eBay: North American B-25 Mitchell

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If you ever wondered which was the 1-st BG.(bombardment group) and the 1-st BS. (bombardment squadron) in the USAAF, here is the answer: the above B-25J (both versions) are part of the 1-st BG. consisting of the 1-st, 2-nd, 3-rd and 4-th BS., under the command of the Chinese-American Composite Wing.
For modelers (and detail enthusiasts) the 3-digit number under the s/n is the a/c designation and DOES NOT match the last 3 digits of the serial.
After 1948 many of these "Mitchells" went to "both Chinas": Taiwan and the People's Republic of China.
 
I tried to find one of these at baughers site. Came to a p-47, thats with out the 3 numbers below the serial. Strange.
 
Snautzer01 said:
I tried to find one of these at baughers site. Came to a p-47, thats with out the 3 numbers below the serial. Strange.
Click to expand...
Which s/n did you enter? Do not forget the missing 4 (first digit). E.g. the belly landed a/c has s/n 44-30556 - it's a B-25J-25.
The one in flight has s/n 44-28850 - it's a B-25J-15 etc.
 
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CATCH 22 said:
Which s/n did you enter? Do not forget the missing 4 (first digit). E.g. the belly landed a/c has s/n 44-30556 - it's a B-25J-25.
The one in flight has s/n 44-28850 - it's a B-25J-15 etc.
Click to expand...
I use Baughers site for years ans have added info to it. I do know how it works.
 
Snautzer01 said:
I use Baughers site for years ans have added info to it. I do know how it works.
Click to expand...
I'm sure you know, but I wanted to check which s/n is not matching the B-25 serials in the JB lists and shows a P-47 instead.
There are some rare cases where serials have been overpainted/re-painted (e.g. think MTO) and the new serial was applied incorrectly. I knew of only one such case with a B-25 so far - must find the photo and post it here.
Cheers!
 
As mentioned above here is the photo (in fact 2 photos) of a remarkable (in a way) B-25.

Both a/cs are from the 3-rd Antisubmarine Squadron. There are several photos of these "Mitchells" (3 of them) flying over a cemetery, AFAIK during a memorial for a colleague. The third a/c is never visible because it was the camera-plane. One can see how different the applied camouflage schemes are: the lower a/c has a scheme similar to the standard OD over NG, where the latter shade has been changed to white. The top a/c though has a camo-scheme much more similar to the Atlantic Search scheme of the USNavy, but with OD over white.
And now the "fun factor":
Here is the top a/c (one can find this photo even in the Wikimedia):

If the s/n is to be compared with the popular Joe Baugher's lists (or for the sake of reason with any other source with B-25 serial numbers) there will be a small surprise - please check.
This a/c in a difference to the other one has its tail overpainted in white. Something happened to the serial. When restoring it, the painter probably did it wrong.
The correct serial for the above 'Mitchell' is 42-53363, a B-25C-5.
Cheers!
 
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Hi Catch22,

The problem was likely with the AAF's specifications rather than the painter. The serial was 42-53363 as you noted - the 53363rd aircraft ordered during Fiscal Year 42 (which ran from 1 July 1941 thru 30 June 1942). The specs originally called for a radio call number on the tail to be assembled from the last digit of the year the aircraft was built and the remainder of the serial. Since B-25C deliveries began at the end of calendar year 1941, several FY42 aircraft were delivered with a "1" as the first digit of the radio call. (C-46s and P-38s also had similar problems.) The mistakes weren't noticed until mid-1942, and it still took some time to get everything corrected.

BTW, in better-quality scans of those images you can make out the Medium Green disruptive camouflage on leading and trailing edges of the wings and stabs.

Cheers,



Dana
 
Hi Dana,
It's always a pleasure to read your remarks to some of the threads in this forum - I wish you could add information more often!
I have mentioned several times before (in other threads probably) the connection between the s/n and the fiscal year and how Government orders were done during WWII. Your explanation about the mistake at the end of the (calendar) 1941 sheds light upon the "case" with the wrong serial. I just wonder how could they do that mistake after 2 fiscal years (1940 and 1941) with correct numbers, especially after this happened at the "old" NAA factory in Inglewood, not at the new one in Kansas City (with so to say much more experience at Inglewood). Or were there any mistakes earlier? I haven't seen another B-25 with a wrong serial yet (factory applied or painted in the field).
As for the MG disruptive camouflage: I didn't mention this detail, trying to write not about the exact camouflage but merely about the appearance. In the side photo above and in the one below one can see this pattern. I personally see it on the ailerons and on the elevators only:

BTW the nearest a/c is from the same block as the one with the wrong s/n, with OD tail though and with correct serial. And the latter is obviously factory applied.
 
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