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SHERIFF'S POSSE
42-97151
B-17G
91/323 OR-L

First Lieutenant Bob Sheriff was assigned to the 91st Bomb Group on 23rd March 1944, the same day that a brand new gleaming B-170 was added to the group's complement, #151. Bob Sheriff was not the first to fly this new plane on a mission, that formality fell to Captain Kuehl on 26th March, but two days later he did take command on its third combat sortie to Reims. Thereafter, Bob Sheriff s crew flew another eleven of their missions in the plane that they named Sheriffs Posse. Tony Starcer painted a delightful cartoon onto the left side of the nose that showed a 'dawg-like' sheriff with a 'Wanted' poster bearing a distinct likeness to Adolf Hitler. Starcer made clever use of the aluminum finish of the aircraft's skin by leaving the sheriff s badge unpainted in bright silver. Bob Sheriff recalled, "It was painted in black and white and was only on the one side. Starcer painted it after we had flown one or two times in the ship."

The Sheriff crew took their plane to some tough targets, amongst them were Brunswick, Oldenburg, Schweinfurt and Hamm. On their twelfth and final mission in Sheriffs Posse, on 29th April, they flew to strike the ultimate German target - the capital, Berlin. On the aircraft's next mission on 1st May; its 16th. Bob Sheriff was given a rest day and another crew took his plane to strike the Troyes’ marshalling yards. Lt. Nenad Kovachevich and his crew were assigned to Sheriffs Posse and completed the mission in spite of heavy and accurate flak that damaged the No.4 engine and resulted in the feathering of that prop. But as they taxied after landing, it was discovered that the plane had also suffered damage to an electrical solenoid on the hydraulic pump and consequently had faulty brakes. It careered off the runway and slammed into three trucks. The chin turret was buckled back and up into the mounting leaving Starcer's cartoon sheriff looking aghast at the damage. There were jagged tears through the thin aluminum skin that left the artwork disfigured. But the damage was much more severe than just buckled skin and scratched paintwork. The fuselage was badly damaged from Station 4 forwards and all four propellers were badly bent. Sheriffs Posse was considered beyond economic repair and was ordered to be salvaged.

"Story taken from Plane Names & Fancy Noses, by Ray Bowden"