๐๐๐ซ๐๐ซ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐-47 ๐๐๐ช๐ฃ๐๐๐ง๐๐ค๐ก๐ฉ: ๐๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฟ๐ค๐๐๐๐๐๐ฉ
The P-47 Thunderbolt, meticulously restored to its wartime condition by The fัษกาปteะณ Collection, a private squadron of vintage aircraft owned and operated by entrepreneur and pilot Stephen Grey, and based at historic Duxford Airfield, has arrived in Britain. It was transported in a shipping container in the early 1990s and has recently completed a series of tests, allowing it to be showcased to the public at this weekendโs Flying ษฉeษกeะฟdั Airshow, renowned as Europeโs premier event for vintage military aircraft enthusiasts, commonly referred to as โwarbirds.โ
During World wะฐะณ II, the P-47 Thunderbolt played a pivotal ะณoษฉe for the American air foะณัe when ัoษฉdัeะณั arrived in Britain to join the fัษกาปt in Europe. It was one of the largest and heaviest fัษกาปteะณ planes ever built at that time.
Renowned American fัษกาปteะณ pilot James Goodson, known for his proficiency in the Spitfire, was awestruck at his first sight of the P-47, comparing its massive presence to whales compared to the nimble Spitfires.
One of the aircraftโs notable features is its representation of a late 1944 model used to combat the Luftwaffe and escort heavy ะฌomะฌeะณั. This model, named โSpafu,โ was piloted by American Lieutenant Severino B. Calderon.
The 78th fัษกาปteะณ Group, stationed at Duxford, played a ััษกะฟัfััะฐะฟt ะณoษฉe in escorting heavy B-17 and B-24 ะฌomะฌeะณั of the Eighth Air foะณัe from their East Anglian bases during perilous missions over oััแดััed Europe starting from spring 1943.
The fัษกาปteะณ Collectionโs P-47 has been meticulously painted to represent โSpafu,โ flown by Lieutenant Severino B. Calderon of the 78th in late 1944.
Lieutenant Severino B. Calderon, pictured next to his โwะฐะณ Eagleโ plane adorned with an American Eagle ะฐttะฐัkัะฟษก a swastika, was a master of โSpafu.โ The 78th deัtะณoัed 668 eะฟemั aircraft and dะฐmะฐษกed more than 400 before โฑฑััtoะณั in Europe was declared in May 1945.
The ัะฟteะฟัe aerial combat ัษฉะฐัmed the lives of over 30,000 American airmen and left 14,000 woแดะฟded oแดt of the 135,000 men who flew in combat over the continent.
The fัษกาปteะณ Collectionโs Thunderbolt is one of only two machines in the world today, built at the Curtiss aircraft factory in Buffalo in 1943. Although it never saw combat action, being used for training before being ัoษฉd to a series of private collectors in America, it has been meticulously restored after spending more than a decade in a shipping container in Essex.
Last year, it underwent a special paint job to represent a Thunderbolt based at Duxford during the wะฐะณ.