{"product_id":"p-61-black-widow-night-fighter-combat-loss-relic-display-by-ron-cole","title":"P-61 'Black Widow' Night Fighter Combat Loss Relic Display by Ron Cole","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"w-full my-[1px]\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003eOwn an extremely rare piece of Pacific War aviation history - an authentic piece of black-painted aluminum from this Northrop P-61 'Black Widow' night fighter paired with Ron Cole's original artwork of this famous night hunter high over its falling prey c. 1945! \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003eThe Northrop P-61 Black Widow was conceived for the hardest work in aerial warfare: finding an enemy that could not be seen. Designed from the outset as a radar-equipped night fighter, the large twin-engine aircraft carried a pilot, a radar operator, and—on turret-equipped machines—a gunner. Its distinctive twin-boom form enclosed powerful engines, heavy fuel capacity, four forward-firing 20 mm cannon, and, where fitted, a remote upper turret of four .50-caliber machine guns. In darkness, cloud, and tropical weather, the radar operator’s indications could turn an unseen contact into a controlled interception, bringing the crew close enough for a decisive attack.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"w-full my-[1px]\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003eIn the Pacific, Black Widows served from remote island and New Guinea bases at a time when Japanese aircraft often appeared singly at night, seeking to harass Allied airfields, anchorages, and forward positions. Conventional fighters had little opportunity to meet such intruders in the dark; the P-61 changed the equation. Its airborne radar gave American crews the means to search, close, identify, and engage after sunset, while its long range and substantial armament made it equally suited to the distances and unpredictability of the theater. The combat mission was seldom theatrical. It was an exacting partnership of flight discipline, radar interpretation, and nerve—often conducted over black water, jungle, cloud, and moonlit terrain much like the atmosphere evoked in the accompanying painting.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"w-full my-[1px]\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003eP-61B \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"font-[600]\"\u003e42-39445\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e belongs directly to that Pacific story. The 232nd P-61B produced, it was assigned to the Thirteenth Air Force’s Thirteenth Fighter Command and was the first Black Widow delivered to the 550th Night Fighter Squadron at Hollandia, New Guinea. On 10 January 1945, while flying near Mt. Cyclops, the aircraft crashed only a short distance from Hollandia. Lieutenant Logan “Red” Southfield and radar operator Lieutenant Ben Goldstein survived the accident and were brought down from the mountain two days later. The airframe itself remained on the mountainside for decades, a silent remnant of the difficult, little-seen night war fought across the Southwest Pacific.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0241\/1737\/files\/1000028190.jpg?v=1787251787\" alt=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"w-full my-[1px]\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003eOnly a handful of Black Widows survive from the 706 P-61s built in all variants, and each surviving airframe carries unusual historical weight. Material authenticated to \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"font-[600]\"\u003e42-39445\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e is rarer still: it is not merely wartime metal, but a tangible witness to a specific aircraft, squadron, landscape, and moment in the Pacific campaign. In Ron Cole’s display, those authentic remnants give physical presence to the story, while the accompanying artwork restores the setting that no artifact alone can convey—the immense night sky, the vulnerability of a single aircraft far from home, and the enduring human drama behind one of America’s most distinctive wartime fighters.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"py-[3px]\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e11x17 inches (artwork size) framed and ready to hang. Very limited supply of this linen, but I'm offering large pieces with these displays - 1.25x3.5-inches. Series is set at 120 displays. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan size=\"4\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c!-- Facebook Pixel Code --\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cscript\u003e\/\/ \u003c![CDATA[\n!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\nn.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;\nn.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\nt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,\ndocument,'script','https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n\nfbq('init', '564576383673749');\nfbq('track', \"PageView\");\n\/\/ ]]\u003e\u003c\/script\u003e \u003cnoscript\u003e\u003cimg height=\"1\" width=\"1\" style=\"display:none\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/tr?id=564576383673749\u0026amp;ev=PageView\u0026amp;noscript=1\"\u003e\u003c\/noscript\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!-- End Facebook Pixel Code --\u003e","brand":"Cole's Aircraft","offers":[{"title":"11x17 Display","offer_id":48865556791545,"sku":null,"price":280.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0241\/1737\/files\/BlackWidow-Disp-Virt-2.jpg?v=1787251900","url":"https:\/\/roncole.net\/products\/p-61-black-widow-night-fighter-combat-loss-relic-display-by-ron-cole","provider":"Cole's Aircraft","version":"1.0","type":"link"}