OK this is a real stretch. The picture attached may be real as seen by the artist or completely fictional. No idea Brief history: Picture is small, about 5" X 7", done on plain white bond paper in ink, pencil and watercolor? ( I'm guessing here) It was given to my mother who was a WAC at the time, by a gentleman friend also in the Army. This was toward the end of War II. Date on the photo is 1945. See signature line photo. I have tried all sorts of clean up and magnification and cannot make out the artist's name. Mom passed it down to me and it has hung on my Hero Wall ever since. I never did get any more of the story. Or maybe I did and was too young to remember. I'm putting together as much family history as I can to pass down to my daughter and thought it might be interesting to try and get some info on the picture. I've researched the AC type by tail number but no joy. Tropical setting no idea where or maybe Southern California, or Shangri La?? Any help would be appreciated Just a note here. Mom and Dad met and married after they were both discharged at the end of the war Mom a WAC and Dad with Patton across Europe, Battle of the Bulge, March to Bastogne etc. These two worked hard and made a great life for themselves (and me). They truly exemplified the "The Greatest Generation". Thank you for your service. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
The airplane shown would have to be a B-29. The serial number indicates 1942 contract. I can't figure the letter on the tail except for a stateside training number perhaps. I'll try to do some digging.
Bob- That serial number belongs to a C-47/RAF Dakota III. There were not too many B-29s in 1942 and likely no B-29 production orders that early and the painting is from 1945 or 1946. 93637 (MSN 13571) to USAAF Jun 15, 1944. To RAF as Dakota III KG704 via RAF Montreal Jun 21, 1944. RAF Middle ast Jul 27, 1944. 44 Sqdn SAAF. Returned to USAAF Jul 26, 1946. In 1946 to TC-BEY of Devlet Hava Yollari. To N16893 Jan 22, 1972. WFU. Seen derelict at Istanbul/Yesilkoy Jun 1971.
Thanks, terry. I haven't had time to research that serial or anything else. I know that there weren't a lot of B-29's in 1942 but that serial simply indicates when a contract has been let. I know that Boeing was working on the B-29 in 1941 because the B-17E had the horizontal tail of the B-29 as a test item and it stayed with the airplane until the G. The airfoil of the B-29 had an inverted section because of the strong nose down pitching moment of the Davis airfoil. The B-17 with a symmetrical section had no problem with that so the tail section was also symmetrical . Planform and structure were the same , however. Interesting picture.
Thanks for the input guys! I was leaning toward a "fanciful rendering" rather than a observation recreation. I just thought I would throw it out and see what others had to say. The detail is really amazing for such a small piece.
Bob- Affirmative, stuff happened fast in WW-II. From fixed landing gear fighters in some air forces early on to turbojet and rocket fighters near the end. There were still P-26s in the Philippines in 1942.
Affirmative, and the Russians were using biplanes, too, deep into the war. The Night Witches' exploits were quite famous.
