"Old Bold Pilot Signatures"

B-25 Col. Raymond Toliver – is a test pilot, aviation historian and author. He test flew over 250 different aircraft, including the nine shown here, except the ME 262, which had an engine failure before take-off. He was Commanding Officer of the 20th Fighter Group, flying the famous “Triple Zilch 000” F-100.

P-38 1st Lt. Everett “Bud” Miller – is a Lightning Ace with five victories, he was assigned to the 94th Fighter Squadron, 1st Fighter Group, 15th Air Force in Italy. His plane was named “Martha J”. His 5th victory was confirmed in 1991, an M.A. 205 he shot down on July 18th, 1944, which was listed initially as damaged, making him an official Ace.

B-26 Capt. William H. “Bill” Ryherd – flew a B-26 named “Sharon Roseanne II”. He was assigned to the 598th Bomb Squadron, 397th Bomb Group, 9th Air Force. He was shot down on his 36th mission, was helped by the French resistance until he was “sold-out” to the German Gestapo, and was taken by boxcar to Buchenwald. He was then sent as a POW to Stalag Luft 3, 8, and 13.

P-47 Col. Walker “Bud” Mahurin – flew a P-47 named “Spirit of Atlantic City, N.J.”, when he was assigned to the 63rd Fighter Squadron, 56th Fighter Group. He was credited with 21 victories in WW II including 20 in Europe and one in the Pacific. He also had 3.5 victories flying the F-86 in the Korean War, giving him a total of 24.5.

Me 262  Oberleutnant Walter Schuck – flew the Me 262 “Yellow 1”, when he was assigned to JG7. He was credited with 8 victories in the Me 262, and has 198 victories in the Bf 109 when he was assigned to JG5, bringing his total to 206. He is the 12th highest ace of all time.

P-51  Capt. Robert “Bob” Winks – flew his P-51 Mustang “Trusty Rusty” when he was assigned to the 364th Fighter Squadron, 357th Fighter Group, 8th Air Force. On January 15, 1945, he downed an ME-262 at the Airfield at Shongau, which qualified him as an Ace with a total of 5.5 victories.

B-17  Capt. Jay Walker – flew the B-17G “Screaming Eagle 007” when he was assigned to the 546th Bomb Squadron, 384th Bomb Group, 8th AF. He flew 30 missions, and after the war, he flew the Collings Foundation’s B-17 “Nine-O-Nine” around the country on tour for seven years.

Bf 109  Oberleutnant Kurt Schulze – flew the Bf 109 “Yellow 5” when he was assigned to JG5 in Petsamo, Finland, and had 3 victories. He also flew six long distance reconnaissance missions as a wireless operator with 3(F)11 in ME-110C, and 23 missions as a navigator in the DO-217. At the end of the war he was in charge of 1/JG51, and then 13/JG5. He flew a total of 103 missions.

B-24 Lt. Rob Braswell – was assigned to the 747th Bomb Squadron, 456th Bomb Group, 15th Air Force in Foggia, Italy. His B-24 was named “Flak Happy” and he flew 50 missions. The B-24 shown on the print is named “Cybilette” from the 564th Bomb Squadron, 389th Bomb Group, and was done by the artist for a friend and “Old Bold Pilot” to honor his crew.