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Dale Ernest Karger
Victories : 7.5
Born in 1925, Dale Karger joined the Army Reserves and was commissioned a 2nd Lt, and rated a pilot in February 1944. He transferred to the 357th Fighter Group on 18th September 1944, scoring his first two victories on 5th December, both against Fw190s north of Berlin, followed by his first Me109 on 24th December. On 20th January he achieved Ace status when he notched up an Me262 jet north of Munich. Dale finished his tour with a tally of 7.5 victories, and was the third youngest American fighter Ace of World War II. |
Click here for artwork signed by this Ace!
Dale Ernest Karger
Squadrons for : Dale Ernest Karger | ||
A list of all squadrons known to have been served with by Dale Ernest Karger. A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name. | ||
Squadron | Info | |
Country : US Yoxford Boys Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of 357th Fighter Group | 357th Fighter Group Full profile not yet available. | |
Country : US Yoxford Boys Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of 364th Fighter Squadron | 364th Fighter Squadron Full profile not yet available. |
Aircraft for : Dale Ernest Karger | |||
A list of all aircraft associated with Dale Ernest Karger. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name. | |||
Squadron | Info | ||
Manufacturer : North American | Mustang The ubiquitous North American P-51 Mustang, which many consider to be the best all-around fighter of WW II, owes its origins to the British Air Ministry. Following Britains entry into WW II in 1939, the RAF was interested in purchasing additional fighter aircraft from American sources, particularly the Curtiss P-40. Curtiss, which was busy, was unable to guarantee timely delivery so the British approached North American Aviation as a possible second source for the P-40. North American chose to propose its own fighter design which would use the same Allison engine as the P-40. Utilizing new laminar flow wings, the North American fighter was expected to have performance better than the P-40. Developed in record time the new aircraft was designated as a Mustang I by the Brits, whereas the USAAF ordered two for evaluation which were designated XP-51 Apaches. Intrigued with the possibility of using this aircraft also as a dive bomber, North American proposed this to the USAAF which decided to order 500 of the P-51 aircraft to be modified for dive bombing use. Designated as the A-36 Invader, this version of the Mustang utilized dive flaps, and bomb racks under each wing. Some reinforcing of the structural members was also required because of the G-forces to be encountered in dive bombing. A-36s entered combat service with the USAAF prior to any P-51s. In early 1943 the 86th and 27th Fighter Bomber Groups of the 12th Air Force began flying A-36s out of Northern Africa. Despite some early problems with instability caused by the dive flaps, the A-36 was effective in light bombing and strafing roles. It was not, however, capable of dog fighting with German fighters, especially at higher altitudes. Despite these drawbacks one USAAF pilot, Captain Michael T. Russo, who served with the 16th Bomb Squadron of the 27th Fighter Bomber Group, was credited with five confirmed aerial victories in the A-36, thereby becoming the first mustang ace. |
Known Victory Claims - Dale Ernest Karger | |||||||
DATE | PILOT | UNIT | JG | CLAIMED | LOCATION | TIME | FRONT |
20/01/1945 | Dale Karger | 357th Fighter Group | 364th Fighter Squadron | Me262 | Western Front |
Known Claims : 1
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