In the midst of World War II, moments of compassion and mercy are rare, especially in the brutal reality of aerial combat.

Officials remove a plane out of the Hudson River a day after it crashed, Saturday, May 28, 2016, in North Bergen, N.J. The World War II vintage P-47 Thunderbolt aircraft crashed into the river ...

And now another aerial warrior has just joined the ranks of his comrades in Fighter Pilot’s Heaven: Lt. Col. (USAF, ret.) Ed Cottrell, P-47 Thunderbolt pilot, age 103.. Ed Cottrell’s Early ...

After his P-47 Thunderbolt was hit by flak, fighter pilot Bob Grace parachuted into enemy territory and spent four months eluding capture with the help of some newfound Belgium friends.

DAVIS-MONTHAN AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. — Sitting in a wheelchair with images of airplanes on his shirt and a U.S. Army Air Corps hat on his head, 92-year-old retired Air National Guard Chief ...

Thunderbolt: the dictionary defines it as "a flash of lightning accompanied by thunder" and it aptly describes the P-47 during World War II. Thunderbolt pilots flew into battle with the thundering ...

Once Japan surrendered in September 1945, the P-47 was re-designated as the F-47. The last US Thunderbolt was pulled from active military duty in 1949 but continued to fly for the Air National ...

McWilliams’ P-47 was hit and the fuel tank exploded, according to Popravak. His fellow pilots watched as the burning Thunderbolt spun toward the ground, a parachute nowhere to be seen.

Powering the P-43 in its early configurations was a single Pratt & Whitney R-1830-49 14-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine. The same unit that powered the iconic C-47 Skytrain/DC-3, the ...

P-47 Thunderbolt. Military Tuskegee Fighter Pilot, 100, Receives Honorary Promotion to Colonel.

And now another aerial warrior has just joined the ranks of his comrades in Fighter Pilot’s Heaven: Lt. Col. (USAF, ret.) Ed Cottrell, P-47 Thunderbolt pilot, age 103.