Parts of unknown aircraft for identification

[Kurtl12]

These parts were kept by a farmer immediatly after the crash in 1945. It is not known which type of aircraft it was. I want to ask this forum for help. Maybe someone can identify the shape of the propeller blades or can help with the screw head marking of "NSMC"? It would be great. I appreciate any help.

Content of finding:
2 prop blades - one bent and one rather straight - dimensions: width:~31cm/12,2in, length: ~180cm/70,8in
1 rivited aluminum part with screws and the markings "--- REG ALCOA - M - - - - 24S-T---" dimensions: approx.: 120 x 25cm
1 aluminum part without any markings

[Kurlan2]

might be helpful to have exact place of crash and exact date.
if this is a US aircraft then it would be listed in MACR

[RSwank]

Just looking at the length you give for the prop blade as 70.8 inches and allowing a little more for the part that is broken off that would have gone into the hub and the hub itself, I think you may have parts from a P-47. This site give the diameter of a P-47 propeller as originally 146 inches but then they increased the size to 13 feet (156 inches) and ended at 13 feet 2 inches in the final models. The props on B-17s and B-24s were smaller.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_P-47_Thunderbolt

[ssg keay]

Def an American plane..ALCOA is Aluminium Company of American. Danny

[HGabor]

Not necessarily... Even clearly soviet IL-2 Sturmovik planes were built from American 'ALCOA' aluminum sheets in Kuybishev, Russia (Factory or 'Zavod' 1) from their Lend-Lease aluminum shipments... Or a soviet (and not American) crew Lend-lease plane, like a B-25...


See: IL-2 tail from Lake Balaton...

[Kurtl12]

Thank's for taking part in this discussion gentlemen!
So in summary we can rule out the B-17, B-24, P-38, P-51 and probably any other single engined fighter - one of the farmer remembers that at least two engines were salvaged after the war.
I have found another possibility: the B-26 Marauder with an prop dia of 162" - but I guess there were no B-26 missions over Austria ever...

[ssg keay]

Kurtl, if it was an American bomber then I would go with four-engined. Or it could have crashed post-war during the occupation time. HGabor, you are of course right, but I am not sure if the Soviet Air Force had losses over Austria, that alas is not my field of research. By the way, how many planes crashed into Lake Balaton? We will visit next year. Danny

[RSwank]

Kurtl, there were B-26 operations in Austria during the war. The SAAF had 5 squadrons of B-26s, Here is a link about 24 Squadron which was operating from Iesi, Italy late in the war. They flew attacks against St Veit, near Innsbuck. In the link such an attack on 23 March 1945 is described.

http://www.aircrew-saltire.org/lib059.htm

So I guess you can't rule out a B-26. Where exactly (or even approximately) is the crash site. It might give us an idea how to proceed.

[HGabor]

Danny,

The Soviets had lost A LOT OF WARPLANES in Austria in March, April, 1945. (5th, 17th, 18th Air Armies.)

Lake Balaton was also full of planes in Hungary: a Wellington X., a P-51D (red tails), 3-4 B-24s, a P-38J, many Bf 109Gs, a Bf 110G, several Lavochkin La-5s, Ilyushin IL-2s, a Pe-2, a He 111, a Ju 88G-6, Ju 86, etc... These are only the identified ones, but there were a lot more. Underwater wrecks are the fishermen's favourite spots as fish love to hide in the planes :-))))

Cheers,

Gabor

[MarkRS]

NSMC = National Screw and Manufacturing Company

The National Screw and Manufacturing Company was incorporated in May of 1889 as the National Screw and Tack Company and operated near East 55th Street and Carnegie Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio. It acquired Union Steel and Screw Company in 1908. The company produced woodscrews, machine screws, nuts, and bolts. Prior to World War I, it also turned out electric motors, lamp shades, and motorcycles. Motorcycle production spurred the company into making fasteners for the automobile and aircraft industry, which led to large military contracts during both world wars. In May 1974, National Screw was absorbed by Monogram Industries, Incorporated.

Mark