By 1944 the American fighter pilot had two jobs: beat the Luftwaffe, then rule the sky he had won. Long-range escorts — above all the P-51 Mustang, which could finally shepherd the bombers all the way to Berlin and back — broke the German fighter force in the air over the winter and spring of 1944. After that, with the enemy driven from the sky, the fighters turned downward. Ranging over occupied Europe in P-47 Thunderbolts, P-38 Lightnings, and Mustangs, they strafed trains, trucks, and airfields until German columns could scarcely move by daylight. Air superiority, once won, became a weapon in its own right — one the Germans never managed to answer.

The figure stands ready for the flightline in an A-2 leather jacket and leather helmet, yellow Mae West and parachute harness, chute in hand, dressed to mount his P-38, P-47, or P-51. Set him in a fighter-squadron display with the war's top ace, Richard Bong, the Tuskegee Airman, and the Heavy Bomber Crewman whose formations the fighters escorted.

W. Britain model 10106. 1/30 scale (approximately 60mm), matte-painted metal. Single foot figure on a sculpted base. Boxed.