5th ERS - the 'Shepherd of the Seas' P-47 Thunderbolt photo gallery

 

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5th Emergency Rescue Squadron

The history of the 5th ERS - the 'Shepherd of the Seas'

During WW2, the RAF perfected a very good system of Air-Sea Rescue (ASR) to pick up fighter and bomber crews from the English Channel. This operation relied on aircraft and shipping relaying the position of a crew in the drink back to control stations. Motor boats and Walrus seaplanes from various bases around the coast would then head to the reported position to pick up the men. When the US Army Air Corps came to England they had no such system and, when they started losing crews in the sea, decided to set about forming their own air-sea rescue operation.

With the coming of the invasion imminent, a conference was called on the 8th May 1944 at the Air Ministry between representatives of the RAF, the 8th Air Force, and the 65th Fighter Wing. It was decided that the 65th Fighter Wing would take responsibility for air-sea rescue.

Captain Bob Gerhart, a former wing controller, was appointed CO of an independent ASR spotter squadron. The controllers based at Saffron Walden would have direct contact with the spotter planes and rescue launches. The aircraft, ground crews, pilots and all the equipment necessary had to be borrowed from other fighter groups. Because Hub Zemke was a very respected fighter leader he was asked to provide “war weary” aircraft and a piece of ground at his Boxted base for them to use. Bob Gerhart started with 90 enlisted men from 16 different stations, 25 pilots and ground officers “loaned”, no hanger and virtually no tools. Fortunately Zemke and his executive officer, Dave Schilling, were fully behind the idea, and loaned and scrounged as much equipment as possible. So barely a week after the conference, detachment 'B' of the 65th fighter wing had flown its first mission.

How the system worked

Whenever a bomber mission was launched, two P-47 'Thunderbolts' of the ASR would take off from Boxted. The aircraft would track the bombers over the channel listening for any distress calls. When a call for help came, one P-47 would keep circling over the spot where the incident occurred. The aircraft would also drop flares or a small dinghy, then return to base to refuel and be replaced by another P-47. The other original Thunderbolt would keep listening in case there were any further incidents. So, all the time bomber formations were over the channel, there were two P-47’s in the air keeping watch. When a pilot or crewman came down in the sea, motor launches would be alerted to pick them up.

Perfecting the art

Initially the additional weight of the flare racks and dinghies caused major problems for the P-47's on take-off. They found that by splitting the dinghy packs and putting one under each wing, then using a single 150 gallon belly fuel tank and mounting the flares behind it, the capabilities of the P-47’s was restored . The airplanes were identified by red, white and blue striped noses and yellow banded tails. The group’s radio call sign was “teamwork”. The pilots were given the nickname “seagulls”. Later the group were given Catalina flying boats to help with rescues and, as these aircraft needed hard standings, detachment 'B' moved to Halesworth. It was here that they received their official unit code of the 5th Emergency Rescue Squadron.

The 5th ERS's acheivement

A total of 938 men were rescued by this unit. In a memo to Lt. General James Doolittle, Commanding General of the 8th Air Force, Jesse Auton said 'Most recently as “Colegate” and earlier as “Morelight”, “Warmsun” and “Tackline” call signs, the 65th Fighter Wing has had a vital part in the control of every 8th Air Force mission since 4th July 1943. A constant phase of this control has been for air-sea rescue. The many loyal men who have laboured unceasingly to make rescue more swift and sure, deserve great credit for making what is certain to be a lasting legacy.'

Operational history

Operational history

US service

By the end of 1942, P-47Cs were sent to England for combat operations. The initial Thunderbolt flyers, 56th Fighter Group, was sent overseas to join the 8th Air Force. As the P-47 Thunderbolt worked up to operational status, it gained a nickname: the "Jug" (because its profile was similar to that of a common milk jug of the time).[Note 4] Two Fighter Groups already stationed in England began introducing the Jugs in January 1943: the Spitfire-flying 4th Fighter Group, a unit built around a core of experienced American pilots who had flown in the RAF Eagle Squadrons prior to the US entry in the war; and the 78th Fighter Group, formerly flying P-38 Lightnings.

Beginning in January 1943, Thunderbolt fighters were sent to the joint Army Air Forces - civilian Millville Airport in Millville, New Jersey in order to train civilian and military pilots.

The first P-47 combat mission took place 10 March 1943 when the 4th FG took their aircraft on a fighter sweep over France. The mission was a failure due to radio malfunctions. All P-47s were refitted with British radios, and missions resumed 8 April. The first P-47 air combat took place 15 April with Major Don Blakeslee of the 4th FG scoring the Thunderbolt's first air victory (against a Focke-Wulf Fw 190).

By mid-1943, the Jug was also in service with the 12th Air Force in Italy[13] and against the Japanese in the Pacific, with the 348th Fighter Group flying missions out of Port Moresby, New Guinea. By 1944, the Thunderbolt was in combat with the USAAF in all its operational theaters except Alaska.

Luftwaffe ace Heinz Bär said that the P-47 "could absorb an astounding amount of lead [from shooting at it] and had to be handled very carefully".[14]

Although the North American P-51 Mustang replaced the P-47 in the long-range escort role in Europe, the Thunderbolt still ended the war with 3,752 air-to-air kills claimed in over 746,000 sorties of all types, at the cost of 3,499 P-47s to all causes in combat.[15] By the end of the war, the 56th FG was the only 8th Air Force unit still flying the P-47, by preference, instead of the P-51. The unit claimed 677.5 air victories and 311 ground kills, at the cost of 128 aircraft.[16] Lieutenant Colonel Francis S. Gabreski scored 28 victories,[17] Captain Robert S. Johnson scored 27 (with one unconfirmed probable kill leading to some giving his tally as 28),[18] and 56th FG Commanding Officer Colonel Hubert Zemke scored 17.75 kills.[Note 5] Despite being the sole remaining P-47 group in the 8th Air Force, the 56th FG remained its top-scoring group in aerial victories throughout the war.

With increases in fuel capacity as the type was refined, the range of escort missions over Europe steadily increased until the P-47 was able to accompany bombers in raids all the way into Germany. On the way back from the raids, pilots shot up ground targets of opportunity, and also used belly shackles to carry bombs on short-range missions, which led to the realization that the P-47 could perform a dual-function on escort missions as a fighter-bomber. Even with its complicated turbosupercharger system, its sturdy airframe and tough radial engine could absorb a lot of damage and still return home.

The P-47 gradually became the USAAF's primary fighter-bomber, by late 1943, early versions of the P-47D carrying 500 lb (230 kg) bombs underneath their bellies, mid production versions of the P-47D could carry 1,000 lb (450 kg) bombs and M8 4.5 in (115 mm) rockets under their wings or from the last version of the P-47D in 1944, 5 in (130 mm) High velocity aircraft rockets (HVARs, also known as "Holy Moses"). From D-Day until VE day, Thunderbolt pilots claimed to have destroyed 86,000 railroad cars, 9,000 locomotives, 6,000 armored fighting vehicles, and 68,000 trucks.[20] During Operation Cobra, in the vicinity of Roncey, P-47 Thunderbolts of the 405th Fighter group destroyed a German column of 122 tanks, 259 other vehicles, and 11 artillery pieces.[21]

Specifications (P-47D-40 Thunderbolt)

Data from [61]

General characteristics

Crew: 1
Length: 36 ft 1.75 in (11.0173 m)
Wingspan: 40 ft 9+5⁄16 in (12.429 m)
Height: 14 ft 8+1⁄16 in (4.472 m)
Airfoil: Seversky S-3[62]
Empty weight: 10,000 lb (4,536 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 17,500 lb (7,938 kg)
Powerplant: 1 × Pratt & Whitney R-2800-59 18-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine, 2,000 hp (1,500 kW)
Propellers: 4-bladed Curtiss Electric C542S constant-speed propeller, 13 ft 0 in (3.96 m) diameter

Performance

Maximum speed: 426 mph (686 km/h, 370 kn) at 30,000 ft (9,100 m)
Range: 1,030 mi (1,660 km, 900 nmi)
Service ceiling: 42,000 ft (13,000 m)

Armament

Guns:
Eight .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns (3400 rounds)
Up to 2,500 lb (1,100 kg) of bombs
Ten 5 in (130 mm) unguided rockets

 Flight Simulators
 

   IL-2 Sturmovik 'Cliff's of Dover' Blitz - has no 3D model

   IL-2 Great Battles Series IL-2 - has a 3D model

   DCS World - has a 3D model

 

 

 Royal Air Force Debden Map

 Moscow Russia Map

 

    Republic P-47 Thunderbolt Notes

  1. Fairchild Republic was the most recent incarnation of the original Republic aerospace company, now considered defunct.[2]
  2. The P-47 can trace its lineage back to earlier Seversky designs: P-35, XP-41, P-43 and the unbuilt P-44.[3]
  3. After a change in the board of directors, Alexander P. de Seversky was removed from the newly reorganized Republic Aviation company, with former Managing Director Wallace Kellett taking over as CEO.[5]
  4. Historians argue that the nickname 'Jug' was short for 'Juggernaut' when aviators began using the longer word as an alternate nickname.[11] Another nickname that was used for the Thunderbolt was "T-bolt".[12]
  5. Zemke flew a P-38 for three of his kills.[19]
  6. Quentin C. Aanenson documented his experiences flying the Thunderbolt on D-Day and subsequently in the European Theater in his documentary, A Fighter Pilot's Story (also released as Dogfight.).

    Republic P-47 Thunderbolt Citations

  1. Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. aviation-history.
  2. Rummerman, Judy. Fairchild Republic. Archived 2011-10-14 at the Wayback Machine Centennial of Flight Commission, 2003.
  3. Dorr and Donald 1990, pp. 84-85, 88.
  4. Dwyer, Larry. Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. Aviation History Online Museum, 11 November 2010.
  5. Alexander de Seversky, Russian Ace of World War One, Aircraft Designer & Founder of Republic Aviation. acepilots.com, 2003.
  6. Republic XP-47B Thunderbolt. www.joebaugher.com.
  7. The Turbosupercharger and the Airplane Power Plant. General Electric, January, 1943.
  8. P-47 Thunderbolt. TopFighters.com.
  9. Masefield, Peter. First Analysis of the Thunderbolt. Flying, August 1943, p. 190.
  10. Green 1961, p. 173.
  11. Graff 2007, p. 53.
  12. Air Force Association 1998, p. 110.
  13. Bernstein, Jonathan (2012). 1. P-47 Thunderbolt Units of the Twelfth Air Force. Botley, Oxfordshire: Osprey Publishing. p. 8. ISBN 9781849086721.
  14. Rymaszewski, Michael (July 1994). Playing Your Aces. Computer Gaming World. pp. 101-105.
  15. Republic P-47D Thunderbolt. Archived 2007-03-24 at the Wayback Machine Museum of Flight.
  16. 8th Air Force 56th FG. Archived 2006-06-12 at the Wayback Machine U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II, 18 June 2004.
  17. Francis S. 'Gabby' Gabreski. USAF Air University, Maxwell-Gunter AFB, 17 April 2006.
  18. Rose, Scott. Robert S. Johnson. Warbirds Resource Group, 11 June 2006.
  19. Col. Hubert 'Hub' Zemke. Acepilots.com, 29 July 2003.
  20. Republic P-47D-30-RA Thunderbolt (Long Description). Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
  21. Zaloga p.65
  22. Berliner 2011, p. 20.
  23. Air Power History. goliath.ecnext.com.
  24. RAF Thunderbolts, Flight: 600 (photo caption), 7 December 1944
  25. Republic P-47D Thunderbolt II, RAF Museum
  26. Dias de Cunha, Rudnei. Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. www.rudnei.cunha.nom.br.
  27. Sinopse e Créditos. 10 December 2004. Archived from the original on 10 December 2004.
  28. Velasco, E. Alfonso, Jr. Aztec Eagle - P-47D of the Mexican Expeditionary Air Force. IPMS Stockholm, 9 January 2006.
  29. Sgarlato 2005.
  30. Hardesty 1991, p. 253.
  31. Gordon 2008, p. 449.
  32. http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com/Gal13/12201-12300/gal12272-P-47-Heeps/00.shtm
  33. Merriam, Ray (2017). World War 2 in Review: Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. New York: Merriam Press. ISBN 9781365884856.
  34. Bergerud 2000, pp. 269-70.
  35. Spick 1983, p. 96.
  36. Caldwell 2007, p. 89.
  37. Sims, Edward H. American Aces of World War II, London: Macdonald, 1958.
  38. Sims 1980, pp. 160-61.
  39. Jordan, C. C. Pushing The Envelope With Test Pilot Herb Fisher. Planes and Pilots of WW2, 2000.
  40. Sims 1980, pp. 134-35.
  41. Colonel Neel Earnest Kearby. Archived 2004-10-17 at the Wayback Machine Air Force History, Air Force Historical Studies Office, 20 January 2004.
  42. Hallion, Richard (August 15, 2014). D-Day 1944 - Air Power Over The Normandy Beaches And Beyond. Pickle Partners Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78289887-0.
  43. Barnes 1989, p. 432.
  44. Achtung! Jabos! The Story of the IX TAC. Stars & Stripes, U.S. Army, 1944.
  45. Page 4 illustration of M10 triple-tube launcher, iBiblio.
  46. Dunn, Carle E. (LTC). Army Aviation and Firepower. Archived 2008-12-23 at the Wayback Machine Army, May 2000.
  47. Hagedorn 1991, p. 37.
  48. P-47 Thunderbolt/42-19663. Warbirds Resource Group.
  49. P-47 Thunderbolt/42-26450. Warbirds Resource Group.
  50. P-47 Thunderbolt/42-26757. Warbirds Resource Group.
  51. P-47 Thunderbolt/42-26762. Warbirds Resource Group.
  52. P-47 Thunderbolt/45-49151. Warbirds Resource Group.
  53. P-47 Thunderbolt/45-49219. Warbirds Resource Group.
  54. P-47 Thunderbolt/45-49509. Warbirds Resource Group.
  55. Lake 2002, p. 162.
  56. Lake 2002, p. 163.
  57. Lake 2002, p. 164.
  58. Klemen, L. 201st Mexican Fighter Squadron. The Netherlands East Indies 1941-1942.
  59. Lake 2002, p. 165.
  60. Republic F-47D-40-RE Thunderbolt. Aeronautical Museum-Belgrade.
  61. Davis, Larry (1984). P-47 Thunderbolt in Action. Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc. ISBN 0-89747-161-X.
  62. Lednicer, David. The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage. m-selig.ae.illinois.edu.
  63. Hayward, James. USAAF at War (1942-45): Audiobook CD on CD41 label. ltmrecordings.com.
  64. Rarey, George (June 1996). Laughter and Tears: A Combat Pilot's Sketchbook of World War II Squadron Life. ISBN 1-56550-057-1.
  65. Unbreakable World War II aircraft that were shot to hell—and came back. By Cory Graff Air & Space Magazine
  66. Thunderbolt (1947). imdb.com.
  67. Fighter Squadron (1948). imdb.com.
  68. P-47 Thunderbolt Named Official State Aircraft of Indiana. WFIE-TV. June 24, 2015.

    Republic P-47 Thunderbolt Bibliography:

  • Air Force Fifty. Nashville, Tennessee: Turner Publishing (Air Force Association), 1998 (limited edition). ISBN 1-56311-409-7.
  • Barnes, Frank C. Cartridges of the World. Fairfield, Ohio: DBI Books, 1989. ISBN 978-0-87349-605-6.
  • Berliner, Don. Surviving Fighter Aircraft of World War Two: Fighters. London: Pen & Sword Aviation, 2011. ISBN 978-1-8488-4265-6.
  • Bergerud, Eric M. Fire in the Sky. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 2000. ISBN 0-8133-3869-7.
  • Bodie, Warren M. Republic's P-47 Thunderbolt: From Seversky to Victory. Hiawassee, Georgia: Widewing Publications, 1994. ISBN 0-9629359-1-3.
  • Bull, Steven. Encyclopedia of Military Technology and Innovation. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood, 2004. ISBN 978-1-57356-557-8.
  • Cain, Charles W. and Mike Gerram.Fighters of World War II. London: Profile Publications, 1979.
  • Caldwell, Donald L.; Muller, Richard R. (2007). The Luftwaffe over Germany: Defense of the Reich. London, UK: Greenhill Books. ISBN 978-1-85367-712-0.
  • Davis, Larry. P-47 Thunderbolt in Action, Squadron/Signal Publications (#67). Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications, 1984. ISBN 0-89747-161-X.
  • Donald, David, ed. American Warplanes of the Second World War. London: Airtime Publications, 1995. ISBN 1-84013-392-9.
  • Dorr, Robert F. and David Donald. Fighters of the United States Air Force. London: Temple, 1990. ISBN 0-600-55094-X.
  • Freeman, Roger A. 56th Fighter Group. Oxford, UK: Osprey, 2000. ISBN 1-84176-047-1.
  • Freeman, Roger A. Camouflage and Markings 15: Republic P-47 Thunderbolt U.S.A.A.F., E.T.O. And M.T.O. 1942-1945 (Ducimus Classic). London: Ducimus Books, 1971.
  • Freeman, Roger A. Thunderbolt: A Documentary History of the Republic P-47. London: Macdonald and Jane's, 1978. ISBN 0-354-01166-9.
  • "Goebel, Greg. ""The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt."" Air Vectors, April 2009."
  • Gordon, Yefim. Soviet Air Power in World War 2. Hinkley, UK: Midland/Ian Allan Publishing, 2008. ISBN 978-1-85780-304-4.
  • Graff, Cory. P-47 Thunderbolt at War (The At War Series). St. Paul, Minnesota: Zenith Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-7603-2948-1.
  • Green, William. Fighters Vol. 2 (Warplanes of the Second World War). New York: Doubleday and Company Inc., 1961.
  • Guillemin, Sébastien. Republic P-47 Thunderbolt (Les Materiels de l'Armée de L'Air 4) (in French). Paris: Histoire et Collections, 2007. ISBN 978-2-915239-90-4.
  • Gunston, Bill. Aircraft of World War 2. London: Octopus Books Limited, 1980. ISBN 0-7064-1287-7.
  • Hagedorn, Dan. Republic P-47 Thunderbolt: The Final Chapter: Latin American Air Forces Service. St. Paul, Minnesota: Phalanx Publishing Co. Ltd., 1991. ISBN 0-9625860-1-3.
  • Hardesty, Von. Red Phoenix: The Rise of Soviet Air Power 1941-1945. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1991 (first edition 1982). ISBN 0-87474-510-1.
  • Hess, William N. P-47 Thunderbolt (Warbird History). St. Paul, Minnesota: Motorbooks International Publishers, 1994. ISBN 0-87938-899-4.
  • "Lake, Jon. ""P-47 Thunderbolt Part 1: Early development and combat in the ETO"". International Air Power Review, Volume 1, Summer 2001. Westport, Connecticut: AIRtime Publishing. pp. 138-69. ISSN 1473-9917."
  • "Lake, Jon. ""P-47 Thunderbolt Part 2: Final developments and combat in the Mediterranean, Far East and Pacific"". International Air Power Review, Volume 7, Winter 2002. Westport, Connecticut: AIRtime Publishing. pp. 128-65. ISSN 1473-9917. ISBN 1-880588-48-X."
  • Mondey, David. The Concise Guide to American Aircraft of World War II. London: Chartwell Books, 1994. ISBN 0-7858-0147-2.
  • O'Leary, Michael. USAAF fighters of World War Two in action. London: Blandford Press, 1986. ISBN 0-7137-1839-0.
  • Ryan, Cornelius. A Bridge Too Far. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1974. ISBN 978-0-445-08373-8.
  • Scutts, Jerry. Republic P-47 Thunderbolt (Combat Legend). Ramsbury, Wiltshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-84037-402-0.
  • Sims, Edward H. Fighter Tactics and Strategy 1914-1970. Fallbroock, California: Aero publisher, 1980. ISBN 0-8168-8795-0.
  • "Sgarlato, Nico and Giorgio Gibertini. ""P-47"" (in Italian). I Grandi Aerei Storici n.14, January 2005. Parma, Italy: Delta Editrice. ISSN 1720-0636."
  • Spick, Mike. Fighter Pilot Tactics. The Techniques of Daylight Air Combat. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens, 1983. ISBN 0-85059-617-3.
  • Panzer IV vs Sherman: France 1944 by Steven Zaloga
  • Stoff, Joshua. The Thunder Factory: An Illustrated History of the Republic Aviation Corporation. London: Arms & Armour Press, 1990. ISBN 1-85409-040-2.

    Magazine References: +

  • Airfix Magazines (English) - http://www.airfix.com/
  • Avions (French) - http://www.aerostories.org/~aerobiblio/rubrique10.html
  • FlyPast (English) - http://www.flypast.com/
  • Flugzeug Publikations GmbH (German) - http://vdmedien.com/flugzeug-publikations-gmbh-hersteller_verlag-vdm-heinz-nickel-33.html
  • Flugzeug Classic (German) - http://www.flugzeugclassic.de/
  • Klassiker (German) - http://shop.flugrevue.de/abo/klassiker-der-luftfahrt
  • Le Fana de L'Aviation (French) - http://boutique.editions-lariviere.fr/site/abonnement-le-fana-de-l-aviation-626-4-6.html
  • Le Fana de L'Aviation (French) - http://www.pdfmagazines.org/tags/Le+Fana+De+L+Aviation/
  • Osprey (English) - http://www.ospreypublishing.com/
  • Revi Magazines (Czech) - http://www.revi.cz/

    Web References: +

  • History of RAF Organisation: http://www.rafweb.org
  • Imperial War Museums - https://www.iwm.org.uk
  • American Air Museum - https://www.americanairmuseum.com/
  • Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_P-47_Thunderbolt
  • Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/

USAAF Military History Section

USAAF Chronology and War Diaries 1941-1942 1943 1944 1945

United States Army Air Force - USAAF units

USAAF Combat Units

 

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This webpage was updated 14th April 2024