NAME | TP | - | M# | SER | - | BLK | - | MF | SERIAL # |
AF |
BG |
BS |
SC | RCL/# | V#-P | PHOTO CREDITS |
GRUMPY |
B |
- |
24 |
D |
- |
- | - |
CO | 41-11825 |
9 |
98 |
343 | ~ | V | 01-3 |
N/A |
Renamed from HAIL COLUMBIA
- Walt Disney Character - "Snow White Theme"
Survived
Operation TIDAL WAVE, 1 Aug 43, Ploesti Romania -
Reproduction
Nose Art Panel
Contributor - Brendan Wood
Info Contributor - Bill
Whitney
This aircraft originally served in the 344th
BS as HAIL COLUMBIA. It was 344th CO John R. Kane's personal aircraft until Kane became 98th BG CO and turned it over to Herman
"Big-Dog" Lewis. Lewis changed the right side nose art to LITTLE-CHIEF BIG-DOG
but retained HAIL COLUMBIA on the left side. Following the death of Lewis in another ship, the airplane was transferred to the 343rd BS where the left side art work was changed to
GRUMPY in compliance with the Snow White Squadron directive. Wilfred Brann was the
Crew Chief of
GRUMPY in the 343rd.
LITTLE-CHIEF BIG-DOG had been removed prior to the Rome mission 19 Jul 43. Just prior to the low level Ploesti mission, 98th Group CO John R. "Killer" Kane had the airplane returned to the 344th BS where a new form of the original
HAIL COLUMBIA nose art quickly replaced GRUMPY. The aircraft cracked up while landing at Cyprus following the low level Ploesti mission and was abandoned.
Info Contributor - Amos Nicholson
(Artist/Crew Chief) / via Charles
Brummel (Nephew)
Along with ARKANSAS TRAVELER, I painted two versions of SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN
DWARFS, PRINCE CHARMING, and all "Seven Dwarfs" (three versions of
DOPEY) on B24-Ds
in the Libyan desert in Africa 1942-43. I never signed them and never got
credit.
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Best Web. Published on Veterans Day 11/11/97. Last
modified:
27-Mar-2021