Today's Snapshot will be
Last of a Dying Breed, starting at 21.00 CET, 3 pm EST.
Please be there some 10-15 minutes early to allow time to get organized. Snapshots are walkon events and no registration is needed, just come to the Special Events Arena in time.
ust when the heat finally started to reside from Cactus, It came back in a fire ball on the
7th of April 1943.
67 Val’s and 110 Zero’s were launched against the Island of Guadalcanal. The Cactus Air
Force sprang into action launching elements of Army P-38’s-39’s-40’s and Marine F4F’s, and now Marine F4U’s from VMF-124 that were delivered in Feburary. During the melee VMF-214 (flying Wildcats) drew first blood claiming 10 aircraft destroyed between Cape Esperance and Koli point. The Zero escort did a good job of tying up the defenders and the flight of Vals remained nearly intact. The Aichis swooped down and destroyed a tanker
and two destroyers. At the end of the day American flyers were credited with 40 kills versus 29 acknowledged in IJN records. Out of all the fighters the Army claimed 11 and one corsair pilot claimed 1, all the rest were claimed by the Grumman F4F.
This would mark the end of an era for Wildcat pilots, All Marine Wildcat squadron would soon convert to the F4U and the navy was not far behind.
http://ahevents.org/pacific-theatre/last-of-a-dying-breed.html
