"P-40N Warhawk Tom-kat" half-zip sweater

Although the 15th Fighter Group was based in the Hawaiian Islands, it continued to send its squadrons to various locations in the central and southern Pacific. One of these was Baker Island, where the 45th Fighter Squadron was sent in September 1943, before moving on to Abemama Island and then Makin in the fall of 1943, from where it conducted raids against bases on the Julait and Mili Islands until March 1944.

The transfer of the 45th FS Warhawks to Baker in mid-September 1943 took the Japanese by surprise, costing them the loss of an H8K Emily seaplane. On October 23, 1943, two P-40s were guided to an aircraft of this type and sent it crashing into the waves of the Pacific. The victory was credited to Captain Gilmer L. Snipes, who had Second Lieutenant R. Hendrickson as his wingman. This was the 45th FS's first victory of the war.

In April 1944, “Buck” Snipes took command of the squadron and, after rearming his aircraft with Mustangs, participated in the deployment of the 15th FG from Iwo Jima, including three VLR missions over Japan. During the first of these missions, on April 7, 1945, he was credited with destroying a Ki-44 Tojo.

As the standard color of the P-40 was not suitable for the Coral Islands, the technical staff mixed a sand color adapted to local conditions before the squadron moved to Baker Island. The undersides of the aircraft were repainted in light blue, a mixture of insignia blue and white.