Alaskan Miracle Bird

BY ROBERT F. DORR

ON JANUARY 1, 1945, Second Lieutenant Robert L. Nesmith of the 54th Fighter Squadron, 343rd Fighter Group, was practicing low-altitude gunnery passes through Tenmak Valley on the Aleutian island of Attu. The war had moved from the Aleutians and closer to Japan, but flying in the frozen north was still very risky. Distracted, Nesmith flew into the soft, snow-covered muskeg at a shallow angle. He crawled out of the fighter unharmed. Another Lightning had been the first aircraft based in Alaska to score an aerial victory against the Japanese in World War II. Nesmith’s was delivered by Lockheed on April 3, 1943, and reached Alaska the following month. The 54th squadron was at Amchitka in the Aleutians when it received the Lightning and soon moved to Alexei Field at Attu for…

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Flight Journal (Digital) - 1 Issue, September - October 2022

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