Aviation_News_2017-03

82nd FIGHTER GROUP’S

‘FORK-TAILED DEVILS’

T

he Lockheed P-38 Lightning was

one of World War Two’s  nest

 ghters. Clarence ‘Kelly’ Johnson

was the designer of the  rst twin-

engine  ghter to go into mass production,

with 10,037 built.

It was the only American  ghter

manufactured throughout the US’s

involvement in the war from 1941 through

to Victory over Japan on August 15, 1945.

The Lightnings  rst saw action in the North

African campaigns and eventually moved

up into Italy. They also had the range to  y

to Russian bases escorting Boeing B-17

Flying Fortresses and Consolidated B-24

Liberators that  ew long-range missions

deep into enemy territory. Such was the

reputation of the aircraft that German pilots

referred to as the ‘fork-tailed devil’.

The 82nd Fighter Group (FG), consisting

of the 95th, 96th and 97th Fighter

Squadrons, started war operations from

Telergma in Algeria. It then moved to

nearby Berteaux. Lt Phil Taback recalled

one of the most important missions he

 ew with the 82nd FG which was from this

location. “It was on January 8th [1943], my

second combat mission. I was originally

scheduled to lead the  ight and then got

the news a high-ranking officer from the

headquarters was going to lead the mission.

All of us pilots were worried about how

much experience he had in the P-38. We

took off with 12 P-38s and rendezvoused

with 16 B-26 Marauders. The target was

Kairouan Air eld [in Tunisia] occupied by

German  ghters. It was a about an hour-

and-a half east of our base Telergma. We

 ew out [in] usual escort formation of four

on the left, four on the right and four in the

rear and above. We would zig-zag back and

forth covering each other’s tails. When we

arrived at the target, we stayed away from

their [B-26s] run on each side of the air eld.

There is not much sense going through the

ack-ack that was meant for the bombers!

“Colonel Loe was in our  ight [as the

leader of the escort mission] on the right

side of the target. The sun was off my right

wing and as he started a slow left turn with

his left wing low. I gathered that he was

trying to see the results of the bombing.

When we got down to about 150mph I

http://www.aviation-news.co.uk 79

Two former 82nd Fighter Group P-38 Lightning

fi ghter pilots graphically recall memorable missions

over North Africa and Italy. Warren Thompson reports.

Above: Artwork of Lt Charles Pinson’s

shootdown of an Me 410 which occurred 20

miles northwest of Vienna. On this July 8,

1944 mission the 82nd FG was credited with

bringing down 16 Me 410s and two Me 109s.

David Ails/www.ailsaviationart.com

79-82_p38DC.mfDC.indd 79 01/02/2017 18:15