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| USAAF 5th AF 345th BG 499th BS Former Assignments 38th BG 405th BS 71st BS  345th BG c1943  345th BG, Dec 26, 1943 |
Aircraft History Built by North American Aviation (NAA) in Inglewood. Constructors Number 82-5606. Delivered to the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) as B-25C Mitchell serial number 41-12971. Ferried overseas via Hickam Field then across the Pacific to Australia. Wartime History During September 1942 assigned to the 5th Air Force (5th AF), 38th Bombardment Group (38th BG), 405th Bombardment Squadron (405th BS). Nicknamed "Dirty Dora". Starting in September 1942 this B-25 began flying combat missions in New Guinea including the Battle of the Bismarck Sea. During April 1943 assigned to the 71st Bombardment Squadron (71st BS). On July 17, 1943 flown Garbutt Field at Townsville and modified into a B-25D-1 strafer variant at the 4th Air Depot at Garbutt Field in Townsville. On August 7, 1943 assigned to the 345th Bombardment Group (345th BG) "Air Apaches", 499th Bombardment Squadron (499th BS) "Bat Outta Hell". Assigned to pilot 1st Lt. Victor Tatelman with crew chief TSgt Perry W. Scott. On October 12, 1943 flew against Rabaul. On October 16, 1943 flew against Wewak and claimed a Ki-43 Oscar shot down. During December 1943 painted with the "Batt Outta Hell" motif on the nose. On February 3, 1944 flew a mission against Dagua. On February 15, 1944 flew a mission against Kavieng. On February 16, 1944 took off piloted by 1st Lt. Victor Tatelman on a convoy search off New Hanover. On the return trip spotted a heavily camouflaged Auxilliary Submarine Chaser No. 16 off a small island off Kavieng and scored a near miss and a direct hit. On February 17, 1944 suffered nose gear damage and afterwards repaired by the 376th Service Squadron at Nadzab Airfield. Afterwards, it was assigned to to Lt. Graham. On August 30, 1944 declared war weary having flown a total of 175 combat missions. Fate Ultimate fate unknown, likely scrapped or otherwise abandoned. Afterwards, pilot Tatelman named his next bomber B-25D "Dirty Dora II" 41-30276. References USAF Serial Number Search Results - B-25C Mitchell 41-12971 "12971 condemned Dec 22, 1944. This was "Dirty Dora" 345th BG, 499th BS, Port Moresby." Warpath Across The Pacific (1996) pages 62-63 (October 16, 1943), 133 (February 16, 1944), 194 (photos color), 218 (profile 22), 387 (499th BS, 41-12971), 422-423 (profile 22 description), 439 (index Dirty Dora) Contribute
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