Need help identifying a tail number ??4925

mjfur · May 8, 2023

Most likely 42-64925.

North American B-25G-5 Mitchell
64911 (41st BG) lost Jan 17, 1944, Central Pacific.
64915 (41st BG) lost Feb 12, 1944, Central Pacific.
64924 (41st BG) lost Jan 28, 1944, Central Pacific.
64948 (41st BG) lost Jan 22, 1944, Central Pacific.
64949 (41st BG) lost Jan 22, 1944, Central Pacific.
64957 (41st BG) lost Jan 15, 1944, Central Pacific.

Wurger · May 8, 2023

IMHO there is the digit "8" on left of the "4925".

graves69 · May 8, 2023

I believe that this was my grandpa's plane he was a tail gunner in the 42nd bombardment group I have another picture of it with a different guy standing in front of it.

mjfur · May 8, 2023

S/N 41-84925 did not exist.
S/N 42-84925 - 42-84163/86562 North American AT-6D-NT Texan.
S/N 43-84925 - did not exist.
S/N 44-84925 - 44-84390/84989 North American P-51D-25-NT Mustang.
S/N 45-84925 did not exist.

S/N 41-64925 did not exist.
S/N 42-64925 - 42-64802/65101 North American B-25G-5 Mitchell.
S/N 43-64925 did not exist.
S/N 44-64925 - 44-64715/65159 North American P-51H-NA Contract cancelled.
S/N 45-64925 did not exist.

Wurger · May 8, 2023

Yep I have found the same serials. Looking at the shots it is really difficult to state ... looking at this one I would say that there might be the 26 though. So it would be the 42-64925.

Crimea_River · May 8, 2023

54925?

CATCH 22 · May 9, 2023

graves69 said:
I believe that this was my grandpa's plane he was a tail gunner in the 42nd bombardment group I have another picture of it with a different guy standing in front of it.

Hi graves69!
Is your avatar photo showing your grandpa too (the tall guy)? I believe I've seen this a/c before but can't remember where. We see here a modified B-25G nose with the cannon substituted by 2 x 0.50 guns + added blister guns. I believe this is a Hawaiian Air Depot (HAD) modification:

The photo with the tail of a B-25 you are asking about, shows a modification known as B-25G-12 (sometimes written B-25G12) with waist guns and a single tail gun. This modification was widely used in the Central Pacific incl. by the 41st and 42nd BG. Here's a photo of this configuration from the 41st BG:

In 1945 some of these modified G-models have been modified one more time, receiving the J2-nose (8-gun solid nose):

When was you granddad in the Pacific and where - do you know this?
FYI there is a free for download "History of the Crusaders" (the 42nd BG.) here.
Cheers!

graves69 · May 9, 2023

CATCH 22 said:
Hi graves69!
Is your avatar photo showing your grandpa too (the tall guy)? I believe I've seen this a/c before but can't remember where. We see here a modified B-25G nose with the cannon substituted by 2 x 0.50 guns + added blister guns. I believe this is a Hawaiian Air Depot (HAD) modification:
View attachment 720079
The photo with the tail of a B-25 you are asking about, shows a modification known as B-25G-12 (sometimes written B-25G12) with waist guns and a single tail gun. This modification was widely used in the Central Pacific incl. by the 41st and 42nd BG. Here's a photo of this configuration from the 41st BG:
View attachment 720080
In 1945 some of these modified G-models have been modified one more time, receiving the J2-nose (8-gun solid nose):
View attachment 720081
When was you granddad in the Pacific and where - do you know this?
FYI there is a free for download "History of the Crusaders" (the 42nd BG.) here.
Cheers!

The men in the photo from left to right are Lt Gags, Lt Seay, Sgt Raymond "BUD" Wade my grandpa, and Sgt Jesus Garcia, Sgt Kenneth A Stoner. And I have read "History of the Crusaders" a picture of my grandpa with his other plane "Princess Louise". and it mentions the other two planes he flew in "Baby Jeanne" and the last assigned plane "Dark Eyes".

graves69 · May 9, 2023

graves69 said:
The men in the photo from left to right are Lt Gags, Lt Seay, Sgt Raymond "BUD" Wade my grandpa, and Sgt Jesus Garcia, Sgt Kenneth A Stoner. And I have read "History of the Crusaders" a picture of my grandpa with his other plane "Princess Louise". and it mentions the other two planes he flew in "Baby Jeanne" and the last assigned plane "Dark Eyes".

CATCH 22 · May 9, 2023

Thank you for the great info!
This could be a very nice addition to one of our threads here " B-25 weapons thread" where we discuss all possible armaments and mods of this famous plane.
The crews of 5 in your photos are significant for a modified G-model: 2 officers (pilot, co-pilot) and 3 COs (top turret gunner/engineer, waist gunner/radioman and tail gunner). No navigator-bombardier obviously because there is no cannon.
Cheers!

Capt. Vick · May 9, 2023

Looks like 18, but that can't be right...

Alex Smart · May 10, 2023

Maybe the rudder is a replacement ?

72modeler · May 11, 2023

According to data on the B-25 History website, the Mitchell in the photo might possibly one of the 200 Inglewood built B-25G-5NA's; that batch had serials from 42-64902 to 42-65101.

graves69 · May 11, 2023

Thank you, gentlemen, for all your help I have pondered over this for over a year now I believe it to be 42-64925 because his first plane Baby Jeanne was B-25G-5 Mitchell Serial Number 42-64946 SO AGAIN THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR INPUT

dasstuka · May 11, 2023

I think I figured it out. I compared the existing #2 to the number in question and it fits and you can see it has the
same separations in the first # and the viewable # 2.So I am thinking the tail number is 284925

see the 2 attachments as to how I came up with the 2 numbers

hope this helps

dasstuka

CATCH 22 · May 11, 2023

dasstuka said:
I think I figured it out. I compared the existing #2 to the number in question and it fits and you can see it has the
same separations in the first # and the viewable # 2.So I am thinking the tail number is 284925

see the 2 attachments as to how I came up with the 2 numbers

hope this helps

dasstuka

Das Stuka, your efforts are admirable and I'm sure graphic programs are and will be used as a help in many cases like the above one. But history comes before computers and software.
You probably know that the serials on the tails of US-made airplanes show the fiscal year (the year this a/c has been ordered by the government) and the serial assigned to the particular a/c. The serial you are thinking of (4)2-84925 was assigned to an AT-6D also known as a Texan. The a/c was built in the same factory as the one in the photo (North American Aviation), but the a/c in question is a B-25 Mitchell. Looking for serials usually starts with the existing blocks of serial numbers (easy to find trough many sites but the one most of us use is Joe Baugher's detailed research), already shown in many of the previous posts.
BTW looking at your pictures I can clearly see 264925, which is the correct serial 42-64925 in this particular case.
Cheers!
P.S. FYI attached find a photo of a factory new B-25G-5 from the same block as the a/c in question. Check the serial number and how 6 and 8 differ.

mjfur · May 11, 2023

dasstuka said:
I think I figured it out. I compared the existing #2 to the number in question and it fits and you can see it has the
same separations in the first # and the viewable # 2.So I am thinking the tail number is 284925

see the 2 attachments as to how I came up with the 2 numbers

hope this helps

dasstuka

This mystery was explained in Post #2 and #5.

dasstuka · May 12, 2023

my bad I forgot about the first # which I believe is a 4
so the complete tail number is 42-84925

dasstuka · May 12, 2023

CATCH-22

Thanks for pointing that out to me . Now I see the difference in the 6 and 8 lettering.
The program I used is called GIMP and is free to download from the web

Das Stuka

Need help identifying a tail number ??4925

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