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a picture of a street sign on a white backgroundblack and white photo of a man in a pilot ' s helmet and goggles sitting in an airplanea yellow life vest with a pipe attached to itblack and white photo of a group of men standing around an old airplanea close up of a piece of metal that has a hole in ita close up of a metal plate with a bolt on ita close up of a piece of metal on a white backgroundan old photo of a plane that is on the groundblack and white photo of a man in a military uniform posing for a picturemany people that are standing in front of a statuea large rock with a plaque on it in the grassa white street sign that says bois robert coutureblack and white photo of a man holding a small dog in front of an airplanea man in a white suit and tie posing for a picturea piece of metal that has some paint on ita piece of metal on the floor of a rooma piece of metal that is laying on the groundblack and white photo of a man sitting in the cockpit of a planetwo men in military uniforms standing next to an old airplanea black and white photo of a document with writing on ita black and white photo of a document with a list of itemsa black and white photo of a paper with a list of peopleblack and white photograph of a document with a stamp on ita black and white photo of a letter from a mana black and white photo of a document with a picture of a mana spool with a hole in it on a white surfacea close up of a piece of metal with a hole in ita close up of a metal object with a hole in ita close up of a metal object with a hole in ita close up of a wheel with a hole in the centeran image of a close up of a metal object with a hole in itan old leather helmet with a leather eyepiece on ita black cord that is connected to a black blow dryera small turtle shell with a coin in it ' s mouthan old bottle that has been turned into a lightera rear view mirror with a blue sky in itan image of a couple of tools sitting on top of a white surfacenewspaper with a picture of a native american man on the front pagea picture of a picture of a plane with the name of the plane
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Premium Maître Lydie BRIOULT

A collection belonging to Lieutenant Robert D.
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Estimate €10,000 - €15,000
Sale commission
Description
A collection belonging to Lieutenant Robert D. Couture, 355th Fighter Group – 8th Air Force – England (P-51 Mustang parts, nose art, flight and survival equipment, original photographs, press cuttings) This is the centrepiece of this sale, representing a world first. It is a collection of the very highest calibre for anyone interested in Second World War aviation, featuring an extremely rare original ‘nose art’ from a P-51 Mustang fighter in its original paint scheme. No museum in the world possesses such a collection, bringing together both some of the flight gear belonging to the pilot shot down in France and pieces of his aircraft (a P-51 Mustang) taken directly from the site of his forced landing, in their original paintwork (as all aircraft that survived the war have been repainted over the years), including this exceptional complete ‘Nose Art’, as well as a section of the fuselage bearing small-calibre bullet holes, another featuring parts of the famous ‘invasion stripes’ applied to the wings and fuselage of Allied aircraft the day before D-Day to enable their rapid identification. These items were the subject of a world-first article in the quarterly journal of the American Aviation Historical Society in 2020 (a copy of this magazine is included in this lot). The rim of one of the landing gear struts came to light after this article was published and was unearthed by a second-hand dealer who had been clearing out a farmhouse in the village of Vichères. An initial article featuring Robert Couture’s flight memorabilia was published by Grégory Pons and Bruno Chapelle in December 2006 in *Militaria Magazine*, following the ceremony in honour of Robert Couture in June 2005. Robert Couture’s remarkable story began with his arrival in England in February 1944 as a replacement pilot with the 357th Fighter Squadron of the 355th Fighter Group at Steeple Morden. He undertook familiarisation flights in the P-51 Mustang for a few months before commencing combat missions at the end of May 1944. He was not assigned a specific aircraft and flew whichever plane was available. On his sixth combat mission, he took part in D-Day. The following day, for a search-and-attack mission, he was assigned the P-51 nicknamed ‘Hat Jane’. This aircraft had belonged to Captain Robert G. Kurtz, who had named it in honour of his sister Jane, who was passionate about hats. Kurtz had completed his tour of duty and returned to the United States. Whilst awaiting possible reassignment to a pilot, his aircraft served as a ‘backup’ within the squadron. On 7 June, Robert Couture took off from Steeple Morden to patrol the Nogent-le-Rotrou sector as part of cover and support operations in the aftermath of the D-Day landings. His section spotted a German column heading towards Normandy and launched an attack. Robert Couture carried out several strafing runs, but he had not reckoned with the formidable German anti-aircraft defences (Flak), whose barrage would prove fatal to him. Several hits from weapons of various calibres damaged his aircraft. The liquid-cooled inline engine remained the Mustang’s weak point and was on the verge of failing. Flying too low to bail out, Couture struggled enormously to maintain control of his aircraft. The only option was to attempt a forced landing. As best he could, in the gently rolling countryside of the Perche region, he managed a remarkable forced landing on the side of a hill just on the outskirts of the village of Vichères. The impact upon hitting the ground is violent. The tail of the aircraft is torn off and Couture loses consciousness upon striking his head. The aeroplane does not catch fire and Couture manages to regain his senses and extricate himself from the cockpit. A young man from the village rushed to his aid, but confusion reigned despite the arrival of another young villager. They decided to hide the American airman in the tall grass near the hill, telling him to stay hidden until nightfall. First thing the next morning, the Germans arrived to inspect the wreckage of the plane to remove weapons, ammunition and fuel. Couture was taken to the tunnels of a mushroom farm before being led to a farm where he stayed for five days, eventually joining the Freteval Maquis and making his way to the Allied lines. Having been shot down in occupied territory and having received help from the Resistance, Couture was unable to return to active duty in a combat unit in order to protect the network that had come to his aid. It was at the farm where Couture had been sheltered that Bruno Chapelle, who was accompanying Robert Couture to the place that had taken him in 61 years earlier, discovered his life jacket and life raft in the loft, which were then reunited with his oxygen mask and flight cap, which had remained in the possession of the farm’s owner. The wreckage of Robert Couture’s aircraft was a major attraction for the villagers of Vichères, who visited the wreck for nearly four months before it was removed by a local scrap dealer. On these occasions, numerous parts were taken as souvenirs. Tracing Robert Couture in the United States proved to be a long and arduous endeavour, thanks to a book dedicated to the 355th Fighter Group, which features a photograph of his aircraft’s wreckage showing the crash site and his name (this book is included in this lot). The search led to him being tracked down, even though, after all these years, he had not pursued a career in aviation, nor had he joined the 355th FG veterans’ association, as Couture modestly felt he did not belong there. The research made it possible to organise a ceremony in his honour and to erect a memorial in his honour in the village of Vichères in his presence, where a wood was named after him. Further, more thorough research in the US Air Force archives, using the microfilmed records of the 357th Fighter Squadron, enabled a much better understanding of Robert Couture’s story many years later. As for the wreckage of his aircraft, it came to light after the ceremony in honour of Robert Couture through various sources, following the local buzz generated by the event. This collection comprises: - the complete research file, including copies of photographs and several French and American press cuttings on the story of Robert Couture - the B-4 life jacket bearing the stencilled name ‘Robert D. Couture’, which can be seen in a period photograph taken in England showing Couture posing at the foot of a Mustang from his squadron, - his Type A-11 leather flight headband, from which the headphones have unfortunately been removed, presumably for civilian use, - his AN-6520-1 life raft, complete with its air cylinder for inflation, - a small rear-view mirror from inside the P-51’s cockpit, - a one-piece aluminium wheel rim, - an original period photograph of Robert Couture in his flight uniform (standard 4x5in./10x12.5cm format), - a section of the engine cowling (left-hand side) bearing the aircraft’s nickname and the distinctive markings of the 355th Fighter Group (white ring at the end of the cowling), - another piece of the engine cowling (upper right section) showing three small-calibre bullet holes, - an ammunition bay hatch from the wing of the P-51 Mustang bearing the word ‘Ammunition’ and remnants of black and white paint applied as ‘invasion stripes’. It should be noted that two shades of paint can be distinguished on these three items: the original American factory colour and slightly darker paintwork on the joints, which corresponds to British paint. (Grégory Pons Collection)
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About the sale Sale of the Grégory Pons collection and miscellaneous items (Aviation and WW2 Militaria)
Auction location
Auction time 11/14/2026 at 1:30 PM
Lot description modified on 09/02/2026 at 5:19 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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