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Ace in a Day by Stan Stokes. - Cranston Military Prints

Ace in a Day by Stan Stokes.


Ace in a Day by Stan Stokes.

A new U.S. Navy fighter squadron designated VF-11 was organized in August 1942. The new squadron received several combat tested pilots, and many newcomers, including Vernon E. Graham, a Colorado native. After two months of training in San Diego the new squadron deployed to Maui, where, under the command of Charles Fenton, the squadron commenced a comprehensive training program. While in Hawaii several of VF-11s pilots came up with a squadron insignia which depicted two Grumman F4F Wildcats blasting a rising sun into the Pacific. Thus VF- 11 became known as the Sun Downers. The Sun Downers first combat tour would be land-based, flying out of Guadacanal with the Marines. This was a bit upsetting to some member of the squadron as the Marines were flying the state-of-the-art F4U Corsair, while VF-11 was equipped with the older Grumman F4F Wildcat, an aircraft somewhat inferior in dog fighting capability to the Japanese Zero. During the first several weeks of its first combat tour the Sun Downers had more than their share of misfortune. Several aircraft were lost without enemy opposition. This was all to change in a hurry for the young Vern Graham. Graham had flown about thirty missions without incident. Returning from a long escort mission Graham and his formation of sixteen Wildcats responded to a request for help from four Marine Corsairs which had encountered nearly forty Japanese Zeros while on patrol near Russell Island. Only eight of the Wildcats had sufficient fuel to engage the enemy. Disregarding his critical fuel situation, Graham and his wing man got involved in assisting the Marines. Graham bagged his first Zero with a diving attack while his adversary was more preoccupied with the Corsair he was tailing. Minutes later a second Zero succumbed to a high side attack, and a third exploded in mid-air during a head-on pass. Graham bagged two more prior to his engine quitting due to lack of fuel. Without power Graham was a sitting duck, and in no time two Zeros were on his tail. Fortunately, Grahams Marine buddies bagged one and chased the other off. In serious trouble, Grahams only hope was to glide his Wildcat to Russell Island where an emergency airstrip was available. Not knowing that one of his wheels had been shot away during the engagement, Grahams Wildcat flipped over during the emergency landing. Knocked unconscious with a fractured skull, Graham was cut from the wreckage of his F4F, and sent to a military hospital. With five confirmed aerial victories during this single mission, Graham had achieved the unusual distinction of becoming An Ace in a Day. Vern received the Navy Cross and returned to the States to recover. He would later return to active flying after requalifying in the F41J Corsair. During its first combat tour the Sun Downers attained 55 aerial victories. Four of the new squadrons pilots became aces, and five of the squadrons forty pilots (C.G. Boswell, C.G. Cary, L.W. Childs, T.L. Hull, and G.W. Ricker) were killed in action. It is in their memory that this limited edition print is dedicated.
Item Code : STK0074Ace in a Day by Stan Stokes. - Editions Available
DESCRIPTIONSIZESIGNATURESOFFERSPRICEPURCHASINGPACKS
Signed limited edition of 950 prints. JUST ONE SECONDARY MARKET PRINT AVAILABLE. Print size 26 inches x 22 inches (66cm x 56cm)
Graham, Vern
Died : 2006
Vernon E Graham (deceased)
Vernon E. Graham, a Colorado native. After two months of training in San Diego the new squadron deployed to Maui, where, under the command of Charles Fenton, the squadron commenced a comprehensive training program. While in Hawaii several of VF-11s pilots came up with a squadron insignia which depicted two Grumman F4F Wildcats blasting a rising sun into the Pacific. Thus VF- 11 became known as the Sun Downers. The Sun Downers first combat tour would be land-based, flying out of Guadacanal with t
Signature Value : £65
CLICK HERE FOR FULL PROFILE
 
+ Artist : Stan Stokes

Signature(s) value alone : £65		£10 Off!Now : £180.00

Quantity:


Some other related items available from this site.

In 1938 Vought won a contract for what was to become one of the last of the great propeller driven fighter aircraft, the F4U Corsair. Designed to incorporate the most powerful air-cooled radial engine available at the time, the Pratt and Whitney Double Wasp, the Corsair was powerful, heavily armed, ruggedly built, and designed from the onset as a carrier based fighter. The Corsair was fast, and became the first military aircraft to obtain 400 MPH in level flight. The Corsair incorporated the largest three-bladed propeller ever utilized on a single engine aircraft, a unique distinctive gull wing design, and its 2804 cubic inch engine developed a whopping 1800 HP, more than twice the horsepower of the Japanese fighters which dominated the early years of the War in the Pacific. Despite its design emphasis the USN was reluctant to utilize the Corsair for carrier-based operations because of the aircrafts poor pilot visibility during landings. As a result, the Corsair initially entered service with land-based USMC Squadrons in February of 1943. VMF-124, the first squadron to be equipped with Corsairs, quickly realized that they had a very special aircraft, and at the end of their tour of duty, VMF-124 had 68 confirmed kills of Japanese planes in air-to-air combat vs. losses of only 11 Corsairs. The Royal Navy, which procured over 2,000 of the 9,441 Corsairs produced, successfully overcame the pilot visibility problem by incorporating a curved angular approach to landings. Influenced by the Royal Navys success, the USN requalified the Corsair for carrier-based operations in early 1945. During the Okinawa campaign U.S. forces encountered a desperate shift in Japanese strategy which incorporated the full fury of the Kamikaze suicide attack. Lacking experienced pilots, and in hopes of slowing American advances, more than 3,000 Kamikaze planes were directed at the U.S. naval forces during the Okinawa campaign. The Corsair was instrumental in the fact the 2,600 Kamikazes did not succeed. In his spectacular painting, aviation artist Stan Stokes shows a F4U Corsair of VMF-451 of the Bunker Hill piloted by Marine Major Archie Donahue in action against an incoming (A6M2 Zero) Kamikaze attack during the Okinawa campaign. In three months during the campaign Navy and Marine pilots based on the Bunker Hill recorded 176 kills. However on April 29, 1944 the Bunker Hills luck ran out. Struck by two Kamikazes within minutes, a four hour conflagration ensued, which killed nearly 400 servicemen, and destroyed the bulk of the ships aircraft. This forced the withdrawal of the Bunker Hill from the campaign. Despite these losses, the Corsairs deservedly earned one of their nicknames, Angels of Okinawa, from the thousands of servicemen who no doubt owed their lives to these last of the great propeller driven fighter aircraft, and the courageous pilots who flew them.

Angels of Okinawa by Stan Stokes.		 Corsairs of VMF 121 provide close air support to the US landings on Rendova, June 30, 1943. Fiercely contested, the invasion force was heavily attacked by Zero fighters and Mitsubishi G4M1 Betty bombers, flying from their base at Rabaul. Dog-fighting at tree-top height, VMF 121 Corsairs rip into a bunch of Betty bombers as they try to make their escape following their attack on shipping. On fire, the Betty in the foreground is doomed, and will shortly become one of 19 Japanese aircraft accounted for by VMF 121. Other Marine fighter units brought the total this day to a staggering 58 enemy aircraft destroyed.

Battle for the Islands by Nicolas Trudgian. 		One of the most successful of the P-38 equipped units was the 475th Fighter Group, Satans Angels, and it is the P-38s of this famous unit that Nicolas Trudgian has portrayed in his tribute to the American Air Forces that made Victory in the Pacific possible. It is March 1945 and the P-38s of the 475th FG are involved in a huge dogfight with Japanese Zeros over the coast of Indo-China. Flying Pee Wee V is Lt Ken Hart of the 431st Fighter Squadron, who has fatally damaged a Zero in a blistering head on encounter. The second P-38 - Vickie - belongs to Captain John Rabbit Pietz, who would end the War an Ace with six victories.

Pacific Glory by Nicolas Trudgian. 		Corsairs of VMF 121 provide close air support to the US landings on Rendova, June 30, 1943. Fiercely contested, the invasion force was heavily attacked by Zero fighters and Mitsubishi G4M1 Betty bombers, flying from their base at Rabaul. Dog-fighting at tree-top height, VMF 121 Corsairs rip into a bunch of Betty bombers as they try to make their escape following their attack on shipping. On fire, the Betty in the foreground is doomed, and will shortly become one of 19 Japanese aircraft accounted for by VMF 121. Other Marine fighter units brought the total this day to a staggering 58 enemy aircraft destroyed.

Battle for the Islands by Nicolas Trudgian
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


Vernon E Graham (deceased)
Died : 2006
*Signature Value : £65

Editions signed :

Signed limited edition of 950 prints. JUST ONE SECONDARY MARKET PRINT AVAILABLE.


Graham, Vern
(Vernon E Graham (deceased))

Vernon E. Graham, a Colorado native. After two months of training in San Diego the new squadron deployed to Maui, where, under the command of Charles Fenton, the squadron commenced a comprehensive training program. While in Hawaii several of VF-11s pilots came up with a squadron insignia which depicted two Grumman F4F Wildcats blasting a rising sun into the Pacific. Thus VF- 11 became known as the Sun Downers. The Sun Downers first combat tour would be land-based, flying out of Guadacanal with the Marines. This was a bit upsetting to some member of the squadron as the Marines were flying the state-of-the-art F4U Corsair, while VF-11 was equipped with the older Grumman F4F Wildcat, an aircraft somewhat inferior in dog fighting capability to the Japanese Zero. During the first several weeks of its first combat tour the Sun Downers had more than their share of misfortune. Several aircraft were lost without enemy opposition. This was all to change in a hurry for the young Vern Graham. Graham had flown about thirty missions without incident. Returning from a long escort mission Graham and his formation of sixteen Wildcats responded to a request for help from four Marine Corsairs which had encountered nearly forty Japanese Zeros while on patrol near Russell Island. Only eight of the Wildcats had sufficient fuel to engage the enemy. Disregarding his critical fuel situation, Graham and his wing man got involved in assisting the Marines. Graham bagged his first Zero with a diving attack while his adversary was more preoccupied with the Corsair he was tailing. Minutes later a second Zero succumbed to a high side attack, and a third exploded in mid-air during a head-on pass. Graham bagged two more prior to his engine quitting due to lack of fuel. Without power Graham was a sitting duck, and in no time two Zeros were on his tail. Fortunately, Grahams Marine buddies bagged one and chased the other off. In serious trouble, Grahams only hope was to glide his Wildcat to Russell Island where an emergency airstrip was available. Not knowing that one of his wheels had been shot away during the engagement, Grahams Wildcat flipped over during the emergency landing. Knocked unconscious with a fractured skull, Graham was cut from the wreckage of his F4F, and sent to a military hospital. With five confirmed aerial victories during this single mission, Graham had achieved the unusual distinction of becoming An Ace in a Day. Vern received the Navy Cross and returned to the States to recover. He would later return to active flying after requalifying in the F41J Corsair. Sadly Vernon Died on the 2nd January 2006
Squadrons Related to This Print
VF11
Aircraft Related to This Print
Corsair
Zero

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