Photos WW2 US Forces

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US Army DUKWs landing under fire on the beaches of Anzio, Italy, Jan 22, 1944.
United States Army Signal Corps

 

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A pair of WASPs "shoot the breeze" with a USAAF officer around a P-51A which one of them...possibly the one with the 'chute...might have just delivered?
Note the gun ports on the leading edge have been taped over.
Note also the "penny loafers" worn by the WASP sitting on the wing which would be just as fashionable today!
(NASM)

 

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Caught at the moment of releasing its bomb, this SB2C-5 Helldiver was doing what it was designed for, c.1945.
This was photographed during a training exercise, not actual combat.
(NASM)

 

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President Franklin D. Roosevelt inspecting Major Harold Hansen and his alpine equipped Norwegian-American 99th Infantry Battalion (Separate) at Camp Carson, Easter Weekend 1942. The 99th had been training at Camp Hale, the Mountian and Winter Warfare Trianing Center since mid-December 1942.
The honor guard that day was provided by
the Greek-American 122nd Infantry Battalion (Seperate).
The 99th fought in the ETO and ended the war in Norway with the 474th Infantry Regiment (Seperate). The OSS recruited a hundred men from the 99th and the 122nd was transferred to bolster their new Operational Group program.
The Norwegians supported operations in France and jumped into Norway in Operation Rype. The Greeks operated in Yugoslavia and Greece. Operatives from these and other groups were tagged to staff the China Operational Groups.

 

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WWII. USA. 1942. Get stuck in!! US Army Rangers undergoing hand-to-hand combat training at Fort Meade, Maryland.

 

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Is this a case of 'Duck' and 'Dodge' at Portland? Loading on R2.

 

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USAAF Lieutenant Wm. Groseclose climbs into the cockpit of his red-nosed P-51D Mustang, which his crew-chief has warming up for him.
Lt. Groseclose was a member of the 335th FS / 4th FG, US Eighth Air Force, flying out of Debden, Essex.
The 335th was created from a cadre of personnel from No. 121 ("Eagle") Squadron, RAF.
Formed on 21st May 1941, No. 121 was the second of the three RAF "Eagle Squadrons" made up of all-American volunteers.
The 335th were known as the "Chiefs" and were activated on 12th September 1942.
Lt. Groseclose was shot down while flying his P-51D Mustang (44-14432) on 11th September 1944 when the 4th Fighter Group was bounced by 30+ Bf109's.
His aircraft crashed 2 miles south of Erkeln, Germany.
He was taken prisoner and became a POW for the duration.
He remained in the USAF post-war, completing combat tours in both Korea and Vietnam.
( NASM / AAM)

 

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USN rating Robert L. Brown of Denver, Col., in the cockpit of an F6F Hellcat aboard the USS Yorktown ( CV-10) with "Scrappy", the ship's mascot, circa 1943.
(NASM)

 

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US Army Lt. John Hancock Spear kissing his newly married bride, Ester, while saying goodbye at Penn Station in NYC before returning to Camp Blanding, Florida
John Spear survived WW2 and passed away on July 28, 1988, Ester passed away in 2019
Thanks to
John Klear
for the research
The first picture was the LIFE Magazine Cover for the April 19, 1943 issue
LIFE Magazine Archives - Alfred Eisenstaedt Photographer

 

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Anti-aircraft gunners man the twin .50 cal mount aboard their PT boat during a drill.
Original colour image.
(NARA)

 

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USAAF aviation cadets at Tuskegee, Alabama, undergoing training with AT-6 Texan Advanced Trainers.
Original colour image.
( NASM Archives)

 

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USAAF armorers at work on North American AT-6B Texans (NA-84s)
The AT-6B was built for armament training, and could mount a .30 caliber on the right nose cowl, right wing, and in the rear cockpit, besides having a light bomb rack.
Original colour image.
(NARA Archives)

 

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In a scene repeated a thousand times over during the war in the Pacific, an F4F-3 Grumman Wildcat from VF-6 prepares to launch from its carrier, circa 1942.
(NASM / Smithsonian)

 

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F4U Corsair crashing into barrier, 1943/44 on USS Charger (CVE-30). There were two accidents involving the F4U-1A on Charger in 1944, on the same day, March 31. Both during Carrier Qualifications. The summary doesn't say anything about the pilots condition. You can see the report summary and link to it in comments.

 

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US Air Corps mechanics work on the P&W Twin Wasp engine of a P-36 Curtiss Hawk of the 20th Pursuit Group at Barksdale Field, Louisiana, circa 1940.
Note that the standing mechanic wears a Cap, Mechanics, Type A-2.
Made of OD HBT it ressembled the large flat-caps of the period (see secondary image below)
It was a short-lived item, soon replaced by the more familiar Type A-3, which ressembled a ball-cap, as worn by the other two men.
(LIFE / Kessel)

 

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Literally "factory-fresh"!
An early-production M3 "Lee" Medium Tank rolls out of the Detroit Arsenal, Warren, Michigan, circa 1942.
(LIFE / Gordon Coster)

 

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USS Ellet DD-398 off of Hawaii in 1940
USS Ellet was a Benham-class destroyer named for five members of the Ellet family of Pennsylvania who rendered service during the American Civil War
Launched in 1938, USS Ellet was returning from reinforcing Wake Island in the screen of Task Force 8 when Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, 1941
April 1942 found Ellet screening Carrier Task Force 16, which launched B-25's on Japan in the famous Doolittle Raid
Participating in the Battle of Midway and the Guadalcanal campaign, she served in the Pacific until wars end
Decommissioned October 1945, and sold for scrap August 1947, Ellet received 10 battle stars for her WW2 service
LIFE Magazine Archives - Carl Mydans Photographer

 

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A couple of B-24 photographs from the Henry Ford museum reflecting the products of Ford's Willow Run plant.

 

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The XSB2C-1 Helldiver prototype being rolled out of its hangar at the Curtiss-Wright facility, Buffalo, NY, circa 1941.
Original colour transparency.
(NASM Archives)