The Apple TV+ program, “Masters of the Air,” depicts the horror and chaos that fliers faced over Germany as anti-aircraft fire and enemy fighters swarmed their aircraft. It also shows the quiet and melancholy of life on the ground in wartime and away from home.

During the course of World War 2, the 100th Bombardment Group, featured in “Masters of the Air” earned the nickname “Bloody 100th” for its casualty rate on eight significant missions in 1943 and 1944. The group flew 306 missions and 8,630 sorties. It lost 229 planes and 757 men killed or missing in action and 923 prisoners of war.

“Masters of the Air” shows the impact of the casualties and the effect on the men of the Eight Air Force as they take on the American strategy of daylight bombing, especially the unit that would become known as the “Bloody 100th.” During “Black Week,” a stretch in October, 1943, the show depicts the day when one squadron lost 12 of 13 planes, tagging the 100th Bomb Group as “jinxed.”

The Apple TV+ program also displays what the airmen wore and the sidearms they carried, especially if they were shot down and had to defend themselves. Some of these types of items, ranging from flight jackets to handguns, will be available in Rock Island Auction Company’s May 17-19 Premier Auction.

Union Switch & Signal M1911A1 of the “Bloody 100th”

In the sixth episode of “Masters of the Air,” after evading capture, Major Bucky Egan is captured carrying a Colt Model 1911A1.

Arthur C. “Bud” Stipe, co-pilot of “The BIGASSBIRD II” of the 349th Squadron of the Bloody 100th, was issued a Union Switch & Signal Model 1911A1 in 1943. Stipe flew on the “Black Thursday” mission to Schweinfurt on Oct. 14, 1943. On that mission, 650 of the 2,900 fliers and 60 bombers were lost.

Stipe flew 25 missions from July 4, 1943 to Oct. 20, 1943 – the second pilot to do so -- before returning to the United States and the Seventh Ferry Group where he served as assistant operations officer.

Union Switch and Signal produced 55,000 M1911A1 pistols during World War 2. This pistol issued to a pilot in the "Bloody 100th" is parkerized with a blued finish High Standard barrel, stamped trigger, checkered slide stop and safety lock, narrow checkered hammer and main spring housing, and brown plastic checkered Keyes Fibre grips. The "Bloody 100th" and its tragedies is featured in "Masters of the Air" on Apple TV+.

Tragic Colt SAA

Chambered in .45 ACP, this Colt Single Action Army is one of only 44 first generation SAAs chambered for the cartridge intended for the Colt Model 1911 and M1911A1, according to David Brown, author of “The 36 Calibers of the Colt Single Action Army.” These were made on a special order basis after World War 1 and sold mostly to men in the armed forces with ready access to plentiful ammo.

This very rare gun bears a fascinating tale that started with its purchase by Staff Sgt. Forest S. Nelson from Stoeger Arms in New York. Nelson enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces in May 1942 and was a gunner on the B-25 “Dirty Nellie” assigned to the 42nd Bomb Group’s 75th Squadron. The unit flew on the West Coast before deploying to the Pacific theater in early 1943. Nelson sold the gun in May 1944 to Staff Sgt. Paul J. Smith. In January 1945 during a dangerous low altitude mission on an enemy supply depot Nelson’s “Dirty Nellie” was hit by enemy fire and crashed in the water. The three-man crew went missing and was declared dead.

While the other men’s identities aren’t clear, a Staff Sergeant Paul J. Smith was a tail gunner on a B-17 Flying Fortress in the 487th Bomb Group and 838th Bomb Squadron within the 8th Air Force. “The Gentlemen from Hell” began operations ahead of D-Day, bombing airfields in Northern France, with missions later taking them into Germany. Paul J. Smith sold the revolver to a Cpl. Charles H. Kern on Sept. 10, 1944. If this is indeed the correct Nelson, he was shot down a month after selling the revolver, listed as a prisoner of war.

A Cpl. Kern served as an engineer on the B-17 “Garbage Cannie” also known as “Tennessee Sunshine” attached to the 301st Bomb Group, 353rd. First assigned to England, it was later moved to North Africa in 1942 and then to Italy. On a mission in April 1945, “Garbage Cannie” was hit by anti-aircraft fire and ditched in the Adriatic Sea. Three crewmembers were killed, while Kern and six others evaded capture and returned to duty.

According to the string of bills of sale, Kern sold the revolver to Staff Sgt. Moroni Frederickson on Dec. 16, 1944. He served as a mechanic and crew chief on a B-25 bomber. Frederickson returned home after the war and later sold the gun to his son in 1966. These airmen’s tragic ends illustrate the high casualty rate of the United States daylight bombing strategy portrayed in “Masters of the Air.”

This Colt Single Action Army with a bill of sale to multiple World War 2 airmen is chambered in .45 ACP. Based on research presented by author David Brown in "The 36 Calibers of the Colt Single Action Army," Colt manufactured only 44 First Generation Single Action Army revolvers in .45 ACP.

Colt National Match Pistol of Curtis E. LeMay

Curtis LeMay was a major at the outset of World War 2 and by 1943 was commanding the 305th Bomb Group of the Eighth Air Force. He helped develop the combat box formation and led the mission against Schweinfert and Regensburg on Aug. 17, 1943 that is presented in episode three of “Masters of the Air.” LeMay has also been mentioned in passing during the show.

Later in the war, LeMay would transfer to the China-Burma Theater and then put in command of strategic bombing operations against Japan. Commissioned as a pilot and second lieutenant in 1930, he rose in the ranks after the war. He was the first deputy chief of air staff for research and development before going back to Europe to command the U.S. Air Forces in Europe and led operations of the Berlin Airlift in 1948-1949. Following that assignment he took command of the newly formed Strategic Air Command in the early days of the Cold War and served as Air Force Chief of Staff, retiring as a four-star general. A factory presentation inscribed Colt National Match pistol presented to LeMay is available in RIAC’s May Premier.

This factory inscribed Colt National Match pistol has “GENERAL/CURTIS E. LEMAY” with four stars below it on the front left of the slide. It also has an extended Patridge blade front sight and adjustable BO-MAR rear sight, serrated adjustable trigger, serrated slide stop and thumb safety, and a serrated narrow hammer, and serrated and stippled front strap and a pair of diamond pattern checkered rosewood grips. LeMay, who would go on to be U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff was portrayed in one episode of "Masters of the Air."

Battle of Britain Colt Single Action Army

The British Purchasing Commission bought 163 Colt Single Action Army revolvers in June 1940 to replace handguns lost in the evacuation of the British Army at Dunkirk a month earlier. Only 13 of these "Battle of Britain" revolvers were chambered in .45 caliber with a 5 1/2 inch barrel and nickel finished, according to "The 36 Calibers of the Colt Single Action Army" by David M. Brown.

Starting in July 1940, Britain's Royal Air Force (RAF) and Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy fended off Luftwaffe bombers while also keeping convoys carrying desperately needed supplies arriving from the United States. Britain's intrepid pilots prevented Germany from attaining air superiority and held off a threatened invasion by the time the battle ended in October, making the early salvo of World War 2 Britain's "finest hour."

This Colt Single Action Army was manufactured in 1937 and was part of a shipment of 163 SAA revolvers sold to the British Purchasing Commission in June 1940 to replace handguns lost during the Dunkirk evacuation. It is one of 13 "Battle of Britain" Single Action Armies chambered in .45 caliber with a 5 1/2 inch barrel and nickel finish. It is identified by serial number in author David M. Brown's "The 36 Calibers of the Colt Single Action Army" and in "A Study of the Colt Single Action Army Revolver," by Ron Graham John A. Kopec and C. Kenneth Moore.

WW2 Flight Jacket of a Caterpillar Club Member

A USAAF A-2 WW2 flight jacket bears the name “GRANT L. FARNSWORTH” on the lining just under the data label. However, that name was crossed out. Sewn to the front left chest is the distinctive patch of the 707th Bomb Squadron that flew B-24 Liberators. Above the patch in white paint is the name “Bill.” This is Sgt. William H. Sunday, the engineer on board the “Shoo Shoo Baby!”

Flying out of England on Dec. 27, 1944, “Shoo Shoo Baby!” was on a mission targeting a rail bridge and train yards at Kaiserslautern, Germany when it developed engine trouble. It turned toward a British-held airbase at Brussels, Belgium as the weather turned bad. A string of unfortunate incidents caused the bomber to be unable to land and barely able to stay above 75 feet and avoid church steeples.

The flight jacket comes with a uniform coat, a Caterpillar Club membership card from Irvin Airchute Company issued to Sunday, and a very rare Caterpillar Club gold lapel pin with ruby eyes. Fliers earned entry into the informal Caterpillar Club the hard way, from successfully bailing out of their aircraft. Pins were often issued by parachute manufacturers. The club’s name refers to the debt owed to the silk worm that allowed the flier to land successfully, with the motto “Life depends on a silken thread.” Famous members of the club include Gen. James Doolittle, Charles Lindberg and astronaut John Glenn.

The pilot, Lt. William Woodburn, initially hoped to reach the North Sea but instead ordered the plane’s bombs dropped in an empty field to gain altitude. The B-24 reached 4,000 feet and the crew was ordered to bail out. The entire crew bailed out except Woodburn who would bail out after stabilizing the B-24. Woodburn was knocked out and broke a foot and sprained an ankle on landing. He woke to local men who swarmed around and beat him believing him to be a German spy. The men eventually realized he was an American. He returned to his unit after being hospitalized for several days. The crew would complete 33 missions before returning to the United States in the summer of 1945.

One episode of “Masters of the Air” depicts an emergency landing in Scotland where the locals have never seen Americans and aren’t happy to have a gigantic bomber crash near them, showing a fate similar but not quite as violent as what the pilot of the “Shoo Shoo Baby” experienced.

A closeup of the Caterpillar Club lapel pin shows the ruby eyes. The pin is included with the Shoo Shoo Baby! flight jacket available in the May 17-19 Premier Auction.

Hand-Painted WW2 Flight Jacket

The epitome of cool, the A-2 flight jacket slightly varied in design and color depending on the manufacturer and material used. Nineteen companies made the jacket, some using cowhide or goat skin, making them dark brown to nearly black to russet to pale-red or medium brown. The coats could also be privately purchased.

These leather jackets also served as a canvas. Sgt. Millard Wilkerson was a flight engineer/gunner who served in the 715th Squadron of the 448th Bomb Group of the 8th Air Force stationed in England. He flew 35 missions before returning to the United States and is known to have painted several flight jackets including the “Hell’s Angels” jacket offered in the May Auction. This coat, bought privately, is shown in “American Flight Jackets,” by Jon A. Maguire and John P. Conway. Wilkerson’s work often featured scantily clad women but also well-drawn airplanes.

Faced with a shortage of flight engineers, Wilkerson found himself in the Pacific theater assigned to the Air Sea Rescue service. This jacket was likely painted after he was attached to the 6th Emergency Air Service Rescue Squadron.

The name tag on the front of this flight jacket is to Millard Wilkerson, an artist who painted it. The jacket is featured in Maguire and Conway’s “American Flight Jackets” along with several other jackets Wilkerson painted and owned.

World War 2 Flight Jacket Patches

Patches from two fighter squadrons, a bomber squadron, a night fighter squadron and an anti-submarine group make up the collection of patches on offer in the May Premier Auction, with two of the units operating in the Pacific, one in the Mediterranean and the last one assigned to England.

The 2nd Pursuit/2nd Fighter Squadron was assigned to the Mediterranean where its pilots flew P-40 Warhawk and P-39 Airacobra. The unit later flew Spitfires and P-51 Mustangs. The patch features a beagle in a top hat and tails holding a small naked woman in a champagne glass while stabbing a bloody swastika.

The 479th Anti-Submarine Group was assigned to England to attack submarines that were coming out of the Bay of Biscay on France’s west coast. The unit’s assignment ran from early June 1942 until late July 1942 when the submarines began to cross the bay underwater.

Pilots for the 40th Fighter Squadron flew the Airacobra when they were assigned to the Pacific Theater, starting with assignments over New Guinea before the unit’s last posting at Okinawa in June 1945. The patch depicts a red devil about to throw a lightning bolt.

The 549th Night Fighter Squadron fought in the Pacific theater late in World War 2 with its P-61 Black Widows flying from Iwo Jima to protect airfields that housed long-range bombers. The patch shows a bat with Browning machine guns in each foot and lightning shooting from its eyes.

Pilots of the 653rd Bomb Squadron had unusual and dangerous missions, flying their British de Havilland Mosquitos ahead of European bombing missions to report on weather conditions and enemy fighter activity. The pilot and navigator’s unarmed aircraft relied on its speed and high altitude capabilities to stay out of trouble. The patch, embroidered on green felt, is fairly on the nose, showing a mosquito with a telescope kneeling on a rain cloud.

These World War 2 United States military unit patches represent two fighter squadrons, a bomb squadron, a night fighter squadron and an anti-submarine group.

World War 2 Flight Jacket of a Marine

Once owned by an English jazz musician, this flight jacket is from one of the most well-known U.S. Marine Corps squadrons of World War 2. The unit, the VMF-111 “Devil Dogs” were founded years before World War 2 and served as the Corps’ show unit for Marine flying. The unit had several official designations following its formation in 1925 before becoming VMF-111 shortly before World War 2.

As one of only two combat-ready USMC squadrons, the “Devil Dogs were immediately assigned to the island of Tutuila, flying the Grumman F4F Wildcat in the Samoan Islands. In early 1943, the squadron transitioned to the highly-recognizable gull-winged F4U Corsair. By 1944, the unit was operating in the central Pacific where it would remain to the end of the war. The Devil Dogs would rack up the leading number of bomb tonnage dropped and miles flown in their close air support role.

The jacket was reportedly acquired by an English jazz musician while performing a gig in the 1940s. The only clue to the former owner of the jacket is “Billy Jo” painted above and below the “Devil Dogs” insignia on the left chest. The back of the jacket is a bit of a conundrum since it depicts the combat scene titled “Screamin’ Debby,” showing a Curtiss P-40 Warhawk painted to the “Flying Tigers” scheme flying over two downed Japanese fighters, a very non-USMC scene.

World War 2 Flight Jackets for Sale

The aerial warfare of World War 2 was brutal and chaotic and that intensity comes out in every episode of the “Masters of the Air.” If you want a piece that relates to the intrepid airmen that took on the German war machine over the European continent, there is something for the World War 2 collector in this auction, from guns to flight jackets to patches.

These aerial artifacts tell the story of amazing aviators and their real life tales of heroism and tragedy, whether it was over the battlefields and cities of Europe or the wide seas and tiny islands of the Pacific theater. These fascinating items will be on offer in Rock Island Auction Company’s May 17-19 Premier Auction.