Help Identifying Markings on 1941 Slat photos

[gwclubine]

I have a photo of a 1941 Slat Grill can anyone help with identifying the markings

Passenger side looks like .... ASC (air force Propeller symbol)

Drivers Side looks like ..... HAD 739

assuming its Army Air Corps.. 739th Bombardment squadron

what does the ASC and the HAD mean?

The 739th was part of the 2nd Air Force... so on the passenger side there was probably a 2 before the ASC... hidden behind shoe

[gwclubine]

More info on the 739th

The 739th squadron was first activated in June 1943 at Alamogordo Army Air Field, New Mexico as the 739th Bombardment Squadron, one of the original four squadrons of the 454th Bombardment Group. The 454th was a Consolidated B-24 Liberator heavy bombardment group. The unit trained under Second Air Force. It deployed to the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, and was stationed in southern Italy at San Giovanni Airfield under Fifteenth Air Force.

so I guess the number under the shoe could be either 2 if taken during training or 15 if taken in Italy


Again any help on the ASC or the HAD part of the markings would be greatly appreciated

[Jim Kilbourne]

ASC represents Air Service Command...of which there was only one..

they were the Air Corps' fixed base operators, logistics and heavy repairs at rear area bases

and the ASC was divided into groups called ...Air Depots....AD...

Each AD had several squadrons...

and those squadrons each had a HQs Co, Supply CO, a Repair CO....

they did engine repair, and armaments repair, Airframe...supply, etc...each with its own AD abbreviation

I see the photo is labeled as "Hawaii"...in Hawaii the Air Depot was called, Hawaiian Air Depot...HAD....it was HUGE, operated on every air corps base in Hawaii, and may have had enough rolling stock to number this jeep as vehicle number 739