Pilot  Lt. Thomas Huff
Force Landed  August 15, 1943

Aircraft History
This P-400 had the original RAF serial AP 347, but was diverted for service with the USAAF 5th AF.

Mission History
This aircraft made an emergency landing, with wheels down at Bulldog Airfield, after experiencing a lost of engine power due to the failure of two cylinder heads on the left side. It is unclear if the date of its force landing was August 15, 1943 or August 20, 1943.

Wreckage
Remained at Bulldog Airfield until 1984.

Ray Fairfield flew over the area in 1968:
"I remember the strip as just north of the village of Bulldog. I was told about some intact airplanes at Bulldog that survey crew had visited, and taken a few parts off. These planes had reportedly crashed before the strip was built. When I over flew the area in 1968 or 1969 I could not see anything. Finally, after carefully looking I could just make out the former runway - if the jungle was 80' tall, the trees on the former runway were about 40', they grew that fast. I could not see any wrecks. Later, Jack Taft went in there by boat and walked to the Airacobras. He later told me a story about when he walked there, the locals told him to stop. He wondered why, and they said he was at the aircraft. It was so overgrown, he had not seen it."

Recovery
Recovered by Jack Taft who donated the funds to recovery of two P-400s at Bulldog, in exchange for an export permit for one of them. Recovered by a RAAF Chinook on November 29, 1984 and flown to Jackson Airport.

The salvage was part of an agreement between the PNG National Museum and US Military Aircraft Museum, for the recovery of P-400 AP 347, and a second, P-400 AP 335 for export to the United States.

Charles Darby adds:
"At one time Pacific Aircraft Ltd (New Zealand) offered to build up a ready-for-static-display P-40E in exchange for the (export of) ex-Bulldog P-400 at Jackson Field. Didn't even get a reply."

Display
Displayed at Jackson Airport in a fenced enclosure inside the Aero Club, with a 5th Air Force memorial plaque describing technical information related to the Airacobra.

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