Skip to main content
Edit entry 

368th Fighter Group

Group

  • An airman of the 368th Fighter Group with a P-47 Thunderbolt nicknamed

    An airman of the 368th Fighter Group with a P-47 Thunderbolt nicknamed "Sleepy Jean the 3rd", with a bent propellor blade. Image via Ralph Woolner.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20
  • Captain Thomas N Montag, West Bend, IIowa, 395th Fighter Squadron, 368th Fighter Group.

    Captain Thomas N Montag, West Bend, IIowa, 395th Fighter Squadron, 368th Fighter Group.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20
  • 2nd Lt Joseph S Busenbark 396FS, 368FG, 9AF USAAF.

    2nd Lt Joseph S Busenbark 396FS, 368FG, 9AF USAAF.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20
  • 1st Lt George L Bauer, P-47 pilot of XIX Tactical Air Command, gun camera footage of Me109 kill in the Ardennes Salient. Belly tank equipped Me109 is hit initially in the engine cowling and fuselage.

    1st Lt George L Bauer, P-47 pilot of XIX Tactical Air Command, gun camera footage of Me109 kill in the Ardennes Salient. Belly tank equipped Me109 is hit initially in the engine cowling and fuselage.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20
  • 1st Lt George L Bauer, P-47 pilot of XIX Tactical Air Command, gun camera footage of Me109 kill in the Ardennes Salient. Belly tank equipped Me109 is hit initially in the engine cowling [ flying off above cockpit ] and fuselage.

    1st Lt George L Bauer, P-47 pilot of XIX Tactical Air Command, gun camera footage of Me109 kill in the Ardennes Salient. Belly tank equipped Me109 is hit initially in the engine cowling [ flying off above cockpit ] and fuselage.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20
  • 1st Lt George L Bauer, P-47 pilot of XIX Tactical Air Command, gun camera footage of Me109 kill in the Ardennes Salient. Belly tank equipped Me109 is hit initially in the engine cowling and fuselage.

    1st Lt George L Bauer, P-47 pilot of XIX Tactical Air Command, gun camera footage of Me109 kill in the Ardennes Salient. Belly tank equipped Me109 is hit initially in the engine cowling and fuselage.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20
  • 1st Lt George L Bauer 397FS, 368FG, 9AF.

    1st Lt George L Bauer 397FS, 368FG, 9AF.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20

  • "Maj Gen E R Quesada congratulates Capt Richard E Leary Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighter bomber pilot of the 9th AF fighter command as he returned from a successful mission and then landed to refuel on an American emergency landing strip in Normandy." - Major Richard E. Leary of the 397th Ftr Sq, 368th FG is congratulated by Maj Gen Elwood R. "Pete" Quesada on landing at one of the newly-won forward operating fields near the Normandy coast. The 368th moved to Cardonville (A-3) on 20 June 1944 and remained there for about two months.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20

  • "Here, Maj. Gen. E.R. Quesada, commanding, 9th Fighter Command, is seen helping refuelling a plane after landing on the emergency strip in Cherbourg Peninsula. With him is Lt. Col. Frank S. Perego of Canandaigua, N.Y., who was among the first on the strip to refuel." - LTC Frank S. Perego, deputy commander of the 368th FG, is assisted by Maj Gen Elwood R. "Pete" Quesada in refuelling Perego's P-47D upon arrival at one of the first forward landing fields near the Normandy coast, mid-June 1944. Perego would take command of the 368th in November 1944, and remain at the helm through the cessation of hostilities.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20
  • Republic P-47D Thunderbolt 43-25570

    Republic P-47D Thunderbolt 43-25570 "Kwit-Cher-Bitchin" [Right of frame] assigned to Major Randall W. Hendricks of the 397th Ftr Sq, 368th FG (coded D3-H). He was officially credited with five confirmed aerial victories. Avanced airfield at St Pierre Du Mont, Normandy.

    Show caption About this image
    1-5 of 20
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  

The 368th Fighter Group flew P-47s in combat from England from March 1944. In the days after D-Day the Group supported Allied ground troops fighting in the Cherbourg penisula and then around St. Lo. The Group received a DUC for flying seven missions in a single day on 3 September 1944 to the Mons area, destroying enemy troops and means of transport. The Group continued to fly in support of ground forces throughout the Battle of the Bulge (December 1944 - January 945) and into 1945. They stayed in Europe after the war's end, becoming part of the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE).

Structure

Part of
Encompassing
Previously was
Not yet known
Became
Not yet known

Missions

  • 8th Air Force FO 247 BOMBER ESCORT

    22 February 1944
    A combined force of 659 fighters of types: P-38; P-47 and P-51 are desdpatched to provide escort to the heavy bomber attacking the GErman aircraft industry on Day of of BIG WEEK. Mission Summary follows: ...

  • 8th Air Force FO 277 BOMBER ESCORT

    22 March 1944
    A combined force of 540 fighters of types: P-38; P-47 and P-51 are despatched to escort heave bombers attacking ad Berlin and surrounding areas. 275 of these aircraft are contributed by IX Fighter Command units. Despatch summary follows: ...

  • 8th Air Force 282 BOMBER ESCORT

    27 March 1944
    A combined force of 960 fighters of types: P-38; P-47 ad P-51 are despatched to provide escort to heavy bombers attacking 11 German airfields and air depots in France. 243 of the 960 are frunished by IX Fighter Command. The P-51 element also attacks...

  • 8th Air Force Field Order 296

    12 April 1944

  • 8th Air Force Field Order 305

    19 April 1944

  • 8th Air Force Field Order 309

    22 April 1944

Stations

Station Location Date
Based Greenham Common 13 January 1944 – 15 March 1944
Based Chilbolton 15 March 1944 – 20 June 1944
Based Cardonville 20 June 1944 – 23 August 1944
Based 23 August 1944 – 11 September 1944
Based Chartres 24 August 1944 – 11 September 1944
Based Laon/Athies 11 September 1944 – 2 October 1944
Based Chievres 2 October 1944 – 27 December 1944
Based Juvincourt 27 December 1944 – 5 January 1945
Based Metz 5 January 1945 – 15 April 1945

Connections

People

  • Clarence Allen

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 368th Fighter Group
    Clarence E Allen was declared missing in action on 12 October 1944, aged 23. Allen was taking part in a dive-bombing mission over Aachen, when his squadron engaged enemy fighters over Dusseldorf. All aircraft except Allen's returned to base, and...

  • Robert Andrus

    Military | Lieutenant Colonel | fighter pilot | 368th Fighter Group

  • Norvin Averett

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Fighter Pilot | 368th Fighter Group
    Assigned to 365FS, 358FG, 8AF USAAF. Abandoned P-47D 42-76525 out of fuel over English channel, baled and picked up by ASR, WIA, RTD. Awards: PH, WWII Victory, EAME.

  • Robert Bechtold

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 368th Fighter Group
    Forced to bail out on a mission on 14 June 1944. Either Returned to Duty (RTD) or became a Prisoner of War (POW). MACR not clear on this point. ...

  • Joseph Busenbark

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Fighter pilot | 368th Fighter Group
    Assigned to 396FS, 368FG, 9AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) dive bombing mission to Trier, Germany. Having shot down 1 x Fw190 engine started running roughly missing badly, set course for home crash landed near Lissendorf, Germany. Killed in Action ...

  • Charles Earls

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 368th Fighter Group
    Charles R Earls was born on April 9, 1924 in Ogden, Utah. He had enlisted in the Army Air Forces and he had the rank of Second Lieutenant. Occupation or specialty was Pilot. Service number was O-767163. Served with 395th Fighter Squadron, 368th Fighter...

  • James Goodwin

    Military | Captain | Pilot | 368th Fighter Group

  • Thurman Mauldin

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 356th Fighter Group
    Primary training in Union City, TN, Basic in Newport, Ark, Advanced at Spence Field in Moultrie, GA Class of 44F; instrument flying at Spence Field for 3 months; went to England w/ 368th FG 12/44-1/45; w/ 356th 2/45 to VE Day; left England 9/45 to go...

  • Thomas Montag

    Military | Captain | Fighter Pilot | 368th Fighter Group
    Killed in Action on 14th August 1944, 5 miles East of Domfront, France/Foret d'Andaine.

  • Vernon Murphy

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 368th Fighter Group
    Assigned to 397FS, 368FG, 9AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) armed recon to Aachen in P-47 ...

Show more

Aircraft

  • 42-25752

    P-47 Thunderbolt

  • 42-25881

    P-47 Thunderbolt
    Republic P-47D Thunderbolt 42-25881, assigned to the 397th FS, 368th FG, 9th AF, 9-3-44. Whilst on dive bombing mission, collided with a Fw190 near Campeau that had emerged from the overcast directly in front of him. 7-7-44 A/C crashed near Campeau,...

  • 42-26037

    P-47 Thunderbolt

  • 42-26130

    P-47 Thunderbolt

  • 42-26262

    P-47 Thunderbolt

  • 42-26263

    P-47 Thunderbolt

  • 42-26279

    P-47 Thunderbolt

  • 42-26325

    P-47 Thunderbolt

  • 42-26387 Miss Behave

    P-47 Thunderbolt

  • 42-26393

    P-47 Thunderbolt

Show more

Citations

None

Air Force
9th
Type
Combat
Type category
Fighter
Nicknames
Not yet known
Motto
Not yet known
Insignia
Not yet known

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
01 February 2017 14:19:50 general ira snapsorter Changes to stations
Sources

Stations added with details from:
- "Battle Colors Volume III - Insignia and Tactical Markings of the Ninth Air Force in World War Two' by Robert A. Watkins;
- http://www.ixengineercommand.com/airfields/physical.php
Date Contributor Update
13 March 2015 15:34:07 rossingtonj Changes to type and mission associations
Sources

Type added.
Date Contributor Update
27 September 2014 18:42:45 AAM AAM ingest
Sources

Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database / The Mighty Eighth. A History of the Units, Men and Machines of the US 8th Air Force.' by Roger A. Freeman (1989). 'Air Force Combat Units of World War II' compiled by the Department of the US Air Force, edited by Maurice Maurer (1983). / Units in the UK from ETOUSA Station List, as transcribed by Lt. Col. Philip Grinton (US Army, Retired) and extracted by IWM; air division data from L.D. Underwood, based on the 8th Air Force Strength Report of 6th August 1944, as published in 'The 8th Air Force Yearbook' by Lt. Col. John H Woolnough (1980)

Share