1st Day Rio Hato Panama.
Oregon Chapter
8th Air Force
Historical Society
Preserving the history of the Mighty 8th
Preserving the history of the Mighty 8th
You will find some of them published in the following publications; 8th AF NEWS, September, 2002, page 62; 8th AF NEWS, December,2002, page 9; GHOST WINGS,Issue 12, page 16.
A little background may help you. I was in the 9th Bomb Group (which flew B-18 A's) when it was transferred from Mitchel Field, NY to Rio Hato on the Pacific side of Panama on November3,1940. The "Hello Suckers" sign greeted us on arrival in two foot of mud. The other photo of Panama was taken at the ruins of "Old Panama" on the Atlantic side of the canal and was not a "patrol" but a staged picture of my friends and myself in the 1st Air Depot Group showing off the new steel hemets and cartridge belts we were just issued (just days before Pearl Harbor).
As far as the 2nd Strategic Air Depot of the 8th Air Force, it was Sta.127 at Little Staughton until it moved to Abbots Ripton as Sta.547 in January, 1944. Most of the pictures were taken at Abbots Ripton, not Little Staughton. In regards to the pictures
I have the following comments: The A-20 and B-24 were at Abbots Ripton. The three picturesof a plane being lifted by cranes is "Gremlins Delight".
The person in the Bronx Bomber photo is me.
The "B-17 combat damage..." is the picture of a new inner wing panel being installed on a B-17F "Patches". This is normally not done outside of the factory and was a famous first for us. I have since read of other such happenings.
The Mosquito photos are at Abbots Ripton.
The B-24 photo "The Jinx' is not mine nor are any of the following photos. Sorry to have rambled on so,but you have to forgive an old buck.Whether you use the photos or not is your decision. If you you do use them ,please make the corrections noted above.
The rest of the page is as I found it on a domain expired web site - see the above notes from Joseph.
Little Staughton was a Strategic Air Depot (SAD) base where major overhaul of aircraft was performed for units in the 1st Air Division.
1st Day Rio Hato Panama.
Beach at Rio Hato 9th Bomb Group
B-18As. B-18s were one of the early attempts at heavy bomber production in the USA.
7 Dec, 1941.On Patrol in Panama
Heavily battle damaged aircraft were often told to divert to station 127 and land there to avoid closing down their own runway at their home base. As a SAD site, all major repairs could be performed there, landing at that airfield meant all the specialized equipment to move aircraft were already there.
Stansted was a SAD base, but is now a major passenger airport in the UK.
A-20 Havoc at dispersal.
B-24 S/N 251194
B-17G at night after crashing. Recovery crew working to clear the field.
B-17G Lady Millicent during crash landing
B-17G down gear up flaps landing of Lady Millicent on USAAF Station 127. View from other side of field.
Recovery of B-17G Lady Millicent after gear up landing. Note engines have been taken off.
B-17G being picked up by mobile crane during recovery operations on base.
B-17 engine being lifted away from wreck. Name of aircraft is obscured by the crew watching the salvage. You can reads "remli" as first part and "deli" as part of the 2nd name.
B-17 detail of crew during recovery of Flying Fortress
B-17 number 1 engine damage due to crash landing on base.
B-17F S/N 239839 after crashing in England Note fire damage on feathered #3 engine, nose plexiglas is shot away, tail damage, starboard wingtip damage. November 29, 1943.
B-17 'Half and Half' Tail Number 31828 You can see the repaired middle section since it is all natural metal. The complete new section is from behind radio room to forward of the tail which was replaced from a natural metal finish B-17G aircraft. Tail number is 31828.
B-17 fitted with Jato rockets for assisted takeoff.
They often fitted JATO to ships which had landed in small fields. After a quick repair to the point they could fly them back to their main airbase, JATO was added to enable them to fly back for full repair.
B-17G The Bronx Bomber
Close up of a B-17 being on a tracked mover after crashing.
Another view of B-17G on tracked mover.
B-17-outer wing panel being replaced due to battle damage.
B-17 combat damage repair between hull and wing
B-17- radar Pathfinders taxing out for mission
B-17 maintenance work joining rear to forward fuselage. This is inside a T-2 hanger I believe.
What 1/2 of a B-17 undergoing repairs looks like in a hanger at station 127.
B-24 taxiing
B-24
Base 127 Little Staughton
A Mosquito visiting Little Staughton
Crashed Mosquito
B-24 named "The Jinx"