of V7476 history in Australia started at the beginning of 1941 when the Prime Minister of Australia, Robert Menzies, during his visit in London expressed his fears about defense abilities of his homeland. Great Britain treated Australia as a source of recruits and training center for units later sent to fight the Third Reich. Unlike Winston Churchill, Menzies saw the threat posed by more and more aggressive Japan. That is why he wanted Great Britain to equip RAAF fighter squadrons in Australia with modern fighters. He even suggested sending modern fighters to RAF squadrons in the Far East. But Churchill did not want to listen to this and claimed that Australia could only be the training center for RAAF squadrons in Africa and Europe. He also told them to abandon the idea of forming fighter squadrons as they did not have commanders and pilots trained well enough to serve in such units.

Finally the government in London decided to send one aircraft to Australia. It arrived on 23 August 1941 and was sent to Central Flying School in Camden near Sydney. The Royal Australian Air Force Command wanted to show its pilots, who had never seen and flown modern fighter planes. It may sound strange but at that time the air defense of Australia was based on Bristol Bulldogs and CAC Wirraways (a training aircraft converted into a “fighter”).

Flying Officer P N McGregor in the cockpit of his Hawker Hurricane in Tunisia. McGregor was one of the New Zealand pilots supporting the NZ Division fighting in the Tabaga Gap. May 1943.

A low-flying RAF Hawker Hurricane escorts rolling trucks of a New Zealand unit on the move in Egypt on August 3, 1942.

Hawker Hurricane Tac. R Mark I, Z4641, of No. 451 Squadron RAAF, in flight during a reconnaissance sortie over Libya, with another aircraft of the Squadron acting as a 'sweeper' in the background. The pilot is Flight Lieutenant G F Morley-Mower.

Sergeant R G Goldberg of No. 451 Squadron RAAF delivers his report to an Army Liaison Officer at a landing ground in the Western Desert, after completing a tactical reconnaissance sortie. Behind them, Goldberg's Hawker Hurricane Tac. R Mark I, Z4771, is being serviced by the Squadron's ground crew.

Hawker Hurricane (V6844) piloted by American Col. Loren Hillsinger, Eagle Sqn, Hendon, England.

Hawker Hurricanes of No 1 Squadron, Royal Air Force, based at Wittering, Cambridgeshire, followed by a similar formation of Supermarine Spitfires of No 266 Squadron, during a flying display for aircraft factory workers, October 1940. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 1561)

Czechoslovak pilots of No. 310 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF and their British flight commanders grouped in front of Hawker Hurricane Mark I, P3143 'NN-D', at Duxford, Cambridgeshire, 1940. They are (standing, left to right); Pilot Officer S Janduch, Sergeant J Vopalecuy, Sergeant R Puda, Sergeant K Seda, Sergeant B Furst and Sergeant R Zima: (sitting, left to right); Pilot Officer W Goth, Flight Lieutenant J Maly, Flight Lieutenant G L Sinclair, Flying Officer J E Boulton, Flight Lieutenant J Jeffries (who commanded the Squadron in January-June 1941, having changed his name by deed poll to Latimer), Pilot Officer S Zimprich, Sergeant J Kaucky, Flight Lieutenant F Rypl, Pilot Officer E Fechtner and Pilot Officer V Bergman. (Imperial War Museum photo CH 1299)

Another view of the same salvage convoy carrying Hawker Hurricanes, nearing Cairo, Egypt.

Fordson tractor with bomb trailers bombing up a Hawker Hurricane.

RAF bowser refueling a Hurricane Mk I of 331 Squadron, RAF Catterick.

French Hurricane I Trop. Weathering and partial repainting of aircraft surface is clearly visible. Groupe de Chasse 1 “Alsace”.

"Back Them Up!" wartime poster with a painting of "Hurricanes" of the Royal Air Force co-operating with the Russian Air Force.

Original wartime caption: The American Eagle Squadron is now an operational squadron. A pilot officer of the Eagles climbing into his Hurricane for a practice flight. Imperial War Museum photo CH 2411.

Sea Hurricane and Martlet fighters with Swordfish torpedo bombers on the deck of a British aircraft carrier escorting a Malta convoy.

Hurricane Mk I Trop V7476 at the end of her service, 1945/46. Note serial number without a bar (as it was when she wore camouflage). In the background is a P-40N, in similar late war livery. There is one more interesting thing in this history. Unlike other aircraft sent to Australia during the war, V7476 never received Australian serial number. It kept its original serial number.

Hurricane Mk I trop V7476 RAAF: In September 1944 it came back to 1 Aircraft Depot where it stayed until the end of the year and probably was serviced and repainted according to new instruction from May 1944 which required all fighter planes wear no camouflage. Fabric parts were painted silver and paint from metal parts was removed, although according to the instruction appendix it should be painted Foliage Green.

In Camden V7476 stayed until the middle of 1942 when it was transferred to 2 Communication Flight and in July 1942 to 1 Aircraft Depot in Laverton. There it underwent some modification to test the pneumatic anti-G suit designed by Prof. Frank Cotton. After a few months of testing it was allotted to 1 Communication Flight in Laverton where it stayed until the end of December 1944. In January 1945 V7476 was sent back, for a short time, to Central Flying School, that time in Point Cook , Victoria. This time it was as a curiosity (at that time the RAAF used more modern Spitfires, Mustangs and P-40s). In 1946 V7476 was scrapped.

Illustration: In the second half of 1942 Hurricane V7476 was repainted and the new scheme was, most probably, Foliage Green and Earth Brown on upper surfaces and Sky Blue. For many years it has been shown and described as painted Foliage Green but the RAAF General Aircraft Instruction No. C11 from July 1942 required all operational aircraft being painted Foliage Green and Earth Brown. As at that time V7476 was in 1 Aircraft Depot implementing this instruction is logical. Although existing photos are not very clean they reveal demarcation lines between the two camouflage colors. What is interesting, during repainting the original camouflage B Pattern was changed to A Pattern. The Hurricane also received Australian national markings. As camouflage color faded quickly under the Australian sun Sky Blue turned to almost white, also contrast of Foliage Green and Earth Brown faded (Brown faded less). According to available information there were no roundels on the lower wings.

World War II in View: Consolidated PBY Catalina Album #1

A nice airborne shot of a pre-war PBY-5 seaplane. 684 PBY-5 seaplanes were produced before production shifted to the PBY-5A amphibian. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Rudy Arnold Photo Collection.

Pilot at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas. Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Lorena Craig is a cowler under civil service at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas. Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Sailor mechanic inspecting a PBY plane at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas. Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "This sailor mechanic is inspecting a PBY plane at the Naval Air Base in Corpus Christi, Texas. The ship had been reconditioned by the Civil Service employees at the Assembly and Repair Department in the base." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "After seven years in the Navy, J.D. Estes is considered an old sea salt by his mates at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "Mrs. Eloise J. Ellis has been appointed by civil service to be senior supervisor in the Assembly and Repairs Department at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas. She buoys up feminine morale in her department by arranging suitable living conditions for out-of-state employees and by helping them with their personal problems." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "Mrs. Eloise J. Ellis, senior supervisor in the Assembly and Repairs Dept. of the Naval Air Base, talking with one of the men, Corpus Christi, Texas." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "Bowen, a riveter, and Olsen, her supervisor, in the Assembly and Repair Dept. at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "Bowen and Olsen, a riveter and her supervisor, in the Assembly and Repair Dept. at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "Women are contributing their skills to the nation's needs by keeping our country's planes in top-notch fighting condition, Corpus Christi, Texas. Wife of a disabled World War I veteran, Mrs. Cora Ann Bowen (left) works as a cowler at the Naval Air Base. Mrs. Eloise J. Ellis is a senior supervisor in the Assembly and Repairs department." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "Working inside the nose of a PBY, Elmer J. Pace is learning the construction of Navy planes, Corpus Christi, Texas. As an NYA trainee at the Naval Air Base, he gets practical experience. After about eight weeks, he will go into civil service as a sheet metal worker." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

A Catalina on the ramp displaying her waist gun and rather intricate radio antenna rig.

Sailors perform engine maintenance at NAS New Orleans. The Catalina is in the graded camouflage scheme and carries the national markings authorized in August 1943.

A PBY-5A framed by the twin tails of the aircraft which supplanted, but never entirely replaced the Catalina in service, the Martin PBM Mariner.

A pre-war photograph taken on 1 January 1939 shows a Catalina from Patrol Squadron 51 in the colorful yellow wings markings. Posed in front of the aircraft is the Governor of Puerto Rico, William P. Leahy. DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University.

VADM Patrick Bellinger presides over a ceremony at NAS Norfolk. The PBY is finished in the Atlantic ASW scheme of Gull Gray over White. Note the asymmetric demarcation of the color separation on the fuselage.

Another photograph from the Aleutians shows this PBY moored to a buoy with others visible in the background. Flying boat squadrons could be based in sheltered bays and supported from seaplane tenders, many of which in the US Navy were converted from flush-deck destroyers.

The PBY is ready to move. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Rudy Arnold Photo Collection.

A Case tractor is secured for towing on the seaplane ramp. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Rudy Arnold Photo Collection.

An Oliver tractor is being used to haul the PBY-5 up the ramp. An additional set of beaching gear is positioned on the ramp, standing by for the next aircraft. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Rudy Arnold Photo Collection.

A PBY-5 approaches the ramp while the beaching crew stands by. In warm weather the men in the water could get by with regular swimming trunks. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Hans Groenhoff Photo Collection.

Line handlers stabilize the PBY while it is being readied to come up the ramp. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Hans Groenhoff Photo Collection.

The hauling lines are attached aft and beaching gear is being secured to the fuselage sides. The crewman standing in the waist blister is recovering the sea anchor, a canvas device used to orient and slow the aircraft on the surface in windy conditions. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Hans Groenhoff Photo Collection.

Here the beaching crew is preparing to bring a PBY-5 up on the ramp using wetsuits and a small dinghy. This involved attaching wheeled beaching gear to the aircraft and then hauling it up the ramp using a towing vehicle or block and tackle, and had to be done in all weather conditions and temperatures. Note the repainted areas on the wing of this PBY. National Air and Space Museum Archives, Hans Groenhoff Photo Collection.

Passing documents to the co-pilot of a VP-51 PBY.

Diorama bait! Here the USS Gillis (AVD-12) refuels a PBY astern in Aleutian waters while three Higgins 78 foot Patrol Torpedo Boats nest alongside. The Gillis was a Clemson-class Destroyer converted to a seaplane tender, but still retained a significant compliment of guns & depth charges and could function as an escort vessel. She was credited with damaging a Japanese submarine with depth charges while in the Aleutians.

A rather worn PBY-5A over the ocean. The white dots over the rear fuselage are insulators for an extensive array of antenna wires, also note the ASV radar antenna under the starboard wing.

Not the best picture but another mix of different camouflages. Noteworthy is the pin-up artwork on the tail of the aircraft on the left. Personal markings or artwork were common on USAAF aircraft but much less so with USN / USMC operated aircraft. The artwork and the serial on the tail indicate these are USAAF OA-10As.

A view of two Catalinas wearing a mix of camouflages and markings. The nearer aircraft is in the Atlantic ASW scheme of Dark Gull Gray over White and wears the blue-bordered insignia adopted in August 1943. The aircraft in the background is in the Blue Gray over Light Gray scheme with the earlier national insignia which still carries the yellow border used during the Torch landings in North Africa.

This is the starboard waist gun position on an early PBY. On the PBY-1 through -4 the waist gun positions were covered with a sliding hatch with a window as opposed to the more familiar teardrop faring of the -5 and later Catalinas. Here the gunner has deployed his .30 caliber gun and raised the hatch to deflect the slipstream over his position.

A close up view of a PBY on the ramp with the crew visible at their stations. Crew size could vary between six to eight depending on the mission and equipment carried.

Given the fill point being serviced this is the oil tank being topped off. Radial engines were notorious oil leakers. Another aircraft with the varnished propeller blades.

No tip warning markings on this propeller. This picture also shows details of the wing bomb attachment paints and landing light.

Original caption reads: "Starting a propeller at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Original caption reads: "Working on a plane at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas." Photo dated August 1942, by Howard R. Hollem. Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress.

Officers inspecting the starboard engine of another Yellow Wings PBY. Pre-war propeller warning markings were bands of Red, Yellow, and Blue. These were generally not over-painted even after the tip color was later changed to Yellow, it is possible to see the three-color tip markings on some mid-war aircraft. The clear yellow varnish on the main body of the propeller blades is not common but can be seen on several aircraft types.

Many interesting details are visible in this view of a crewman fueling an early PBY in the pre-war Yellow Wings scheme. Note the paint wear around the fueling ports and the exhaust staining. Another PBY passes by in the background.

An obviously posed photograph, but one which shows useful details of the detachable beaching gear. The Catalinas were flying boats through the PBY-5 series, but became amphibians when retractable landing gear was fitted to the PBY-5A.

Here the gunner prepares to board the aircraft with his weapon using the detachable ladder. Note that the fuselage is camouflaged in two different colors.

A view of the port waist gun position, the can on the left of the gun held ammunition, that on the right collected the spent cartridges.

The PBY-5 introduced the characteristic waist blisters on the fuselage aft of the wing. These improved the visibility and arcs of fire for the gunners. Here is a view of the port waist gunner armed with a Model M1919 .30 caliber Browning machine gun which was the standard flexible defensive armament on USN aircraft at the beginning of the war.

Catalina, RNZAF (Royal New Zealand Air Force) being towed by a crawler tractor, RNZAF Station Lauthala Bay, Fiji, 1944.

Consolidated OA-10 Catalina.

Consolidated OA-10 Catalina s/n 4433876.

Consolidated OA-10 Catalina assigned to the 2nd Emergency Rescue Squadron in the Pacific Theater.

Consolidated OA-10 Catalina "Snafu Snatcher" assigned to the 2nd Emergency Rescue Squadron in the Pacific Theater. C-47 in the background.

Consolidated OA-10 Catalina "Snafu Snatcher" assigned to the 2nd Emergency Rescue Squadron in the Pacific Theater.

A U.S. Navy Consolidated PBY Catalina at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas, in August 1942. The aircraft in the background are assigned to training as evidenced by the high-visibility yellow upper wing surface paint. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs division fsac.1a34907.

A bombed-up PBY on the ramp in the Aleutians, in the foreground is a bomb cart carrying a 500 pound bomb and two depth charges. U.S. ordinance can be seen in various colors and states of preservation, these appear to be in a Light Gray and are unmarked.

These PBY-5As seen on the ramp at NAS Pensacola display a variety of camouflage and markings. These aircraft are serving in the training role. Of interest is the “V” tape visible on the aileron and wing of the aircraft at the bottom of the photograph, this feature can be seen in pictures of many PBYs.

A PBY-5A amphibian with its wheels lowered for a shore landing in the late-war camouflage and insignia.

The USCG also operated the PBY-5A, this example is seen in the Atlantic ASW camouflage scheme of Dark Gull Gray over White parked on the Marston Mat apron in Greenland. Note the Quonset hut buildings in the background are all marked with the U.S. insignia.

The USAAF operated the Catalina in the Search and Rescue role, designating their aircraft the OA-10A. This white example displays a USAAF serial on the vertical tail and the streamlined radar housing which first appeared late in the PBY-5A production run.

The PBY with its successor in the Aleutians, the PV-1 Neptune. Both aircraft carry the mid-1943 style national insignia.

A PBY over the inhospitable Aleutian terrain. Prior to the Pacific War the U.S. Navy had declared seaplane operations in the Aleutian winter to be impossible, but wartime requirements soon forced a reassessment.

This PBY illustrates the propensity in the Aleutian Theater to deviate from standard insignia protocols. All the national insignia visible on this aircraft carry the red outline briefly authorized during the Summer of 1943, although by that time the insignia was not supposed to have been carried on the upper surface of the starboard wing.

A PBY passes by Segula Island in the Aleutians. While it makes for a visually interesting picture, the ruggedness of the terrain is also apparent.

A Catalina in the RAF Temperate Sea scheme, but in U.S. markings at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi in August 1942. A number of aircraft on British order were pressed into U.S. service after Pearl Harbor.

PBYs drone overhead as General MacArthur’s invasion convoy moves into Lingayen Gulf to drop troops and supplies.

PBY Catalina in the icy waters of Kodiak Bay, Alaska, 1943.

African-American mechanic Alvin V. Morrison, AMM 3/c, works on PBY at NAS Seattle, Washington, doing overhaul. April 27, 1944. National Archives at College Park 80-G-233274.

"Black Cat" PBY Catalina.

Consolidated XP3Y-1.

PBY Catalina.

PBY-5A Catalina.

Pilots of the four PBY-5A Catalina patrol bombers of Patrol Squadron 24 (VP-24) and Patrol Squadron 51 (VP-51) that flew the torpedo attack mission against the Japanese fleet's Midway Occupation Force during the night of 3-4 June 1942. Those present are (left to right): Lieutenant (Junior Grade) Douglas C. Davis, of VP-24; Ensign Allan Rothenberg, of VP-51; Lieutenant William L. Richards, Executive Officer of Patrol Squadron 44 (VP-44), who flew in a VP-24 aircraft on this mission; and Ensign Gaylord D. Propst, of VP-24. National Archives.

ASE-equipped Consolidated PBY-5A 8 March 1942.

ASE-equipped Consolidated PBY-5A 8 March 1942. USN 403258.

ASE-equipped Consolidated PBY-5A 8 March 1942.

A PBY Black Cat near Samarai Island on December 23, 1943. Note the two engine cowlings recently taken from a non-Black Cat PBY, that still wear the blue/gray color scheme of the PBY from which they came.

Gunner in the side blister position of a PBY.

For those unfamiliar with the term, “hurry up and wait” refers to what is a large portion of military service: frantic haste followed by seemingly pointless delay. These guys decided to pitch a few pennies next to their PBY as they idle away the time before they hit the skies. In the Air Force, they call this portion of the mission “the mill-around checklist.”

Pistol cleaning time in a PBY. My first thought was that the man on the left was the aircraft’s navigator using a drift sight. (One can be mounted at the waist blisters.) But nope, he has a gun.

Taken from the radio compartment of an accompanying PBY, the pair patrol the vast Aleutian skies from their base on Adak Island. Depth charges hang from the wings.

The date is December 1942, and this is the first PBY to arrive at the brand-new NAS Whidbey Island seaplane base. (Note the construction material littering the ramp in the background.)

The installation was intended to be a support facility for PBYs from NAS Seattle, but even before work began the plan was altered to where Whidbey would be its own base. This PBY’s arrival was not without some apprehension. The pilot, Lt. Morrison, stated that he circled the area for quite some time before spotting the “red girders of the seaplane hangar under construction.” Even then he had to land four or five miles out due to an abundance of logs floating in the harbor. After carefully picking his way through the debris he was met by a boat that succeeded in clearing a path for the incoming aircraft. This hangar (minus the ordnance carts parked alongside) still stands today, but with a different mission: It is now the Navy Exchange (NEX) department store. From this angle, the former hangar looks pretty much the same now as it did then.

Less repairable is this VPB-43 PBY that experienced engine trouble, landed in the sea, and while being towed back to the harbor had the towline break. Adak Island, May 1945.

Same aircraft. As can be seen, this PBY’s flying days were done.

Men examine the wreckage to gather up classified material and personal belongings. Nature would soon take care of the rest.

The only PBY sold to a civilian in the pre-war years was this example. Nicknamed “Guba”, it was used for research in the South Pacific.

Men of VPB-43 on duty in the Aleutian Islands.

VPB-43 had its share of Arctic mishaps. What appears to be scratches on the photo is actually a blizzard of snow.

The bent wing leads one to conclude this PBY was taking off or landing in a crosswind and spun off the runway. This was repairable given that the outer wings on the PBY were removable. Note the depth bombs mounted under the inner wings.

NAS Seattle, 1939. Most of the aircraft are P2Ys, but a lone PBY can be seen on the ramp.

A bunch of newly hatched PBY drivers, NAS Corpus Christi, 1944.

Unidentified US Navy PBY Catalina crew in Britain.

PBY-5A Catalina BuNo 48386 of VP-62.

PBY-5A Catalina BuNo 48386 of VP-62. The plane crashed at the base of Old Women’s Mountain on Kodiak Island Alaska in 1945. Of the 15 crew and passengers aboard, eight were killed. The aircraft, after several failed approaches in the weather, flew in to rising terrain and stalled while attempting to climb out of the situation. Upon stalling, the aircraft plunged nose-first into the ground. Photos taken at NAS Kodiak.

PBY-5 Catalina crew of VP-44, Midway veterans.

PBY-5 Catalina crew of VP-71 “Black Cats”.

PBY Catalina, VP-71 "Black Cats".

Overhead aerial view of a Consolidated PBY Catalina patrol aircraft over the Atlantic, late 1942. Library of Congress 799-19.

Aerial view of the hangar area at Naval Air Station, Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, on 9 December 1941, showing effects of the Japanese air attack two days earlier. View looks southeast. The most distant hangar appears to have suffered significant damage and has a pile of aircraft wreckage immediately to its left. Naval History and Heritage Command NH 97427.

Aerial view of the hangar area, 9 December 1941, two days after the Japanese air attack destroyed nearly all of the station's patrol planes. Note wrecked hangar in center. There are at least six PBY Catalina flying boats on the ramp and around the hangars. National Archives 80-G-32943.

PBY patrol bomber burning at Naval Air Station Kaneohe, Oahu, during Pearl Harbor attack. National Archives 80-G-32836.

PBY Catalina aircraft aflame at Naval Air Station Kaneohe, Oahu, US Territory of Hawaii, 7 Dec 1941. Naval History and Heritage Command NH 97431.

U.S. Navy sailors attempt to save a burning Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boat at Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay on 7 December 1941. This plane was set afire by strafing in the initial phase of the attack and was sunk in a later strike. Note dog observing the work. Naval History and Heritage Command NH 97432.

Aircraft wreckage and a badly damaged hangar at Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, shortly after the Japanese air attack. The plane in the foreground is a consolidated PBY Catalina of Patrol Squadron 12, marked "12-P-3". Naval History and Heritage Command NH 97430.

Damaged PBY Catalinas on the seaplane ramp of Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, Oahu, Hawaii, Dec 7, 1941. White smoke from burning hangars and black smoke from burning battleships is also visible. National Archives 80-G-32744.

Gun crew at Ford Island's southern tip during the Pearl Harbor attack, 7 Dec 1941; note .30 caliber machine gun, PBY and SOC aircraft, and battleship Nevada. National Archives 80-G-32492.

Planes and a hangar burning at the Ford Island Naval Air Station’s seaplane base, during or immediately after the Japanese air raid. The ruined wings of a PBY Catalina patrol plane are at the left and in the center. Note men with rifles standing in the lower left. National Archives 80-G-19944.

Air Station personnel move a damaged PBY Catalina away from burning hangars at Kaneohe Naval Air Station, Oahu, Hawaii, December 7, 1941. Note the Sailor on the left with an M1903. National Archives 80-G-32837.

View of the apron of the U.S. Naval Air Station Ford Island during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, 7 December 1941. Note the Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boat and the Curtiss SOC Seagull floatplanes. The masts on the right belong to the battleship USS Nevada (BB-36).

PBY-5A Catalina takeoff late 1942.

PBY-5A Catalina dropping practice torpedo.

The Yagi radar was first installed on Catalinas in 1943. The radar antenna is visible under the wing of the boat; the engines are equipped with flame arresters.

U.S. Coast Guard PBY-5A demonstrating landing on open sea.

PBY-5A BuNo 46572 in three-color camouflage. The pipe under the wing near the pylon is the starboard tank drain pipe. Drain pipes were installed on aircraft without protected tanks.

Early production PBY-5A painted according to the scheme of the initial period of the war: bluish-gray upper surfaces and light gray lower surfaces.

Air gunner inside the blister turret of a No. 5 Squadron Consolidated Catalina, RNZAF Station Lauthala Bay, Fiji.

Gunner inside Ryan "eyeball" bow twin-gun position, Consolidated PBY-5 Catalina.

Canadian Vickers PBV-1A Canso A with 20mm bow nose guns, 21 July 1943.

Consolidated Catalina with 20mm nose guns and Ryan "eyeball" turret with twin 20mm guns, 162 (BR) Squadron.

Consolidated PBY Catalina with 20mm nose gun, Iceland, 23 June 1943.

View of a Consolidated PBY Catalina bow turret (.30 cal. machine gun) manned, circa December 1942.

A Patrol Bombing Squadron 52 (VPB-52) PBY-5 flying boat alongside a local outrigger canoe, during a rescue mission to the northwest end of McCluer Gulf in New Guinea, 13 August 1944. Women and children in the canoe are preparing to board the "Black Cat." Note very wide deck platform on the canoe. VPB-52 was then based at Biak.

Consolidated PBY-5A right and left landing gear.

The crew of the Patrol Squadron 44 (VP-44) PBY-5A Catalina patrol bomber that found the approaching Japanese fleet's Midway Occupation Force on the morning of 3 June 1942.

A Brazilian Air Force PBY squadron's officers sit on the wing of one of the IR PBY Catalina aircraft, circa 1945. They are being trained by U.S. Navy pilots.

A Consolidated PBY-5A Catalina patrol aircraft receives repairs to a gun blister at a Pacific Navy repair base, April 1945.

A "Black Cat" PBY Catalina skims the waters of San Pedro Bay off Samar Island, in the Philippines. The Black Cat Squadron to which it belongs, VPB-34, was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation.

"Black Cat" PBYs in the Solomons.

Aviation machinist's mates work on the starboard engine of a VP-31 Consolidated PBY-5A Catalina patrol bomber at an East Coast naval air station, circa 1942. Note radar antennas under the plane's wing.

The last production PBY-4 (BuNo 1245) was equipped with a three-post landing gear, becoming the XPBY-5A.

This Midway Island-based PBY discovered part of the Japanese Fleet on 3 June 1942 setting the course of the battle. Painting, oil on wood, by John Hamilton, circa 1975, now in the collections of U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command.

Consolidated PBY Catalina wing tip float. Although the Consolidated Model 28 twin engine flying boat had been in service for a number of years the method by which the wing tip floats were retracted was not widely known. When lowered in the position for landing the float is held in a vertical position through a system of “X” bracing that is joined together at point A. When lowered this bracing is held rigid through an am B that is connected to the retracting tube at C. When the float is to be retracted the retracting tube moves towards the fuselage moving the arm B upward and inward folding the members D together. This causes the float o swing from the position E to the position E’ in which position the drag is greatly reduced.

The PBY's retractable wing tip float.

Details of the anti-icing duct at outer end of outer panel and wing tip: (1) Anchor nuts, (2) channel nuts for countersunk screws, (3) anti-icing chamber in outer panel leading edge, (4) short leading edge section for chamber inspection, and (5) heat vent holes on upper surface only.

Another version of the anti-icer system on a PBY. Hot-wing system on a PBY Catalina keeps hot air circulating at 60 degrees F. so that ice cannot form on leading edges. Tail assembly also is protected. Heat exchangers in engines exhaust pipes utilize exhaust gases.

Anti-icer system developed by Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation and NACA engineers. Air enters ram scoop A, passes through heat exchanger B where it is heated by exhaust gases and then goes chordwise through center section heater ducts C and spanwise to escape through vents in outer panel leading edge duct D. Heated air is discharged aft of rear spar through duct E. Detail sketch at right shows ram scoop A, heat exchanger B and wing gate C which directs air either into duct DF for wing heating or directly :”overboard,” by means of actuator unit E. This installation is being made on B-24 Liberators and PB2Y Coronados as well as PBY Catalina illustrated. Latter model has additional unit on empennage in which fuel goes from pump F through line G. Air enters ram scoop H, through tail heater unit I, plenum chamber J to leading edge ducts K.