Photo(s) of the Week; 45th and 78th Fighter Squadrons Arrive on Iwo Jima

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On March 7th, a day after the 47th Fighter Squadron landed on Iwo Jima, Colonel James Beckwith, Commander of the 15th Fighter Group, led the 45th and 78th Fighter Squadrons from Saipan to Iwo Jima. With all three squadrons on Iwo Jima, the 15th Fighter Group would start flying missions in support of the Marines on Iwo and against other islands in the Bonins.

The photo below shows a 45th Fighter Squadron P-51D Mustang landing on South Field on March 7, 1945, as 47th Fighter Squadron pilots look on.

USAAF/National Archives via Fold3

The photo below, taken on March 10, 1945, is a beautiful shot of 78th Fighter Squadron P-51D Mustangs lined up on South Field. A few things are worthy of note. First is what looks like freshly painted squadron markings, most likely done on Saipan. Second is the 110 gallon drop tanks on the ground under the wings. These were most likely the drop tanks brought from Saipan by each plane. The 110 gallon drop tanks were used during VLR missions and on combat air patrols around Iwo Jima. Third, it appears that the first Mustang in the picture, 109 Pee Wee, has the SCR-695 IFF transmitter and twin Uncle Dog antennae installed which suggests that those field modifications began relatively soon after the 15th Fighter Group arrived on Iwo Jima.

USAAF/National Archives via Fold3

The last photo is another line up, but this time of 45th Fighter Squadron P-51D Mustangs on South Field with ground crew congregating on the flight line. This photo was also taken on March 10th.

USAAF/National Archives via Fold3

Nice group of photos of the 45th and 78th Fighter Squadrons’ first few days on Iwo Jima.

Photo(s) of the Week; 47th Fighter Squadron, First to Arrive

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On March 6, 1945, Brig. General Ernest M. “Mickey” Moore, commanding officer of the 7th Fighter Command, and 24 pilots of the 47th Fighter Squadron (FS) of the 15th Fighter Group (FG), landed their North American P-51D Mustangs on South Field (Motoyama #1) on Iwo Jima, just fifteen days after the United States Marines stormed Iwo’s black sand beaches. The battle for Iwo Jima continued to rage on for another twenty days as pockets of Japanese resistance were being eliminated.

USAAF/National Archives via Fold3

It is believed that the above photo is of Brig. General Moore landing an unmarked P-51D on South Field. Was he the first USAAF pilot to land a P-51 on Iwo Jima? None of the captions to the March 6th photos provide an answer, but squadron records indicate that Brig. General Moore was the first to land, with 47th Squadron Commander Major John Piper second.

USAAF/National Archives via Fold3

Another March 6th photo showing a 47th Fighter Squadron P-51D pulling into its parking spot just off of South Field. Note the single antenna in both photos. The twin Uncle Dog antennae were a field modification on Iwo Jima.

Photo(s) of the Week; “Midnite Madness” on Iwo Jima

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USAAF/National Archives via Fold3

The image above is a United States Army Air Force photo taken on Iwo Jima on March 6, 1945, and shows Midnite Madness, a 548th Night Fighter Squadron Northrop P-61A-11 Black Widow (Serial No. 42-5610) landing on South Field with the tails of two 47th Fighter Squadron/15th Fighter Group Mustangs in the foreground.

On March 6th, Brigadier General Ernest M. “Mickey” Moore, commanding officer of the 7th Fighter Command, and 24 North American P-51D Mustangs landed on South Field. Shortly thereafter, 13 Northrop P-61A Black Widows of the 548th NFS landed on South Field in flights of four, the extra being a 6th NFS Black Widow “guide dog” with the first flight. Which P-61 Black Widow was the first to land on Iwo Jima?

According to the photo above, it was Midnite Madness. The official caption for the photo reads, “A Northrop P-61 ‘Black Widow’ taxies to the parking area at No.1 Airfield on Iwo Jima, Bonin Islands. This is the first night fighter to land at the field. 6 March 1945.” But that caption may not be accurate.

According to Eric Shulenberger, the author of Deny Them the Night Sky: A History of the 548th Night Fighter Squadron, the first P-61 Black Widow to land on Iwo Jima was most likely the 6th NFS “guide dog” P-61 on Temporary Additional Duty leading the 548th NFS’s A Flight from the Marianas to Iwo Jima. Piecing together written statements of 548th pilots and personnel, Dr. Shulenberger believes that Bat Out’A Hell (Serial No. 42-5609) was the first 548th P-61 to land on Iwo Jima. Midnite Madness landed with the second flight and was most likely the 7th P-61 to land on Iwo Jima.

I will review several decal sheets containing markings for 548th NFS Black Widows in the near future, in addition to reviewing Deny Them the Night Sky: A History of the 548th Night Fighter Squadron. Excellent book!

References:

Eric Shulenberger, PhD, JD; Deny Them the Night Sky: A History of the 548th Night Fighter Squadron, self published by Dr. Shulenberger (2005).

Decal Review: Kits-World War Birds 1/72 Boeing B-29 Superfortress KW172225 (Dinah Might & Bad Medicine)

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If you have the 1/72nd Academy Boeing B-29A Superfortress kit, and would like to build Dinah Might, the first B-29 to make an emergency landing on Iwo Jima, you are in luck. https://iwojimamodels.com/2024/02/12/photos-of-the-week-the-safe-haven-of-iwo-jima/

Kits-World Decals

Kits-World produces a decal sheet (KW172225) which includes the markings for Dinah Might. The other markings included on the decal sheet are for a 482nd BS/505th BG B-29 Bad Medicine.

Kits-World Decals

As you can see, the art work for both sets of markings is excellent and consistent with photos of each plane. In addition, the printing of the decal sheet is very well done and in register. A complete set of national insignia are provided for one plane.

Kits-World Decals

Kits-World has produced some excellent decals for B-29s in both 1/72nd and 1/48th scale. Check them out at: https://www.kitsworld.co.uk/index.php?JSTONE=1. You can purchase the decals directly from Kits-World or from many fine on-line retailers. Kudos to Kits-World!

Photo(s) of the Week; The Safe Haven of Iwo Jima

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USAAF/Loomis Dean/National Archives via Fold3

The image above is a United States Army Air Force photo taken on Iwo Jima in July, 1945. The official caption for this photo reads, “Men of the 21st Bomber Command gather around the American Red Cross truck to relax over a cup of coffee and doughnuts after returning from a raid over Japanese installations. July 1945”. If they landed on Iwo Jima, the return trip was not complete.

The strategic importance of Iwo Jima to both Japan and the United States could not be overstated. Iwo Jima, part of the Bonin Islands, was approximately half way between the Mariana Islands and the Japanese Home Islands. For Japan, it provided a base from which their air forces could intercept B-29 bomber formations heading from the Marianas to the Home Islands, and from which to bomb 20th Air Force B-29 bases on Guam, Tinian and Saipan, which Japan did with some success.

For the United States, it not only provided a base for the VLR Mustang groups to fly escort and strike missions to the Home Islands, but also provided combat damaged and fuel starved B-29s a safe haven during the long over-water flights back to the Marianas. Many crippled B-29s landed safely on Iwo Jima and avoided ditching in the vast Pacific Ocean somewhere between the Home Islands and the Marianas.

Boeing B-29A Superfortress “Dinah Might” on Iwo Jima (USAAF/National Archives via Fold3)

On March 4, 1945, Dinah Might was the first B-29 to make an emergency landing on Iwo Jima, just 13 days after the United States Marines stormed Iwo’s black sand beaches. With the battle still raging on between the Marines and Japanese forces, 1st Lt. Raymond F. Malo put his 1st BS/9th BG Superfortress down on South Field due to the inability to transfer fuel between tanks. As the picture above shows, Dinah Might was surrounded by hundreds of Marines and SeeBees. Mechanics made field repairs quickly, and after being refueled, 1st Lt. Malo lifted her off South Field while being fired at by Japanese forces.

Dinah Might’s emergency landing was the first of 2,451 forced landings on Iwo Jima. On June 7, 1945, 102 B-29s landed on Iwo Jima, and on July 24, 1945, another 186 B-29s landed on South and North Fields. As the picture below testifies to, Iwo Jima at times looked like a B-29 base.

USAAF/Loomis Dean/National Archives via Fold3

Kits-World makes decals in 1/72nd scale for Dinah Might for anybody interested in building the Academy kit into this history making B-29.

References:

Capt. Timothy Lundberg, Remembering Iwo Jima and Its Importance to Strategic Airpower, March 3, 2010. https://www.andersen.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/415598/remembering-iwo-jima-and-its-importance-to-strategic-airpower/