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| Aviation Art Collecton - Wildcat |
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| Squadrons for : Wildcat | ||
| A list of all squadrons from known to have used this aircraft. A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name. | ||
| Squadron | Info | |
VMF-121 Country : US Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of VMF-121 | VMF-121 Full profile not yet available. | |
| Signatures for : Wildcat | |||||
| A list of all signatures from our database who are associated with this aircraft. A profile page is available by clicking their name. | |||||
| Name | Info | ||||
Robert O Arthur Click the name above to see prints signed by Robert O Arthur | Robert O Arthur F4F Pilot, VMF-211 | ||||
 Jeff de Blanc Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by or with the mounted signature of Jeff de Blanc
| Jeff de Blanc Jefferson De Blanc flew two combat tours in F4Fs and F4Us from Guadalcanal to Okinawa, achieving 9 air victories. He was awarded the Medal of Honor whilst flying an F4F on bomber escort with VMF-112 in 1943. Sadly, he passed away on 23rd November 2007. | ||||
  Captain Richard Zeke Cormier Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain Richard Zeke Cormier
| Captain Richard Zeke Cormier Richard Cormier served with UC-I aboard the U.S.S. Card in the Atlantic flying both the Wildcat and the Avenger, and was commended for an attack against a German U-boat. In March 1944 he was assigned to VF-80 flying the F6F Hellcat from the U.S.S. Ticonderoga during the campaign against the Philippine Islands, and in strikes against Iwo Jima and Okinawa. With 8 victories to his credit during World War 11, Zeke Cormier flew in the Korean War and later as leader of the famous Blue Angels. He retired from the Navy in 1964. Zeke Cormier passed away on 23rd February 2001 of cancer at his home in Rancho Santa Fe near San Diego at the age of 81. | ||||
  Colonel Archie G Donahue USMC Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Colonel Archie G Donahue USMC
| Colonel Archie G Donahue USMC Archie Donahue was born in Casper, Wyoming in 1917. He attended schools in Wyoming until 1934 when his family moved to Texas. He had his first airplane ride at the age of eight and the flying bug bit him. Archic completed three years of engineering studies at the University of Texas before joining the Navy as an Aviation Cadet. During his training Archie was stationed at Kansas City, Jacksonville, and finally Corpus Christi. He requested a transfer to the Marine Corps, and upon his graduation he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in February of 1942. After a short posting to Norfolk, Archie was assigned to VMF-112, which was nicknamed the Wolfpack. The squadron was sent to Guadacanal in September where they commenced combat missions flying the Grumman F4F Wildcat. Archie would soon transition to the state-of-the-art F4U-1 Corsair. Between September 1942 and June of 1943 Archie was credited with nine aerial victories. One of these was achieved in the Wildcat with the balance attained while piloting the Corsair. On May 13, 1943 Archic would down five A6M3 Zeros during a single mission. In June of 1943 VMF-112 returned to the States, and the squadron was disbanded. Serving as a flight officer at El Toro Air Station in California, Archie was given the assignment of carrier qualifying VMF-451. In February of 1945 VMF-451 began combat operations flying from the deck of the USS Bunker Hill. For the next three months Donahue and his squdroninates flew numerous missions in support of the landings at lwo Jima and Okinawa, as well as strikes at the Japanese mainland, and in the process earning the nickname Angels of Okinawa. On April 12, 1945 Donahue was once again credited with five victories during a fierce aerial battle over Okinawa. On May 11 th Archie's flight of 16 Corsairs had just returned to the carrier, and as the pilots completed their debriefing the Bunker Hill was hit by two Kamikaze aircraft, setting off a huge fire and killing 346. The Bunker Hill had to be withdrawn from action. Donahue returned to the States where he was made Commander of a squadron at El Toro. He was later transferred to Quantico, a large Marine base near Washington, DC. Archie flew a total of 215 combat missions during WWII including 56 from the deck of the Bunker Hill. He was credited with a total of 14 confirmed aerial victories. He had more than 4000 flying hours in military aircraft and 110 successful carrier landings. Although he never crashed an airplane, Archie was reported killed during aerial gunnery training when a student made a beautiful run and cut the tail off Archie's plane about five feet behind his head. Archie is a recipient of the Navy Cross, three Distinguished Flying Crosses, and five Air Medals. Archie has also been an active participant in the Confederate Air Force, and in 1990 he piloted an SBD with an unusual pilot, Saburo Sakai, the high scoring Japanese ace who was shot down in WWII by the rear gunner of a SBD. Following his retirement from military service in 1958 Archie began a long and successful career in real estate development. Archie lives in Texas with his wife Mary. They have five children and many grandchildren and great grandchildren. Sadly, he passed away on 30th July 2007. | ||||
Commander Leslie Fortner USMC Click the name above to see prints signed by Commander Leslie Fortner USMC | Commander Leslie Fortner USMC Joining the Navy in 1943, Les Fortner joined VC-88 flying Wildcats off the escort carrier USS Hoggatt Bay in the south west Pacific Theater. In early 1945 he flew in support of the landings at Iwo Jima, Okinawa and Lingayen, destroying several Japanese aircraft on the ground. Les flew over 100 combat missions during the war, and in April 1945 he shot down a Kamikazi Nick off Kerama Rhetto near Okinawa. | ||||
  Brigadier General Joseph J Foss Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by or with the mounted signature of Brigadier General Joseph J Foss
| Brigadier General Joseph J Foss Born 17th April 1915. He ws awarded his wings in May 1941, becoming a Marine Corps pilot leading a unit of Wildcat fighters which accounted for 72 enemy aircraft. Involved in the defence of Guadalcanal from the Japanese, he was forced to ditch into the sea, being rescued by local islanders before subsequently being picked up by a Catalina two weeks later. Later, defending Henderson Field from a large formation of enemy bombers and their accompanying fighters, he refused to allow his unit to be lured into combat with the enemy fighters, instead waiting for the escorting aircraft to run out of fuel and turn back, forcing the now unescorted bombers to also turn back. Joe Foss died 1st January 2003. Born into a farming family in South Dakota in 1915, Joseph Foss would go on to become the USMCs highest scoring fighter pilot of WW II. He would also become the first aviator to equal the WW 1 victory record of Captain Eddle Rickenbacker, and the first USMC aviator to become an ace in a day. A recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, Joe Foss would be credited with 26 aerial victories while flying the F4F Wildcat with VMF-121 based at Henderson Field in Guadacanal in 1942 and early 1943. All this success did not come easily to Foss. Growing up during the difficult days of the Great Depression, the young Foss realized that to become a military aviator he would have to attend college. Following his graduation from the University of South Dakota, Foss entered the naval aviation cadet program in 1940. With Americas entry into WWII Foss was assigned to a photo reconnaissance unit. Foss was disappointed with this assignment and worked hard at convincing others that he was destined to be a fighter pilot. Logging nearly three hours of flying time per day in an F4F, the skills and dedication of this aspiring fighter pilot were soon noticed. Foss was assigned to VMF- 121 as the Executive Officer of the squadrons C.O. Captain L.K. Davis. The squadron was sent on its initial combat tour in the fall of 1942. Twenty Wildcats were transported by escort carrier to Guadacanal and were catapulted off for the flight to Henderson Field. Foss flight became known as Uoes Flying Circus, and 61.5 victories would be credited to this flight, with four other pilots becoming aces. Although air defense was the primary role of VMF-121, some ground support missions were also flown. The squadrons successes were not without a price, and more than 20% of VMF-121s pilots did not return from the combat tour at Guadacanal. In November Foss flew a mission against a large Japanese convoy near the Russell Islands. During this mission Lt. Col. Bauer was downed. Foss returned to Henderson Field and flew back to the site where Bauer was downed in a Grumman Duck. Unable to locate his downed comrade because of darkness, Foss returned at dawn. Unfortunately, Bauer was never found. Foss had fought recurring battles against malaria while on Guadacanal. He had lost 37 pounds. With the destruction of the Japanese convoy Foss along with several other pilots of VMF121 got some much needed R&R in Australia. While in Australia Foss met two of the leading Australian aces Clive Caldwell and Keith Truscott. Joe was disturbed by the attitude of the Australians that the Japanese must be second rate opponents. Returning to Guadacanal on New Years Day 1943, combat sorties resumed. On January 25 Foss flew his last mission at Guadacanal, but did not engage the enemy. Problems with malaria continued to plague the USMCs top ace, and he was unable to make a second combat tour. Following the War Foss helped organize the South Dakota Air National Guard. He remained active in the reserve finally retiring with the rank of Brigadier General. Foss had successful careers in professional sports, politics (Governor of South Dakota), and commercial aviation. He also was instrumental in the formation of the American Fighter Aces Association, and has served as President of the National Rifle Association. Citation for the Medal of Honor : For outstanding heroism and courage above and beyond the call of duty as Executive Officer of a Marine Fighting Squadron, at Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. Engaging in almost daily combat with the enemy from October 9 to November 19, 1942, Captain Foss personally shot down twenty-three Japanese planes and damaged others so severely that their destruction was extremely probable. In addition, during this period, he successfully led a large number of escort missions, skillfully covering reconnaissance, bombing and photographic planes as well as surface craft. On January 15, 1943, he added three more enemy planes to his already brilliant successes for a record of aerial combat achievement unsurpassed in this war. Boldly searching out an approaching enemy force on January 25, Captain Foss led his eight F4F Marine planes and four Army P-38s into action and, undaunted by tremendously superior numbers, intercepted and struck with such force that four Japanese fighters were shot down and the bombers were turned back without releasing a single bomb. His remarkable flying skill, inspiring leadership and indomitable fighting spirit were distinctive factors in the defense of strategic American positions on Guadalcanal. | ||||
Colonel T W Boot Furlow Click the name above to see prints signed by Colonel T W Boot Furlow | Colonel T W Boot Furlow Flying the F4F on his first combat mission with VMF-121 in October 1942, Boot Furlow soon downed his first Zero on the Hiei mission. He served in all the major south west Pacific theaters and later flew the F4U Corsair | ||||
 Bob Galer Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by or with the mounted signature of Bob Galer
| Bob Galer Robert Galer was born on October 24th 1913 in Seattle, Washington. Robert Galer attended the University of Washington and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in commercial engineering in 1935, at which time he began elimination flight training at the Naval Reserve Aviation Base, Seattle. He went on to become an Aviation Cadet going to Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida for flight training. On 1st July 1936 Galer was commissioned a second lieutenant in the US Mmarine Corps. Bob Galer was one of five USMC pilots to win the Medal of Honor at Guadalcanal. In May 1942, Galer assumed command of Marine Fighting Squadron 224 (VMF-224) and on August 30th, 1942 led the squadron to Guadalcanal as they became part of the Cactus Air Force. It was while in command of VMF-224 that Bob Galer would be credited with 11 confirmed victories and be awarded the Medal of Honor and a rare British DFC. Following the presentation of the Medal of Honor by President Franklin D Roosevelt at the White House on March 24, 1943, Maj. Bob Galer was ordered to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, to become Assistant Operations Officer. Shortly after advancement to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in November 1943, he was ordered to return to the Hawaiian Islands, where he became Chief of Staff, Marine Air, Hawaiian Area. In March 1952 Colonel Galer went to Korea, where he saw duty as Assistant Chief of Staff, G-4 (Supply), of the 1ST marine Aircraft Wing until the following May. He became Commanding Officer of Marine Aircraft Group 12 (MAG-12), and, for extraordinary achievement on July 11, 1952 was awarded a Gold Star in lieu of a second DFC. Colonel Galer was also awarded the Legion of Merit wiith Combat V for his service in Korea. On August 5th, 1952, he was shot down behind enemy lines by anti-aircraft fire while leading a flight of 31 warplanes against targets near the North Korean port city of Wonsan. Colonel Galer was rescued by a helicopter flown by 1st Lt E.J. McCutcheon. Brigadier General Galer died in Dallas, Texas on June 27th, 2005. | ||||
 Captain Donald Gordon USN Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain Donald Gordon USN
| Captain Donald Gordon USN Captain Donald Flash Gordon, USN joined the Navy on July 7, 1941 and was commissioned an Ensign on March 12, 1942. He served with VF-10 Grim Reapers flying the F4F Wildcat on his first combat tour aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise and claimed two air victories. He participated in the Battle of Santa Cruz and also served briefly on Guadalcanal with the Marines. His second combat tour was also aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise with VF-10 now flying the F6F Hellcat. He would claim 4 air victories on this tour including a claim during the Marianas Turkey Shoot. Capt. Gordon retired from the Navy in July 1967. Sadly Captain Donald Gordon passed away on Monday January 4th, 2010. | ||||
 Lieutenant Colonel James J Hill Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Lieutenant Colonel James J Hill | Lieutenant Colonel James J Hill James Hill was born in Chicago in 1920. His training involved flying Stearmans, Buffalo and Wildcats. He arrived in the South Pacific on 5 June 1943 after completing flight school in Pensacola, and joined VMF-214 on 7 August 1943, flying Corsairs. He flew both combat tours with the Black Sheep. On 18 October 1943 on a fighter sweep over Kahili Airfield he shot down a Zero in aerial combat. During his two tours with the Black Sheep he flew a total of 70 combat missions, and also flew a third combat tour with VMF-211 on Green Island. He then flew another combat tour with VMF-521 as a pilot instructor, later joining VMF-324 at Midway. In his career he was awarded 3 Distinguished Flying Crosses and 12 Air Medals. | ||||
Kenneth A Jernstedt Click the name above to see prints signed by Kenneth A Jernstedt
| Kenneth A Jernstedt Ken Jernstedt was born in 1917 in Carlton, Oregon. He entered the Marine Air Corps Reserve in 1939 and served with the 1st Marine Air Group In Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, during which time he became carrier-qualified, and learned to fly front-line Marine fighter of the day, the Grumman F4F Wildcat. In mld-1941, Jernstedts squadron was visited by a recruiter for the AVG. Joined by his friends and fellow Marine pilots Chuck Older and Tom Haywood, he volunteered for duty in China. Arriving in Burma, he was assigned to the Hells Angels squadron, and was soon promoted to flight leader. He was credited with his first aerial victory on December 23,1941. On his most memorable mission, Ken and pilot Bill Reed discovered an airfield near Moulmein crowded with 20 to 30 enemy fighters and bombers, which they repeatedly strafed, destroying or disabling many before breaking off the attack. By July 1942, Ken was credited with 10.5 victories, and was celebrated as the first Oregonian to become a fighter ace. After his AVG days, he became a test pilot with Republic Aviation, and worked with nearly every model of the P-47 Thunderbolt as well as dozens of aircraft types in the U.S. inventory. After the service, Ken embarked on an extremely successful business and polztical career, including twenty years as a $tate Senator in Oregon. | ||||
 Lieutenant Tom Killefer Click the name above to see prints signed by Lieutenant Tom Killefer
| Lieutenant Tom Killefer Born in Los Angeles and raised in Hermosa Beach, Killefer attended Stanford University, where he played varsity baseball and was elected student body president. He earned his law degree at Harvard and was a Rhodes scholar at Oxford University in England. Tom Killefer joined the navy in 1941, and was posted to his first operational squadron, VF-18, first seeing combat in October 1943. He flew 58 combat missions, scoring 4 victories, and a number of unconfirmed probables. Like all navy pilots he had a large number of deck landings, and saw action in the North Atlantic and Pacific theaters. Flying the F4F and F4U he took part in the great air battles over Bougainville and the massive campaign against Rabaul. Tom Killefer earned the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Navy Air Medal and a Purple Heart. Sadly Tom Killefer died at the age of 79 on Sunday 16th June 1996 in Portola Valley, California. | ||||
John F Kinney Click the name above to see prints signed by John F Kinney | John F Kinney F4F Pilot, VMF-211 | ||||
David D Kliewer Click the name above to see prints signed by David D Kliewer
| David D Kliewer F4F Pilot, VMF-211. David was born March 14th, 1917, on the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Birney, Montana, to Peter and Katherine Kliewer, who were Mennonite missionaries. David was the fifth of six children. His family moved to Bluffton, Ohio, where he graduated from high school in 1935. He then attended Wheaton College, where he graduated in 1939 with a degree in physics. He then enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in order to learn how to fly and to support his close brother Paul's medical education. As a Marine fighter pilot, he was stationed on Wake Island in the Pacific, where he was captured by the Japanese two weeks after the Pearl Harbor attack. He then spent four years as a POW in Japan. He was awarded the Silver Star for his service. His war experience had a great impact on him leading to a strong belief in peace, nonviolence and service to others. After applying to Harvard Medical School from POW camp, he was accepted for his medical training. He graduated in 1951 cum laude and finished his internship, residency and chief residency at New York Hospital of Cornell University in 1956. While there, he met and married Jean Dulin, a nurse at New York Hospital. They were married in Cooperstown, N.Y., in 1952. David Kliewer passed away on 21st March 2007. | ||||
Commander Dean Laird USN Click the name above to see prints signed by Commander Dean Laird USN
| Commander Dean Laird USN After sharing a cople of kills whilst flying Wildcats with VF-4 from the USS Ranger off Norway, Dean Laird went with the unit to the Pacific in 1944, serving on USS Bunker Hill and USS Essex. Hee, in late 1944 and early 1945 flying the F6F Hellcat, he increased his score to finish the war an Ace with 5.75 confirmed kills. | ||||
Scott McCuskey Click the name above to see prints signed by Scott McCuskey
| Scott McCuskey E. Scott McCuskey was Born in February, 1915 in Little Rock, Arkansas. He was the top-scoring fighter pilot during the Battle of Midway and one of the Navys early aces. Lt. E. Scott McCuskey enlisted in 1938 and won his wings and ensigns commission in the Reserves in October 1939. He began the war with VF-42, originally a Ranger squadron, which was temporarily assigned to Yorktown (CV-5) in late 1941 for Atlantic Ocean neutrality patrols. Fighting 42 was equipped with some of the first F4F-3 Wildcats to roll off Grummans production lines. After Pearl Harbor, the new Wildcats and Yorktown were urgently needed in the Pacific, so VF-42s assignment to Yorktown became more or less permanent. He later joined VF-3 on Enterprise and then switched to Hellcats on Bunker Hill with VF-8. | ||||
  Commander Hamilton McWhorter USN Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Commander Hamilton McWhorter USN
| Commander Hamilton McWhorter USN Hamilton Mac McWhorter first saw combat with VF-9 flying the F4F Wildcat from the USS Ranger in strikes against Casablanca. In March 1943 he transferred to the new F6F Hellcat aboard USS Essex in the Pacific, and participated in the strikes against Marcus, Wake, Marshall and Gilbert Islands, Rabaul, Truk - where he scored a notable triple victory in a few minutes, and Saipan. Joining VF-12 aboard USS Randolph, he took part in strikes against Tokyo in February 1945, and Iwo Jima and Okinawa. With 12 air victories in 89 combat missions Mac McWhorter was the first carrier-based pilot to become an F6F double Ace. He retired from the navy in 1969. Sadly, he passed away on 12th April 2008. | ||||
  Captain Armistead Chick Smith Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain Armistead Chick Smith
| Captain Armistead Chick Smith Armistead Burwell Smith Jr. was born March 15, 1921, in Gastonia, North Carolina. He left the University of North Carolina after two years to join the Navy and was commissioned as an ensign in February 1942. In November 1942 in North Africa, he flew an F4F Wildcat off the carrier USS Ranger. Capt. Chick Smith over the course of the war, shot down 11 enemy aircraft during 87 combat missions. The first seven of the downed planes were during a 15-month period flying off the aircraft carrier Essex. Captain Smith flew F6F Hellcats with 9 squadron known as “the Ace maker” for its high success rate against Zeros. In the battle for Truk Lagoon in Micronesia, Capt. Smith's aircraft was shot down. After landing in the water, he was rescued by a destroyer. During the invasion of the islands of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, Capt. Smith operated from the US Carrier USS Randolph shooting down four Japanese aircraft. His decorations include four Distinguished Flying Crosses, a Silver Star, eight Air Medals, two Legions of Merit and a Navy Commendation Medal. After World War II, Capt. Smith commanded two fighter squadrons, a carrier air wing and the seaplane tender Pine Island. From 1967 to 1969, he commanded what was then the Miramar Naval Air Station he would continue in service and finally retire as Commander Fleet Fighter Squadrons in 1972. Sadly He passed away in July 2006 | ||||
  Colonel James E Swett USMC MOH Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Colonel James E Swett USMC MOH
| Colonel James E Swett USMC MOH Jim Swett became one of the top-scoring F4U Aces, with 15.5 victories in 94 missions in the Corsair, but he had already earned himself the Congressional Medal of Honor piloting the F4F Wildcat before switching to the F4U. Leading a four plane section with VMF 221 on April 7, 1942 he shot down no fewer than 7 Japanese Val dive-bombers in an engagement over Tulagi Harbor, before taking a hit himself, and ditching in the sea. In all Jim Swett flew 211 combat missions, 94 in F4U Corsairs, made 120 carrier launches and recoveries, and in addition to his Medal of Honor, was awarded 6 DFCs and 2 Purple Hearts. Sadly, Jim Swett died on 18th January 2009. Citation for Medal of Honor For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty, as a division leader in Marine Fighting Squadron TWO TWENTY-ONE in action against enemy Japanese aerial forces in the Solomon Islands Area, April 7, 1943. In a daring flight to intercept a wave of 150 Japanese planes, First Lieutenant Swett unhesitatingly hurled his four-plane division into action against a formation of fifteen enemy bombers and during his dive personally exploded three hostile planes in mid-air with accurate and deadly fire. Although separated from his division while clearing the heavy concentration of anti-aircraft fire, he boldly attacked six enemy bombers, engaged the first four in turn, and unaided, shot them down in flames. Exhausting his ammunition as he closed the fifth Japanese bomber, he relentlessly drove his attack against terrific opposition which partially disabled his engine, shattered the windscreen and slashed his face. In spite of this, he brought his battered plane down with skillful precision in the water off Tulagi without further injury. The superb airmanship and tenacious fighting spirit which enabled First Lieutenant Swett to destroy seven enemy bombers in a single flight were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. | ||||
 Captain Stanley Swede Vejtasa USN Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain Stanley Swede Vejtasa USN
| Captain Stanley Swede Vejtasa USN Commissioned in August 1939, Swede Vejtasas first combat assignment was in May 1942 whilst flying the SBD Dauntless with VS-5 aboard the USS Yorktown during the Battle of the Coral Sea. here he participated in the attack on the Japanese carrier Shoho, and flew anti-torpedo plane patrol, claiming three Zeroes. Switching to fighters with VF-10 flying the F4F Wildcat aboard the USS Enterprise he took part in the Battle of Santa Cruz, where he notched up 7 air victories on one flight in October. In March 1943 he flight-tested the new F4U Corsair in the combat zone. His final tally for the war was 11 aerial victories. | ||||
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