Commanding Officer 334th Fighter Squadron, 4th Fighter Group

P-47 42-7890/QP-B "Boise Bee"
P-51B 43-6819/QP-M "BEE"

Duane W. Beeson called Boise, Idaho home and he was also a former member of the RAF 71st "Eagle" Squadron. Duane Beeson was Don Gentile's rival in the Eighth Air Force's first 'Ace Race' aiming at beating the Great War ace Eddie Rickenbacker's record of 26 enemy aircraft downed, but he was shot down and captured on 5 April 1944, and spent the rest of the war as a POW. He score 22.08 air victories, including 17.3 air to air kills, 5.3 of which were scored in the Mustang. His P-51B was coded QP M and bore the serial number 43-6819. An earlier P-47 carried the QP B code and was named "Boise Bee" serial number 42-7890.