Naval History by Country :
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Tom Blackburn
| Captain Tom Blackburn (deceased) From a naval family, Tom Blackburn joined the service in 1929. In 1942 he took part in Operation Torch, the Allied landings in North Africa, commanding VF-29. His first mission ended by ditching in the Atlantic, and 60 hours adrift in a dinghy. Surviving this, Tom Blackburn went on to command VF-17, leading the squadron to become one of the most distinguished naval fighter units of the Pacific War. With the accent on teamwork and mission accomplishment, the success of Tom Blackburns Jolly Rogers are legend in the lore of naval aviation. Sadly, Tom Blackburn died on 21st April 1994. |
Items Signed by Captain Tom Blackburn (deceased) |
| The Jolly Rogers by Nicolas Trudgian. Price : £350.00 | With its macabre skull and crossbones insignia, and a reputation for total disdain of authority, VF-17 arrived in the Pacific with a variety of nicknames ranging from the Irregulars to the Cast-offs, but under the dynamic leadership of their Squadro...... | |
| The Jolly Rogers by Nicolas Trudgian. (Y) Price : £270.00 | With its macabre skull and crossbones insignia, and a reputation for total disdain of authority, VF-17 arrived in the Pacific with a variety of nicknames ranging from the Irregulars to the Cast-offs, but under the dynamic leadership of their Squadro...... |
Packs with at least one item featuring the signature of Captain Tom Blackburn (deceased) |
| Corsair Naval Fighter Aviation Art Collectors Pack. Pack Price : £530.00 Saving : £380 | Aviation Print Pack. ...... Titles in this pack : The Jolly Rogers by Nicolas Trudgian. Angels of Okinawa by Stan Stokes. The Black Sheep by Nicolas Trudgian (B) Valley Forge Fly-By by Ivan Berryman. | |
F4U Corsair Art Prints by Nicolas Trudgian and Stan Stokes. Pack Price : £415.00 Saving : £185 | Aviation Print Pack. ...... Titles in this pack : The Jolly Rogers by Nicolas Trudgian. Angels of Okinawa by Stan Stokes. | ||
WW2 Corsair Naval Aviation Prints by Nicolas Trudgian. Pack Price : £450.00 Saving : £320 | Aviation Print Pack. ...... Titles in this pack : The Jolly Rogers by Nicolas Trudgian. The Black Sheep by Nicolas Trudgian (B) |
Squadrons for : Captain Tom Blackburn (deceased) | ||
A list of all squadrons known to have been served with by Captain Tom Blackburn (deceased). A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name. | ||
Squadron | Info | |
Country : US Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of VF-17 | VF-17 Full profile not yet available. | |
Country : US Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of VF-29 | VF-29 Full profile not yet available. |
Aircraft for : Captain Tom Blackburn (deceased) | |||
A list of all aircraft associated with Captain Tom Blackburn (deceased). A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name. | |||
Squadron | Info | ||
Manufacturer : Chance-Vought Production Began : 1940 Number Built : 12000 | Corsair The Chance-Vought F4U Corsair was arguably the finest naval aviation fighter of its era. Work on this design dates to 1938 and was headed-up by Voughts Chief Engineer, Rex Biesel. The initial prototype was powered by an 1800-HP Pratt & Whitney double Wasp radial engine. This was the third Vought aircraft to carry the Corsair name. The graceful and highly recognizable gull-wing design of the F4U permitted the aircraft to utilize a 13-foot, three-blade, Hamilton Standard propeller, while not having to lengthen the landing gear. Because of the rigors of carrier landings, this was a very important design consideration. Folding wings were also required for carrier operations. The F4U was thirty feet long, had a wingspan of 41 feet and an empty weight of approximately 7,500 pounds. Another interesting feature was the way the F4Us gear rotated 90 degrees, so it would lay flush within the wing when in the up position. In 1939 the Navy approved the design, and production commenced. The Corsair utilized a new spot welding process on its all aluminum fuselage, giving the aircraft very low drag. To reduce weight, fabric-covered outer wing sections and control surfaces were fitted. In May of 1940 the F4U made its maiden flight. Although a number of small bugs were discovered during early flight tests, the Corsair had exceptional performance characteristics. In October of 1940 the prototype F4U was clocked at 405-MPH in a speed test. The initial production Corsairs received an upgraded 2,000-HP radial giving the bird a top speed of about 425-MPH. The production models also differed from the prototype in having six, wing-mounted, 0.5 caliber machine guns. Another change was a shift of the cockpit about three feet further back in the fuselage. This latter change unfortunately made naval aviators wary of carrier landings with the F4U, due to its limited forward visibility during landings. Other concerns were expressed regarding a severe port wing drop at landing speeds and a tendency of the aircraft to bounce off a carrier deck. As a result, the F4U was initially limited to land-based USMC squadrons. Vought addressed several of these problems, and the Royal Navy deserves credit for perfecting an appropriate landing strategy for the F4U. They found that if the carrier pilot landed the F4U while making a sweeping left turn with the port wing down, that sufficient visibility was available to make a safe landing. With a kill ratio of 11 -to- 1 in WW 11 combat, the F4U proved superior in the air to almost every opposing aircraft it encountered. More than 12,000 F4Us were built and fortunately a few dozen remain in flyable condition to this date. |
Everything we obtain for this site is shown on the site, we do not have any more photos, crew lists or further information on any of the ships. COPYRIGHT NOTICE. ALL IMAGES DISPLAYED ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT LAW, AND ARE OWNED BY CRANSTON FINE ARTS OR THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS. NO REPRODUCTION OR COPYING ALLOWED ON OTHER WEBSITES, BOOKS OR ARTICLES WITHOUT PRIOR AGREEMENT. |
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