Photos Colour and Colourised Photos of WW2 & earlier conflicts

[BravoZulu]

On half a wing and a prayer. The day before the amphibious assault on Iwo Jima, the starving and doomed Japanese garrison on Chichijima, the next island in the archipelago, came under attack by carrier-based aircraft of the United States Navy. The island was used as the primary site for Japanese long-range radio relay operations and surveillance activity in the Pacific. Avengers were used to take out the two radio stations on the island, but they faced anti-aircraft fire. This Avenger from USS Bennington, flown by Lieutenant Robert King, was one of three Avengers attacking Chichijima’s airfield. Another of the Avengers was hit by flak which blew its right wing off. That Avenger rolled hard right and into a spin, hitting King’s Avenger. The left wing of the dying Avenger struck and crumpled the rear fuselage of King’s “Turkey” and its propeller chewed off half the port wing. With the aircraft out of control at 9,000 feet, King ordered his two crewmen (Jim Dye and Grady York) to bail out, but, as he was attempting to get out himself, the aircraft righted itself and he regained control. The other Avenger spun out of control into the sea, killing all on board. The two crewmen landed close to the shore of Chichijima, waded ashore and were captured. Sadly, they were later executed by the desperate and unstable Japanese, as were six other US Navy airmen shot down in the same period. King made it back to the carrier, escorted by squadron mates, ditched and was picked up. He was, however, devastated by survivor’s guilt. In this photo we can see the tension in his shoulders as he fights the controls with both hands. Photo: US Navy

Douglas SBD "Dauntless" dive bomber balanced on nose after crash landing on carrier flight deck, June 21, 1943

Squadron Leader J A F MacLachlan, the one-armed Commanding Officer of No 1 Squadron RAF, standing beside his all-black Hawker Hurricane Mark IIC night fighter, 'JX-Q', at Tangmere, Sussex. MacLachlan was wounded in action in February 1941, and his arm was so severely damaged that it was amputated and replaced with an artificial limb. He continued to fly for several years, where he shot down 16 German and Italian aircraft over 250 missions. In July 1942, he crashed over France and he died from his injuries at a military hospital

Ensign Ardon R. Ives of Fighting-Bombing Squadron VBF-9 crashed his F6F-5 Hellcat through the barrier on USS Lexington (Essex-class) and ruptured the center-line fuel tank, Feb 1945, western Pacific

Bf110D of III/ZG76

 

[BravoZulu]

A 12,000-lb MC deep-penetration bomb (Bomber Command executive codeword 'Tallboy') is hoisted from the bomb dump to its carrier at Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire, to be loaded into an Avro Lancaster of No. 617 Squadron RAF for a raid on the V-weapon site at Wizernes, France. 617 Squadron were unable to bomb the target on this occasion because of low cloud cover, but were to succeed two days later.

A B29 ditched at sea, 1945

A B-29 bomb check prior to departure for Tokyo in 1945

Personnel of No. 92 Squadron RAF push one of their Supermarine Spitfire Mark VIIIs from the mud on the waterlogged landing ground at Canne, Italy

Beaufighter TF-X with Mustang III escort
Beaufighter TF-X NE429 P6-S NZ 489 Sqn
Pilot P/O E.F.G.Burrowes, Navigator F/S D.A.Young
Mustang III FB123 PK-W Polish 315 Sqn(freshly delivered to the Sqn, so the 315 Sqn. checkerboard had not been painted yet)
Pilot W/O Ryszard Idrian. (killed on 23.05.46 near Etah, India, while ferrying Spit XIV RN130.)
Photo taken on the 30th July 1944 on return from Wing Strike Lister - Stavanger (Norway)

Fat Man. It was the codename for the atomic bomb that was detonated over the Japanese city of Nagasaki by the United States on 9 August 1945. A technician applies sealant and putty to the crevices of “Fat Man,” a final preparation to make sure the environment inside the bomb would be stable enough to create a full impact once it detonated.

A mid-air collision on 1FEB1943 between a B-17 and a German fighter over the Tunis dock area became the subject of some of the most famous photographs of World War II.

An enemy fighter attacking a 97th Bomb Group formation went out of control, probably with a wounded pilot, then continued its crashing descent into the rear of the fuselage of a Fortress named All American, piloted by Lt. Kendrick R. Bragg, of the 414th Bomb Squadron.

When it struck, the fighter broke apart, but left some pieces in the B-17. The left horizontal stabilizer and elevator of the Fortress were completely torn away.

The two right engines were out and one on the left had a serious oil pump leak. The vertical fin and the rudder had been damaged, the fuselage had been cut almost completely through – connected only at two small parts of the frame and the radios, electrical and oxygen systems were damaged. There was also a hole in the top that was over 16 feet long and 4 feet wide at its widest and the split in the fuselage went all the way to the top gunner’s turret. Although the tail actually bounced and swayed in the wind and twisted when the plane turned and all the control cables were severed , except one single elevator cable still worked, and the aircraft still flew-miraculously!

 

[BravoZulu]

Beaufighter Mark IF, R2198 PN-B, of No. 252 Squadron RAF based at Chivenor, Devon, in flight over the snow-covered West Country.

Focke Wulfe Fw 190A-4

Kugisho MXY7 Ohka Model 11 ("I-18") "Baka" Imperial Japanese Navy Captured at Yontan airfield, Okinawa on April 1, 1945. It is now on display at The Air Museum Planes of Fame, Valle, Arizona, USA

A Lancaster in the sunset

 

[BravoZulu]

Crash landing of F6F-3, Number 30 of Fighting Squadron Two (VF-2), USS Enterprise, into the carrier’s port side 20mm gun gallery, 10 November 1943. Lieutenant Walter L. Chewning, Jr., USNR, the Catapult Officer, is climbing up the plane’s side to assist the pilot from the burning aircraft. The pilot, Ensign Byron M. Johnson, escaped without significant injury. Enterprise was then en route to support the Gilberts Operation. Note the plane’s ruptured belly fuel tank.

Majuro airfield, VMF-224 Corsairs depart on a fighter-bomber strike against enemy bases in the Marshall Islands, 1944

 

[Bombardier]

I was looking at the tags for colourised photos and realised that some of the military photos may not actually be colorised at all and may have originated from a colour film, with that in mind I have changed all the tags marked as 'Colorised' to 'Colour or Colourised military photo' you will see at the top of the page what I mean and if you click the tag it will take you to all the photos or threads of that type (if they have been tagged) tagging relevant pics and threads is probably my next task when time allows.)

 

[BravoZulu]

I was looking at the tags for colourised photos and realised that some of the military photos may not actually be colorised at all and may have originated from a colour film, with that in mind I have changed all the tags marked as 'Colorised' to 'Colour or Colourised military photo' you will see at the top of the page what I mean and if you click the tag it will take you to all the photos or threads of that type (if they have been tagged) tagging relevant pics and threads is probably my next task when time allows.)

I am certain that you are correct @Bombardier , that some of the images are from film and even colour film. I am sure I have seen the F6F crashing onto USS Lexington in a colour film, I believe it was "Fighting Lady"? However, they all also exist in B&W mate and those images above are the colourised work of design engineer, Paul Reynolds of Birmingham, England and published in numerous media outlets in December 2017. Not trying to be a smart arse mate, am just wanting to bring attention to Reynold's work.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/striking-colourised-images-bring-world-11637110

 

[Bombardier]

I agree 100% pal, I think what I was really attempting to achieve was a generalisation of the tag so we didnt have to have 2 tags such as colourised and colour photo. I am sure that some photos added to your thread will be both, hope that makes sense ?

You are right to highlight the excellent work of Paul Reynolds

Perhaps I could change the tag to Colour or colourised photos WW1 & WW2 ?

 

[BravoZulu]

Perhaps I could change the tag to Colour or colourised photos WW1 & WW2 ?

Excellent idea mate! That will open up the thread to more images from earlier conflicts

 

[Bombardier]

Tis done my friend

Just to be clear on the tag created, this will be used site wide so it will be linked to any thread or photo, resource or review created. It doesnt necessarily mean your WW2 colourised thread can now include other conflicts but if that is what you would like I could change the title to reflect that.

 

[BravoZulu]

Tis done my friend

Just to be clear on the tag created, this will be used site wide so it will be linked to any thread or photo, resource or review created. It doesnt necessarily mean your WW2 colourised thread can now include other conflicts but if that is what you would like I could change the title to reflect that.

Mate, you've got me thinking and on reflection maybe we can change to title to something that covers colourised images for any conflict prior to and including WW2? Pretty much everything after WW2 has colour images/videos but I would like to encourage postings of colourised images only in this thread and I don''t really think there is enough product from earlier conflicts to justify their own thread.

Just a thought @Bombardier , happy to leave the thread title to your imagination.

 

[Bombardier]

Hows about that title mate

 

[BravoZulu]

 

[snapper]

Colour photos of this era really bring the subject matter to life, great thread

 

[The Hood]

Apologies if some of these are replicated here, I did check and do not think they have been but I may be wrong

A collection of Douglas SBD Dauntless Colour pictures

 

[The Hood]

Here we have a mixture of aircraft but in the main Curtiss P-40 Warhawk's

 

[The Hood]

And finally again a mixture but emphasis on P40's

 

[BravoZulu]

https://www.militaryimages.net/media/40-mm-bofors-aa-gun.4630/ by @Polar

 

[Jack-Sparrow]

Really good photos chaps thanks

 

[Bombardier]

Posted this great Colourisation of Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker on another thread but felt it should be here also.
Original photo (U.S. Air Force photo), colouring done by ' thounaojamtom ' at The Mess

 

[Conhoon]