William "Wild Bill" Donovan is one of my personal heros and a well-known figure of the early-mid 20th Century. A Columbia U. quarterback, COL Donovan commanded the 165th Infantry (NY's "Fighting 69th") in the 42d "Rainbow" Division during WWI. He recieved the Medal of Honor, DSC, DSM, 3 Purple Hearts, and several foreign decorations during the war. A very successful lawyer, Donovan served as Deputy Attorney General in Hoover's Administration. He was FDR's spymaster prior to our entry into WWII and founded and headed the OSS during WWII. He often travelled to the war zones. See his biography, "The Last American Hero." He was a stud.
Hi all, for long time I looking for all possible data about the sell of P-40 to the Yugoslav Kingdom. This sale was arrangement after the visit of Gen. Donovan and there was number of 200 planes to... more
Hi Srecko The first 10 aircraft that were sent for Yugoslavia were all P-40C aircraft. The serial numbers for these aircraft were 41-13389 41-13390 41-13396 41-13397 41-13398 41-13399 41-13400... more
I HAVE DONE FURTHER RESEARCH AND IF ONE LOOKS INTO "GOOGLE" SEARCH FOR "US GENERAL DONOVAN", AND THEN GO TO PAGE 2 OF THE RESULTS. CLICK ON THE FIRST ITEM ON THAT PAGE NAMED 'WILD BILL DONOVAN"... more
iNTRIGUING. ANOTHER PAGE IN THE P-40 STORY. I LOOKED UP GOOGLE AND ENQUIRED INTO A US GENERAL DONOVAN. I GOT TWO RESULTS - ONE A MAJOR GENERAL WILLIAM DONOVAN WHO WAS APPOINTED IN 1940 AS... more
MAJOR GENERAL WILLIAM DONOVAN was the director of the OSS (Office of the Strategic Services), which was the precursor of the CIA. He most probably had agents operatin in Yogoslavia, or he may have... more
STEPHEN, I BELIEVE IF YOU READ THAT INTERNET ARTICLE ON DONOVAN, YOU WILL FIND THAT HIS WORK FOR ROOSEVELDT & CO AROUND ITALY, YUGOSLAVIA ETC (TRAVELLING AS A PRIVATE CITIZEN TO REMAIN INCONSPICUOUS) ... more