Why this Aircraft Kill Marking is Extremely Rare
Вставка
- Опубліковано 18 вер 2024
- Don't wait until it's too late to take care of your heart health. Head to GetSuperBeets.com and use code TJ3 today for 15% off your order!
In this video, we review some of the most rare victory markings painted onto allied fighters and bombers during World War II. This was made using the World War II flight simulator War Thunder - Download free here: playwt.link/tj... Hope you enjoy! Please like, comment, and subscribe. #WW2 #WWIIHistory #WarThunder
RESEARCH SOURCES: Research sources in all of my content include the United States National Archives (NARA) - and specifically, Missing Air Crew Reports, as well as combat reports and diaries from various fighter and bomber squadrons. catalog.archiv...
Join my FREE WWII History Newsletter:
tj3history.ck....
Want to fly with me in one of these great WWII flight sims? Join my discord!
/ discord
Have an idea for one of my videos? Submit it here! forms.gle/91xw...
If you want to support TJ3 History and get access to special VIP content, please check out these awesome links!
Patreon - / tj3history
TJ3 History Merch Store!
TJ3History.shop
Follow me on social media for updates!
Facebook - / tj3history
Twitter - / tj3history
Twitch - Twitch.com/TJ3...
Instagram - / tj3history
Don't wait until it's too late to take care of your heart health. Head to GetSuperBeets.com and use code TJ3 today for 15% off your order!
German troops / infantry used the 'Goose Step' style of marching. Perhaps the 'Walking' silhouette indicated an infantry formation destroyed?
This is certainly the leading guess. But that seems like an odd thing to credit oneself with. Plus, how often were German infantry in formations in the open where one could confirm that it was a full unit?
@@TJ3
Maybe each figure didn't represent an entire formation? Simply a disrupted formation/formation strafed?
@@TJ3 Maybe it was a "close air support" mission marking? Implying shooting the german troops....
Ground support, disrupting troop movements. Important job.
My first thought
'Pinocchio', a veteran Halifax of No 102 Squadron at Pocklington, has the bomb symbol for its 26th operation painted on its fuselage by a member of the ground crew, April 1943. The ice cream cornets represent raids on Italian targets and the key indicates the aircraft's 21st operation. (Source IWM)
In the UK it was traditional to (symbolically) receive the key to the door at your coming of age (21 years old during this period, later became 18)
Good man!
Ahhh! This makes more sense. Thank you!
Ah yes the IWM I think They got some Info on the markins, I'm guessing The Us Museums that may have owned a lot of Ww2 Airplanes have the answer
as in the old song, "I've got the key of the door/ never been twenty-one before"
@@czanderdtaocan8843 The Imperal War Museum (IWM) have the original photo of the markings on the British Halifax bomber, a copy of the photo was used in the video.
The key symbol on Pinnochio was the aircraft's 21st mission run, and the marching dudes represent strafing runs on ground troops.
So are you saying the 21st mission was often marked as a key? Why?
@@TJ3 There wasn't an explination as to why the key, but that's what I found.
I'm guessing the Key meant on a successful attack on a Key German City
@@TJ3 HA! Found it. It represents the aircraft's 21st mission/Birthday. It means you're a big boy now. LOL
Someone just noted this was for the symbolic age of 21, where young men would receive the key to the door!
Reminded me of the AC-130 "Heavy Metal" for having the Decepticon logo as a kill since it was the AC-130 that featured in the first Transformers film that scared Scorponok away
When the mustang was still being used in the attack role as the Apache they were used a lot more often and strafing runs against troop transport.
21 was 'the key to the door'.
In those days it was traditional that when you reached 21 years old, you are a full adult and your parents would let you have a house key.
For missions, having reached 21, they felt they earned a key.
That's absolutely spot on 😎👍.
I'm pretty sure the marching person symbol was documenting a verified attack on troops in the open, as opposed to, say, shooting into a woodline where troops were supposed to be.
I think it was a rare event, but Lt. William Bolin King (355th FS, 354th FG, 9th AF) probably strafed five formations of troops on the road.
During WWII the "coming of age" or voting age was 21 in the UK not as it is now 18. The 21 would denote this, the crew coming of age in missions, or so I was told by an RAF Flight Engineer who crewed Lancs. Hope this helps.
Very much so! Thank you!
Okay, second part should come with British, Germany, Japanese, Finnish, Soviet, etc fighter kill scores.
Germans usually added roundels over the kill "stick" markings, sometimes a type too.
Finnish and Japanese put single and multi engined siluettes as kill markings.
A P-38 had an Australian flag among the Japanese flags as its pilot mistakenly shot down a Boomerang.
...and so on...
the bomb with star on the Memphis Belle that was colored red meant that she took over as lead bomber mid-mission. the yellow stars meant that she started and finished that mission as lead.
The pic at 9:08 is David McCampbell, the U S Navy highest scoring fighter pilot of the war with 34 kills and 3rd highest scoring America pilot of the war. He was also the only America pilot to become "Ace in Day" on 2 separate dates. On June 19th, 1944, he shot down 7 aircraft. In October of 1944, he shot down 9 aircraft in a single sortie, the most in a single sortie by an American pilot in combat history.
P-47 D Thunderbolt 'Thoroughbred' flown by Lt. Lawton E. Clark of 84th FS, 78th FG, 8th AF out of RAF Duxford, England, September 1944
Lt. Clark was killed in it Sept. 10 1944 when he flew into the target when strafing a marshalling yard at Heilbronn, Germany. It was thought that he had a visual depth perception problem as he had already flown into A COUPLE OF TREES WHICH HE HAD MARKED ON HIS PLANE'S KILLMARKS.
I would assume that the symbol of the men walking or goose-stepping would’ve been, they strafed enemy troops on the ground. That’s my guess
Strafing Mission or Close Combat Support are the obvious...the 354th was in action for both D-Day and the Battle of the Bulge.
The plane was in 355th Fighter Squadron, 354th Fighter Group and is a P-51B. The 354th did ground support primarily, but with P-51B's they also performed escort duty. They could represent ground targets like barracks that they attacked returning to base.
The 354th Fighter Group also occupied several former Luftwaffe airbase...they could also represent that as well.
Drilling down and connecting a bomber's *post-mission writeup* (or the squadron's command chronology) with that specific mission, and then cross-referencing the unidentified marking with that day's sortie, may be helpful - IF the outbrief is available.
Assumption Time:
The Bomb with the Name of a city(ex. Osaka) may mean that it participated in a Firebombing or basically a bombing of a city using Incendiary Bombs or maybe it's the Goal of the Bombing(Theoretically Example: Tokyo) which they did successfully
Looking at the unidentified markings I did wonder that, as they look like German's goosestepping, it was to symbolise and attack on a specific type of targets such as an SS unit or something to do with the NAZIs themselves.
I'm not sure, but I also believe that something about the way they are walking is meant to represent something.
Awesome video again! There were some symbols that I have never seen (for example umbrella, duck,etc.)Those walking shilouettes were maybe symbols of attacking against ground troops? Or those missions when happened nothing? 🤔
Great way to start my thursday, with a TJ3 master piece. Stay awesome TJ!
Thanks Jester!!
I think the marching silhouette was Close Air Support run, with confirmed effect on target(s) via the guys on the ground.
Those marching silhouettes might be gentlemen missing their cane and top hat - bombing mission flown without escorts, or else shame markings for escort missions that failed to find their bombers.
You missed one important kill mark, a P-51 in the pacific theater. He has one American kill mark. A transport was trying to land at a Japanese controlled island. They didn't have a working radio to be warned. The P-51 was instructed to shoot them down so they could be rescued in the water by US ships.
The "soldiers" markings must mean strafing ground troups.
Seems pretty obvious that the pilot had caught an enemy company or platoon out in the open, maybe moving down a road, and strafed them. At low level he could probably see the men falling over, either hit or diving for cover. The pilot would have seen where his bullets were hitting via tracer and dirt/dust being kicked up.
This kind of thing is hardly unheard of. In WW1 the German 1918 spring offensive was initially highly successful and pushed the allies back in a panic. In an attempt to stem the tide the British Royal Flying Corp sent their scouts (ie fighter planes) out en mass to strafe german troops. One of the British scouts actually flew so low on a strafing run that he actually ran a German soldier down with his undercarriage!
Maybe the marching symbol represented a successful platoon strafing run of a certain number of men killed in action...??? 🤔💁💁
This is obviously one of my first thoughts. But how do you confirm a platoon, you know? Can't get them all obviously. Seems like something silly to try and tally.
@@TJ3I know some bombers had cameras, perhaps they were able to go back and review the film?
Successful ground support top cover straffing run on an Enemy's position, with rockets on that position or wing guns.
Great video, a lot of markings I'd not seen. They tell quite a story. The logical assumption of the goose-stepping symbol would be troop ground kills, but the precise meaning isn't clear. Individual soldiers, squads, company kills, does each symbol designate one soldier killed or many on any given mission?
The only thing I can think of it being is for a successful attack on an infantry column marching in the open rather than already in cover or entrenched. I'm guessing these would mostly be attacks of opportunity because they weren't expecting to be strafed or they would already be under cover or out of sight.
Being able to strafe a mass of enemy troops who were so surprised at the unexpected appearance of jabos that they had to suddenly stop marching and scatter like roaches would surely bring a smile to even the most miserable pilot's face (and probably with some gleeful chuckling too), so I can imagine they'd want a record of it.
I think the main idea would be a strategic-level attack to prevent or delay the enemy's intended reinforcement or counterattacking of contested positions, and not for killing a lone soldier or even a whole squad who was firing back at the plane like it was a mob of kittens trying to take down a hungry dire wolf.
That's what the goose-stepping silhouette says to me anyway. I don't imagine the same symbol was used in the Pacific theatre. They might have had Banzai charge symbol instead.
I would think strafing run attaking ground troops from above
Now onto the axxis!
That time again.
Wooo!
A very interesting video, thanks for making it. You should make some videos about what other countries, on both sides, marked their aircraft with.
Excellent series, I'm a fan of all ww2 stories, and you really have a lot of unknown elements I didn't know! keep them coming!
This is a GOOD video a VERY good video ,i remember decades ago when living in Clifton York a old boy had a lot of cut out nose art from Halifaxes/Stirlings as most were scrapped there in a barn don't know what happened to them but he deffo' had them
Guys, I love your videos! Every time I see a new one pop up, I instantly go for it! Lol, keep doing what you're doing!
I do have one question I've been meaning to ask, though. What does TJ3 mean? Does it stand for something or is one of your guys' names TJ? Lol, just something that I've always wondered.
Thank you guys again. Keep going. You rock. 🤘😁🤘
There was a sub that had train tally.
What about the F22 that shot down the Chinese spy baloon ? Seems to me it was noted on that aircraft, although I've never seen the image.
Any chance to do a modern day marking video?
I was gonna guess they killed soldiers on the ground. Looks like a guy goose stepping. Great info, thanks TJ3! The Germans had some interesting nose art as well, I hope you make one about it!
On my list!
Raid on the Ministry of Silly Walks.
If Had to guess one the last one. With the soldiers marching. I would say troops in the open.
The red horizontal bomb symbol on the scorecard shown at 10:18 (just above the truck symbol and to the left of the three black crosses) looks like it could be the silhouette of a V-1 Buzz Bomb. If so, I wonder if there was a different symbol to show a V-1 caught in flight from one caught on the ground on its launcher or in transport?
Thanks for posting this!
368th Like.
My son served on a ship on the Florida coast with a symbol of a garlic instead of a Marijuana.
Maybe they were soldiers who were strafed. That's my best guess
Fascinating and well done!
Thanks for watching!
What about Blue on Blue kills?
The key symbol painted on the side of WWII bombers often indicated that the bomber's crew had successfully participated in or completed a mission that struck a particularly critical or strategic target. The key symbol, sometimes referred to as a "key mission," represented an important contribution to the war effort by hitting key targets such as factories, railways, or military installations.
Goose step =Armoured personal carrier destroyed.
Hell yeah! I'm just 8 minutes late hehehe
WOOOO!
Nice video
Attacks on troops?
The "marching man" symbol painted on the side of WWII bombers typically indicated that the bomber and its crew had completed a successful mission over enemy territory. It was often used as a mission tally mark, with each marching man representing one completed mission. This was part of a broader tradition of marking aircraft with symbols or art to commemorate missions, victories, or other significant achievements. Different symbols, like bombs, parachutes, or stars, were also used to represent various types of missions or accomplishments, but the marching man was a specific way to count missions.
What about symbols for other axis kills
I.e. Hungarian Bulgaria etc. What did they look like.
That's on my list!
I am just like you cause i do not know what the Key means for sure....Thanks TJ3 History.....
Old F-4 pilot Shoe🇺🇸
Going off the thumb nail & at 12:10, all i could see initially was the Air Jordan logo.
Makes no sense [on a timeline] obviously.
Ground troop formations or barracks destroyed was someone's good guess.
Your awesome
No you're awesome.
👌