MIDWAY – THE ATTACK ON THE SORYU. SBD pilots pull out of their death-defying dives having delivered their 1000lb bombs perfectly on target with three direct hits on the Japanese carrier Soryu. The Soryu is doomed, and these few courageous US Navy pilots have changed the course of history. Thursday 4 June 1942, and Admiral Yamamoto’s plan to draw what remained of the US Pacific fleet into battle was going well. That morning, before dawn, he had launched over a hundred aircraft to pound Midway’s power plants and oil installations, and the attack had been successful. By 10.20 the noise on the carrier’s packed flight decks reached a crescendo as the pilots ran up their engines whilst the Soryu turned slowly into the wind ready to launch. Few were watching the sky above. They failed to spot the SBD Dauntless dive-bombers from the USS Yorktown gathering high overhead. No one noticed as the battle-hardened pilots of VB-3 banked their SBDs and, swooping like hawks on their prey, dived on the carrier below. THE SIGNATURES The Battle of Midway in June 1942 ranks as the most pivotal naval victory of World War II and alongside the artist Anthony Saunders, this historic print is personally autographed by two veterans who took part in that epic encounter. AMM 1/C GEORGE H. MAYNOR – USS Hornet crewman AMM 1/C (Naval Aviation Pilot) JACK MORRISSEY – PBY and SBD Pilot. YOUR PIECE OF MIND: As a reputable company, if any issues do arise we don’t expect our customers to deal with it. Please note: The signatures on our pieces are not reproductions; they are original autographs, hand-signed by the veterans involved.