USAF History
51-16479 was made available to the AMO (Air Material Overseas) unit of the USAF at Downsview on 21-Mar-1952 and accepted on 11-Apr-1952 initially being delivered to the San Bernardino Air Material Command base at Norton AFB on 10-Apr-1952. This aircraft was assigned to the Far East Air Force (FEAF), 5th Air Force, and shipped to the Kisarazu AFB in Japan on 13-Jun-1952 where it was attached to the 6408th Maintenance Support Group before moving on the 17-Aug-1952 to South Korea and the 10th Liaison Squadron at Yong Dong Po.
There is a record of the aircraft suffering category 3 damage in a takeoff accident on 12-Jan-1953 at A-2 airfield at Seoul when piloted by Walter O. Edrington. This was followed by a shipping back to the 6400th Air Depot at the Showa Aircraft Factory on 08-Feb-1954 presumably after the aircraft was recovered. It seems it was repaired and returned to the 10th Liaison Squadron on 26-May-1954 until 28-Oct-1954 when it was shipped back to the 6400th Air Depot at Showa. This was probably as a result of an accident, 1 mi. S of Kunim-Mi, Korea 16-Aug-1954 where it suffered category 3 damage when in a ground collision. At the time it was attached to the 10th Liaison Squadron based at K-5 Korea and the pilot was Harlan K. Bruner. Its fate is then unclear but presumed cannibalised for spares by the 18-Apr-1955 as there is no further record of it.
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