Harding
Field Operations
Russell Lobdell
photographed some of his friends waiting in the operations
room for the 491st Fighter bomber Squadron on what appears to
be a rainy day in November or December of 1943.
Left to right:
unidentified, Charles Maehrlien, Craig McCall and Doyle Nee.
The board indicates the pilots and the hours they have logged
in different training exercises. The names are Lt's Lobdell,
McCall, McKinnon, Murphy, Morris, Nee, Powell, Wetherill, (unreadable)
and Loveless. Most of these men would go on to join the 358th
Fighter Group, together in May of 1944.
I have been
unable to identify the men in this group. The two to the left
at the end of the table in jump suits may be ground crew or other
service personel.