North American O-47 Color Photographs

An excellent study of O-47A Serial number 37-260 in flight in 1941.  Note the Wright Field arrowhead visible on the fuselage.  (Rudy Arnold)

Another pre-war photograph, this O-47 displays an interesting design on the wheel hubs.

With war looming, the USAAC adopted the Olive Drab over Neutral Gray camouflage which would become synonymous with Army aircraft.  This O-47A is part of “Red Nation” forces in the 1941 war games.

Several aircraft types were painted in temporary camouflage schemes and were evaluated at Bolling Field in January 1940.  The paints were water-soluble so they could be easily removed and thus wore away quickly.  (LIFE Magazine)

The O-47 carried a fixed .30 caliber gun in the starboard wing.  This example has a trestle under the fuselage while the gun is being sighted.

38-306 in flight.  The terrain is consistent with the vast farmlands of the American Midwest.  (Rudy Arnold)

38-306 again, posing for the camera.  Finish is the standard OD / NG with Orange-Yellow serials on the vertical tail.   (Rudy Arnold)

A nice overhead view of 37-352.  (Rudy Arnold)

The sudden entry of the U.S. into WWII found both the Army Air Corps and Navy unprepared for war.  While several aircraft types were obsolete in their designed roles, they were adequate for coastal patrol and ASW duties.  Here 37-327 Of the 107^th Observation Squadron of the Michigan National Guard carries depth charges while patrolling for German U-boats.  She has been camouflaged in the USN standard Blue Gray over Light Gray scheme appropriate for her new role.

Another O-47A carrying depth charges, this one is flying without the landing gear covers on her port gear.

The O-47s soldiered on throughout the war performing ancillary duties.  This example carries the barred national insignia with blue border authorized from August 1943.

Another late-war aircraft, this one has been stripped of her camouflage paint revealing the natural metal finish underneath.