PRINCE CHARMING (V1) (PIC 3)

NAME

SER

BLK

SERIAL #

RCL/#

V#-P

PHOTO CREDITS

PRINCE CHARMING

42-40082

343

01-3

N/A

Port (Left) Side - 1st PRINCE CHARMING in 98th BG - Walt Disney Character - "Snow White Theme" - Artwork
Aborted Operation TIDAL WAVE, 1 Aug 43, Ploesti Romania

Contributor - Anthony Gaster

Info Contributor - Bill Whitney
Depicted in some sources as being shot down during withdrawal from the target area on the 1 Aug 43 low level Ploesti mission, but this is not true. PRINCE CHARMING, being flown by Tom Bennett, turned back early in the vicinity of Corfu and did not even reach the target area. The aircraft that was shot down over Bulgaria, while helping defend The WITCH (41-11840), was SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS (42-40364). The "D" series PRINCE CHARMING retired from combat operations and was replaced in Feb 44 by a "J" series PRINCE CHARMING (42-109802), which carried similar nose art. Rudolph "Rudy" Gaydosh was the Crew Chief on both Prince Charmings and proudly claims that none of "his" ships was lost in combat.

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.