"Lightning Strikes The Axis! The Army Air Forces salute a great plane" Vintage U.S. Army WWII Poster, 1943

Presented is a vintage WWII U.S. Army poster of a P-38 Lightning fighter plane. The poster was published by the Recruiting Publicity Bureau in 1943. The poster depicts a P-38 dramatically emerging from a dark clouded sky. The P-38 fires a round from its armament. In the background, a bolt of lightning strikes through the composition. The poster text reads, “Lightning Strikes the Axis!” at top in black and “ The Army Air Forces salute a great plane” at bottom in yellow block letters.

The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a single-seated, piston-engine fighter aircraft, used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a central nacelle containing both the cockpit and armament. Along with its use as a general fighter, the P-38 was used in various aerial combat roles, including as a night fighter and a long-range escort fighter when equipped with drop tanks. The P-38 was also used as a pathfinder, guiding streams of medium and heavy bombers to their targets. Used in the aerial reconnaissance role, the P-38 accounted for 90% of the aerial film captured over Europe. Over 10,000 P-38 Lightnings were manufactured, becoming the only U.S. combat aircraft that remained in continuous production throughout the duration of American participation in World War II.

CONDITION:

Color lithograph. Light toning to outer margins, color still very vibrant. Crease at centerfold and small creases throughout in the outer margins. U.S. Army logo printed in white at bottom left. "P-X-2-RPB-10-11-43-7500" and the United States Army Recruiting Publicity Bureau logo at bottom right. 

Poster has been archivally framed in a custom-built black wooden frame with UV Plexiglas and acid-free backing. Framed Dimensions: 35 1/2”H x 47”W x 1 1/4”D.