William HORTON

1st Air Commando

William A Horton, known as "Bill", was a driver of buses, trucks and taxis before he enlisted in the USAAF in August 1942. For the next year and a half he was assigned to the crew training base at Bergstrom, Austin, Texas. During his time here he designed several variations of the two geese emblem for the 30th Troop Carrier Squadron.

Later, he was transferred to the 1st Air Commando and it was here that he is believed to have sketched numerous designs for the unit's C47 transports. Many of these designs were eventually painted onto the sides of the aircraft, varying little from his original sketches. Some are shown here but many painted nose arts based on sketches remain undiscovered, such as "Model Miss", "Off Limits", "Pick Up", "Road to Ruin" and "Visibility Perfect". Any information or imagery of these C47s, if indeed the sketch ever became a reality on an aircraft, would be greatly appreciated.

  

© Ray Bowden 2 December 2023