GABBY GABRESKI | United States Army Air Forces Fighter Ace, and his P-47 Thunderbolt records скачать в хорошем качестве

GABBY GABRESKI | United States Army Air Forces Fighter Ace, and his P-47 Thunderbolt records

A biography video about Gabby Gabreski, including interviews with the legendary pilot. Francis Stanley "Gabby" Gabreski (born Franciszek Stanisław Gabryszewski( was a Polish-American career pilot in the United States Air Force. He was the top American and United States Army Air Forces fighter ace over Europe during World War II and a jet fighter ace with the Air Force in the Korean War. Although best known for his credited destruction of 34½ aircraft in aerial combat and being one of only seven U.S. combat pilots to become an ace in two wars, Gabreski was also one of the Air Force's most accomplished leaders. In addition to commanding two fighter squadrons, he had six command tours at group or wing level, including one in combat in Korea, totaling over 11 years of command and 15 overall in operational fighter assignments. After his Air Force career, Gabreski headed the Long Island Rail Road, a commuter railroad owned by the State of New York, and struggled in his attempts to improve its service and financial condition. After two and a half years, he resigned under pressure and went into full retirement. In 1942, inspired by the Polish pilots who were helping the British fight the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain, he had an idea. If he could get himself stationed in Britain he could help, after all, he was a Polish/English-speaking pilot. With some effective persuasion, he was promoted to Captain and assigned to the Eighth Air Force in England. After arriving he met some Polish pilots and was given temporary duty with their No. 315 Squadron, flying Supermarine Spitfires. He was awarded the Polish Cross of Valor for his exceptional work. On July 5th, 1944, Gabreski became America’s top “Ace” in the European Theatre with 28 victories. Captain Gabreski left the service after his British tour and went to work for Douglas Aircraft. When the independent United States Air Force was formed in 1947, he reentered the military and returned to the 56th Fighter Group at Selfridge Field. On July 20, 1944, Gabreski had reached the 300-hour combat time limit for Eighth Air Force fighter pilots and was awaiting an aircraft to return him to the United States on leave and reassignment. He had already advised Kay Cochran to proceed with wedding plans, and his hometown of Oil City, Pennsylvania, had raised $2,000 for a wedding present in anticipation of his return. Gabreski found, however, that a bomber escort mission to Russelheim, Germany, was scheduled for that morning, and, instead of boarding the transport, he requested to "fly just one more."Returning from the mission, Gabreski observed Heinkel He 111s parked on the airfield at Niedermendig, Germany and took his airplane down to attack. He was dissatisfied with his first strafing run on an He 111, and he reversed for a second pass. When his tracers went over the parked bomber, he dropped the nose of his Thunderbolt to adjust, and its propeller clipped the runway, bending the tips.The damage caused his engine to vibrate violently and he was forced to crash land. Gabreski then ran into the nearby woods and eluded capture for five days. After being captured, he was interrogated by Obergefreiter Hanns Scharff. He was eventually sent to Stalag Luft I. Gabreski flew 166 combat sorties and was officially credited by the USAAF with 28 aircraft destroyed in air combat and 3 on the ground. He was assigned five P-47s during his time with the 56th FG, none of which he named, but all of which bore the fuselage identification codes HV: A. #aircraft #airplane #Gabreski