1980s ORIGINAL GROUP OF MANUSCRIPT NOTES AND HAND MADE DRAWINGS BY 29 WORLD WAR II AIR FORCE ACES FROM BOTH THE EUROPEAN THEATER AND THE PACIFIC

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On offer is a super, fascinating group of hand drawn sketches with manuscript notes handwritten by 29 World War II 'flying aces', noted pilots of the US Air Force from both the War in Europe against the Nazis and the War in the Pacific against the Japanese. [There is an enclosed 1988 letter from Yale L. Saffro of the 80th Fighter Squadron to 'BC' detailing 29 pilots which we confirm but also find 2 index cards with autographs only.] This sensational manuscript relic of the air war in WWII was part of the holdings of esteemed collector [see BIO NOTES] Dr. Bryan C. (B.C.) West, Jr. (1928 - 1993). Dr. West, Jr. was an avid dealer/collector of historical documents and other historical items including documents related to Declaration of Independence signors, Inventors, Scientists, Medicine, World War I and World War II notables. He was noted for his German WWI and WWII collectibles. West Jr. solicited the sketches and notes from several WWII aces regarding their planes and number of victories. Each note is thusly in the hand of the ace, some signed, many not but there is an index within a letter explaining which aces wrote which note. BIO NOTES: Dr. West, an obstetrician and gynecologist by education and early profession was also a private pilot. In his early 40s he left the medical profession for health issues. He then dedicated his full attention to the professional area he enjoyed the most. Dr. West made numerous trips to Germany accompanied, at times, by Hans Rossbach and Jacob Tiefenthaler. Both Tiefenthaler and Rossbach were ambassadors (of sorts) between dealers/collectors and the German WWI and WWII notables. Through these trips and these ambassadors much of his German WWI and WWII collection was acquired. In 1985, Dr. West was presented with the Conservation Service Award (CSA) by the United States Department of Interior. The CSA was awarded for Dr. West's effort in recovering and preserving stolen items from the Thomas A. Edison Museum. Items that were stolen were hand-written notes by Edison himself. Dr. West, as well as another gentleman, was instrumental in the recovery of these documents. Additionally, Dr. West served on the board of the Manuscript Society as Treasurer. Show more