Description:

(FLYING TIGERS) PILOT'S HELMETS, GOGGLES, MIC, AND RIP CORD, AND MORE
An excellent collection of flight gear from Flying Tigers pilot First Lt. Ronald Shepherd during his service in China. Included: Shepherd's leather combat flight helmet with rubber ear cups, well worn but intact with partial maker's label from 'Phelps'; his matching throat mic with securing strap and electric connection; flight goggles with strap (fair condition); his metal parachute rip cord with handle and strap; and his leather training flight helmet, unmarked. SOLD WITH: approx. 100 photo negatives, largely vessels in an unknown port (Shanghai?), some images of a bombardment, airplanes in flight, and destroyed aircraft on the ground, also photos of him flying his model airplane in 1945 china, a hobby he pursued throughout his life; Also included, a canvas belt with cloth ties which looks to be a bandoleer, possibly english markings, and procured to carry essentials during flights, as it shows a U.S. serviceman's 'laundry' number of 'D-3480'. Present also is Shepherd's 1943 Greenville, Mississippi flight training school photo ID and a P-51 pilot's association membership card. Overall very good. First Lt. Ronald Shepherd, A.A.C. (13112468, born 1920) was a native-born Englishman from Yorkshire who moved in his youth to the Philadelphia area. Part of his extensive fighter pilot training was at Maxwell Field, Alabama until he was activated on Jan. 7, 1944 to serve with the 92nd Fighter Squadron, 81st Fighter Group, 12th Air Force, considered part of the later ‘Flying Tigers.' The squadron served extensively in China supporting the Nationalists, as well as in India, and it operated from bases in Karachi, India, 22 Mar 1944; Kwanghan, China, 15 May 1944; and Fungwanshan, China, 12 Feb 1945.

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June 27, 2025 10:00 AM EDT
Elkton, MD, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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$100 $499 $20
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $999,999 $10,000
$1,000,000 $1,999,999 $50,000
$2,000,000 + $100,000