Messerschmitt 323

I am finally able to address the two interesting points I have been wanting to share.  One dealing with the German WWII Messerschmitt 323 “Gigant” cargo plane found submerged off Sardinia in September.  The second deals with the 2,000 year old tomb and artifacts discovered in China’s Shaanxi Province.

The head of the crew that found the Messerschmitt, diver and amateur historian Cristina Freghieri, relayed a few bits of information to me.  I had asked her how she went about finding the aircraft, what she saw to indicate what it was, whether the plane is in danger of further corrosion and what the next stage is in relation to the plane.  The important thing to keep in mind is that only about 200 were produced for the war and that according to the Imperial War Museum in London, no complete surviving Messerschmitt 323 Giant is in existence.  The “Gigant” had a normal crew of 5, weighed 30 tons when empty, had six Gnome-Rhone engines and a wingspan of 180 feet.  Historical records indicate many 323’s were lost in the last weeks of the North African campaign in April and May of 1943 and this particular one went down July 26, 1943 flying from Sardinia to Pistoia in Tuscany and crashing off the Maddalena islands of Italy.  

 Messerschmitt 323

 Messerschmitt 323 with its rear end open

Ms. Freghieri explained that to find the plane, in January 2012 she lowered a wire-guided camera into the seas to see if it would be necessary for her to put together a team for the dive.  Apparently that turned out to be necessary.  (My words, not hers.)  Once she went down to find it, she saw that the wings of the plane and the six engines were fully visible.  She also explained that the sea water had fully stripped the aircraft and no further damage to it is expected. Except of course for any future man made damage  if someone were to go looking for souvenirs, hopefully not.  As for the future of the plane, Ms. Freghieri indicated that is a confidential matter.  Perhaps then we can look forward to greater attention given to the plane and more interesting historical information gleaned from it.

I tried to find a little information that might indicate what the plane’s mission might have been when it was shot down.  I found nothing for the plane but noted  Maddalena appeared to be a small naval port of some importance, protected by established minefields and anti-submarine nets during the war.  Also of interest, the US Navy used La Maddalena as a submarine base from January 1973 to January 2008.

 

US Navy Submarine tender USS Orion in port La Maddalena, 1983

Some other bits of information I found suggest the 323 might have flown out of Villacidro (Trunconi) in Sardinia or Venafiorita.  However, after doing a bit more research, I have decided to keep my information a secret for now because I actually think I may have stumbled on to something very interesting regarding our Messerschmitt.  We shall see.  And the Shaanxi information shall wait until tomorrow.   


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Cincinnati Museum Center

Today’s museum showcase is the Cincinnati Museum Center.  They present eight paintings of military history interest found at my art gallery here.  The pictures I have posted are not those in the museum.  You'll have to go to the gallery to see those described below.

Ca. 1832 Capture of the Calloway Girls and Jemima Boone – Jemima was daughter of the famed Daniel Boone.  Cherokee-Shawnee raiding parties were trying to drive immigrants out of their lands who ignored treaties to stay out of their land.  Daniel and a rescue party found the girls and killed some of their captors.  Sadly, Daniel Boone had many friendly relations among the Cherokee and had promised them their sanctity which makes this event more meaningful in a wider historical sense of white and Native American relations.

 

A portrait of General Benjamin Logan – Served in the Virginia militia against the Shawnee.  Later served in the same militia during the American revolution fighting British led Natives and later still served as a US Army regular against the Shawnee again.

William Penn and the Treaty with the Shawnee

An 1835 painting of Cincinnati from Behind Newport Barracks – The barracks were built around 1803 in Newport Kentucky on the Ohio River across from Cincinnati.  During the Civil War it remained in Union hands though Kentucky was a Confederate state.  It served as a hospital for soldiers on both sides and was given to the city in 1895.  it is now the General James Taylor Park.

 Newport Barracks

A portrait of Peter Force – Served as a US Army officer in the War of 1812 and collected numerous documents related to the American Revolution.  These documents were purchased by the Library of Congress to expand its collections.

An 1890 portrait of Major General Manning Ferguson Force – Commander of the 20^th Ohio Volunteer Infantry during the US Civil War.  Badly disfigured in the face during the war and awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions.

1899 The Hornet’s Nest – Scene of Captain Hickenlopper’s battery at the Battle of Shiloh, April 1862.  An event where Hickenlooper’s 5^th Ohio Independent Battery took a major role in the battle.  He was made an engineer later to allow him to advance eventually to rank of brevet brigadier general. 

US Civil War Battle of Shiloh

{{PD-US}} – published in the US before 1923 and public domain in the US.

A portrait of Governor John Brough – Strong willed pro-Union Ohio governor during the Civil War.  He helped convince other governors to support 100-day regiments for the war helping to ease Union manpower issues.

A portrait of Miles Greenwood – Established the Eagle Ironworks in Cincinnati which ably served the Union Army.  During the Civil War, the ironworks manufactured 12 iron anchors for pontoon bridges, machinery for the mass production of muskets and rifles, three turrets for ironclad gunboats and hundreds of cannons and other munitions.  His factories were burned three times by Southern sympathizers.

 First US ironclad gunboat

USS Carondelet in the Civil War

Ironclad gunboats at Fort Donelson

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I just wanted to drop a quick post about an amazing little WW2 diary I came across online.  The Central Florida WW2 Museum has the WW2 combat diary of Lt. Kermit D. Wooldridge, B-17 pilot, for 25 raids commencing June 29, 1943 posted online.  It’s a very quick read and highly informative, from a cockpit point of view, about B-17 bombing raids into Europe.  Wooldridge writes well and to the point.  You’ll want to read this, especially if you’re interested in WW2 combat aviation. 

B-17 attacking an enemy base in New Guinea, WW2 War in the Pacific

B-17E Flying Fortress in flight, 1942

B-17E Flying Fortress' in flight, 1942

 Doing a quick search for any other interesting information, I came across aircraft accident records showing Kermit Wooldridge was pilot of an AT-7C involved in an accident in January 1946 at Harlingen AAF.  Woldridge was based out of Midland AAF, TX at the time.  The record can be found here.   

Harlingen AAF was located in Texas and with the end of the war, it was one of many airfields closed by the Army because of a lack of need.  Harlingen was inactivated on February 1, 1946, just days after Wooldridge had his accident.  Harlingen was reactivated in 1952 as a USAF training command.  It went through many military uses until becoming a public airport in 1970, now the Valley International Airport.  And to round off the history lesson, Harlingen AAF was one of 120 air bases at which the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) operated during WW2.  

WASP member Elizabeth L. Gardner piloting a plane at Harlingen Army Air Field during WW2 time period

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