Clark Photo Gallery
56th Fighter Group
From the Family of 1st. Lt. James J. Clark
By Stephen Sherman, Nov. 1999. Updated June 28, 2011.
First Lieutenant James J. Clark flew with the famed 56th Fighter Group in WW2. His son, Joe Clark, has been kind enough to share these photos from his family's personal collection. As shown in the thumbnail images (click on any of them to see full-size picture), they feature several pictures of Gabby Gabreski and other pilots of the 56th FG.
I believe that all the pilots shown served with Gabreski and Clark in the 61st Squadron of the 56th Group.
The 56th FG, commanded by Hub Zemke, flew P-47 Thunderbolts over Europe. Along with their Mustang-equipped rivals, the 4th FG, they were one of the top-scoring Fighter Groups in the ETO.
References:
- Robert S. Johnson and Martin Caidin, Thunderbolt!, Honoribus Press, 1958
- Jerry Scutts, P-47 Thunderbolt Aces of the Eighth Air Force, Osprey Publishing, 1998