41-11779 Li'l Abner
The Great Ground-Air Battle Of August 1,1943 - James Dugan & Carroll Stewart
Object Number - UPL 15339 - Consolidated B-24D Liberator, #41-11779, 'Li'l Abner' - Centre ship - 9th Air force - 376th Bomb Group - 513th Bomb Squadron. 'Lil Abner' was a...
The Consolidated B-24D Liberator bomber, #41-11779, named, 'Li'l Abner', was transferred from the 98th Bomb Group to the 376th Bomb Group, and the 513th Bomb Squadron, staying in the 9th Air Force. It flew on Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on the German held oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania, piloted by Hubert H. Whitlock, returning safely to Libya. 1-Aug-43.
SN # 41-11779. The first picture shows her prior to being assigned Group Number "41". She shows 15 mission marks. The second picture was taken right after the Group number "42" was painted on her.
'Lil Abner' was destroyed on Mission 203, targeting the aircraft factory at Augsburg, Germany. On returning from the mission, the aircraft crash landed at it's home base. Pilot E. D. Thurman. 19-Dec-943.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Ninth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Ninth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Missions
- Date: 1 August 1943
- Official Description:
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Other Survived |
1 August 1943 | Flew on 1-Aug-43 Ploesti oil refinery raid piloted by Hubert H. Whitlock, returning safely to Libya. | |
|
Crashed |
19 December 1943 | Mission 203 target A/C Factory Augsburg, Germany. On returning, crash landed at it's home base, Benghazi, Libya. Pilot E. D. Thurman. 19-Dec-43. | |
|
Assigned |
513th BS, 376th BG, 9th AF. |
Revisions
Added badic description at markings base photographic evidence here and documented 9th AF and production modification practices.
Removed formation photo with no discerable relation to aircraft and which was being used as first image in preference to clear image(s) of this specific nose art.
Moreover the entry has had a descripition of the photos by order without/before the formation photo.
It could not be discerned if the formation photo belonged associated with any specific mission elsewhere.
Phil Marchese 29 Dec 2023
