Corgi USAAC Curtiss P-40B Warhawk Fighter - "White 155", 2nd Lt. Kenneth Taylor, 47th Pursuit Squadron, 15th Pursuit Group, Wheeler Field, Pearl Harbor, December 7th, 1941 [80th Anniversary of the Pearl Harbor Attack] (1:72 Scale)

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USAAC Curtiss P-40B Warhawk Fighter - "White 155", 2nd Lt. Kenneth Taylor, 47th Pursuit Squadron, 15th Pursuit Group, Wheeler Field, Pearl Harbor, December 7th, 1941 [80th Anniversary of the Pearl Harbor Attack] (1:72 Scale)

Corgi USAAC Curtiss P-40B Warhawk Fighter - "White 155", 2nd Lt. Kenneth Taylor, 47th Pursuit Squadron, 15th Pursuit Group, Wheeler Field, Pearl Harbor, December 7th, 1941

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Product Code: AA28105

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Corgi AA28105 USAAC Curtiss P-40B Warhawk Fighter - "White 155", 2nd Lt. Kenneth Taylor, 47th Pursuit Squadron, 15th Pursuit Group, Wheeler Field, Pearl Harbor, December 7th, 1941 [80th Anniversary of the Pearl Harbor Attack] (1:72 Scale) "This nation will remain a neutral nation, but I cannot ask that every American remain neutral in thought as well. Even a neutral has a right to take account of facts, even a neutral cannot be asked to close his mind or close his conscience. I have said not once but many times that I have seen war and that I hate war; I say that again and again. I hope the United States will keep out of this war, I believe that it will. And I give you assurance and reassurance that every effort of your government will be directed toward that end. As long as it remains within my power to prevent there will be no blackout of peace in the United States."
- President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, September 5th, 1939

The P-40 was the best known Curtiss-Wright designed airplane of the Second World War. It was also one of the most controversial fighters, vilified by many as being too slow, lacking in maneuverability, having too low a climbing rate, and being largely obsolescent by contemporary standards even before it went into production. The inadequacies of the P-40 were even the subject of a Congressional investigation after the War ended.

While these criticisms were certainly valid, it is also true that the P-40 served its country well, especially in China and Burma, during the opening phase of the War in the Pacific when little else was available to the US Army Air Corps. Along with the P-39 Airacobra, the P-40 was the only American fighter available in quantity to confront the Japanese advance until more modern aircraft could be delivered to frontline squadrons.

This particular 1:72 scale replica of a USAAC Curtiss P-40B Warhawk fighter was piloted by 2nd Lt. Kenneth Taylor, who was attached to the 47th Pursuit Squadron, 15th Pursuit Group, then deployed to Wheeler Field, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7th, 1941. Sold Out!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 6-inches
Length: 5-1/2-inches

Release Date: December 2021

Historical Account: "Real Good Time" - Having been posted to the US Army Air Corps' 47th Pursuit Squadron at Wheeler Field on Honolulu Island in April 1941, Second Lieutenant Kenneth Taylor quickly showed his flying abilities and was given the position of flight commander soon after his arrival. In late November, the 47th Pursuit Squadron and their Curtiss P-40B fighters were sent to nearby Haleiwa Field for aerial gunnery exercises, shooting at flag targets and perfecting their aim. At the end of a busy period,

Taylor and his squadron mate friend George Welch were granted weekend leave, so on the evening of 6th December and wearing full black tie dress, they headed for the Officers Club at Hickham Field, expecting a 'real good time'. In the morning, whilst still sleeping off the effects of the previous night, the pair woke to the sound of low flying airplanes, explosions and machine gun fire - Wheeler Field was under attack. Pulling on their tuxedo trousers, Taylor rang ahead to Haleiwa and told them to prepare his and Welch's fighters, before jumping in his Buick and traveling the ten minutes to the airfield at high speed. Immediately taking to the air and heading back towards Wheeler, the pair chased the Japanese aircraft towards Pearl Harbor, raking any aircraft which entered their sights with machine gun fire.