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354th Fighter Group Photo Gallery

Squadron	Sqn Code	Sqn Color
353 FS	FT	Yellow
355 FS	GQ	Blue
356 FS	AJ	Red
Click on one of the above unit designators to see squadron photos

Click on an image below to see larger view.

	Lt. Col. Kenneth R. Martin, first commanding officer of the 354th FG
	Lt. Col. Kenneth R. Martin became a POW after bailing out of his crippled aircraft behind enemy lines
	Col. James Howard, former AVG pilot, second commander of the 354th, and the only fighter pilot in the ETO to receive the Medal of Honor for single-handedly protecting a flight of B-17s from 30 German fighters, scoring three kills, several damaged, and chasing the remainder back to the Fatherland
	Col. James Howard seated on sill plate, of canopy on a P-51B
	Colonel James Howard speaking with two other officers
	Colonel George R. Bickell, third commander of the 354th FG
	Col. George R. Bickell leaning against Ken Martin's P-51B "Peg O' My Heart"
	Col. George R. Bickell, Nutley, NJ, 28 year-old Commanding Officer of the 354th fighter-bomber group of the 9th AF. A veteran of fighting in the Pacific and a former squadron commander in the group, he has shot down four and one-half enemy planes
	Lt. Col. Jack Bradley, fourth commander of the 354th, in front of P-51B 'Margi Maru'
	354th Aircraft and men on parade during presentation of the Distinguished Unit Citation in France
	Flooded out tents at forward operating area in France
	General George Patton and Brigadier General Lewis H. Brereton, Commanding General of the Ninth Air Force.
	USO show for the 354th
	A 9th AF North American P-51 Mustang in flight
	A ground crewman watches returning aircraft from behind a stack of drop tanks.
	Cpl. Leroy Turner of Altoona, PA, (rear) and Sgt. Henry A. Bucko, of Hammond, IN, caught wheeling out a bomb trailer with a 500 pounder under the nose of a P-51 Mustang "Yahootie Too" for loading on the plane flown by 1st Lt. John R. Bernert of Steubenville, IA. The shattering force of the 9th AAF fighter-bombers striking at vital industrial & military targets in the ever-increasing aerial schedule is becoming one of Hitler's chief headaches
	Lt. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton, Commanding General of the Ninth Air Force, pins the Distinguished Flying Cross on 1st Lt. David B. O'Hara, in ceremonies on an air strip on the Cherbourg peninsula of France, July 1944
	July 1944 - Lt. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton, Commanding General of the Ninth Air Force, pins the Distinguished Flying Cross on 1st Lt. William Y. Anderson (left) of Chicago, Ill., in ceremonies on an air strip on the Cherbourg peninsula of France. Also: Lt. Anderson's plane "Swede's Steed" caught fire during a raid over Hanover, Germany when he was hit by flak. He beat out the flames, suffering blisters on his legs. In 49 sorties, he was hit five times by flak, downed two enemy aircraft, and damaged five others (7 Kills). He was 22 years old at the time the photo was taken
	July 1944 - Lt. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton, Commanding General of the Ninth Air Force, pins the Distinguished Flying Cross on Lt. Charles W. Koening (left) of Oakland, Calif., in ceremonies on an air strip on the Cherbourg peninsula of France
	Lt. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton, Commanding General of the Ninth Air Force, adds an Oak Leaf Cluster to the Distinguished Flying Cross of Capt. Wallace N. Emmer, St. Louis, Mo., in ceremonies somewhere in France
	Mechanic working on P-51 that landed with gear up
	Crews taking a ride on what appears to be a mining train
	Two pilots of the 9th AF visit the shrine of the Notre dame de Lourdes Grotto in Lourdes, France. Left to Right, they are: Capt. Felix M. Rogers, 1768 Beacon St., Boston, MA, and 1st Lt. Robert F. Foye, 179 Bambier St., San Francisco, CA
	This unusual photograph of a Luftwaffe pilot jumping from his damaged plane was made by Maj. James Dalgish, Rome, N.Y., a U.S. 9th AF fighter-bomber pilot, during a recent air battle over the Belgian Bulge. The enemy pilot deserted his ship after Major Dalgish had scored direct hits with .50 caliber bullets. Seconds later the plane began to fall apart. Major Dalgish is a member of the crack 354th group which has destroyed more than 680 enemy aircraft
	Touring the front, the three pilots of the 354th Group inspect a new American tank as men of the 4th Armored Division look on. The tank mounts a 76mm. Gun, equipped with muzzle-break, and has a Christie suspension.
	Republic P-47 Thunderbolt pilots of the 354th fighter-bomber group, their mission completed, head for the interrogation tent. Left to Right: Capt. James B. Dalgish, 604 N. George St., Rome, N.Y., Major Glenn T. Eagleston, 3133 Poplar Blvd., Alhambra, Calif., Capt. Orrin D. Rawlings, Depue, Ill., and 1st Lt. Lloyd J. Overfield, Leavenworth, Kansas
	Pilot and crew chief doing pre-flight inspection of 500 lb bomb on P-47 port wing pylon
	Back at his front line field after a successful attack on German supply and communications targets, Maj. Glenn T. Eagleston (center), one of the leading 9th AF aces, explains a maneuver to fellow pilots of the 354th fighter-bomber group. Left to Right: 1st Lt. Omer W. Culbertson, Minneapolis, Minn., Capt. Orrin D. Rawlings, Depue, Ill., Major Eagleston, Alhambra, Calif., Capt. James B. Dalgish, Rome, N.Y., and 1st Lt. Lloyd J. Overfield, Leavenworth, Kansas
	A ground crewman riding the wing of a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt direct the pilot, a member of the 354th fighter-bomber group, taxiing his plane on the runway of a front line 9th AF field. The pilot, his vision obscured, receives information from the “wing-man” to avoid obstacles. Mechanics meet the plane at the end of the runway. France
	Using a model of a North American P-51 Mustang and a drawing of an Me 262, Flight Officer Ralph Delgado Jr., Milltown, NJ, (left) explains to 2nd Lt. Charles D. Kilpatrick, Newark, NJ, the tactics he used in destroying the twin engine German jet fighter, the 700th enemy plane shot down by his group. Both men are members of the crack 354th Fighter-Bomber Group of the 9th AF, which has also destroyed hundreds of tanks, motor transport, locomotives, & railroad cars
	Last fighter mission of the European war was flown by these 9th AF P-51 Mustang fighter-bomber pilots. They took off on a fighter sweep to Pilsen, Czechoslovakia. Upon their return, they learn from Sgt. Raymond Touchstone, Broken Bow, OK, (extreme right) that the war was over. Left to Right: 2nd Lt. Willie K. Johnson, 1498 Obrig Ave., Gunterville, AL, 2nd Lt. Donald M. Cohen, 272 Linwood St., New Brittain, CT, Flight Officer Robert T. Mankey 800 W. Ferry St., Buffalo, NY; Flight Officer William J. Matthews, Box 23 Rachel, West VA, 2nd Lt. Norman R. Reinecke, Severn, MD, 2nd Lt. Robert H. Jones, RFD #2 Menden, MI, Sgt. Raymond Touchstone, Box 307, BrokenBow, OK, and on the wing, 1st Lt. John J. Hagen, 821 Ferguson Ave., Dayton , OH
	Formation of North American P-51 Mustangs on Air Forces Day
	Outdoor mission brief, with map tacked to building wall
	Lt. Col. Bruce W. Carr, Union Springs, NY, stands by 'Angels Playmate', he had claimed 22½ aerial victories by the end of WWII
	A gathering of 354th FG aces. Clockwise starting at 6 o'clock: Brueland, Frantz, Hunt, Turner, Stephens, Eagleston, Bradley, Beerbower, Goodnight, and O'Connor.
	Capt. Don M. Beerbower, Hill City, Minnesota, the leading 9th AF Ace

Many thanks to TSgt James Bollinger, former 353 CTS Unit Historian for sharing his research into his unit's WWII heritage.

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