F-82 Pilot in Korea

[MIflyer]

An article on the F-82 in Korea in the October 2020 issue of Flight Journal yielded this remarkable photo of an F-82 pilot in Korea. That dome shaped object behind the pilot that looks like a light is in fact the antenna for the ARN-6 radio compass, a common sight under the canopy on postwar fighters, including not only the F-82 but the F-86 and F-94 as well. The photo was taken by Lt Charles Moran.

 

[Snautzer01]

An article on the F-82 in Korea in the October 2020 issue of Flight Journal yielded this remarkable photo of an F-82 pilot in Korea. That dome shaped object behind the pilot that looks like a light is in fact the antenna for the ARN-6 radio compass, a common sight under the canopy on postwar fighters, including not only the F-82 but the F-86 and F-94 as well. The photo was taken by Lt Charles Moran.View attachment 593117

I think that pic is a cut out from a larger one i have seen. Just saying.

 

[MIflyer]

Well, that photo was taken from the RO position, which Lt Moran was occupying even though he was a pilot. So it could not be very much bigger than that, given the short distance of the shot.

 

[Gnomey]

Cool!

 

[MIflyer]

Here are a few more shots of F-82's in Korea from the Flight Journal Article.

.

 

[chipieal]

The trouble that and The Tigercat could have caused Japan

 

[Snautzer01]

I think that pic is a cut out from a larger one i have seen. Just saying.

this is what i remembered


F82 North American Twin Mustang #103 WW2 WWII 5x7 | eBay

 

[Wurger]

 

[MIflyer]

PQ-169 is a P-82, not an F-82. Not the different cowling for the V-1650 engine versus the V-1710 engine of the F-82.
Note also it has the manually cranked loop antenna for direction finding rather than the selsyn driven ARN-6 antenna of the F-82 and it lacks the black bars that are the ARN-6 sense antennas that the F-82 has.

 

[SaparotRob]

PQ-169 is a P-82, not an F-82. Not the different cowling for the V-1650 engine versus the V-1710 engine of the F-82.
Note also it has the manually cranked loop antenna for direction finding rather than the selsyn driven ARN-6 antenna of the F-82 and it lacks the black bars that are the ARN-6 sense antennas that the F-82 has.

Impressive!

 

[Donivanp]

PQ-169 is a P-82, not an F-82. Not the different cowling for the V-1650 engine versus the V-1710 engine of the F-82.
Note also it has the manually cranked loop antenna for direction finding rather than the selsyn driven ARN-6 antenna of the F-82 and it lacks the black bars that are the ARN-6 sense antennas that the F-82 has.

The P-82 is in fact an F-82B which was indeed powered by the Merlin V-1650-23 or 25 (right or left engine). The later F-82E and G were powered by the Allison V-1710 engines, that all is true, point is they all wore the F-82 name. The P for Pursuit was a date time issue. When the USAF came of age in September 1947, one of their early adjustments was to rename pursuit to fighter and all P's became F's including the early F-82 and F-51 and F-47 etc...

 

[MIflyer]

True, but there were only 20 P-82B's built, two of which were built as experimental night fighters, the P-82C and P-82D. PQ-169 was the P-82C and it was a P at the time of the photo because the red stripe had not been added. Most P-82's went to Air Training Command and all the Merlin engined versions were phased out by Dec 1949.

 

[Donivanp]

True, but there were only 20 P-82B's built, two of which were built as experimental night fighters, the P-82C and P-82D. PQ-169 was the P-82C and it was a P at the time of the photo because the red stripe had not been added. Most P-82's went to Air Training Command and all the Merlin engined versions were phased out by Dec 1949.

True at the time of the photo it was pre USAF and yes the Merlin engined birds were transferred to be trainers. The E and G models were kept in a active role and did get the first kills in Korea. Interesting aircraft and hobbled by the air force as the cost of the Merlin license went up after the war and thus they went to the 1710 to save money thus and the active birds were slower than the trainers.

 

[MIflyer]

Not only slower but far less reliable. The V-1710's had two stage superchargers but unlike the Merlins no inter/aftercoolers. They had so much trouble getting working engines out of Allison that the airframes were parked at the old Vultee plant in Downey, CA for years. NAA tried adding anti-backfire screens to the engines and that helped but were told to knock it off by SECAF Symington, a former GM executive.

By the way, the USAAF did not like paying a licensing fee for Merlins, which was the horrific cost of $1500 each. Or.... the SCAF decided to send work toward his former firm of GM - take your pick

Newt Gingrich and William Forstchen wrote a novel where, desperate to have something fast enough to fight the Nazis in 1946, they took the Merlins off P-51's in storage, put them on the stored F-82's, and added rocket boosters designed for the XP-79.

 

[CATCH 22]

I'm using this old thread for two reasons:
A. To add another very good photo of a F-82 pilot in Korea (as the name of the thread suggests)
B. To ask you for help, finding the original of this photo:

This is (with a great probability) Lt. Carbonneau (name visible on canopy). The a/c is F-82G s/n 46-395, marked FQ-395 from 339th F(AW)S, in-squadron number 11, "The Beast of the Far East". Same photo in black & white is published in Alan C. Carey's "Twin Mustang, The North American F-82 at War"
Here's a picture of the same a/c:

I have the first photo saved in my archive, obviously a www-photo, but with no address. Tried google-search for photos without any success.
Does anybody know the original source of the photo in colour?
Cheers!

 

[ThomasP]

The hangars in the background of your first image remind me of the ones at the Japanese air bases. I know the F-82Gs operated out of Itazuke Air Base in/near Fukuoka, Japan.

The image below (from Wiki) is from the Itazuke Air Base in 1950 (per Wiki)

The image below is also from Itazuke Air Base via the National Museum of the United States Air Force

 

[CATCH 22]

The hangars in the background of your first image remind me of the ones at the Japanese air bases. I know the F-82Gs operated out of Itazuke Air Base in/near Fukuoka, Japan.

The second photo I posted is apparently from Misawa Air Base. AFAIK 339th F(AW)S was stationed there.. The a/c you show are from the 68th F(AW)S, stationed at Itazuke.

 

[ThomasP]

Some of the 339th F-82Gs were TDY/rotated to Itazuke Air Base to supplement the 68th, but I cannot say which aircraft. This does not mean that your first photo is from Itazuke though. The hangars actually remind me of some that I have seen from around the Tokyo/Kanto area. I believe some of the 339th were TDY/rotated there also, but again I cannot say which aircraft.

 

[MIflyer]

Here are two different shots of the same airplane. I believe the red tail indicates it was in AK. And there is also one of a sister ship.

 

[ThomasP]

From Wiki "North American F-82 Twin Mustang - Wikipedia"

"Once the bulk of U.S. civilians had been evacuated out of South Korea by ship, the priority of FEAF changed to a military nature. The 339th F(AW)S received orders from Fifth Air Force to move all available aircraft, along with crews and equipment, to Itazuke Air Base to assist the 68th in providing air cover for the evacuation of Seoul. However, the 339th's complement of aircraft were scattered over several bases at the time. Seven F-82s at Yokota AB were flyable and two were in the hangar undergoing maintenance for major repairs. Four other F-82s were at Misawa AB on TDY. The three at Yokota were dispatched immediately to Itazuke, as well as the four at Misawa, making a total of seven combat ready F-82Gs present for duty on 27 June."