2023年6月7日星期三

中國第一個噴射機計畫CXP-1001模型

Model and photos by Zane R Nobbs

CXP-1001是國府在抗戰勝利後一個相當有雄心的計畫,C代表中國,X代表試驗,P代表驅逐機,1001則是有點奇怪。小弟我認為,之前已經有研驅零(XP-0)及研驅一(XP-1),這個案子接下來叫研驅二不是挺好的嗎?當然CXP-1001有可能是協助研發這個案子的英國Gloster廠取的。

製作模型的廠家Zane問我國府當時是否有制式塗裝,我說基本上沒有,飛機大都維持原廠送來時的塗裝,我建議他採取蚊式機的塗裝,因為時期大致相同,而且都是英國設計。

這個1/72的樹脂模型不便宜,一個要60美元加上運費,由於該模型存貨已售完,代工生產的東歐廠家打算歇業,所以該協會目前將等到預購人數達到一定數量後再要求代工廠家生產。

英國友人包柯克2009年10月8日參加Bob Kleyla葬禮時發表的悼詞。Bob從B-17的時代就參與34中隊的特種任務策劃工作,一直持續到奇龍計畫為止。我在2007年赴美受訓，透過包柯克的介紹見到了Bob。

BOB KLEYLA – An Author’s Appreciation

By Chris Pocock

author, 50 YEARS OF THE U-2 and THE BLACK BATS (forthcoming)

Some people never get the recognition that they deserve. This is particularly true of those who work in the secret world. They sign the oaths. They keep the secrets. Their daily toil in the service of their country may be recorded in some dusty archive. But the arbitrary and haphazard nature of the declassification process in some US government agencies, means that their deeds may never surface, to reach a wider audience.

I first met Bob Kleyla on the fringes of a conference on Early Cold War Overflights at the DIA in 2001. He began to tell me about his role in the planning of important reconnaissance missions over the Soviet Union from the end of the Korean War. The thought occurred to me – Bob should be up there on the podium, with all those pilots and analysts who got to speak at that event. Typically, though, this small, modest old man sat quietly at the back of the auditorium, listening to others recall their heroic Cold War stories.

I resolved to meet him again. I did not get that opportunity until early 2007, when I came to a cold and snowbound Washington DC to do research for a new book on the remarkable history of the Chinese Air Force 34^th Squadron on Taiwan. We agreed to meet in the hotel room of my co-author, Clarence Fu, who was visiting from Taiwan. It quickly became apparent to me, that I needed more time to learn about Bob’s extensive and fascinating career. He graciously agreed to spend more time with me. I made no fewer than three visits to his Georgetown apartment that week. Our forthcoming book will be much the better, for the contribution that Bob Kleyla chose to make.

As you know, Bob saw service in World War Two in Europe as a bombardier on B-17s. The story of those brave young airmen who faced appalling odds in the daytime skies over Germany is so well known, that I need not dwell on it here. Evidently, though, the experience did not deter Bob from the life of a military aviator. Indeed, when the war was over he trained as a pilot, only to learn that the US Air Force had more pilots than it could handle.

So Bob retrained as a navigator, and in the arcane art of airborne electronic warfare. He joined the aircrews on the mighty B-36 strategic bomber, known colloquially as “The Aluminum Overcast”. According to my notes, he flew the RB-36 reconnaissance version. (Damn! Another untold spyplane story – I should have asked him some questions about that!)

In the headquarters of the Far East Air Force in Japan from 1953, Bob was part of the secret group that organized Project Westwind. He planned various overflights of North Korea and Soviet Asia by RF-86s, RF-100s, RB-45s and RB-57s. In so doing, he acquired all the ‘tickets’ – the Top Secret and Codeword clearances need to work on these very sensitive and carefully controlled missions. And that brought him to the attention of an even more secret team of airmen, who worked for the Central Intelligence Agency.

Bob told me that it was Willy Homen who recruited him into the covert world. Homen was another Air Force ECM officer, who had been seconded to the CIA. Homen was the project officer for a joint operation on Taiwan between the US and the Nationalist air force, that was overflying mainland China at night to collect electronic intelligence with an old, four-engine Privateer patrol plane. In 1956, this was replaced by a couple of B-17s. They came to Taiwan from the Agency’s depot in Japan, and so did Bob Kleyla, with his first wife, Lynne.

Bob Kleyla became Bob ‘White’ under cover, and remained with the Agency for the remainder of his career. He did two tours on Taiwan, where he was an operations officer and mission planner for The Black Bat Squadron. The CIA provided the aircraft, sensors, expertise and support for the joint operation. The nationalists provided the base, the maintenance and most importantly the brave aircrew who flew into China hundreds of times to collect ELINT, and drop agents and propaganda packages. You may be surprised to learn that the Black Bats made no fewer than 585 overflights of mainland China between 1953 and 1966. In so doing, they sacrificed over 100 aircrew in the loss of three B-17s, two B-26s and five RB-69s – a special version of the P2V Neptune maritime patrol plane.

In 1957, the US began providing support to the independence movement in Tibet. Bob trained exiled Polish airmen employed by the Agency to fly the B-17 that was used to airdrop guerillas and supplies to that remote country. In between his tours to Taiwan, Bob worked in air operations at Agency headquarters. He planned U-2 missions over the Soviet Union and other ‘denied territories’. He became the project officer for STPOLLY, the CIA codename for the low-level operations over China

Bob met his second wife, Helen, in Agency headquarters, and she accompanied him on the second tour to Taiwan. The Communist Chinese air defense system was reacting with vigor and ingenuity to the unwelcome nighttime incursions from Taiwan. Bob’s task of mission planning required meticulous attention to collateral intelligence, and a good sense of the limitations of both man and machine, in order to provide the safest penetration routes for those national aircrews.

During this period, Bob formally retired from the Air Force as a Lt Col and became a GS-14-level government employee. Back in Agency headquarters again, he was Deputy Chief of the Air Branch. He suggested arming the P2Vs flying over China with air-to-air missiles. He was involved in the development of a new aircraft for the China low-level mission – a ‘black’ conversion of the P-3 maritime patrol aircraft.

In 1968-9, Bob was project officer for one of the most audacious covert air missions ever conducted by the Air Branch. In order to gain technical intelligence on China’s nuclear weapons and missile developments, special sensors were combined onto two aircraft pallets. Now the task was to airdrop the camoflaged pallets onto the desert wastelands of Xinjiang province in the far northwest of China, close to the test sites. Undetected! The Agency turned once again to the Black Bat squadron on Taiwan. Bob helped to train the nationalist airmen to fly a C-130 at low level, and planned the 13-hour roundtrip from Thailand across the eastern Himalayas. The flight was a complete success.

Bob continued to work as an air operations officer in the CIA’s Special Operations Group until his retirement in 1980.

It was a pleasure and a privilege to talk with Bob about some of his activities as a covert air operator. Unlike many interviewees I have known, he did not exaggerate his own role, nor try to speculate on the details that his memory could not recall. During my last telephone conversation with him earlier this year, he quietly suggested that I should expedite my research. It was his way of telling me that he wouldn’t be able to contribute for much longer.

So long then, Bob. Our book will be published early next year. I’m truly sorry that you won’t be around to read it.

飛官何信抗戰事蹟的查證

NOWnews 2009年10月29日有一則新聞，標題是「1938血與淚／飛官何信中6彈　撞日機殉國」http://www.nownews.com/2009/10/29/91-2525929.htm (已失效)

文中提到何信是第八大隊副隊長，在台兒莊戰役時與日軍戰機空戰時陣亡。對國軍空軍歷史有點概念的人都曉得第八大隊是轟炸機大隊，這新聞一定有錯。經過考證發現，他是第八中隊副隊長，駕駛的是I-15戰鬥機(請見飛行戰彩)。1938年3月24日他與莫休分隊長皆在飛機被擊傷後跳傘，兩人在空中被日軍飛機攻擊陣亡，並非新聞說的與敵機相撞。射擊跳傘的敵軍飛行員實在是很野蠻的行為，日軍也在中國創下過世界首次擊落民航機的紀錄，他們開化的程度與科技進步的程度真是相去甚遠。

附帶一提，原來第八中隊使用的是飛雅特CR.32，抗戰才開打沒多久，全隊的飛機就消耗殆盡。這時廣西空軍的部隊歸併中央，接續第七及第八兩個中隊的番號，人員前往北方接受俄製飛機訓練。韋鼎峙教官有次跟我提到，他們到了北方不久，隊員紛紛覺得頭疼，後來發現原來是吃慣米飯的廣西隊員每天啃饅頭，上下顎用力過多而連帶引起頭疼，可說是廣西空軍的一段插曲。

由於廣西空軍抗戰前有一段期間是由日本教官訓練，所以何信還前往日本明野飛行學校受訓，空軍忠烈錄說他曾創下空靶射擊百分之九十八的命中率，打破日本本身百分之九十的紀錄，看來他應當是一位非常優秀的射手，不幸英年早逝，沒能在抗戰中好好發揮。

2009.11.1. 新書介紹:馮國震文輯

馮國震是航空史研究會的創始會員之一,他是陸戰隊出身,但是對於飛機的知識卻讓許多空軍人員自嘆弗如。他對國軍飛機的歷史如數家珍,也很努力蒐集國外與中國有關的航空史料,整理出來後與會員們分享,他的過世是我們航空史研究界的一大損失,本會特別整理出他在會裡發表的32篇報告出版成為專書,以紀念這位老朋友。以下是書中的內容名單:

畢琪公司飛機在中華民國
蘇聯Tupolev TB-3 -4A M-34RN重轟炸機
美國Vultee公司P-66前衛(Vanguard)驅逐機
美國北美公司NA-16/NA-41/NA-48/NA-56/AT-6教練機
民國26年8月14日我空軍編裝
民34至39年我空軍單位/駐地/兵力表
中國的義大利空軍顧問團
蘇聯Tupolev SB -2M -100A /103轟炸機
容克斯在中國
寧海 2 號
單翼達機
抗戰時期我國空軍兵力表
RB -69A (P2V-7U)的故事
申報 26年8月15日影本
廣西空軍1920-1930年間用的主要機型
CAT and Air America
Cessna T-50系AT-8/AT-17/UC-78軍用教練機/運輸機
民航空運公司(CAT)機型檔
DC-2在中國
被隱藏的英烈歲月
從寮國起飛
Ford Tri-Motor在中國
Sikorsky S-38在中國
Douglas Dolphin在中國
Sikorsky S-43在中國
Sikorsky S-43在中國補述
918事變前東北空軍報告
中華民國空軍34中隊P -3A 電子偵察機
Hawk 75在華銷售紀要
空軍第34中隊簡史
寇蒂斯CW-19R輕驅逐攻擊機
寇蒂斯CW-21惡魔(Demon)輕攔截驅逐機

B5版本    共 184 頁    平裝

2009.11.10. P2V-7U模型

Jim Rotramel是位美國模型玩家，他本身也是飛行員。他仰慕Chris Pocock對34中隊的研究付出，特別製作一架P2V-7U模型送他。我徵得他兩人的同意，在本部落格中刊出這架模型的照片。

這架P2V-7U是在台灣使用的最後期型式，掛有原子塵偵測莢艙及響尾蛇飛彈，我本來質疑飛彈掛載的位置是否應該位於莢艙的外側，但是Jim從Chris蒐集到的一張照片證實是在內側。這張照片將刊登在2010年2月出版的The Black Bats新書中，敬請期待。後期型與前期型的另一個差別在於後期型在機尾尾桁上方多突出一個天線包。