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Bogeys Eleven O'Clock High by Robert Taylor.
Doug Canning breaks radio silence to call the sighting of Admiral Yamamotos
flight over the pacific island of Bourganville, 18 April 1943. After a two and a
half hour, four hundred mile flight just above the waves, mission leader John
Mitchell and his 16 ship raiding party push their P-38s to full power to
complete one of the most remarkable ambushes in aviation history. |
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Bogeys Eleven O Clock High by Robert Taylor
Doug Canning breaks radio silence to call the sighting of Admiral Yamamotos flight over the pacific island of Bourganville, 18 April 1943. After a two and a half hour, four hundred mile flight just above the waves, mission leader John Mitchell and his 16 ship raiding party push their P-38s to full power to complete one of the most remarkable ambushes in aviation history.
Signed limited edition of 1250 prints. Paper size 38 inches x 24 inches (97cm x 61cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Colonel John W Mitchell, Lt Colonel Roger J Ames, Colonel Rex Barber (deceased), Lt Colonel Doug Canning, Captain Delton Goerke (deceased), Captain Larry Graebener, Lt Colonel Besby F Holmes, Major Julius Jack Jacobson and Lt Colonel Louis R Kittel.
Limited edition of artist proofs. Paper size 38 inches x 24 inches (97cm x 61cm). Price £325.00 Signed by Colonel John W Mitchell, Lt Colonel Roger J Ames, Colonel Rex Barber (deceased), Lt Colonel Doug Canning, Captain Delton Goerke (deceased), Captain Larry Graebener, Lt Colonel Besby F Holmes, Major Julius Jack Jacobson and Lt Colonel Louis R Kittel.
ITEM CODE DHM2075
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Bogeys Eleven O'Clock High by Robert Taylor
- The Signatures
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Colonel John W Mitchell
One of the most famous fighter leaders of WWII, John Mitchell joined the Service in 1934. In a career spanning 24 years, he flew no fewer than 457 combat missions, taking part in the Campaigns of Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima, and later flying jets in Korea. John Mitchell was responsible for planning, navigating and leading the most successful long distance intercept in aviation history, culminating in the demise of Admiral Yamamoto. This highly decorated Ace is credited with 16 air victories.
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Lt Colonel Roger J Ames
Roger Ames joined the USAAF for pilot training on 24th April 1941 and was assigned to the 12th Fighter Squadron. He first saw combat in December of the following year, and logged a total of 67 hours of combat flying in P39s and P38s. Selected for the Yamamoto mission, he flew in Mitchells top cover group, sweeping the sky above Bougainville at 18000 feet. He served in the South Pacific, Solomons, and Canal Zone during WWII.
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Colonel Rex Barber (deceased)
Rex Theodore Barber was born in Culver, Oregon on May 6, 1917. Barber was accepted at Oregon State University and graduated from that University in 1940. In September of that year Barber enlisted in the Army Air Corps, and served as a private first class, prior to being accepted for flight training in March of 1941. Following graduation with Class 41-H from Mather Field in California in October of 1941, now Lt. Rex Barber was assigned to the 70th Fighter Squadron of the 35th Fighter Group. He arrived in the Fiji Islands with his new unit in January of 1942. Barber's only victory in 1942 was on December 28, 1942 when he downed a twin-engine Japanese "Nell." Early in 1943 the 70th Fighter Squadron was integrated into the 339th Fighter Group, and converted to the Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter. The P-38 was an ideal aircraft given the long distances involved in combat in the Pacific. In April Rex got credit for downing two Zekes near Cape Esperance. On April 18, 1943 Rex participated in one of the most interesting missions of the War, the interception and destruction of the Betty bomber carrying Admiral lsoruko Yamamoto, the Commander of the Japanese Combined Fleet, and mastermind of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The mission was commanded by Major John Mitchell. While a total of sixteen aircraft were involved, only four were to actually attack the Betty. With Yamamoto noted for his punctuality, and American code-breakers having deciphered his intinerary, Mitchell's flight had a fighting chance of pulling off the mission. Yamamoto's flight arrived on schedule. There were two Betty bombers and only four escorting fighters. Barber, Lt. Frank Holmes and Captain Tom Lamphier got in the heat of the action. Barber got hits on both the Bettys and also bagged a Zeke. The Army Air Force decided after the mission to give equal credit to both Lamphier and Barber for downing the Betty which Yamamoto was a passenger in. Years later Tom Lamphier lobbied hard for getting sole credit for the Yamamoto victory. The Air Force's official investigation concluded that a shared victory was still appropriate. More recent evidence, including testimony from one of the Japanese Zero pilots and a survivor from one of the Bettys which was downed, were supportive of the thesis that Rex Barber should get full credit. A book published by noted aviation historian and author Carroll Glines favors this conclusion, and a recent review panel of the American Fighter Aces Association concluded that Rex Barber deserves the sole credit for downing Yamamoto's Betty. This unfortunate controversy tarnishes the fact that this mission was the longest successful interception of its kind, and all those who participated in all aspects of it deserve credit. Barber served a second combat tour in the Pacific with the 449th Fighter Squadron in China. Following the War, Rex commanded the 29th Fighter Squadron of the 412th Fighter Group. Later he would command one of the Air Force's early jet squadrons flying the P-59A Airacomet and the P-80. Rex retired from the Air Force in 1961. His numerous decorations include the Navy Cross, the Silver Star with one Oak Leaf Cluster, the Purple Heart, the Air Medal, and the Air Force Commendation Medal. Rex Barber passed away in 2002.
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Lt Colonel Doug Canning
Doug Canning flew his first combat mission in early 1942 having joined the service the previous year. He went on to fly 63 combat missions and is one of the few pilots to have flown in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. During his combat career he survived an ocean landing, and sank a Japanese transport ship. On the Yamamoto mission he flew in John Mitchells flight, and was the first pilot to sight Yamamotos aircraft.
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Captain Delton Goerke (deceased)
Almost two years to the day after joining the USAAF, Delton Goerke found himself selected to take part in the Yamamoto Mission. He had three combat tours to Guadalcanal with 339th Pursuit Squadron and saw action also in the Solomon Islands. He flew P39 and P38 fighters and completed a total of 78 combat missions. On the Yamamoto Missions he was part of Mitchells top cover flight. He died 23rd March 1999.
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Captain Larry Graebener
Having joined the USAAF in May 1941, Larry Graebener was posted to the 45th Squadron based in Hawaii. Transferred to the 12th Squadron he took part in his first combat in August of 1942. During his war he took part in three major Pacific battles, flew 50 combat missions, crash landed twice in the Pacific, and spent a week behind Japanese lines. Larry Graebener was in the top cover flight on the Yamamoto Mission.
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Lt Colonel Besby F Holmes
Besby Holmes was one of only 18 fighter pilots to get airborne over Hawaii on 7th December 1941. 18th April 1943 sw him in the Attack Flight on the Yamamoto Mission. After initial difficulty releasing long range tanks, Holmes, with wingman Ray Hine, joined Barber and Lamphier in the attack on the bombers and the dog fight with the escorting Zeroes. Besby Holmes was credited with 6 air victories in his 145 combat missions.
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Major Julius Jack Jacobson
Jack Jacobson joined the Service in March 1941, and flew his first combat missions in October 1942. Jack Jacobson was John Mitchells regular wingman, and flew in that position on the Yamamoto Mission. Flying P39s and later P38s he saw action at Guadalcanal and in the Solomons, flying a total of 111 combat missions. After leaving the Service in 1946 he rejoined to serve two years in the Korean conflict. Cracking the Japanese naval code, U.S. intelligence discovered the travel plans of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, architect of the Pearl Harbor attack. On April 18, 1943, sixteen Army Air Force P-38 fighters took off to intercept his aircraft. Flying at altitudes of 50 feet or less over 400 miles of open ocean while maintaining radio silence, they arrived at precisely the right moment—a phenomenal feat of navigation. Sixty-two years later, exactly which pilot shot down Yamamoto’s aircraft in the ensuing turmoil of aerial combat remains a controversy. “Jack” Jacobson, one of only three living Yamamoto Mission pilots, flew as wingman to mission leader Major John W. Mitchell
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Lt Colonel Louis R Kittel
Lou Kittel joined the Service in 1939, seeing his first combat in March 1943 in the Pacific. He pioneered night-fighting techniques useing the P38, loitering at high altitude and pouncing on enemy aircraft caught in the searchlights. On one occasion he flamed two Bettys over Guadalcanal in a spectacular interception watched by half the islands population, returning to a heroes welcome. Lou Kittel flew 78 combat missions and recorded 4 air victories and 1 probable.
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