Original Skin Thread Here:
https://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,398007.msg5275393.html#msg5275393Research Thread Here:
https://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,397875.0.htmlA hat tip to Oboe for his outstanding pilot figure that serves as the basis for the one used here. Many thanks to the usual suspects (Devil505, Oboe, Lyric1, etc.) for their feedback. Also to ctaggart1 for some family photos of the airplane (see below for more details) that provided helpful, revealing details.
__
This is P-51D-20-NA "Little Girl" of the 39th FS, 35th FG based on Okinawa in the summer of 1945. Coded number 33 it was one of two P-51D Mustang fighters flown by Capt. Leroy "Lee" Grosshuesch while serving as squadron commander.
An ace flying P-47s in the Southwest Pacific, primarily out of Port Moresby and the Philippines, he achieved his first victory on 21 November 1944 (a Ki-46) over the Negros Islands. He would score seven victories in the Thunderbolt (3 - Ki-46, 4 - Biplane Trainers) including three on one mission, and later, what was likely the only night kill in a P-47 in February 1945.
The squadron converted to the P-51D in March, moving bases frequently until ultimately winding up on the Island of Okinawa. On 30 July 1945, Lee sank a Japanese destroyer off Goto Retto near Kyushu, for which he was awarded the Silver Star. The explosion so badly damaged his Mustang that it had to be scrapped. He scored his final victory two weeks later against a Ki-84 bringing his final tally to eight confirmed victories over 150 combat missions.
He remained in the Air Force flying Mustangs, P-80s, F-86Fs and F-100s. In July 1964 he served in Vietnam as the Commander of the Special Air Operations Group, retiring in 1973 as a Colonel. In addition to the Silver Star his awards include the Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal, and the Air Force Commendation Medal. He passed away on 7 May 2015, a day after his 95th birthday, survived by his wife Lois, one son, two daughters, and seven grandchildren.
There is some uncertainty about this scheme. Most profiles depict it with the #10 tail code and serial number 44-64124. However, photos shared by ctaggart1
https://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,397875.msg5353114.html#msg5353114 (thank you to the Taggart family for providing these) indicate a tail code #33 and [possibly] serial number 44-73xxx. For now I've used the #33 tail code with the 44-64124 serial. I also carried over the victory marking theme used on Grosshuesch's P-47 (blue background with the blank section at the top). I've depicted the airplane as it would have appeared after Lee's seventh victory, assuming #33 was the original "Little Girl" Mustang that had to be scrapped after the mission of 30 July 1945. For now some of this is admittedly conjecture, but if more evidence emerges I will update it.
Click to Enlarge:
As always, comparisons are fun. They show the progression in a clear way.
Update:
Original:
