070294 - MITCHELL MASTERPIECES Vol 1: An Illustrated History of Paint Jobs on B-25's in U.S. Service

By Wim Ninenhuis

This book is an illustrated history of paint jobs on the North American B-25 Mitchell in service of the United States armed forces. It is a never before published overview of the various paintings of the B-25s, which have flown in the different U.S. units all over the world. The airplanes were mostly standard painted in camouflage colours in the factories, whether or not suited for the operational area where they were employed. Thereafter, in the field, often operational and/or personal markings were applied, and primarily nose art was very popular. Stars from the Hollywood film industry, many cartoon characters and personal markings dominated the noses of the bombers.

The Second World War was to become the golden age of airplane nose art and showed many masterpieces. But also later in the war and after the war, the shiny aluminium B-25s with their markings were masterpieces to see. A lot has been published about airplane nose art, but not entirely focused on the B-25. This book will fill this gap and it is not just about nose art, but it also focuses on other paintings and their background thoughts. In this book, the bombardment groups and squadrons are described briefly and it includes just about 900 illustrations.