The Interwar Aviation series covers aircraft that were developed and used between World War 1 and World War 2, and was known as the “Golden Age of Aviation.” In the two decades between the end of World War 1 and the start of World War 2, military aviation underwent a complete transformation. The typical combat aircraft of 1918 was a fabric-covered externally braced biplane with fixed landing gear and open cockpits. Few aero engines developed as much as 250 horsepower, and top speeds of 200 km (120 miles) per hour were exceptional. By 1939 the first-line combat aircraft of the major powers were all-metal monoplanes with retractable landing gear.

The Boeing P-12/F4B was an American pursuit aircraft that was operated by the United States Army Air Corps and United States Navy. Though best known in later years for producing large bomber or transport aircraft, Boeing produced a series of excellent fighters from 1923 to 1933. The most famous of those biplane fighters, the F4B, was the refinement of design experience gained from its FB, F2B and F3B predecessors. Nimble, rugged and reliable, the F4B-4's debut coincided nicely with advances in carrier operations aboard the new carriers Lexington (CV-2) and Saratoga (CV-3). The aircraft remained the Navy and Marine Corps' first-line fighter until replaced by faster and more powerful Grumman biplanes.

Info: F4B-4 A-9023 Fighting Squadron Six (VF-6B), No.3 Left Wingman, Section 4, USS Saratoga CV-3 1935, 2 pieces