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| USAAF 5th AF 5th Fighter Command Headquarters   5th AF March 1944  Carillet May 16, 2024 |
Pilot 2nd Lt. Thomas E. Malone, 421st NFS (survived) Marshall County, KY Crashed March 24, 1944 MACR none Aircraft History Built by Lockheed Aircraft Corporation (LAC) in Burbank in late December 1943 as the fifteenth P-38J-15 built. Purchased under contract number A-35374. Constructors Number 2827. At the factory, completed with an unpainted aluminum finish with olive drab on the upper nose and inner sides of the engine nacelles for anti-glare. Project Number 96397-R. On December 29, 1943 accepted by the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) and available the next day. On December 31, 1943 delivered to the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) as P-38J-15-LO Lightning serial number 42-103993. The same day, flown to Long Beach Airport. On January 4, 1944 flown to Dallas Love Field and underwent modification at the Dallas Modification Center to add leading edge fuel tanks. On January 9, 1944 flown to Palm Springs Army Airfield. On January 12, 1944 flown to Oakland Airport then disassembled for shipment overseas. Assigned Project Number 96397-H. On January 15, 1944 loaded as cargo aboard a ship at Oakland that departs across the Pacific to Australia where it was unloaded, reassembled and likely flight tested. Wartime History During early February 1944 assigned to the 5th Air Force (5th AF) and flown from Brisbane via Garbutt Field then northward to Port Moresby then onward to Nadzab Airfield. Assigned to the 5th Fighter Command (V Fighter Command), Headquarters (HQ). Assigned to pilot Captain Richard I. Bong at the start of his second tour of duty. Bong had his new plane painted with a red nose cone, propeller spinners, wingtips, and tail tips. The red color had no significance or meaning, aside from the fact Bong liked the color. Previously, Bong had other Lightnings assigned to him, but none of them had any personal markings aside from his name and scoreboard. In a letter home, he joked that he never had "one aircraft long enough to paint anything on it. Too many bullet holes". On the left side of the nose, below the cockpit was rectangle with three stenciled lines: Capt. R. I. Bong Pilot T/Sgt C. Fincner S/Sgt H. Lander. Below was a scoreboard with Japanese rising sun flags in five rows (4-5-5-5-6) representing Bong's 25 aerial victory claims. One flag was for a claim that was later downgraded to a probable. Below was the U.S. Army serial number stencil and project number. On the left side of the nose cone was "993" (the last three digits of the serial number) stenciled in black. Below was a smaller stencil with "2827" the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation (LAC) Constructors Number, but only the last "7" was visible with the rest of the number covered by the large nose number 993. Below was stenciled "597" the last three digits of Project Number 96397-H. During February 1944 Bong flew fifteen combat missions in a P-38J-15 according to his logbook, likely all in this plane. On February 15, 1944 took off from Nadzab Airfield piloted by Captain Richard I. Bong with P-38J piloted by Lt Col Thomas J. Lynch on a mission to escort A-20s over Kavieng on New Ireland. Roughly ten miles north of Cape Hoskins, intercepted and claimed a Ki-61 Tony shot down, his twenty-second aerial victory claim and his first victory during his second tour of duty. On February 28, 1944 in the afternoon took off from Nadzab Airfield with P-38J piloted by Lt Col Thomas J. Lynch on a mission over Wewak. Over the target, Bong strafed a Betty transport [sic Japanese Army Air Force twin engine heavy bomber: Ki-21 Sally or Ki-49 Helen] that had just landed. Although the bomber was claimed as destroyed, it was not recorded as an aerial victory. Some sources state a Japanese Army Major General, Brigadier (not a rank in Japanese Army) and staff were killed in the attack. This claims seem highly unlikely. No Major General is known to have died this day. Japanese records on February 28, 1944 state two P-38s intruders over Wewak and confirm one plane destroyed on the ground. During March 1944 Bong flew twenty-one combat missions in a P-38J-15 according to his logbook, likely this plane. On March 3, 1944 took off from Nadzab Airfield piloted by Captain Richard I. Bong with P-38J piloted by Lt Col Thomas J. Lynch on a fighter sweep over Tadji Airfield. Over the target, they engage Japanese bombers and fighters and the combat sprawls over Tadji Airfield and off the north coast of New Guinea. Bong claims two Ki-21 Sallys, his twenty-third and twenty-fourth aerial victory claims. On March 5, 1944 took off from Nadzab Airfield piloted by Captain Richard I. Bong a mission over Dagua Airfield. Over the target, Bong claims a Ki-43 Oscar probable and Ki-43 Oscar damaged. On March 8, 1944 took off from Nadzab Airfield piloted by Captain Richard I. Bong with P-38J 42-103987 piloted by Lt Col Thomas J. Lynch on a mission over over Tadji Airfield. Observing no planes in the air or on the ground, they flew westward and spotted Japanese vessels including three small vessels with masts and two barges in Aitape Harbor and made a strafing run. Both planes were hit by anti-aircraft fire was from the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) 90th Garrison Unit under the command of Warrant Officer Hideo Ezawa that engaged the Lightnings with two 7.7mm machine guns and three 13mm machine guns. They claimed one P-38 [Lynch] hit and "the entire nose section [was] blown off and starboard engine on fire." Damaged, Lynch climbed but was unable to bail out until too low and his parachute failed to open and he died on impact and was listed as Missing In Action (MIA). Bong witnessed the crash and circled the crash site three times before returning to base. On the return flight, he had to feather an engine but managed to return safely. After landing, 87 bullet holes were counted in his plane but did not hit anything vital. While this P-38 was being repaired and serviced, Bong requested Cpl James "Jim" Nichols to create nose art for his P-38 and provided the wallet sized photograph of his girlfriend, Marjorie "Marge" Ann Vattendahl yearbook portrait. The P-38’s left gun cover was removed and cleaned in preparation for the application of a nickname and nose art. Nichols had the wallet sized Marge photograph enlarged to 20" x 24" and color tinted then glued and varnished to the panel. Her nickname "Marge" was painted in a red cursive font with a white outline. By March 10, 1944 the nickname and nose art were finished and first photographed at Nadzab Airfield. By this time, the plane's unpainted aluminum was beginning to show the effects of being in the tropics. Nose number 993 was very worn or was in the process of being removed. At some point in the middle of March 1944 a photo shoot was conducted Bong sitting in the cockpit, touching the edge of the Marge photograph and other poses. It is unclear if these photographs were taken by U.S. Army photographers or war correspondents, or both. On March 13, 1944 in the early morning took off from Nadzab Airfield escorting a pair of P-38s from 421st Night Fighter Squadron (421st NFS) on a weather reconnaissance mission to Tadji. On March 14, 1944 in the early morning took off from Nadzab Airfield escorting a pair of P-38s from 421st Night Fighter Squadron (421st NFS) on a weather reconnaissance mission to Tadji. On March 15, 1944 the early morning took off from Nadzab Airfield escorting a pair of P-38s from 421st Night Fighter Squadron (421st NFS) on a weather reconnaissance mission to Tadji. On March 16, 1944 the early morning took off from Nadzab Airfield escorting a pair of P-38s including Major Walter S. Pharr from 421st Night Fighter Squadron (421st NFS) on a weather reconnaissance mission to Tadji. On March 17, 1944 the early morning took off from Nadzab Airfield escorting a pair of P-38s including Major Walter S. Pharr from 421st Night Fighter Squadron (421st NFS) on a weather reconnaissance mission to Tadji. On March 23, 1944 in the morning, took off from Nadzab Airfield piloted by 2nd Lt. Thomas E. Malone from 421st Night Fighter Squadron (421st NFS) on a weather reconnaissance mission. Mission History On March 24, 1944 at 7:00am took off from Nadzab Airfield piloted by 2nd Lt. Thomas E. Malone with P-38 pilot Lt. Rolland Forrester on a weather reconnaissance mission bound for Wewak. After take off, the pair encountered bad weather with a heavy overcast and turbulence beyond 30,000'. Roughly 50 minutes into the flight, Malone experienced problems with the left engine cooler shutters and experienced poor radio reception. Due to the bad weather, the P-38s lost contact with each other but heard a radio message from base stating the mission was canceled. Shortly afterwards, Malone's radio failed, one engine stopped and the propeller failed to feather followed by an electrical failure. This P-38 went into a spin and descended to an altitude of 11,000' before Malone bailed. Officially, written off October 10, 1946 as Condemned Accident Non-Combat. Fate of the Pilot After releasing the cockpit canopy, Malone bailed out safely but when his parachute opened, he was nearly knocked unconscious and lost his pistol. Descending in the overcast, he experienced snow inside the clouds before landing unhurt on the eastern side of a river. Using his life raft, Malone attempted to float downriver but the current was too strong and the bottom was rocky. Instead, he walked along the bank for roughly nine hours before encountering a U.S. Army solider from the 32nd Infantry Division (32nd ID) who nearly shot him. Realizing he was an American pilot, he was given food and cigarettes and a radio message was sent reporting him as safe. Overnight, he spent with the soldiers in a foxhole. On March 25, 1944 in the morning Malone was embarked aboard a landing craft that transported him downriver where he spent the rest of the day and night at their regimental headquarters. On March 26, 1944 in the morning he boarded another landing craft and was taken to Saidor Airfield then flown to Nadzab Airfield and returned to duty. Afterwards, Captain Richard I. Bong was upset about the loss of his P-38 but acknowledged it had some mechanical issues and was next assigned P-38J 42-104380 also nicknamed "Marge" (second Marge). Wreckage This P-38 and crashed inland from the north coast of New Guinea. On May 16, 2024 a team from Pacific Wrecks led by Justin Taylan with Steve Kleiman and Joel Carillet located the crash site and conducted a non-invasive site survey and investigation. The plane crashed into a jungle covered hillside with both engines embedded into the soil. Over the past eighty years parts have eroded down the slope. Part numbers observed on wreckage associated with the P-38. Radiator data plates were for P-38J. The wing tips are painted red. At the crash site, Justin Taylan found "993" stenciled on the wing tip, the last three digits of the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) serial number 42-103993 and was likely applied at by Lockheed Aircraft Corporation (LAC) in Burbank. This unique identifier confirmed the wreckage to be P-38J "Marge" 42-103993. No trace of the nickname, nose art or scoreboard were found. Memorials Bong had three different P-38 Lightnings painted in the markings of P-38 "Marge". This aircraft was the first. The second was P-38J "Marge" 42-104380 in New Guinea. The third P-38J "Marge" 44-23491 in the United States The Richard I. Bong Heritage Center (Bong P-38 Fund) honors the memory of Major Bong and displays P-38L Lightning 44-53236 painted in the markings of P-38J "Marge" 42-103993. The EAA AirVenture Museum (EAA Museum) has P-38L Lightning 44-53087 painted in the markings of P-38J "Marge" 42-103993. The P-38L Lightning 44-27231 was painted as P-38J "Marge" 42-103993 until 2007 when repainted. Reference Note, some sources list the date of the crash as March 22, 1944 or March 23, 1944, both dates are incorrect. Individual Aircraft Record Card (IARC) - P-38J Lightning 42-103993 via AFHRA microfilm reel ACR-75, 2526 USAF Serial Number Search Results - P-38J-15-LO Lightning 42-103993 Allied Translator and Interpreter Section (ATIS) Air Intelligence Records Dated Dec 43 to Mar 44 page 37 (Page 37) "1547 to 1600 [Tokyo Time, 16:47–17:00pm Local Time] - One heavy bomber fire due to the P-38's strafing - Although we patrolled the skies above Cape Girigiri based on intelligence reporting, two P-38's there they flew low from the mountain range west of Wewak and strafed the Central Airfield [Wewak Airfield]." Associated Press (AP) Captain Richard J. Bong (Photo ID: 440331017) creation date March 31, 1944 [sic March 1944] source: U.S. Army) The Duluth News Tribune "Bong Improves Appearance of Plane" by Associated Press (AP) April 3, 1944, page 8 General Kenney Reports: A Personal History of the Pacific War (1949) by General George C. Kenney pages 345 (March 8, 1944), 346 (aces Bong, Kearby, Lynch), 362-363 (February 28, 1944), 364 (March 8, 1944 sic March 9, 1944), 581 (index Bong) Dick Bong (1960, 1980) pages 51, 122 (note 7) (Page 51) "...so I [General Kenney] ordered him to Brisbane to ferry a new airplane [this plane] back to his squadron..." (Page 122) "[note] 7. The aircraft Bong was assigned after Lynch's death [March 8, 1944] became ''–his most famous aircraft. Decorated with a large picture of his fiancee, Marjorie Vattendahl, P-38J-15-LO #42-103993 scored only one victory before being lost in early April 1944 [sic March 24, 1944] by another pilot [2nd Lt. Tom Malone] who had borrowed it." Air Classics Magazine Letter by Jim Nichols, November 1973: "I was in A-2 (Intelligence) of the 5th Fighter Command during WW II... Capt. Bong approached me with an idea. He removed from his billfold a small photo of his girlfriend and asked me if I could paint a portrait of her on the nose of his P-38. Bong was becoming world-famous by now and I was quite honored by his asking me to do this favor. I used the technique of many portrait artists by having a black and white photo enlargement made and then painted directly on the photo and it was glued onto the nose panel which had been removed from the plane and brought into our work area. The picture was then given many coast of varnish, I then added the name “MARGE” and we replaced the pane on the plane and hoped the elements of wind, temperature, etc would not destroy the long hours of work. The flight proved the work to be a success. This unique picture along with Bong’s mounting fame as the greatest fighter pilot attracted much publicity. Photos of Bong’s “MARGE” appeared in many newspapers and magazines." Dear Mom: So We Have A War (1991) by Carl Bong (brother) pages 335 (Letter March 13, 1944), 337 (photos) (Page 335) "Dear Mom, 3/1944... You know that picture of that you have there, well I had a small print of that with me and I had it enlarged to a 30 in by 24 inch photo, and then a boy here tinted it and pasted it on..." (Page 336) "...my airplane. It sure looks swell and a hell of a lot better than those naked women painted on most of the airplanes. I took some pictures of the airplane then and this kid is going to tint some of them and I’ll see if I can send some home." (Page 337) "Captain Bong with his "Marge" P-38, March 15, 1944. the plane bears 25 victory flags, however, it wasn't until April 3d that he received credit for shooting down his 25 airplane. An earlier claim had been downgraded to a probable. On March 24, (while Dick was on leave), 2nd Lt. Tom Malone took the P-38 up for a weather reconnaissance flight. Fifty minutes into the flight he experienced total electrical failure and had to bail out. The P-38 was lost." Stars & Bars: A Tribute To The American Fighter Ace 1920–1973 (1995) pages 155 (Bong claims in P-38 "Marge" 42-103993) Memories: The Story of Dick and Bong: A Love Story (1995) by Bong Drucker pages 21-22 (photo on P-38), 23 (graduation photo), 24 (photos), 26 (first ) (Page 21-22) “I learned about it [Bong breaking Rickenbacker's record] in the newspapers before I heard about it from him. He must have really had second thoughts about what he had done for it caused a sensation in the media. It was some time later that I received a letter from him telling me what he had done. '...Honey chile, do you know what I have done…It looks swell and everybody around here has been taking pictures of it. I hope you don’t mind having your picture on my plane...' He also wrote 'You’re the most ‘shot-after’ girl in the South Pacific.'. Probably the most shot at, too. He wrote to his Mom: 'Hope I haven't gotten into too much trouble with the 'news hawks' but it sure is a hell of a lot better than a lot of these naked women we see on planes here!' The plane was photographed by all the wire services with Dick beside it." (Page 26) “Actually there were three “Marge” planes [the first P-38J "Marge" 42-103993, the second P-38J "Marge" 42-104380 and the third P-38J "Marge" 44-23491 in the United States]. The first [P-38J "Marge" 42-103993] was lost due to mechanical trouble, piloted by Lt. Tom Malone when Dick was in Brisbane, Australia. It was to be a weather reconnaissance flight over New Guinea and Malone soon found himself in trouble when he couldn't get above the weather at 30,000 feet. The radio failed; the electrical system and the left engine were lost. He bailed out at 11,000 feet and thankfully was rescued.” Forty of the Fifth (1999) by Michael Claringbould Profile 39 Where is Bong’s Lightning? pages 129-130 The 421st Night Fighter Squadron in World War II (2001) by Jeff Kolln pages 5 (acknowledgment), 6 (squadron photo), 28 (Bong P-38 Marge photos), 29 (Malone photo) 28 (photos), 29 (Bong missions with 421st NFS), 30-31 (March 24, 1944 mission - date listed as March 23, 1944 [sic]), 200 (Appendix E: Chronology lists loss as March 24, 1944), 179 (Appendix A: personnel) The Missions and P-38 Lightnings of Richard I. Bong: A Synopsis (2002) pages 19 (P-38 Marge), 29 (February 15, 1943, February 28, 1944), 30 (March 3, 1944), 30A (lower photo), 31 (March 5, 1944, March 9, 1944 [sic March 8, 1944]), 32 (March 9, 1944 continued and Commentary No. 2), 33 (Commentary No. 2 continued), 33A (upper photo), 35 (P-38 Marge), 36 (P-38 Mage) Forty of the Fifth (2009) by Michael Claringbould History 39. Where is Bong’s Lightning? pages 129-130 Ace of Aces: The Dick Bong Story (2019) pages 62 (Marge portrait), 64 (P-38 Marge photos), 74-75 (P-38 Marge), 116 (P-38 Marge), 125 (P-38 Marge photo), 144 (Appendix B: Combat Record of Bong, Second Tour), 147 (Appendix C: Aircraft of an Ace P-38J 42-103993), 154 (index Marge P-38) Badger Aces: Wisconsin Fighter 1917-1972 (2022) by Mike O'Conner page 62 (Marge portrait), 64 (P-38J Marge photos), 125 (P-38J "Marge" photos), 126 (artwork Bong and P-38 Marge by James Farmer), 144 (Appendix B: Combat Record of Bong, Second Tour) Los Angeles Times "Marjorie Drucker, 79; Wife of World War II Ace Richard Bong" October 10, 2003 "When Bong returned to the battlefront [in early 1944], he glued a blow-up of Drucker’s college graduation photo to his plane. She soon found herself being pursued by newsreel cameras. The pilot explained at the time that his girlfriend, a tall, dark-haired beauty, “looks swell, and a hell of a lot better than these naked women painted on most of the airplanes.” Bong & Lynch Tadji Fighter Sweep by Jack Fellows Richard I. Bong Heritage Center (Bong P-38 Fund) archives and collections accessed by Justin Taylan, March 22–23, 2024. Thanks to the Richard I. Bong Heritage Center, John Douglas and Jeff Kolln for additional information Contribute Information Are you a relative or associated with any person mentioned? Do you have photos or additional information to add? Last Updated July 15, 2025
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