Updated - Aircraft Service Dates

[Mister Fork]

"This list... is an absolute good. The list is life. All around its margins lies the gulf. "
- Itzhak Stern

Below is the updated aircraft service date list that is comprised of efforts of several Aces High members and staff. It's a list of known action/service dates that best relects the combat action aircraft saw during WWII.  While it's not 99.99% accurate, it's a close representation to assist SEA and CT staff in creating historically accurate scenarios and settings.  Special thanks to Squire, Widewing, Karnak, Tilt, Bronk, Bruno for their help in this list and to those who helped formed the first one.

Aircraft and Vehcile Service Dates


Aircraft
USA
A-20G ... 5-42
B-17G ... 6-43
B-24J ... 5-43
B-26B ... 5-42
C-47A ... 12-41
P-38G ... 11-42
P-38J ... 12-43(ETO) 2-44(PTO)
P-38L ... 7-44
P-40B ... 1-41
P-40E ... 8-41
P-47D-11 ... 3-43(D5) to 1-44(D11)
P-47D-25 ... 5-44
P-47D-40 ... 1-45(ETO)
P-47N ... 6-45
P-51B ... 12-43(ETO),8-44(CBI)
P51D ... 5-44(CBI&PTO),5-44(ETO)
F4F-4 ... 9-41(ETO),5-42(PTO)
FM-2 ... 6-44(ETO),10-44(PTO)
F6F ... 9-43(PTO),12-43(ETO)
F4U-1 ... 10-42(ETO),4-44(ETO)
F4U-1D ... 4-45
F4U-1C ... 4-45
F4U-4 ... 4-45
F6F-5 ... 7-44
SBD-5 ... 5-43
TBM-3 ... 2-43

Britian
Boston MK III ... 5-41
Hurricane Mk I ... 5-40
Hurricane IIC ... 10-42
Hurricane IID ... 6-42
Lancaster III ... 3-42
Mosquito Mk VI ... 7-43
Spitfire Mk IA ... 8-40
Seafire IIC ... 10-42,11-43(ETO)
Spitfire V ... 4-41
Spitfire Mk IX ... 7-42
Spitfire Mk XIV ... 9-44
Spitfire Mk XVI ... 7-44,7-45(CBI)
Tempest V ... 6-44
Typhoon IB ... 6-43

Soviet
Il-2 Type 3 ... 10-42
La-5FN ... 3-43
La-7 ... 6-44
Yak-9T ... 1-43
Yak-9U ... 7/8-44

Italy
C.202 ... 11-41
C.205 ... 1-43

Japan
A6M2 ... 7-40
A6M5b ... 8-43
D3A-1 ... 5-
Ki-61 ... 6-43
Ki-84-la ... 8-44 (CBI),10-44(PTO)
Ki-67 ... 4-44
N1K2-J ... 1-45

Germany
Ar 234B ... 12-44
Bf 109E-4 ... 5-40
Bf 109F-4 ... 6-41
Bf 109G-2 ... 6-42
Bf 109G-6 ... 2-43
Bf 109G-10 ... 3-44
Bf 109G-14 ... 7-44
Bf 109K-4 ... 10-44
Bf 110C-4b ... 8-40
Bf 110G-2 ... 5-42
Fw 190A-5 ... 2-43
Fw 190A-8 ... 2-44
Fw 190D-9 ... 9-44
Fw 190F-8 ... 4-44
Ju 88A-4 ... 5-41
Me 262 ... 10-44
Me 163 … 9-44
Ta 152H ... 1-45

Vehicles
USA
LVT(A)2 ...2-44
LVT(A)4 ...3-44
M-3 ...3-41
M-8 ...9-42
M-16 ...5-43

Germany
Ostwind ... 8-44
Panzer IV Type H ... 8-44
Tiger I ...8-42

Soviet
T-34 ... 2-43

Theatres of Operations
PTO - Pacific
ETO - Europe
CBI - China-Burma-India/CHINA-BURMA-INDIA

[Karnak]

Must...comment....further.... .


Spitfire Mk XIV in CBI: 7-45

If the F6F-5 and Ki-61-I-Tei get backdated for earlier versions the T-34 should as well. It is far more similar to earlier versions than is the Ki-61-I-Tei.

With that in mind:

T-34: 6-41

[Squire]

Check my last post on the original list, I have some Brit FAA dates for you guys.

Your posted list has some obvious typos.

P-51D ETO should be 5-44 not 3-45
P-51B ETO should be 12-43 not 2-44

Regards.

[Mister Fork]

The T-34 we have is the 1943 version (see here.)

It saw combat in 1941 in earlier variants.

I've edited the P-51's, and the Spit XIV, and a bunch of other dates from the other posting. Thanks for pointing those out.

[Squire]

Mr Fork I provided the RAFs dates for the P-51s.

They were:

P-51B 2-44
P-51D 3-45

For the RAF.

ETO dates USAAF (unchanged from the original list you posted):

P-51B 12-43
P-51D 5-44

P-51D still reads 3-45.

Thx for doing it all up btw. .

[Mister Fork]

fixed it.

What I'd like to do is to keep the country who made the plane as the date listed. Otherwise, we'd have different dates for several spits, mosquitos from Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and P-47's, P-51s from the RAF.

To the Luffwaffe during WWII, to them, they didn't care if it was a RAF P-51 or a USAAF. Same goes for allied pilots when fighting a Bf 109 whether it was flown by an Italian, German, or Finnish pilot.

I think we're getting close to a complete list.

[Squire]

Well, I would think down the road maybe you guys could add a section for the "British and Commonwealth Lend Lease", ac that were huge users of US built a/c. You dont have to have a seperate section on Brit, NZ, Aussie, Canadian because for the most part they fell under RAF command. Almost all the major US types were used by the RAF and RN incl P-40s, P-51s, P-47s, F4F, Corsair, Hellcat, TBM, and a few others. They were as much a part of the wartime service as the British designs were.

For instance the largest user of the P-40B in WW2 was the RAF. By far.

RAAF
SAAF
RNZAF
RCAF

All fell under a larger RAF Command, with a few exceptions, notably the PACIFIC where the RAAF and RNZAF tended to be under a larger US Command (at some level).
 
Just a suggestion. I know you dont want to get buried in it

Regards.

[Karnak]

Mister Fork,

Yes, I know that, but you have the 7-44 F6F-5 listed as 9-43 and the 1-44 Ki-61-I-Tei listed as 6-43.  In addition the changes between the 2-43 T-34 we have and the T-34 in 6-41 are minimal.  It has the same gun, almost the same armor and the same engine/transmission.  We are never going to get an earlier T-34 as this one is basically usable for the entire T-34/76 series other than the very low production early ones.  The only other T-34 we will ever get is the T-34/85.

[38ruk]

I see the f4u1-D is listed as 4-45 , typo maybe ?  thought it was 4-44 . 38

[1K3]

P-38J ... 12-43(ETO) 2-44(PTO)

P-38J is actually late late 1943 aircraft in ETO?

so the P-38s that were fighting and stationed in england in early/mid 1943 were 38Gs then right?

[Krusty]

Originally posted by Karnak
Yes, I know that, but you have the 7-44 F6F-5 listed as 9-43 and the 1-44 Ki-61-I-Tei listed as 6-43.

The Ki61 rolled off production lines late '42 and saw combat in early '43 (one source I read said spring '43, New Guinea). In August the wing 12.7mms were changed to german MG151/20s on their sides, basically the same thing we have only in the wings not the nose. This was only because the Ho-5 guns weren't ready, and when they were they put 12.7mms in the wings again and the H0-5s in the nose (what we have).

Other changes for the kaiC are very small. Fixed tailwheel. Stronger wing. Bomb racks. That's it. The plane is essentially the same. So there's no reason to list it as a 1/44 bird, IMO.

[Widewing]

Originally posted by 1K3
P-38J ... 12-43(ETO) 2-44(PTO)

P-38J is actually late late 1943 aircraft in ETO?

so the P-38s that were fighting and stationed in england in early/mid 1943 were 38Gs then right?

Sorry, wrong on all accounts. Those aircraft that equipped the 55th and 79th Fighter Groups in November of 1943 were the P-38H, but the 55th had also received a few of the new P-38J. These P-38Js were flying combat missions in November of 1943. I have a photo dated 13 November, 1943 of a P-38J-5-LO belonging to 338th FS CO Richard Busching. The mission that day was escorting bombers to Bremen. At the time, the 55th had a total of five P-38Js, only two of which were combat ready. Thirty seven P-38Js arrived in Britain on October 18. Per Hap Arnold's orders, all P-38Js would be sent to the 8th AF as fast as was possible. That meant that as they were delivered, they would be flown to the east coast where they were sealed up to prevent corrosion and promptly loaded on ships headed to England. Planes delivered in late August were arriving in British ports just 45 days later.

My regards,

Widewing

[Guppy35]

Originally posted by 1K3
P-38J ... 12-43(ETO) 2-44(PTO)

P-38J is actually late late 1943 aircraft in ETO?

so the P-38s that were fighting and stationed in england in early/mid 1943 were 38Gs then right?

F,Gs, Hs in the MTO.  As Widewing points out, the 20th and 55th came with Hs but got early J models soon.

Interestingly enough you could find Gs still being flown in combat in the MTO as late as June 44.  Replacement pilots coming to the MTO 38 Groups were surprised to find such war-weary models still in combat after training on later J models in the States.

At one point the MTO 38 groups were sending pilots to England to ferry down the 8th AF hand me down Hs. If the Picture Hanger was working, I'd post a photo of a 1st FG P38H where you can clearly see the former 8th AF Markings starting to show through the paint  on the tail.

[Easyscor]

I was wondering, no distinction between ETO and MTO?

Or Fin/Rus?

[1K3]

in early/mid 1943 8th AF and LW lineup was something like this right?

8th AAF

bomber:  B-17, B-24
escort:  P-38F/G, P-47C and early D models

LW

interceptors:  Bf-109G-6 (and some with kannonboot mode), Bf-110G, FW-190A (btw which 190A series model more commin in 1943 ETO)