Academy P-47 D Lt. Duane Buholz 509th FS/ 405th FG

 

P-47 D 'G9-J' in the markings of Lt. Duane Buholz 509th FS/ 405th FG from the Academy 'bubbletop' kit. Seen alongside the Revell kit. Neither satisfactorily represents a P-47 in my view, although the Academy model - like most of this company's 72nd kits- looks least like the real thing. Gear legs are cut down, wheels replaced with resin Pavla items. The canopy is wrong and too 'bulbous' but at least the decals worked.

Originally established as the 405th Bombardment Group (Dive) the unit was re-designated 405th FG in May 1943. Its three squadrons - the 509th, the 510th and the 511th – were coded ‘G9’, ‘2Z’ and ‘K4’ respectively. The unit under CO Col. James Ferguson departed South Carolina in February-March 1944 and was based in Christchurch, southern England, beginning operations with the 9th AF in April 1944 bombing airfields, bridges and rail hubs and installations up until D-day. The 405th FG began the Normandy campaign on June 6, 1944, by escorting Coastal Command aircraft patrolling the Bay of Biscay to prevent any enemy vessels based at the Atlantic ports from reaching the Channel. From June 10 onwards, the 405th FG flew a series of bombing and armed reconnaissance missions in the Cherbourg region. Ground targets ahead of the advancing armour and infantry were pounded relentlessly. Few Luftwaffe fighters were encountered by the pilots, but occasionally there was a confrontation, usually below ten thousand feet.

On 11 July 1944, the 405th FG left its base in Christchurch, England, for good to move to the A-8 advanced airfield at Picauville in Normandy. The 405th FG was the 8th fighter group of the 9th Air Force to land in France. By 31 July, the 9th Air Force had 17 fighter groups in Normandy, supporting 19 American divisions. Most of their missions involved patrols of 6 to 8 aircraft to secure the bridgehead, with aircraft in the air from 6.00 am until 23:40. The 405th FG airfield was 8 km to the west of Sainte-Mère Eglise and just 3 km from the front line. German mortar attacks and snipers in ambush around the ground kept all the group's personnel on high alert. The patrols around the field were regular and at night the men on guard often nervous. The construction of A-8 Field by the 826th Aviation Engineer Battalion had started on 23 June when the sector was still under enemy fire. The runway was the first constructed from bituminised jute matting (Hessian matting). Thanks to this material, the runway was laid in a single day, a record that has never been equalled. Some 75 individual shelters for the P-47s were constructed and 36 for the night fighters who arrived in August onwards. Because of the proximity of the front, take-offs were always to the east, towards Utah Beach. The mist at dawn and dusk, the din of artillery and machine-gun fire were the daily bread of the group throughout its stay in Normandy.