The RNZAF received it's first 44 ex-RAF P-40Es in mid 1942 to replace aircraft such as the Harvard and Hawker Hind. A total of 297 P-40E (Kittyhawk IA - NZ3001/3044, NZ3091/3098, NZ3100/3108, NZ3271), P-40K (Kittyhawk III - NZ3045/3065, NZ3090, NZ3099), P-40L (Kittyhawk II - NZ3074), P-40M (Kittyhawk III - NZ3066/3073, NZ3075/3989, NZ3109/3119, NZ3180) and P-40Ns (Kittyhawk IV - NZ3120/3179, NZ3181/3270,NZ3272/3293) were in use between 1942 and 1945 with a further 4 being destroyed in accidents before becoming operational. The aircraft were assigned to Nos. 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 Fighter Squadrons, and No's 2 and 4 (F) OTU (Operational Training Unit).

Number 14 through 19 Squadrons were deployed to the Pacific theatre in 1943, where they carried out offensive and defensive fighter operations, dive bombing duties and bomber escort. RNZAF P-40's accounted for 99 Japanese aircraft destroyed and 14 probables for the loss of 20 to enemy action. A further 76 were written off in crashes overseas and 76 in crashes in New Zealand.
P-40E NZ3027 FE-V in a ditch at Ohakea after a taxiing accident on the 10th of January 1944

USAAF Lightnings fly over a line-up of RNZAF Kittyhawks. Torokina, Bougainville.
Aircraft on charge to No. 2 Servicing Unit.

Two members of the ground crew pose with Kittyhawk NZ3060, which was damaged after belly landing after a test flight. Kukum airstrip, Guadalcanal.
Aircraft on charge to No. 1 Servicing Unit, was flown by No. 14 Squadron pilot, Sergeant FE Ferrier.

The New Zealand Governor General, Sir Cyril Newall (not visible in view), inspects a Servicing Unit maintenance area. Ondonga, New Georgia.

The New Zealand Govenor General Sir Cyril Newall (not visible in view) inspects a Servicing Unit aircraft maintenance area. Ondonga, New Georgia.
Kittyhawk NZ3121 in foreground.

Squadron Leader MJ Herrick DFC in the cockpit of his Kittyhawk at Guadalcanal. Five German and one Japanese kill marks.

Side view of No. 4 Servicing Unit Kittyhawk NZ3220 with 'Gloria Lyons' nose art. Believed to be Torokina, Bougainville.

RNZAF truck towing a Kittyhawk. Presumed to be Espiritu Santo.
Truck MT1933, is a Canadian military pattern Chevrolet No.12 cab.

RNZAF pilots standing in front of a line-up of Kittyhawks. Torokina, Bougainville.
Aircraft on charge to No. 4 Servicing Unit.
Kittyhawk 'G' NZ3220 with nose art "Gloria Lyons" in view

RNZAF pilots in a Dodge weapons carrier, parked in front of a line-up of No. 2 Servicing Unit Kittyhawks. Torokina, Bougainville.

RNZAF No. 1 Servicing Unit Kittyhawks in the dispersal area among the palm trees at Fighter 2 airstrip, Kukum, Guadalcanal.

Rear view of RNZAF Kittyhawk. Presumed to be No. 2 Fighter Maintenance Unit, Espiritu Santo.

Ground crew servicing RNZAF Kittyhawk NZ3094. Presumed to be No. 2 Fighter Maintenance Unit, Espiritu Santo.

RNZAF Kittyhawk at Espiritu Santo.

Rearming and refuelling No. 17 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3034 JZ-W, during Air defence exercise at RNZAF Station, Seagrove.

Rearming and refuelling a No. 17 Squadron (formerley No. 15 Squadron) Kittyhawk during Air Defence exercise at RNZAF Station, Seagrove.
Nb. When No. 15 Squadron left for overseas tour, No. 17 Squadron took charge of the aircraft and the aircraft codes were left unchanged.

Portrait of No. 14 Squadron pilot Flight Lieutenant JA Oldfield DFC in front of a Kittyhawk. Presumed to be at RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

A member of the ground crew pulls-up in front of a Curtiss P-40k Kittyhawk driving a Cletrac crawler. Presumed to be No. 1 Fighter Maintenance Unit, Kukum Field. Guadalcanal.

Number 14 Squadron fighter pilots pose with Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawk NZ3008, HQ-B. Presumed to be Royal New Zealand Air Force Station, Whenuapai. Nose art: UMSLOPOGAAS. Standing on wing: Pilot Officer W.M. Bullen. Sitting on wing L-R: Sergeant E.C. Laurie, Flying Officer P.D. Gifford, Flying Officer P.S. Green and Flight Lieutenant H.R. Wigley. Standing L-R: Pilot Officer E.L. Avery, Flying Officer M.R. Clarke, Sergeant R.C.C. Nairn, Sergeant D.W. Robertson, Flying Officer J.R. Hutcheson, Flight Lieutenant J.A. Oldfield, Flying Officer D.L. Clow and Flying Officer H.J. Meharry.

No. 19 Squadron pilot, Flight Lieutenant James Ralph Court DFC, in the cockpit of a Kittyhawk. Believed to be at RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

No. 19 Squadron arrives at RNZAF Station Waipapakauri.
Image taken during a brief stop-off, at the time of the Squadron ferrying their 'tired' aircraft from Guadalcanal, back to RNZAF Station, Ardmore.


No. 18 Squadron pilot, Squadron Leader JA Oldfield, in the cockpit of a P-40 Kittyhawk. Torokina, Bougainville.

No. 18 Squadron pilot, presumed to be Flying Officer CDA Highet, sitting in the cockpit of a Kittyhawk. Ondonga, New Georgia.

No. 18 Squadron pilot Flying Officer GM Robertson beside his Kittyhawk. Torokina, Bougainville.

No. 18 Squadron Kittyhawk on the runway at Torokina, Bougainville.

Group of No. 16 Squadron pilots sitting on the wing of a Kittyhawk. Believed to be at Espiritu Santo.
L-R: Sergeant PA Tilyard, Flying Officer MT Vanderpump, Flight Lieutenant TM de Denne, Sergeant LW Williams, Flight Sergeant CA McDonald.

No. 16 Squadron pilot Flight Lieutenant JR Day standing on the wing of a P-40 Kittyhawk. Espiritu Santo. Aircraft '5' in view.
Day was a Flight Commander with No. 16 Squadron.

No. 16 Squadron Kittyhawks at RNZAF Station Gisborne.

No. 14 Squadron pilots running to their Kittyhawks. Presumed to be at RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

No. 14 Squadron pilot, Flying Officer WJ Polson, about to enter the cockpit of Kittyhawk NZ3072. Presumed to be Guadalcanal.

No. 14 Squadron pilot Flying Officer GB Fisken standing beside Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawk NZ3072. Guadalcanal.


No. 14 Squadron pilot, Flying Officer EL Avery posing with part of the extensively damaged rudder from his P-40 Kittyhawk.

No. 14 Squadron pilot Sergeant RCC Nairn with a Kittyhawk. Believed to be at RNZAF Station Whenuapai.

No. 14 Squadron pilot Pilot Officer RA Weber beside a Kittyhawk. Believed to be at RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

No. 14 Squadron pilot Flying Officer RA Weber, holding his parachute over his shoulder, standing in front of a Kittyhawk. Guadalcanal.


No. 14 Squadron pilot Flying Officer GB Fisken standing in front of Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawk NZ3072 'Wairarapa Wildcat'. Guadalcanal.

No. 14 Squadron pilot Flight Lieutenant PS Green, wearing flying helmet, goggles and oxygen mask, in the cockpit of a Kittyhawk. Presumed to be at RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawk taxiing at Norfolk Island.

No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawk prepares to leave RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3072 taxiing along tarmac area. Believed to be Guadalcanal.
This aircraft carried the nose art 'Wairarapa Wildcat'.

Air to air view of No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3026 HQ-Q, breaking formation. Presumed to be flying from RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

Marshalling No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawks into position on the aerodrome at Norfolk Island.

Line-up of No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawks on the runway. Believed to be Kukum Field, Guadalcanal.
NZ3060 far left and NZ3072 'Wairarapa Wildcat' far right.

Kittyhawk NZ3220, with nose art 'Gloria Lyons'. RNZAF Station Ardmore.


Kittyhawk NZ3220 'Gloria Lyons', from No. 2 Fighter Operational Training Unit in Cathedral Square, Christchurch, for a War Bonds Drive.

Kittyhawk NZ3148, with nose art 'Gloria Lyons', being readied for flight. Torokina, Bougainville.

Group of RNZAF pilots with No. 4 Servicing Unit Kittyhawks on the flight line. Torokina, Bougainville.

Group of No. 17 Squadron pilots with a Kittyhawk at Torokina, Bougainville.

Group of No. 16 Squadron pilots with Kittyhawk '66'.
This group was involved in the first bomber assault on Rabaul, 19 December 1943.

Group of No. 14 Squadron Flight Commanders and Section Leaders in front of a Kittyhawk. Torokina, Bougainville.
L-R: Squadron Leader SG Quill, Flight Lieutenant LR Renolds, Flight Lieutenant EH Brown, Flying Officer WM Bullen, Flying Officer RA Weber.

Group of No. 4 Servicing Unit personnel perform maintenance on a Kittyhawk. Torokina, Bougainville.

Group of four airmen from No. 4 Servicing Unit, sitting on the wing of Kittyhawk NZ3148 with nose art 'Gloria Lyons'. Possibly Ondonga or Torokina. Bougainville.

Groundcrew servicing RNZAF P-40 Kittyhawks. Presumed to be No. 2 Fighter Maintenance Unit at Espiritu Santo. Circa 1943.

Groundcrew servicing RNZAF Kittyhawk NZ3094. Presumed to be No. 2 Fighter Maintenance Unit, Espiritu Santo.

Ground to air of Kittyhawk NZ3119, flying low over an unknown airfield.

Ground staff examine the damaged rudder of a Kittyhawk which was flown by No. 18 Squadron pilot, Pilot Officer Mackinder.

Ground crew work on the Allison V-12 engine in a Kittyhawk, during the visit of the New Zealand Governor General, Sir Cyril Newall, to a Servicing Unit maintenance area. Ondonga, New Georgia.

Ground crew servicing an Allison V-12 aero engine. Presumed to be at No. 1 Fighter Maintenance Unit, Kukum Field, Guadalcanal.

Ground crew servicing a No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawk before it leaves RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

Ground crew servicing a group of Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawks. Presumed to be No. 1 Fighter Maintenance Unit at Kukum Field, Guadalcanal.

Armourers loading ammunition into the port wing magazines of a No. 18 Squadron P-40 Kittyhawk. Presumed to be Torokina, Bougainville.

Armourers loading 0.5 inch ammunition into the starboard wing bays of a No. 15 Squadron Kittyhawk. Either RNZAF Station Whenuapai or Seagrove.


Air Training Corps cadets examine the Allison engine in a Kittyhawk. Believed to be RNZAF Station, Ohakea.

Air to air view of two No. 15 Squadron Kittyhawks, viewed from a No. 3 Squadron Hudson, while on patrol over the central Solomon Islands.

A No. 16 Squadron P-40E NZ3044 flight down the Marlborough coast

Air to air view of No. 15 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3040 JZ-I, on patrol over New Zealand waters. Flying from RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

Air to air view of No. 15 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3039 JZ-A. Photographed through the window of a Hudson flying from RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.

Air to air view of No. 15 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3039 JZ-A in a gentle climb. Presumed to be flying from RNZAF Station, Whenuapai

Air to air view of No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawks in formation. Presumed to be flying from RNZAF Station Whenuapai.

Air to air view of No. 14 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3007 HQ-A. Believed to be flying from RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.
Nose art: "MAGNOLIA MUFFLEWURT", painted above exhaust, but not visible in image because of glare.

Air to air view of four No. 15 Squadron Kittyhawks in formation over the North Shore of Auckland.

Air to air of three No. 15 Squadron P-40 Kittyhawks in formation. Flying from RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.
Aircraft from front; JZ-I NZ3040, JZ-N and JZ-A NZ3039.

Air to air view of No. 16 Squadron Kittyhawks and No. 9 Squadron Hudson NZ2079 in formation.


Air to air of No. 15 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3040 JZ-I. Flying from RNZAF Station, Whenuapai.


A member of the groundcrew helps a No. 18 Squadron pilot to enter the cockpit of a P-40 Kittyhawk.

A member of the ground crew at work on the wing of a Kittyhawk. Believed to be No. 2 Fighter Maintenance Unit at Espiritu Santo.

Kittyhawk NZ3142, flown by Squadron Leader RM McKay, from the Fighter Gunnery School, after belly landing at RNZAF Station Gisborne.
This aircraft was 'shot down' by Kittyhawk NZ3147 when live ammunition was mistakenly loaded for a cine camera exercise.

The P-40 began to be replaced in front line duties by F4U-1A Corsairs from 1944 and, like so many aircraft of this era, most of the surviving RNZAF P-40s were sold for scrap in 1948 with only 6 surviving destruction.

Side view of the derelict Kittyhawk NZ3220 'Gloria Lyons'. Believed to be at Ardmore.

Kittyhawk NZ3147, FE-B1, lying derelict in the aircraft graveyard at Rukuhia Aerodrome.

Kittyhawks and Corsairs in a field at Rukuhia aerodrome, waiting to be scrapped.

Taken over the Pacific from a 2 Sq Hudson

RNZAF Kittyhawks at Kukum airfield, Guadalcanal

Kittyhawk 16Sq taxiing on runway. Presumed to be Espiritu Santo

RNZAF Kittyhawks on runway. Presumed to be No. 16 Squadron at Espiritu Santo.

RNZAF Kittyhawks on the airfield. Presumed to be No. 16 Squadron, on charge to No. 2 Fighter Maintenance Unit, at Espiritu Santo.

Kukum Field, Guadalcanal. Kittyhawk NZ3058 sits partially dismantled in the background

18 Squadron Kittyhawk NZ3053 over the sea near Guadalcanal.

All your library threads are great mate, but I'm especially liking this one! ????