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Please note that our logo is used on our website images only and does not appear on our products. A Pair of Aces by Stan Stokes. (B) In 1936 the Lockheed Aircraft Company won a contract to produce a high altitude interceptor for the USAAC. This contract was won despite the fact that the company had been nearly bankrupt in 1932, and had never produced a fighter aircraft. Mr. Kelly Johnson, Lockheeds chief designer on the project, settled on a design incorporating a twin engine scheme utilizing twin booms to house the aircrafts supercharged engines, and a central nacelle which housed the pilot and all the armament. Despite an unfortunate crash of the prototype, the USAAC was impressed with the aircraft, and a production order was placed for the first P-38 Lightnings. The P-38 was to prove to be one of Americas top fighters of WW II. The Lightning was fast, very heavily armed, had excellent range, and a great rate of climb. The aircraft was capable of flying with only one engine, and this proved advantageous in improving long range reliability. The two most effective models were the J and the L, of which more than 6,000 were produced. One early technical problem with the aircraft was the loss of control during high speed dives when the aircraft obtained speeds approximating 500 MPH. This problem was ultimately solved by the addition of a dive flap beneath the spar to offset a nose down tendency during such dives. Nicknamed the twin tailed devil by the Germans, the P-38 saw a lot of action in the Pacific where its great range was a more important asset. Americas two top aces of the War were P-38 pilots serving with the Fifth Air Force in the Southwest Pacific. Major Richard Bong was a soft spoken Wisconsin native who achieved 40 confirmed victories, but was killed on August 6, 1945 while testing a P-80 jet over Southern California. On July 26, 1943 Bong achieved four victories on a single mission. Thomas McGuire was born in New Jersey, and enlisted in the Army as an aviation cadet in 1941. Between August 1943 and January 1945 McGuire was credited with 38 victories. McGuire and Bong flew together in combat on many occasions. On December 7, 1944 both Bong and McGuire chalked up two kills during a mission over Ormoc Bay. McGuire was ultimately killed in combat in early 1945 when he stalled his P-38 prior to an engagement with the enemy. Both of these gentlemen received the Congressional Medal of Honor, and both flew aircraft named after women who would become their wives. The print depicts both Bong and McGuire over the Southwest Pacific in 1944. Bongs Marge is in the foreground, with McGuires Pudgy off his wing. Item Code : STK0026B A Pair of Aces by Stan Stokes. (B) - This Edition TYPE EDITION DETAILS SIZE SIGNATURES OFFERS YOUR PRICE PURCHASING PRINT Signed limited edition of 225 prints. Size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm) Drucker, Marjorie Bong + Artist : Stan Stokes Signature(s) value alone : £55 £10 Off! Now : £200.00 All prices on our website are displayed in British Pounds Sterling

Other editions of this item : A Pair of Aces by Stan Stokes. STK0026 TYPE EDITION DETAILS SIZE SIGNATURES OFFERS YOUR PRICE PURCHASING PRINT Signed limited edition of 4750 prints. Supplied with signed and numbered certificate of authenticity. Last 3 prints available of this sold out edition. Print size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm) Artist : Stan Stokes £15 Off! Now : £45.00 VIEW EDITION... General descriptions of types of editions :

Extra Details : A Pair of Aces by Stan Stokes. (B)

About all editions : A photo of an edition of the print.

Signatures on this item
*The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare.
Name	Info
Marjorie Bong Drucker (deceased) *Signature Value : £55	Marjorie Bong Drucker was married to Major Richard Ira Bong, the all-time highest scoring American fighter pilot ace - referred to as the 'Ace of Aces' on February 10, 1945. Their marriage in 1945 was called the 'marriage of the year.' Her picture on Major Bong's P-38 has become the legendary 'Marge' plane, flown in the South Pacific during WW 11, and on Major Bong's war bond tour of the United States in 1944. He was killed, on August 6, 1945, testing the new Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star jet in Southern California. Major Bong was 24 years old at the time of his death, and Marge became a widow at the tender age of 21. Her book, Memories, The Story of Dick and Marge Bong, will be published in 1995. Memories covers a detailed account of their courtship and wedding, both of which were war-time media events. It also descirbes how she coped with her husband's death and the years following. Marge has two daughters, Kristina and Karen, from her later marriage to Murray Drucker, a publisher of dog ii. tagazines, who died in 1991. After a succesful career in the fashion field, Marge became involved in Murray's publishing business, and started her own dog publication. 1996 marked the 40th consecutive year of continuous publishing of the Boxer Reviezv magazine, in which she uses her professional name of Kris Dahl. Marge, a resident of Los Angeles, has been actively involved in recent years in the new Richard Ira Bong Heritage Center in Poplar Wisconsin, Dick's home town. She devotes considerable time to fund raising activities for the Center, and attends many P-38 reunions around the country. She has been invited to many of these functions as a speaker, and in August of 1995 Marge was the honored guest of Townsville Australia for a major anniversary celebration commemorating the end of WW 11 in the Pacific. The Heritage Center museum will enclose Major Bong's P-38 'Marge,' and it is hoped that the Center will not only be a tribute to America's greatest fighter ace, but to all veterans which served their country with courage during the Second World War. She died on 27th September 2003.