FR EN
1 / 50
Photo 1/50 du lotPhoto 2/50 du lotPhoto 3/50 du lotPhoto 4/50 du lotPhoto 5/50 du lotPhoto 6/50 du lotPhoto 7/50 du lota close up of a keychain with a star and wings on itPhoto 9/50 du lotPhoto 10/50 du lotPhoto 11/50 du lotan old newspaper advertises the use of the german languagean old book opened to a page with a picture of a man ' s face on itPhoto 14/50 du lotthree old black and white photos of a train and a manPhoto 16/50 du lotseveral old black and white photos of men and women in military uniformsthree black and white photos of a man in uniform and a woman in uniformPhoto 19/50 du lotPhoto 20/50 du lotPhoto 21/50 du lotPhoto 22/50 du lotan old photo of a plane flying over a cityan old black and white photo of a factory with smoke coming out of ita black and white photo of a plane flying in the skyPhoto 26/50 du lotPhoto 27/50 du lotPhoto 28/50 du lotan old map of the country of italyan old map of the state of tennessee with a blue outline on ita map with a red line on it and a blue line on the mapan open book with a page in the middle of it on a tablean old map of the isle of capria piece of paper that has a list of items on itan old book with a list of items on itan old document with a picture of an air force emblem on itPhoto 37/50 du lotPhoto 38/50 du lotblack and white photograph of a collage of photos of a planePhoto 40/50 du lotPhoto 41/50 du lotPhoto 42/50 du lotPhoto 43/50 du lotPhoto 44/50 du lotPhoto 45/50 du lotPhoto 46/50 du lotPhoto 47/50 du lotPhoto 48/50 du lotPhoto 49/50 du lotPhoto 50/50 du lot
Premium Maître Lydie BRIOULT

Personal collection of Lieutenant James A.
See original version (French)

Estimate €600 - €900
Sale commission
Description
Personal collection of Lieutenant James A. Pence, 464th Bomb Group Lieutenant Pence was posted as a bombardier to the 777th Bomb Squadron of the 464th Bomb Group in Italy, operating from Pantanella airbase in the Foggia area. He flew 26 combat missions between 11 December 1944 and 15 April 1945. The two photo albums contain 110 photographs and cover the training phase during which Pence, as a USAAF cadet, completed his training as a bombardier operator, graduating with the rank of Flying Officer. They show Pence posing in various uniforms with his fellow cadets These albums are supplemented by various aeronautical charts annotated by Pence: Two cardboard boxes contain a collection of letters written by Pence to his family. Documents of this kind are quite rare to find in connection with an airman, as the letters were often kept by the family or have been scattered over the decades. Several photographs (around 55) accompany this collection: photos of targets during missions, annotated with the date and name of the target; a portrait of Pence wearing his A-2-style leather flying jacket; a photograph of his crew, his B-24 Liberator in flight—named ‘IRON BIRD’—his 15th Air Force identity card featuring an American eagle, a flag and a message in several languages designed to help secure assistance from the civilian population in the event of a landing in occupied territory, as well as an ink drawing depicting the same aircraft. Pence is pictured in his flight uniform at the front of his aircraft, in his off-duty uniform with his comrades (presumably in Foggia), where he is seen wearing an A-2 leather jacket with his squadron patch, which he also wears on an M-43 jacket. Several of his comrades are also wearing their squadron insignia on their uniforms. An impressive series of five photographs shows the damage caused by anti-aircraft fire to the fuselage of a B-24, the tents in which the men of the 777th Bomb Squadron were billeted, photographs of maps of Europe marking anti-aircraft zones labelled ‘Plan BAKER’ and ‘Plan ABLE’ (two phases of strategic bombing carried out by the 15th AF according to alternative doctrines) dated 2 March, 21 March and 6 April 1945, as well as several photographs of targets annotated with instructions. There is also a view of the target of Pence’s first combat mission over Vienna on 11 December 1944 and many other targets. Various photographs show B-24s from the 464th BG during missions. Eight aerial navigation charts dated 1944 and 1945 (some double-sided with a photograph of the target area) are also included in this lot, some bearing annotations in grease pencil made by Pence. These include: the regions of Rome, Florence and Naples (the southern region of Italy where most American bases were concentrated on the east coast, around Foggia); a very rare map showing the locations of anti-aircraft gun emplacements dated 3 February 1945; approach charts for Vienna and Linz, which were frequent targets due to the number of military and strategic objectives located in these two cities. Various small items complete the collection, starting with a small good-luck charm modelled on the famous ‘Capri Bell’, bearing the insignia of the 15th Air Force on one side and the island of Capri on the other, a military identity tag belonging to Pence, his laminated USAAF identification badge with his photograph, issued during his training period in the USA, bar cards from his squadron bearing his name, as well as PX (Post Exchange: base supply shops) voucher books, a press article featuring his portrait, including the original photograph from this lot, and his mission log listing all dates and targets. Some missions are sometimes credited twice depending on the difficulty of the target. Thus, for 26 combat sorties, Pence was credited with 39 missions (the number required to complete a tour of duty with the 15th Air Force being 50); the end of the conflict brought his missions to a close. A rare leaflet (in several languages) dedicated to the little lucky bell of San Michele on the island of Capri is included in this lot. This souvenir was a firm favourite amongst American airmen. A tourist brochure on Capri dated 1944, offering a 7-day itinerary and featuring a map of the island, accompanies several documents including the lyrics to various songs popular amongst the airmen of the 15th Air Force, including the famous ‘Ploesti Song’ – so named because of the difficulty of this target, which housed major oil complexes in Romania – along with a rare, large-format colour certificate issued by the USAAF rest centre in Capri. A personalised folder, the cover of which bears the numbers 464 and 777, as well as a drawing of a sighting scope aimed at a factory (symbolising Pence’s role), contains various documents relating to Pence and photographs of very high quality (standard 4x5in./10 x 12.5 cm), starting with his Bombardier Operator certificate awarded in California on 10 June 1944, bombing procedures, the history of the 464th BG including a photograph of Colonel Andrew J. Bird in the cockpit of a B-24 Liberator whilst commanding the group, a photograph of Lt. Wilcox’s crew, of which Pence was a member, along with a list of all crew members and their roles on board. The crew pose in front of their aircraft, christened ‘IRON BIRD’ (note the words ‘BIG ASS’ which have been added above and are not necessarily visible in other photographs where the aircraft’s name appears). A brief summary of Pence’s career indicates that he was assigned to the 464th BG on 2 December 1944 and that he was awarded the Air Medal with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters for two additional awards. Following this document is a list of missions carried out by the 464th BG from 30 April 1944 onwards, in which Pence’s missions are marked in red from 11 December 1944. The final documents consist of a copy of the unit’s citation for its performance during the raid on 7 July 1944 on oil facilities in Vienna, the 464th BG’s prayer, two collages of photographs of the senior officers in command of the unit and of B-24s in flight during missions, and various documents relating to bombing procedures and the loading of bombs into the hold of a Liberator. A copy of the newspaper ‘SORTIE’ dedicated to the 15th Air Force and printed in Italy on 6 May 1945, as well as a copy of the daily newspaper ‘ Stars & Stripes’ dated 3 May 1945 announcing the German surrender, along with a copy of the magazine ‘IMPACT’, classified as ‘Confidential’ and dated January 1945, intended for fighter squadrons, round off this exceptional collection, which is particularly comprehensive due to its illustrations, navigation charts and this officer’s correspondence. (Grégory Pons Collection) (full photo file available on request)
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
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
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
You may also like