Twilight Conquest by Nicolas Trudgian.

The Black Widow is a formidable creature. It lurks in the dark, carefully chooses its moment of attack and strikes unseen, cutting down its prey with deadly certainty. Northrop could not have chosen a more apt name with which to christen their new night fighter when the P61 Black Widow entered service in the spring of 1944. The first aircraft designed from the start as a night fighter, the P61 had the distinction of pioneering airborne radar interception during World War II, and this remarkable twin engined fighter saw service in the ETO, in China, the Marianas and the South West Pacific. Under the command of Lt Col O B Johnson, one of the P61s greatest exponents, the 422nd Night Fighter Squadron was the leading P61 outfit in the ETO, destroying 43 enemy aircraft in the air, 5 buzz bombs and hundreds of ground based vehicles, becoming the most successful night fighter squadron of the war. Flying a twilight mission in his P-61 Black Widow on October 24, 1944, Colonel Johnson and his radar operator have picked up a formation of three Fw190s, stealthily closing on their quarry in the gathering dusk, O.B. makes one quick and decisive strike, bringing down the enemy leader with two short bursts of fire. Banking hard, as the Fw190 pilot prepares to bale out, he brings his blazing guns to bear on a second Fw190, the tracer lighting up the fuselage of his P-61.

Signed by Lieutenant Colonel Herman Ernst (deceased),
Major Robert Graham,
Major General Oris B Johnson (deceased)
and
First Lieutenant Bob Tierney, in addition to the artist.

Limited edition of 600 prints.

Paper size 33 inches x 24 inches (84cm x 61cm)