Wartime aircraft with nicknames and identities

[Dave Homewood]

Let's start a list of wartime RNZAF aircraft that gained nicknames and/or identities in the form of nose art, etc:

Here's a few, what can you add?

Vildebeest NZ111 - "Lord Nelson" (because of the 111 serial)

Catalina, 490 (NZ) Sqn RF, Africa - "Canterbury" (serial unknown to me)

Harvard NZ1029 - No. 21 (AC) Sqn, RNZAF, called "Joan II" with Pinnochio/Pixie nose art (Pat Molloy's plane)

Hudson NZ2078 - No. 1 (GR) Sqn SJ-W - "Snifter" dog nose art

Hudson NZ2077 - No. 1 (GR) Sqn - black cat with back arched nose art

P40E NZ3038- Umslopagaas

P40's NZ3148, NZ3167, 3220 and Corsair 5233 - Gloria Lyons

P40 NZ3072 - Wairarapa Wildcat (Geoff Fisken's plane)

C47 NZ3501 - Popeye (Popeye Lucas's plane)

C47 NZ35?? - Popeye III

Sunderland III NZ4101 - Tainui

Sunderland III NZ4102 - Tokomaru

Sunderland III NZ4103 - Mataatua

Sunderland III NZ4104 Takitimu

Ventura NZ4516 - Patua Te Ra with Maui nose art

Ventura NZ4516 - Mickey Mouse artwork

Dauntless NZ5057 - "Howa-baht That Hic!" nose art (T.J. Maclean de Lange's plane)

Corsair NZ5545 - "Corsair" emblazened on side for airshow 1945

There are loads more I'm sure, can you add any?

[Dave Homewood]

Corsair NZ5201 - "ALMA"

Corsair NZ5323 - "JOAN"

Corsair NZ5333 "FIONA"

Corsair NZ5350 "STRUGGLE BUGGY"

Corsair NZ5424 "NAN"

Corsair NZ5440 "LIL' AUDREY" (Who was a wartime cartoon strip in NZ papers)

Corsair NZ5457 "PATRICIA MARY"

Corsair NZ5485 "KOHIMARAMA IX" with Heitiki and Ghost motifs

[Dave Homewood]

Tiger Moth NZ739 - Popeye artwork chalked onto camo fuselage
(for reference of this see either 'We Also Served' by Wally Ingham, or better still as there's two photos, Wally's article in the book 'New Zealand Tiger Moths 1938-2000' by Cliff Jenks and David Phillips)

These below sourced from Warren Russell's 'NZPAF and RNZAF Colour Schemes Vol 1' book (a must have for RNZAF fans)

Oxford NZ1323 - Donald Duck nose art

Anson NZ412 - Mickey Mouse 'Fantasia Wizard' nose art (Disney)

Anson NZ404 "DOPEY" Donkey nose art (was this Disney inspired?)

Anson NZ413 - Dumbo The Flying Elephant nose art (Disney)

Anson NZ4?? - 'Ben Ali Gator' nose art (Disney, from Fantasia)

Anson NZ403 - Toro the Bull nose art (Disney)

[Dave Homewood]

No. 75 (NZ) Squadron Wellingtons

From book 'Forever Strong' by Norman Franks

WELLINGTON L7948 - BONES, CUTHBERT skeleton artwork
See here www.feltwell.org.uk/75squadron.htm

WELLINGTON Unknown Serial - ACTUNG ANZAC hammer and sickle dripping blood with word Tovarich

WELLINGTON serial unknown - Old Bill cartoon (Bruce Bairnsfather's old soldier cartoon character)
See here www.feltwell.org.uk/75squadron.htm

WELLINGTON Unknown Serial - Soda Syphon spitting bombs

ALSO NOT IN THAT BOOK

WELLINGTON probably R3176 Donald Duck
artwork
See here www.feltwell.org.uk/75squadron.htm

WELLINGTON R3169 - POPEYE - probably Fred 'Popeye' Lucas's plane I expect
See here www.feltwell.org.uk/75squadron.htm

WELLINGTON L2820 - J. WELLINGTON WIMPY artwork from Popeye cartoon strip
See here www.feltwell.org.uk/75squadron.htm

Thomas Frederick Duck nose art in RNZAF Museum - full story of artwork, planes (was worn on a Wellington and a Lanc) in the book 'New Zealanders in the RAF' by Alan W. Mitchell - had Donald Duck motif too

Also known thanks to a letter from Cambridge's Brian McNamara, the following
"I and others in the squadron have got brand new machines and we have called them after the names of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. We picked Dopey and have a painting of him on both sides of the nose."
See my site for more
www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/Brian%20Mcnamara.htm

Any more 75 Sqn Wellington artworks/nicknames?

[Dave Homewood]

Grumman Avengers

NZ2509 - "Grumpy" logo (Disney)

NZ2517 - 'Sophisticated Lady' nickname

NZ2518 - 'PLONKY' logo and nickname (flying beer barrel)

NZ25?? - Donald Duck logo (Disney)

NZ25?? - Dumbo the flying Elephant logo (Disney)

NZ25?? - Scottish piper logo

NZ25?? - Flying Kiwi logo "Who Said The B_____ Couldn't Fly?" slogan

See some of the above dolourised by me on this thread
rnzaf.proboards43.com/index.cgi?board=Wartime&action=display&thread=1110172512

[Dave Homewood]

Lockheed Venturas

NZ4510 - nicknamed "Tonawhai"

NZ4511 - nicknamed "Slippery Sam" after the popular card game of the time, had cards in artwork

[Bruce]

Heres one - not World War 2 though, but deployed to a war zone (East Timor?) for peacekeeping duties:
Iroquois NZ3816 "No Frills"
see why on Phil Treweeks site:
www.kiwiaircraftimages.com/pages/01when46.html

[Dave Homewood]

postwar Corsairs

NZ5617 "VERNA"

NZ5625 "CAROL"

NZ5658 "HEPCAT"

NZ5659 "DORIS"

NZ5660 "GREMLIN"

NZ563? "KATHLEEN" (possibly NZ5632)

[Dave Homewood]

A Hudson in No. 3 (GR) Squadron was called 'Tutae Wera', which translates from Maori to English as 'Shit Hot'

Interestingly in my research into the GR and BR squadrons I have interviewed a crewmember from that aircraft and another from the Ventura 'Slippery Sam'

[Dave Homewood]

Some great Kittyhawk names:

Some No. 14 Sqn P40M's appeared in a number of 1994 New Zealand Wings magazine, these being December-January, February and May 1994. They are from 19 Sqn and have these names painted on the port cowls above their exhausts.

"TAURANGARURU" coded A, as flown by Jack Knight, 19 Sqn

"DANGA" (I can add that this was a slang word in the RNZAF, also someimes spelled Danger too, but pronounced as danga, because it was short for Dangaroo (rhymes with kangaroo) and referred to a brand new airman whoknew nothing and was a danger to himself and others.

"He Hori"

"Flora Ann"

"KOHIMARAMA VII" - referring no doubt to the Auckland suburb. The Roman numeral for 7 is smaller than the other letters

"PADDY THE RIP" - coded P

and

"TWO-TIMER" - coded I - perhaps the mount of a pilot on his second tour?

The location was thought to be Torokina on 19 Sqn's first tour in 1944, but the serial identities were not known for the individual aircraft. Maybe these were confirmed later by readers? Does anyone know which aircraft was which serial?

[Dave Homewood]

Here's another I found just now, thanks to NZ Wings from July 1980. In that famous often seen photo of three No. 14 Squadron 'B' Flight P-40E's sidling up to Leo White's camera lens (he was in a Harvard) the closest to camera HQ-B (NZ3008)flown by probably Stan Quill is well known as UMSLOGOGAAS.

The middle one has no name but is NZ3036 HQ-Q flown by Paul Green (note the blue-white-blue wing roundel even before the Squadron left NZ!!)

But the name on the far aircraft, HQ-A NZ3007, flown here by Peter Gifford, always eluded me. i could never read it. But Wings assures the name was 'MAGNOLIA MUFFLEWORT' !!

What an awesome name. As that aircraft still resides at Masterton, I wonder if we could convince Mr Slade to repaint it in its original scheme with original nickname!

[corsair67]

A snap from Wigram of T. F. Duck:

[Parrotfish]

P-40N NZ3287 Esma Lee

[baz62]

Not wartime I know but the Museums's Avenger had "The Lone Avenger" stenciled on her when she was the last Avenger target tug still flying. But she did have a Popyeye cartoon on her nose during the war and it was still evident when she was doing the topdressing trials in 1949!

[A4k]

G'day!

I'm new to this forum, and wanted to ask if there are any photos of the "Snifter" dog nose art of Hudson NZ2078?

And for the list: C-47A Dakota NZ3503 'ANYTHING ANYWHERE ANYTIME' with stork and baby motif (port side of nose)

Cheers! Evan

[arty]

I have a picture of my Dad's Cousin (Sgt 'Tony" Saunders) with his crew posed in front of 'U' for Uncle 75 Sqn Wellington. Location not known, but the nose art is what looks like a chap wearing a British steel helmet holding a bomb by the tail. This is enclosed by a circle. The image is not that clear. If anyone has any more details I would be pleased to hear from them since I am trying to add detail to Anthony's service history.

[arty]

www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1B7gjS

Try this link to see the image.

[A4k]

Great photo arty!

[Dave Homewood]

That's certainly an interesting nose art and a new one to me. I'd wager there were a lot more No. 75 Squadron Wellington nose arts out there too, they seemed to be quite common, and hopefully more photos will surface like this one.

[bevansmith]

Squadron 75 - NE148, designated AA-H and nicknamed Howzat with Donald Duck throwing a bomb cricket style.