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The Aircraft : | |
Name | Info |
Thunderbolt | Alexander Kartveli was a engineer with Seversky Aircraft who designed the P-35, which first flew in 1937. With Republic Aviation Kartveli supervised the development of the P-43 Lancer. Neither of these aircraft were produced in large numbers, and neither was quite successful. However, the Republic Aviation P-47 Thunderbolt, also nicknamed the Jug, was quite a different story. The Jug was the jewel in Kartvelis design crown, and went on to become one of the most produced fighter aircraft of all time with 15,683 being manufactured. The P-47 was the largest and heaviest single seat fighter of WW II. The P-47 immediately demonstrated its excellent combat qualities, including speed, rate of climb, maneuverability, heavy fire power, and the ability to take a lot of punishment. With a wingspan of more than 40 feet and a weight of 19,400 pounds, this large aircraft was designed around the powerful 2000 HP Pratt and Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial engine. The first P-47 prototype flew in May of 1941, and the primary variant the P-47D went into service in 1943 with units of the U.S. Armys Eighth Air Force. The Jug had a maximum speed in excess of 400 MPH, a service ceiling in excess of 42,000 feet, and was heavily armed with either six or eight heavy caliber machine guns. With its ability to carry up to a 2,500 pound bomb load, the Jug saw lots of use in ground attack roles. Until the introduction of the N model, the P-47 lacked the long range required for fighter escort missions which were most often relegated to P-51 Mustangs or P-38 Lightnings. In his outstanding painting entitled Bridge Busting Jugs, noted aviation artist Stan Stokes depicts Eighth Air Force Jugs in a ground attack mission in the Alps in June of 1944. The top P-47 ace was Francis Gabreski who had flown with the 56th Fighter Group, the first unit to be equipped with the P-47. In August of 1943 Gabreski attained his first aerial combat victory (over an Fw-190) and by years end he had reached ace status with 8 confirmed victories. As Commander of the 61st Squadron, Gabreski continued to chalk up victory after victory, and on seven different occasions he achieved two victories during the same mission. However, in July of 1944 Gabreski damaged the prop on his Jug during a low level attack on an airfield near Coblenz. Forced to make a crash landing, he was captured and remained a prisoner of war until Wars end in 1945. Following the War Gabreski returned to military service with the Air Forces 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing in Korea. Flying the F-86 Sabre Jet, Gabreski attained 6.5 more aerial victories in 1951 and 1952 becoming an ace in two different wars |
Artist Details : Richard Taylor |
Click here for a full list of all artwork by Richard Taylor |
Richard Taylor From an early age, young Richard Taylor had shown an exceptional ability to draw. Not surprising perhaps, having been brought up in a family where fine art drawing, painting, print publishing, gallery receptions and art exhibitions pervaded daily life, but in his case a quite unusual talent was obvious to all who saw his work. A future somewhere in the world of art seemed undoubted, though exactly where didn't become clear to Richard until he completed a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Graphic Design at Bath Spa University College. He excelled during his academic years, producing a remarkable body of creative illustrative work that was clearly leading him towards the world of fine art painting. Under the watchful guidance of his father Robert, Richard's skills were fast maturing to a standard where local galleries started exhibiting his paintings and drawings and he found himself immersed in commissions for friends, and soon, friends of friends, depicting images ranging from automobiles to wildlife. No matter what the subject area, like any determined young artist, Richard took it all in his stride. But deep down, his heart always lay with his passion for aircraft, and things mechanical - as his father says it must be in the genes. Richard Taylor is a young talent not to be ignored. His abounding enthusiasm for painting aircraft, and the distinctive natural flair of this young professional artist is clearly demonstrated in this, his very first aviation painting to be issued as a limited edition. More about Richard Taylor |
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