Strana 54
Lt. Robert McClurg, 25
th
FS, 51
st
FG, Assam Valley, India, 1943
42-46263, 1Lt George R. Barnes, 16
th
FS, 23
rd
FG, Chanyi, China, spring 1943
Formed as the 25th Pursuit Squadron at
Hamilton Field, California, on January 15, 1941,
the Squadron received its first P-40s in July
and by March 1942 had sailed around the globe
to set up operations in British India. As the
unit settled in Assam, India, the 25
th
picked up
the name “Assam Draggins.” The 51
st
Fighter
Group consisted of 16
th
FS, 25
th
FS and 26
th
FS,
to which was later added, in 1943, the 449th
FS flying P-38 Lightnings. As the P-40s were
most used as fighter-bombers to prevent the
advance of Japanese forces, Lt. Col. John E. Barr,
the executive officer for the 51st Fighter Group,
modified the P-40s to carry 1,000-pound bombs.
Due to this modification, these P-40s were
unofficially redesignated B-40, and thanks to
it, by May 1943, the men from 51
st
FG had halted
the Japanese offensive. The P-40K named
Konkubine got popular thanks to the photos of
1000-pounder with numerous messages being
hung under the fuselage pylon.
After completion of his pilot training, George
Barnes was deployed to Asia in March 1942
to join the newly formed 16
th
FS. The mission
of the pilots of the entire 23
rd
Fighter Group
was to protect key supply routes (flights over
the Himalayas, known as “The Hump”), escort
bombers, and carry out direct attacks on
Japanese positions in the jungles of Burma
and southern China. During his combat service,
Barnes scored four confirmed kills and one
probable kill. He recorded his first victory on
November 12, 1942, during a major air battle
over Kweilin. In the spring, he flew a P-40K
named “Thunderbird II” which bore the markings
of his victories. A white field without a red dot
indicated a probable kill. This aircraft also bore
the insignia of the 16
th
FS, known as “The Flying
Wall of China,” featuring a flying wall inspired
by a drawing created by the grateful residents
of Ling Ling city, which the pilots of the 16
th
FS
had protected from Japanese air raids in July
and August 1942. The Chinese characters at
the bottom of the emblem can be translated as
“Flying Defensive Wall.” Barnes was shot down
and killed on July 24, 1943, near the city of Ling
Ling. At the time, he was already fighting in the
ranks of 74
th
FS.
KITS 08/2026
INFO Eduard54
August 2026