Strana 35
P-51D-20, 44-63223, 2Lt. Arthur R. Bowers, 334
th
FS, 4
th
FG, 8
th
AF, , Debden, United Kingdom, February 1945
P-51D-10, 44-14570, Capt. Ted Lines, 335
th
FS, 4
th
FG, 8
th
AF, Debden, United Kingdom, October 1944
Arthur Bowers served with the 334
th
Fighter
Squadron from November 16, 1944, until the end
of the war. He named the Mustang assigned
to him “Sweet Arlene” after his wife, whose
photograph was also the model for the noseart.
The author of the drawing was S/Stg Donald
Allen, who signed his name under the black
line on which “Arlene” was sitting. Bowers flew
a total of 30 missions and, although he did not
achieve any victories in aerial combat, he still
became an ace by destroying six enemy aircraft
on the ground. The red nose was the main
identifying feature of the 4
th
Fighter Group and
came in three successive forms. “Sweet Arlene”
sports here the final version, valid from January
1945. The distinctive colors of the individual
squadrons within the 4
th
Fighter Group were
applied to the rudder from November 1944, i.e.,
red for the 334
th
FS, white for the 335
th
FS, and
blue for the 336
th
FS.
Ted Lines took over this Mustang in early October
1944 (it originally wore the code WD
-
A and
was named “Ridge Runner”) from Maj. Pierce
McKennon, who had completed his combat
tour. After being recoded as WD
-
D, Ted Lines
decorated his new Mustang in the same way as
his two previous aircraft, i.e., with a coat of arms
with Native American motifs, the inscription
“Thunder Bird”, and a unique style of marking
kills. Although Lines is officially credited with
ten victories, examination of combat reports
shows that he actually destroyed 14 enemy
aircraft. The red nose depicts the original
appearance of the aircraft, valid from March to
November 1944.
KITS 04/2026
INFO Eduard
35
April 2026