The weather was warmer over the South Pacific so there were no prescribed uniforms when crews climbed into their B-17. Short sleeves one day, lightweight flying suits the next. Things were different for airmen traversing the hump. They layered. Extra layers for warmth and a leather jacket and silk scarf to get over the Himalayas.

One constant was the gun they strapped on for self-defense in the face of being shot down or crash landing. It was the Model 1911A1. For one B-17 pilot hitting Japanese targets at Rabaul or other strategic locations it was a Colt. For another crossing the roof of the world, it was an extremely rare Singer.

A Colt M1911A1 and a Singer of the same model, each an historic relic carried by a pilot in World War 2, will be offered in Rock Island Auction Company’s Aug. 15-17 Premier Auction.

The Singer and Production of the Colt M1911A1

First, some quick history of the Singer. In the 1930s and 1940s before Pearl Harbor, the U.S. Army issued certain manufacturers “educational contracts” that paid for the costs of setting up production of small arms and to make a small run for quality and process. Singer Sewing Machine Company received one such contract in April 1940. The company manufactured and delivered 500 M1911A1 pistols around the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Singer was offered a contract for 15,000 more pistols but declined, under the belief that its expertise was better used making ship and artillery control directors.

Manufacturing the M1911A1 pistol in such vast quantities was a tremendous effort, combining the resources of established gunmakers like Colt, Ithaca, and Remington Rand with civilian companies like Union Switch & Signal and Singer. Around 2.7 million M1911A1 pistols were produced, led by Remington Rand’s 900,000 followed by Colt and Ithaca manufacturing 400,000 each.

A Singer M1911A1 Goes Over the Hump

The Army issued one of these Singer M1911A1 pistols, serial number S800442, to an unidentified pilot of the China-Burma-India Theater that would fly “the hump” delivering equipment and supplies from India to Allied forces in China. The consignor of the Singer M1911A1 identifies the pilot as his father but didn’t provide his name only that “It is historic in its origins, its place in time, and where it went and what it was (silent) witness to.”

A fascinating but little known part of World War 2 was the China-Burma-India Theater that was intended to keep the Japanese at bay in China and prevent them from diverting troops to other areas of the Pacific. Early in the war, Allied forces were reinforced via the overland Burma Road, but the Japanese shut down the supply line by April 1942.

The next option was flying “the Hump.” Gen. Albert C. Wedemeyer, the commander of U.S. forces in China conveyed the gravitas of these missions: “Flying the `Hump’ was the foremost and by far the most dangerous, difficult, and historic achievement of the entire war.”

Flyers going over “the Hump” took off in their supply-laden planes and immediately started climbing at a rate of 300 feet per minute to reach 18,000 feet through the Himalayas before descending 6,000 feet to deliver their materiel. In good weather, the flight could be made in three hours. Bad weather, anything from 100 mph winds, monsoons, dust storms and blizzards could extend that trip to 10 hours. The Air Transport Command that oversaw the supply process recorded 500 crashes and more than 1,300 crewmen lost.

The Allied supply effort suffered through 1942 from a shortage of manpower, reliable aircraft and facilities. As the Air Transport Command (ATC) took over, deliveries improved into 1943. The Curtiss C-46 Commando became a workhorse on the route because it could carry nearly double the cargo of the C-47 Skytrain. From 1943 to 1945, the ATC flew 456,977 flights carrying 685,304 tons of supplies – of that more than half was gasoline.

The Singer M1911A1 pistols were issued to flyers and because of pilot casualty rates early in the war there are few remaining pistols, especially in the condition of this gun. The left of the slide has the standard address a “P” proof mark on top of the slide in front of the rear sight while the right side of the frame has the “JKC” inspection mark of Col. John K. Clement.

The consigner wrote of the gun, “Found years ago at the bottom of his father’s old footlocker, it was cleaned, cased and forgotten for years more. Then rediscovered more years later it was found to be something rather special. That is special beyond inheritance, and special beyond its history flying the “Hump” in the China Burma India Theater during World War II.”

Colt M1911A1 of the 19th Bomb Group

The pilot issued this Colt M1911A1 has long been identified as Col. William Patteson “Pat” Thorington, who was assigned to the 19th Bomb Group that flew in the South Pacific Theater. Thorington, from Alabama, attended the University of Virginia where he was in ROTC before attending U.S. Army Air Corps flight school in Texas. Then Lt. Thorington was assigned to the 19th Bomb Group that was assigned to Clark Field and Del Monte Airfield in the Philippines.

The Japanese attack on Clark Field on Dec. 8, 1941 found all but one of the 19^th Bomb Group’s B-17 on the ground and the assault cut in half the unit’s number of bombers available. The remaining planes were immediately ordered to Del Monte and began a desperate effort against the Japanese invasion fleet to slow its advance toward the Philippines.

The 19th Bomb Group, flying less heavily armed B-17 and untrained on the tight formations that would be developed by the 8th Air Force in Europe, suffered heavy losses, with some reports claiming two-thirds of the unit being killed, captured or wounded before retreating to safer bases.

Flying out of Australia, then Java the 19th continued their missions against Japanese forces, flying short-handed with insufficient supplies, going on 60 sorties, including at least 18 against the heavily-defended Japanese port of Rabaul where they successfully destroyed many Japanese ships, aircraft and ground personnel.

Worn out and depleted, the 19th Bomb Group returned to the United States where it was deactivated but several members, including Thorington, transferred to the 43rd Bombardment Group and continued the fight in the South Pacific. About this time, newspaper articles indicated Thorington was awarded the Silver Star, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal. The latter two are offered in the lot with the pistol.

Promoted to captain and transferred to the 64^thBombardment Squadron of the 34^th Bomb Group, “The Birmingham News” of Alabama offered an April 27, 1943 report on its native son after one mission, "During one of the raids, eight Zeros attacked, but Thorington's formation remained in order and bombed so accurately that four ships were sunk or badly damaged. Three of the Zeros were shot down."

After World War 2, Thorington, who was a member of the Order of Daedalians, was stationed in Germany and England and fought in the Korean War. He commanded Charleston Air Force Base and Osan Air Force Base in South Korea. He retired to his hometown of Montgomery, Alabama.

Following her father’s death, Thorington’s daughter found his Colt M1911A1 in his footlocker along with two magazines with vintage .45 ACP ammunition, an Air Corps Navigator’s case, newspaper clippings photos, certificates, shoulder patch and medals. Manufactured in 1941, the Colt M1911A1 transitioned from its high polished blue to the parkerized treatment that would be standard for the rest of the war. This pistol has the “brush” polish blue and was part of a shipment of 3,150 pistols on April 30, 1941, according to Charles W. Clawson’s “Colt .45 Service Pistols: Models of 1911 and 1911A1.”

Singer and Colt M1911A1 for Sale

These sidearms, a Singer and a Colt, both M1911A1 pistols, likely accompanied two men faced with the danger, horror and uncertainty of war as they climbed into the cockpit for a mission. A reminder of the danger that exists not just in the air, but on the ground if forced to crash land or bail out. These trusted companions, with their pilots through tribulations, were put to rest in footlockers, and left for decades, only to be found anew as tangible reminders of history and opportunities for military and World War 2 collectors to appreciate them. Available in Rock Island Auction Company's Aug. 15-17 Premier Auction.