It was fast, heavily armed and extremely versatile. And many believe the Lockheed P-38 Lightning to be the finest American fighter of WWII. Its low-drag, aerodynamic shape and heavy weight enabled this twin-engine, twin-boomed aircraft to accelerate to high speeds faster than any previous warplane, making it a potent fighter and a superb fighter-bomber. Popular among fighter pilots, P-38s carried out the intercept mission that downed Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, who planned the attack on Pearl Harbor. In the Mediterranean, Luftwaffe pilots showed respect for the Lightning by calling it "der gabelschwanz teufel" (the forked-tail devil). The ultimate P-38 was flown by Dick Bong and Tommy McGuire, who were among the most successful American fighter pilots in history.

Pictured here is an extraordinary 1:72 scale diecast replica of a USAAF Lockheed P-38G Lightning interceptor that was piloted by Capt. Jack M Ilfrey and nicknamed "Happy Jack's Go Buggy", that was attached to the 79th Fighter Squadron "Tigers", 20th Fighter Group, then deployed to Kings Cliffe USAAF Station 367, England, on June 12th, 1944. Sold Out!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 8-3/4-inches
Length: 6-1/4-inches

Release Date: July 2021

Historical Account: "Boy's Own Magazine" - When learning about the exploits of pilots who served during the Second World War, some seem to be so incredible that they appear to have come straight from the pages of a Boy's Own magazine. One such airman was American Jack M. Ilfrey, a man who was already a P-38 Lightning 'ace' when he joined the 79th Fighter Squadron of the 20th Fighter Group at Kings Cliffe in April 1944. At that time, missions were heading deep into Germany and although the Luftwaffe could be elusive, when they did show up, they came in numbers and were extremely aggressive. On his third mission with the 79th, Ilfrey's Lightning was involved in a mid-air collision with a Messerschmitt Bf 109, ripping almost four feet of his starboard wing off - he made it back to base, but only just.

His Lightning carried the name "Happy Jack's Go Buggy" on its nose, reputedly applied by his crew chief as a joke, because everyone thought Ilfrey always looked a bit miserable. By June 12th, the Lightnings of the 20th Fighter Group had been assigned dive bombing and strafing missions behind enemy lines and the mission that day was to destroy a vital railway bridge near the French village of La Possonniere on the banks of the river Loire. The Lightnings executed their mission with ruthless effectiveness, however, the minutes which would prove particularly memorable for Jack Ilfrey.