Flying Tigers: Claire Chennault and all that

Larry Dighera wrote:
Are you able to point me toward a resource, like a roster or other
documentation, that will shed any light on an individual Flying Tiger?
I used to work with a Zinsco salesman named Arnold Moselle who once
mentioned that he was a member of the Flying Tigers that flew the
hump. As I recall, the hump was the Himalaya Mountains. I guess not
all Flying Tigers flew P40s.


It's safe to say Moselle wasn't a member of the AVG. He could easily have been
a member of the 14th Air Force, which assumed the moniker of "Flying Tigers"
after the breakup of the AVG in 1942. And they did fly the Hump....

While I can easily find complete rosters for the AVG, the 14th Air Force is a
little more daunting. Too much for me, anyway.

Moselle should be somewhere between 80 and 90 years old today, assuming he's
still alive. Coincidentally, there was a B-17 pilot by that name but he flew in
the European theater of war.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN
mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com

On Thu, 23 Aug 2007 11:45:53 -0400, "Mortimer Schnerd, RN"
mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com wrote in
:

Larry Dighera wrote:
Are you able to point me toward a resource, like a roster or other
documentation, that will shed any light on an individual Flying Tiger?
I used to work with a Zinsco salesman named Arnold Moselle who once
mentioned that he was a member of the Flying Tigers that flew the
hump. As I recall, the hump was the Himalaya Mountains. I guess not
all Flying Tigers flew P40s.


It's safe to say Moselle wasn't a member of the AVG.

Perhaps. But checking the AVG roster would enable conformation or
not. I don't find his name he

http://www.warbirdforum.com/roster.htm
http://www.flyingtigersavg.com/camco.htm
http://www.flyingtigersvideo.com/roster.html
Flying Tigers were officially disbanded on July 4th, 1942...

He could easily have been
a member of the 14th Air Force, which assumed the moniker of "Flying Tigers"
after the breakup of the AVG in 1942. And they did fly the Hump....

Thank you for that information. I wasn't aware of that. It might
explain his statement.

At the time, I had just earned my airmans certificate, and I wasn't at
all familiar with the Flying Tigers, so I didn't question his
statement. Now I'm still not sure whether Flying Tigers flew the hump
or not.

If this information is correct, it seems that the Air Transport
Command flew the hump:

http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1733.html
The Flying Tigers
The U.S. began to help the Chinese defend itself even before the
Pearl Harbor Attack. Lend-Lease aid began in April 1941, and in
June the Flying Tigers were sent to fly missions against the
Japanese.

In April 1942, pilots started flying the "Hump," and continued
missions until 1945, when the Burma Road was reopened. The
dangerous 530-mile long passage over the Himalayan Mountains took
its toll. Nearly 1,000 men and 600 Air Transport Command (ATC)
planes were lost over the hump by the end of China-Burma-India
Theater (CBI) operations. In addition, China National Aviation
Corporation (CNAC) lost 38 planes and 88 airmen.

While I can easily find complete rosters for the AVG, the 14th Air Force is a
little more daunting. Too much for me, anyway.

I did find a little history on 14th Air Force web site:

http://www.vandenberg.af.mil/library...et.asp?id=4685
The Creation of the 14th Air Force

The China Air Task Force continued as the "Flying Tigers" under
the command of Brigadier General Chennault. After the China Air
Task Force was discontinued, the 14th Air Force (14 AF) was
established by the special order of President Roosevelt on 10
March 1943. Chennault was appointed the commander and promoted to
Major General. The "Flying Tigers" of 14 AF (who adopted the
"Flying Tigers" designation from the AVG) conducted highly
effective fighter and bomber operations along a wide front that
stretched from the bend of the Yellow River and Tsinan in the
north to Indochina in the south, from Chengtu and the Salween
River in the west to the China Sea and the island of Formosa in
the east. They were also instrumental in supplying Chinese forces
through the airlift of cargo across "The Hump" in the
China-Burma-India theater. By the end of World War II, 14 AF had
achieved air superiority over the skies of China and established a
ratio of 7.7 enemy planes destroyed for every American plane lost
in combat. Overall, military officials estimated that over 4,000
Japanese planes were destroyed or damaged in the China-Burma-India
theater during World War II. In addition, they estimated that air
units in China destroyed 1,100,000 tons of shipping, 1,079
locomotives, 4,836 trucks and 580 bridges. The United States Army
Air Corps credits 14 AF with the destruction of 2,315 Japanese
aircraft, 356 bridges, 1,225 locomotives and 712 railroad cars.

Moselle should be somewhere between 80 and 90 years old today, assuming he's
still alive.

Right. I have completely lost touch with him.

Coincidentally, there was a B-17 pilot by that name but he flew in
the European theater of war.

Yes. I saw that too, but I don't think that was him. He was
considerably under 6' tall. He was a prince of a fellow, and
knowledgeable too.

Larry Dighera wrote:
On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 11:48:31 -0400, Cubdriver usenet AT danford DOT
net wrote in :

HarperCollins has just published a revised, updated, and shortened (!)
edition of "Flying Tigers: Claire Chennault and His American
Volunteers, 1941-1942".

Congratulations. I wish you all the best.

It seems that there are several aviation authors among the readership
of rec.aviation.*.

Are you able to point me toward a resource, like a roster or other
documentation, that will shed any light on an individual Flying Tiger?
I used to work with a Zinsco salesman named Arnold Moselle who once
mentioned that he was a member of the Flying Tigers that flew the
hump. As I recall, the hump was the Himalaya Mountains. I guess not
all Flying Tigers flew P40s.

Arnold Moselle wasn't a member of the AVG, officer or enlisted.
Dudley Henriques

--
Dudley Henriques