Recently, my oldest son went to this blog and clicked on the link for the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum (MAAM). The museum is rebuilding a P-61 Night Fighter.
He clicked on a link "2007 WWII Night Fighters Reunion at MAAM". At that location is a large selection of photographs. One photograph is a flight jacket with the 414 patch. The circular patch of a panther jumping through the night. There is also a name on the jacket, but the name was not legible in the photo.
My son called the Air Museum to inquire whose name was on the jacket and learned that it belonged to Rip Bolender, Commander of the 414th during WWII.
1 comment:
Hi Randy,
My name is John Cowgill, my father, Arden W. Cowgill, was the first commander of the 414th, when it left Orlando, FL for England and North Africa. I still have his flight jacket with the patch on it. He left the service after the war, but returned a few years later and stayed until being medically retired in December 1958. He passed away Feb 1, 1987, at The Presidio, while on a day trip to San Francisco with my son and I. I have a few pictures from that era, unfortunately they are not easy to get to right now. I, too, was in the Air Force for 21 years and the airline industry for the last 19, so all of that is packed away in a couple of different places across the country. Thank you for your interest in the 414th and your time to do something about it.
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