The 'Fighting Gryphon' of the 43rd AW. When the 23rd Wing 'Flying Tigers' was re-designated the 43rd AW, the Operations Group Commander, Colonel Gordon Ettenson, wanted a distinctive marking to replace the shark teeth of the Flying Tigers that were being removed. A World War II veteran of the then 43rd Bomb Group who attended the reactivation of the 43rd designation carried with him a leather-covered flight log from the 43rd Bomb Group, circa 1943. Embossed in leather front was a rough depiction of a Gryphon (or griffin). Dave Davenport, a photographer with the Pope AFB Visual Information Support Center, reworked the logo into the design applied to the 43rd AW aircraft. Photo taken March 16, 1999. [Photo by Dave Davenport]
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