352nd Fighter Group

352nd Fighter Group
P-51 Mustang of the 352nd Fighter Group
P-51 Mustang of the 352nd Fighter Group
Active29 September 1942
Disbanded10 November 1945
Country United States
BranchUnited States Army Air Forces
Garrison/HQRAF Bodney
Nickname(s)Blue-nosed Bastards of Bodney
Motto(s)Custodes Pro Defensione
Guardians for Defense
EngagementsAir Offensive, Europe
Normandy
Northern France
Rhineland
Battle of the Bulge
Invasion of Germany
DecorationsDistinguished Unit Citation
French Croix de Guerre with Palm
Aircraft flown
FighterP-47 Thunderbolt
P-51 Mustang

The 352nd Fighter Group was a unit of the Eighth Air Force that was located in the European Theater of Operations during World War II.[1] [2][3] The unit served as bomber escort, counter-air patrols, and attacking ground targets. It initially flew P-47 Thunderbolt aircraft before converting to P-51 Mustang in April 1944. The group was located at RAF Bodney in England for the majority of its service and were nicknamed the Blue-nosed Bastards of Bodney due to the distinctive blue of the nose and upper cowl of the P-51 Mustangs of the group.

  1. ^ Tom Ivie (20 October 2012). 352nd Fighter Group. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84603-755-9.
  2. ^ Lt Col Jay A. Stout (1 October 2012). Fighter Group: The 352nd "Blue-Nosed Bastards" in World War II. Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-4867-4.
  3. ^ Air Force Combat Units of World War II. DIANE Publishing. 1961. pp. 231–. ISBN 978-1-4289-1585-5.