Lockheed P2V-3 Neptune, 122969 / 326-1133, US Navy
This picture is © Les Vowles and may not be used or published without permission.
Registration: 122969
Construction Number: 326-1133
Code Number: NB-41
Military Unit: VC-5
Model Lockheed P2V-3 Neptune
Operator: US Navy
Airport: Nice - Cote D'Azur (NCE / LFMN), France
Photographer: Les Vowles
Date Taken: 20/03/1951
Date Submitted: 19/03/2021
This was one of the HATWING Neptunes, cleared to fly from a US Navy carrier with an atomic bomb (after being craned aboard). 122969 had been fitted with a tail arrester hook and had performed mock approaches to a carrier but no actual 'landing' was made. Note the RATO bottle brackets on the side (needed for a carrier launch). These Neptunes were a stop-gap solution until the service entry of the AJ Savage
Picture ID:1746955