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Please note that our logo (below) only appears on the images on our website and is not on the actual art prints. When you are ready to add this item to your basket, click the button below.       Website Price: £ 220.00       F4 Wildcat Aircraft Art Prints by Stan Stokes and Richard Taylor. PCK2658. F4 Wildcat Aircraft Art Prints by Stan Stokes and Richard Taylor. Aviation Print Pack. Items in this pack : Item #1 - Click to view individual item STK0079C. Tough as Nails by Stan Stokes. The Grumman F4F Wildcat was the third monoplane to see carrier service with the Navy. It was also the fighter aircraft which would carry the brunt of the fighting in the Pacific until 1943 when the F6F Hellcat would enter service. The Wildcat was flow by both USN and USMC aviators. The Wildcat lacked the range and maneuverability of the Mitsubishi Zeros it often faced, but the Wildcat was more heavily armed and able to take a lot more punishment than the Mitsubishis. Most of the pilots which obtained ace status while flying the F4F obtained most of their victories against Japanese bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Eight individuals were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor while displaying valor while in command of an F4F. The pilots of no other aircraft during WW II were as highly decorated. One of the most outstanding of this elite group was USMC Captain Joseph Jacob Foss. Foss, a South Dakota native, had been accepted as a naval aviation cadet following his graduation from the University of South Dakota. Foss had already learned to fly on his own, and had no difficulty earning his wings. Foss flew with VMF-121 in Guadacanal in 1942 and early 1943. He was credited with 26 confirmed aerial victories, making him the first American aviator to reach the victory record of the famed Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, one of Joes boyhood heroes. The ground based fighter pilots in Guadacanal were often referred to as The Cactus Air Force. As the Executive Officer of VMF-121 flying out of Henderson Field, Joes amazing victory tally helped make VMF-121 the highest scoring Marine squadron of the War. The success at Guadacanal was not without a heavy price. More than 20% of VMF-121s pilots did not return from the campaign. The squadrons best combat day in Guadacanal was on October 25, 1942. Eighteen aerial victories were credited to the squadron, with Foss leading the way with five Zeros bagged on two combat missions. Because it was impossible to permanently assign aircraft at Guadacanal, Foss flew several different Wildcats, including those numbered 53, 50, and 84. Nicknamed Swivel-Neck-Joe by some his fellow pilots, Foss learned early that it did not pay to be surprised by the opposition. Foss also leaned that the most effective way to down an opposing aircraft was to get as close to it as possible before utilizing ones limited supply of ammunition. As depicted in Stan Stokes painting entitled Tough As Nails, Joe Foss is tangling with a F1M2 Pete on November 7, 1942. Joes first pass over the much slower float plane proves ineffective, and the Petes gunner actually stars the portside glass of Foss windscreen. Circling around, and approaching from below, the Pete would soon become his eighteenth victory. Returning from this mission Foss would have to ditch his aircraft. He was rescued by missionaries and returned to combat flying the next day. Joes second combat tour in 1943 was cut short due to the ongoing effects of a bout with malaria. Joe served in the Air Force Reserve after the War reaching the rank of Brigadier General. Following a successful career in both politics and professional sports, Foss has remained active and was instrumental in the formation of the American Fighter Aces Association, and has served as President of the NRA. Signed by USN Ace Capt Joseph J Foss (deceased). Prints from the 225 prints from the signed limited edition of 4750 prints, with signature of Stan Stokes and pilot. Image size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm) Item #2 - Click to view individual item DHM1887. Holding the Tide by Richard Taylor. On 7 August 1942, just eight months after the dramatic events at Pearl Harbor, the United States First Marine Division stormed ashore on the island of Guadalcanal. It was the opening gambit of the land war in the Pacific. The painting depicts Captain Joe Foss as he leads the F4F Wildcats of VMF-121 back to Henderson Field after a day of desperate fighting against the Japanese in the skies over the steaming jungles of Guadalcanal in November 1942 - it would be another three months before the island was finally secured during which time Joe Foss would achieve an astonishing 26 victories to become the first American pilot to equal WW1 Ace Eddie Rickenbackers score. Signed by : Commander Leslie Fortner USMC and Captain Stanley Swede Vejtasa USN. Limited edition of 350 prints. Paper size 32 inches x 24 inches (82cm x 61cm) Website Price: £ 220.00   To purchase these prints individually at their normal retail price would cost £275.00 . By buying them together in this special pack, you save £55 All prices are displayed in British Pounds Sterling   Signatures on this item *The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare. Name Info Brigadier General Joseph J Foss (deceased) *Signature Value : £45 (matted) Born 17th April 1915. He ws awarded his wings in May 1941, becoming a Marine Corps pilot leading a unit of Wildcat fighters which accounted for 72 enemy aircraft. Involved in the defence of Guadalcanal from the Japanese, he was forced to ditch into the sea, being rescued by local islanders before subsequently being picked up by a Catalina two weeks later. Later, defending Henderson Field from a large formation of enemy bombers and their accompanying fighters, he refused to allow his unit to be lured into combat with the enemy fighters, instead waiting for the escorting aircraft to run out of fuel and turn back, forcing the now unescorted bombers to also turn back. Joe Foss died 1st January 2003. Born into a farming family in South Dakota in 1915, Joseph Foss would go on to become the USMCs highest scoring fighter pilot of WW II. He would also become the first aviator to equal the WW 1 victory record of Captain Eddle Rickenbacker, and the first USMC aviator to become an ace in a day. A recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, Joe Foss would be credited with 26 aerial victories while flying the F4F Wildcat with VMF-121 based at Henderson Field in Guadacanal in 1942 and early 1943. All this success did not come easily to Foss. Growing up during the difficult days of the Great Depression, the young Foss realized that to become a military aviator he would have to attend college. Following his graduation from the University of South Dakota, Foss entered the naval aviation cadet program in 1940. With Americas entry into WWII Foss was assigned to a photo reconnaissance unit. Foss was disappointed with this assignment and worked hard at convincing others that he was destined to be a fighter pilot. Logging nearly three hours of flying time per day in an F4F, the skills and dedication of this aspiring fighter pilot were soon noticed. Foss was assigned to VMF- 121 as the Executive Officer of the squadrons C.O. Captain L.K. Davis. The squadron was sent on its initial combat tour in the fall of 1942. Twenty Wildcats were transported by escort carrier to Guadacanal and were catapulted off for the flight to Henderson Field. Foss flight became known as Uoes Flying Circus, and 61.5 victories would be credited to this flight, with four other pilots becoming aces. Although air defense was the primary role of VMF-121, some ground support missions were also flown. The squadrons successes were not without a price, and more than 20% of VMF-121s pilots did not return from the combat tour at Guadacanal. In November Foss flew a mission against a large Japanese convoy near the Russell Islands. During this mission Lt. Col. Bauer was downed. Foss returned to Henderson Field and flew back to the site where Bauer was downed in a Grumman Duck. Unable to locate his downed comrade because of darkness, Foss returned at dawn. Unfortunately, Bauer was never found. Foss had fought recurring battles against malaria while on Guadacanal. He had lost 37 pounds. With the destruction of the Japanese convoy Foss along with several other pilots of VMF121 got some much needed R&R in Australia. While in Australia Foss met two of the leading Australian aces Clive Caldwell and Keith Truscott. Joe was disturbed by the attitude of the Australians that the Japanese must be second rate opponents. Returning to Guadacanal on New Years Day 1943, combat sorties resumed. On January 25 Foss flew his last mission at Guadacanal, but did not engage the enemy. Problems with malaria continued to plague the USMCs top ace, and he was unable to make a second combat tour. Following the War Foss helped organize the South Dakota Air National Guard. He remained active in the reserve finally retiring with the rank of Brigadier General. Foss had successful careers in professional sports, politics (Governor of South Dakota), and commercial aviation. He also was instrumental in the formation of the American Fighter Aces Association, and has served as President of the National Rifle Association. Signatures on item 2 *The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare. Name Info Captain Stanley Swede Vejtasa USN (deceased) *Signature Value : £35 (matted) Commissioned in August 1939, Swede Vejtasas first combat assignment was in May 1942 whilst flying the SBD Dauntless with VS-5 aboard the USS Yorktown during the Battle of the Coral Sea. here he participated in the attack on the Japanese carrier Shoho, and flew anti-torpedo plane patrol, claiming three Zeroes. Switching to fighters with VF-10 flying the F4F Wildcat aboard the USS Enterprise he took part in the Battle of Santa Cruz, where he notched up 7 air victories on one flight in October. In March 1943 he flight-tested the new F4U Corsair in the combat zone. His final tally for the war was 11 aerial victories. He died on 23rd January 2013. Commander Leslie Fortner USMC *Signature Value : £15 (matted) Joining the Navy in 1943, Les Fortner joined VC-88 flying Wildcats off the escort carrier USS Hoggatt Bay in the south west Pacific Theater. In early 1945 he flew in support of the landings at Iwo Jima, Okinawa and Lingayen, destroying several Japanese aircraft on the ground. Les flew over 100 combat missions during the war, and in April 1945 he shot down a Kamikazi 'Nick' off Kerama Rhetto near Okinawa.