Plate, Aircraft, C-47A, 43-15322, Pathfinders 505 / crash Bastogne, December 23, 1944

Genuine WWII USAAF aircraft plate, from some C-47A Skytrain produced by Douglas Aircraft Company Inc. in Santa Monica, California, production number 43-19788, serial 43-15322.

Dimensions of the plate itself: 3.34in x 3.34in.

Quite good overall condition; mounted a commemorative wooden shield featuring some handcrafted labels.

On December 23, 1944, while carrying supplies intended for the 101st Airborne Division, this particular aircraft crashed in a wood near the village of Mellier, located some twenty miles south-west of Bastogne, Belgium.

On D-Day, that same aircraft had dropped some Pathfinders of 505th PIR, 82nd Airborne Division on Drop Zone O, north of Sainte-Mère-Église (Serial 4, Chalk Number 11).

https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/338985

https://ardennesavions45.blogspot.com/2014/11/crash-dun-c-47-mellier-marbehan-le-23.html

http://www.6juin1944.com/assaut/aeropus/en_page.php?page=s1

Illustration documents available in digital format only.