P-38 DESIGN TEAM
 "Kelly" Johnson
 Generally accepted as the creative brains behind the design of the fiesty P-38.

P-38 TEST PILOTS
P-38 test pilots truly needed nerves of steel because they were taking up these unique planes for the first time...and things didn't always go as well as hoped.  Here are a few of them:

Tony LeVier
Ben Kelsey
Milos Burcham

P-38 ACES
There were quite a few pilots who reached "Ace" status in the P-38, including the two highest scoring American Aces, Dick Bong and Tommy McGuire. 

Here's an alphabetical listing of the Aces.

PHOTO RECONNAISSANCE
 Many people have said that photo recon pilots did everything the combat pilots did -- but they did it without any guns. Read about these amazing heroes here.
 

LOTS OF HELP

The P-38 had plenty of help in establishing its reputation as the best aircraft of WWII.

There were the designers at Lockheed who created the unique and powerful concept, the test pilots (who made sure everything was working like it should), the assembly workers at Lockheed, the pilots, and among the most important, the crew chief and other members of the crew who kept these birds in the air so the pilots could do their job.
 

Once you've visited all the pages about the P-38 and it's human contributors to the mission, stop by and read about the P-38 Museum in Riverside, CA   Go to next page...

This great picture was sent to us by Edgar Wolf, Jr. What we know is that this photo was taken from original negatives by photo specialists and only recently discovered.  It is thought that it was from the 59th Fighter Squadron stationed at a field about five miles from Chabua, Assam, India. If anyone recognizes this troop, let us know his name!

WWII Memorial

 CLICK HERE

 


 

P-38 WASPS

If you don't know about the role of the Women's Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) in P-38 History, you must visit this section of our website. You'll be amazed...

P-38 CREWS

HISTORIANS

There are plenty of great books about the P-38, but in our opinion the best ones are written by John Stanaway.  Check them out.

 

 

As our parents, grandparents and friends who were "hands on" with the P-38 Lightning are continuing to leave us, keeping this website available as a tribute to them is vital. This aircraft was an important part of their lives and their history, and to carry on this legacy, we need funding. We are not affiliated with the USAF or Lockheed and our entire operation is supported entirely by people like you.

What would you pay for a good aviation DVD or book? If you enjoy this website, please consider a financial contribution of the same amount to help defray our increasing costs and ensure that this part of aviation history continues to be available to people all over the world.

We have just added a page to thank our website's financial contributors. No donation is too small, after all $1 from a million visitors will keep us going a very long time!

It's easy to help...just click on the "Donate" button below.


 


The copyright to all graphics on this site are held by the original copyright owners.

© 2008  P-38 National Association Website  All rights reserved
Contact us