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Bridge Busting Jugs by Stan Stokes. - Cranston Military Prints

Bridge Busting Jugs by Stan Stokes.


Bridge Busting Jugs by Stan Stokes.

Alexander Kartveli was a engineer with Seversky Aircraft who designed the P-35, which first flew in 1937. With Republic Aviation Kartveli supervised the development of the P-43 Lancer. Neither of these aircraft were produced in large numbers, and neither was quite successful. However, the Republic Aviation P-47 Thunderbolt, also nicknamed the Jug, was quite a different story. The Jug was the jewel in Kartvelis design crown, and went on to become one of the most produced fighter aircraft of all time with 15,683 being manufactured. The P-47 was the largest and heaviest single seat fighter of WW II. The P-47 immediately demonstrated its excellent combat qualities, including speed, rate of climb, maneuverability, heavy fire power, and the ability to take a lot of punishment. With a wingspan of more than 40 feet and a weight of 19,400 pounds, this large aircraft was designed around the powerful 2000 HP Pratt and Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial engine. The first P-47 prototype flew in May of 1941, and the primary variant the P-47D went into service in 1943 with units of the U.S. Armys Eighth Air Force. The Jug had a maximum speed in excess of 400 MPH, a service ceiling in excess of 42,000 feet, and was heavily armed with either six or eight heavy caliber machine guns. With its ability to carry up to a 2,500 pound bomb load, the Jug saw lots of use in ground attack roles. Until the introduction of the N model, the P-47 lacked the long range required for fighter escort missions which were most often relegated to P-51 Mustangs or P-38 Lightnings. In his outstanding painting entitled Bridge Busting Jugs, noted aviation artist Stan Stokes depicts Eighth Air Force Jugs in a ground attack mission in the Alps in June of 1944. The top P-47 ace was Francis Gabreski who had flown with the 56th Fighter Group, the first unit to be equipped with the P-47. In August of 1943 Gabreski attained his first aerial combat victory (over an Fw-190) and by years end he had reached ace status with 8 confirmed victories. As Commander of the 61st Squadron, Gabreski continued to chalk up victory after victory, and on seven different occasions he achieved two victories during the same mission. However, in July of 1944 Gabreski damaged the prop on his Jug during a low level attack on an airfield near Coblenz. Forced to make a crash landing, he was captured and remained a prisoner of war until Wars end in 1945. Following the War Gabreski returned to military service with the Air Forces 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing in Korea. Flying the F-86 Sabre Jet, Gabreski attained 6.5 more aerial victories in 1951 and 1952 becoming an ace in two different wars.
Item Code : STK0028CBridge Busting Jugs by Stan Stokes. - Editions Available
DESCRIPTIONSIZESIGNATURESOFFERSPRICEPURCHASINGPACKS
Signed limited edition of 4750 prints. Print size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm) Artist : Stan Stokes£15 Off!
Add any two items on this offer to your basket, and the lower priced item will be half price in the checkout!
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225 prints from the signed limited edition of 4750 prints, with signature of Stan Stokes and pilot, and a remarque.Image size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm)
Gabreski, Gabby

Died : 2002
Colonel Gabby Gabreski (deceased)
Gabby Gabreski was the top scoring 8th Air Force fighter Ace in Europe with 28.5 victories in World War II, plus further 6.5 in Korea. Flying P47s with the 56th Fighter Group, his illustrious career in Europe came to a spectacular end, when, strafing an airfield his aircraft touched the ground. He crash landed and was taken prisoner. The story of this American hero from Oil City, Pennsylvania begins in 1942. Gabreski dropped out of his pre-med studies at the University of Notre Dame to become
Signature Value : £95
CLICK HERE FOR FULL PROFILE
 
+ Artist : Stan Stokes


Signature(s) value alone : £95
£154.00

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In 2 Pairs
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Prints from the 225 prints from the signed limited edition of 4750 prints, with signature of Stan Stokes and pilot. Image size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm)

Extras....



A photograph of this print, showing the pilot signature in the border.


Gabreski, Gabby

Died : 2002
Colonel Gabby Gabreski (deceased)
Gabby Gabreski was the top scoring 8th Air Force fighter Ace in Europe with 28.5 victories in World War II, plus further 6.5 in Korea. Flying P47s with the 56th Fighter Group, his illustrious career in Europe came to a spectacular end, when, strafing an airfield his aircraft touched the ground. He crash landed and was taken prisoner. The story of this American hero from Oil City, Pennsylvania begins in 1942. Gabreski dropped out of his pre-med studies at the University of Notre Dame to become
Signature Value : £95
CLICK HERE FOR FULL PROFILE
 
+ Artist : Stan Stokes


Signature(s) value alone : £95
£30 Off!Now : £124.00

Quantity:


Some other related items available from this site.

 American fighter Ace Robert S Johnson is depicted in his 56th Fighter Group P-47 Thunderbolt with codes HV-P named 'Lucky'.  Of his 27 victories during a tour of 89 combat missions from April 1943 to May 1944, he scored 21 in this aircraft.  The joint sixth top-scoring American Ace of WW2, he was notably the first US pilot in the European theater to better the historic WW1 victory total of Eddie Rickenbacker, the top-scoring American Ace of that war.  Post-war, he became a test-pilot and retired in 1962.  He died in 1998.

Tribute to Robert S Johnson by Ivan Berryman.
 Herky Green flew with the 325th Fighter Group in North Africa, scoring victories in each of the P-40 Warhawk, P-47 Thunderbolt and P51 Mustang.  He flew over 100 missions in command of the 317th Fighter Squadron, and is credited with 18 victories.  He died in 2006.

Clipped Signature - Herky Green.
 Although far better known for their exploits over the war torn skies of Germany and Italy, the USAAFs premier fighters, the P-47 and P-51, also made significant contributions to the victory against Japan from 1943 onwards. This book relates the appearance of the Allison-engined A-36As and P-51As over Rangoon from India in November 1943, the 1st Air Commando Group in China, P-47s over the jungles of New Guinea in 1943, escorting B-29s on long-range bombing sorties against the Home Islands in 1944-45 and elsewhere.
Mustang and Thunderbolt Aces of the Pacific and CBI.
  In Europe the tide of war was changing. The Allied invasion of Normandy had thrown the Germans back and the push to Berlin had begun, but in the Far East another invasion had taken place - this time by the Japanese.  The fighter pilots of the RAF had become masters of the sky over Burma and after weeks of bitter fighting, air superiority was complete. The Japanese invasion had run out of steam and slowly, but inexorably, the Allies drove them back, fighting through the rains and floods in arduous conditions, strafing supply dumps and airfields, and divebombing enemy concentrations in unequalled precision strikes.  One such strike was the operation to secure the Japanese-held Mingaladon Aerodrome near Rangoon on 20 October 1944, when a composite air force, made up of P-47 Thunderbolts from 261 and 146 Squadrons, carried out a low level attack on the vital Japanese stronghold.  Richard Taylor's fabulous new painting, <i>Thunder in the East</i>, expertly captures all the fury of this bitter engagement. After completing his bombing attack Warrant Officer Thomas 'Lucky' Carter flying his distinctive P-47 'Pistol Packin' Mamma', engages Nakajima Ki-43 Oscars and Ki-44 Tojo's along with other Thunderbolts of the unit.  In commemoration of the men who flew and fought in Burma, joining artist Richard Taylor in signing the whole edition are three RAF veterans that fought in the campaign, two that flew Thunderbolts in Burma and one of the vital ground crew that prepared the P-47s for this actual mission.  A fitting tribute to all those that fought in the 'Forgotten War'.

Thunder in the East by Richard Taylor.
Signatures on these products
*The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature and is for the unmatted version where available. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare.
NameInfo




Colonel Gabby Gabreski (deceased)
Died : 2002
*Signature Value : £95

Editions signed :

225 prints from the signed limited edition of 4750 prints, with signature of Stan Stokes and pilot, and a remarque.
Prints from the 225 prints from the signed limited edition of 4750 prints, with signature of Stan Stokes and pilot.


Gabreski, Gabby
(Colonel Gabby Gabreski (deceased))

Gabby Gabreski was the top scoring 8th Air Force fighter Ace in Europe with 28.5 victories in World War II, plus further 6.5 in Korea. Flying P47s with the 56th Fighter Group, his illustrious career in Europe came to a spectacular end, when, strafing an airfield his aircraft touched the ground. He crash landed and was taken prisoner. The story of this American hero from Oil City, Pennsylvania begins in 1942. Gabreski dropped out of his pre-med studies at the University of Notre Dame to become a flyer. Anxious to get into action quickly Francis Gabreski got himself assigned to the 3-1-5 Polish fighter squadron of the RAF in 1942. Although Gabreski flew many combat missions with the Polish fighter squadron he attained no victories. In February of 1943 he was reassigned to the U.S. Army's Eighth Air Force. On August 24, 1943 he got his first victory (a Focke-Wulf 190) over France. Flying the P-47 Thunderbolt or 'Jug', Gabreski continued to achieve victory after victory. He was officially credited with 28 confirmed aerial victories, and that excludes the scores of aircraft, tanks, and other vehicles destroyed by Gabreski during ground attack missions. For many weeks leading up to and following D-Day in June of 1944 Gabby had been on numerous missions involving the dive bombing and strafing of German trains, bridges, armored convoys, and gun emplacements. On July 20,1944 Gabby was scheduled to depart for a much-deserved leave, during which he planned to marry his girl, Kay Lochran. Shortly before his scheduled departure Gabreski was given the opportunity of leading the 61st Squadron of the 56th Fighter Group on an important mission. This was a challenge this ace could not resist. Near Cologne, Gabby spotted an airdrome and began a high-speed low-level attack. Defying his own axiom to 'hit them hard, hit them fast, hit them low, but never come around for a second pass,' Gabby made an ill-fated second pass over the field. On this second pass his propeller hit the tarmac, and Gabreski was forced to make a crash landing in a wheat field adjacent to the German airfield. For five days he was able to elude the German army, but he was finally captured and sent to Stalag Luft 1 in Barth Germany. In 1945 with the end of the War Gabby was released and he married Kay Cochran on June 11. Not long after the Korean War broke out, Gabby found himself in command of the 51st Fighter Wing, where he flew the F-86 Sabre jet. In Korea Gabreski attained 6.5 more confirmed aerial victories in engagements with Migs, earning the unique distinction of ace status in two different wars. Following his retirement from military service in 1967, Gabby worked for several years for Grumman Aircraft on Long Island. Later he was to become the President and General Manager of the Long Island Railroad. Two of his nine children are Air Force Academy graduates and pilots with the U.S. Air Force. At the time of his retirement from military service in 1967 Gabby is believed to have flown more combat missions than any other American fighter pilot. Gabreski lived in Long Island New York where the American flag proudly flew each day atop the Gabreski family flagpole. Colonel Francis 'Gabby' Gabreski passed away on 31st January 2002.
Aircraft Related to This Print
Thunderbolt

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