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Cranston Fine Arts Aviation Art and Artists Modern Era Pilot Signatures United States M to Z Voris, R

Captain R M Butch Voris USN

Butch Voris was born in Los Angeles, California. Growing up only a few blocks from the airport at Alhambra, Butch became fascinated with flying and airplanes at a young age. In 1940 Butch joined the U. S. Navy as an. aviation cadet. Following preliminary training at Oakland he was sent to NAS Corpus Christi for elementary and advanced flying schools. His final training was as a dive bomber pilot. He received is commission in February of 1942, only a few months following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Butch quickly jumped at the opportunity to switch to fighters. He received his advanced carrier training on the USS Saratoga piloting the F6F Hellcat. Butch's first combat tour was with VF-10 Grim Reapers flying off the USS Enterprise. As part of Air Group 6, Voris was under the command of Butch O'Hare. Voris attained two aerial victories (both Zeros) during his first tour, and was also shot down one time. He was selected by Admiral Radford to participate in the 'Night Bat Tearn,' which was a unique attempt to utilize radar-equipped TBF Avengers to guide F6F Hellcats to intercept low-flying Japanese bombers at night. This concept was abandoned after Butch O'Hare was shot down by one of the Avengers. On his second combat tour with VF-2, Voris served on the Enterprise and then the USS Hornet. He attained six more confirmed aerial victories, bringing his total to eight (all were Japanese Zeros), before receiving his orders to return to the States. Following the War, Butch was selected to organize at Jacksonville, Florida a Navy flight exhibition team. This group, which would become known as the 'Blue Angels' following their first public performance, has marveled tens of millions of spectators since its organization. The Blues were temporarily disbanded during the Korean War, but Butch was called upon again to reorganize the team following the war. This time the Blue Angels entered the jet age flying the F9F-5 Panther. Butch survived one of the worst accidents in Blue Angel's history in 1952 in Corpus Christi, Texas. Captain Voris commanded two carrier fighter squadrons during his career (VF- 113 flying off the USS Valley Forge and VF- 191 Satan's Kittens that flew off the USS Oriskiny.) Butch was also commander of Air Group 5, which was based in San Diego in the late 1950s. Voris retired from the Navy in 1963. He joined Grumman Aircraft as a Special Assistant to the Senior Vice President. In 1973 he joined NASA in Washington, DC where he worked on technology transfer between private industry and the space program. Butch formally retired in 1985. In addition to his recognition as 'the first Blue Ange' Butch was awarded three Distinguished Flying Crosses, eleven Air Medals, the Purple Heart, and several Unit Citations. Following retirement he resided in California with Thea, his wife of forty-eight years, who passed away in 2003. Butch has two daughters and several grandchildren. He enjoyed traveling, golf, family, and public speaking. Butch passed away on August 11, 2005. He will be missed by his family, friends, and a thankful nation.

Captain R M Butch Voris USN - Signed Aviation Art

Angels and Knights by Stan Stokes. 3 of 4 editions available. All 2 editions featuring an additional signature are available. £35.00 - £120.00

Text for the above items :

Angels and Knights by Stan Stokes. In 1946 Navy brass selected Lt. Cdr. Roy Butch Voris, a fighter pilot with WW II experience, to organize a flight exhibition team. The twenty-six-year-old Voris wasted no time in forming his team, and developed an exciting low altitude acrobatic demonstration utilizing the F6F Hellcat fighter. Recognizing the need for a minimum of distractions, Voris selected only bachelors for his embryonic flight team. When the group put on their first demonstration, Voris commanding officer called them a bunch of crazy S.O.B.s who were going to kill themselves. Nonetheless, the show was impressive and the Navy moved ahead. Lacking a name for this new group a contest was held, but no names were submitted which the pilots all liked. One day Voris #2 - Wick Wickendall - saw an ad for a night club called the Blue Angel in a magazine. From that day forward the name Blue Angels was official. The team quickly transitioned to the faster F8 Bearcat, but when the Korean War began, the group was temporarily disbanded, and its pilots formed the nucleus of VF-191 Satans Kittens. Following the war Voris was asked again to reactivate the team, this time utilizing the Panther jet. In 1955 the Angels transitioned to their first supersonic aircraft the F-8 Cougar. In 1957 they switched to the F-11, and in 1969 they began flying the F-4 Phantom II. Plagued with maintenance difficulties the group dropped the F-4 in 1974 in favor of the diminutive A-4 Skyhawk. In 1985 the Blue Angels began utilizing the McDonnel Douglas F/A-18 Hornet, one of the most capable fighter and attack aircraft in the world. Flying at speeds in the 400-500 MPH range with only 36 inches of separation during most of their shows, the pilot are subject to G forces equal to eight times the weight of gravity. However, the Blue Angels perform without the use of G-suits. The Blues are made up of an all volunteer group. Pilots typically have 8-10 years of fighter experience (1500 or more hours), are carrier qualified, and have had time as instructors. The Blue Angels follow an intensive training program. They fly six days a week, with only a 2-3 week break in November of each year. The Blue Angel pilots and their ground support crew spend about 300 days a year away from home. The support team, which flies from show to show in a specially modified C-130 nicknamed Fat Albert, is of vital importance. A Blue Angels show has never been canceled due to a maintenance or equipment problem, and no spectators have ever been injured during a demonstration. In 1992 the Blue Angels were given the opportunity of visiting the former Soviet Union to become the first American flight demonstration team to perform over Moscow. This was a significant event as it truly signified the change taking place in the former Soviet Union, and the new post Cold War relationship which was evolving. Lead by Cdr. Greg Wooldridge, the Blue Angels took Moscow by storm. A series of exchange flights took place with the Russian pilots having their first exposure to American-built aircraft, and the Blue Angels having opportunity to fly in SU-27s and Mig-31s, two of the hottest Russian aircraft. As depicted in Stan Stokes highly-detailed painting entitled Angels and Knights, a Blue Angel F/A-18 and a Russian Knight SU-27 make a low altitude pass over Red Square, in a symbolic gesture signifying the end of the Cold War.

Hellcat Manufacturer : Grumman Built : 12000

Hellcat The Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat was to become the US Navys primary carrier borne fighter plane during World War II. Over 12,000 Hellcats were produced, and the Hellcat was credited with 4,947 of the 6,477 kills of enemy planes downed by carrier pilots during the War. The Hellcat had a top speed of 375 MPH, a range of 1,089 miles and was armed with six machine guns. The aircraft was powered by an 18-cylinder Pratt and Whitney, air-cooled, radial engine which generated 2,000 horsepower.

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Panther Built : 1382

Panther The Grumman F9F Panther was the manufacturer's first jet fighter and used very successfully by the U.S. Navy as a carrier based jet fighter. The Panther was the most widely used U.S. Navy jet fighter of the Korean War, flying a total of over 78,000 sorties and scoring the first air-to-air kill by the US Navy in the war, On 3 July 1950, Lieutenant, Leonard H. Plog of U.S. Navy's VF-51 flying an F9F-3 scored the first air victory of the war by shooting down a North Korean Yakolev Yak-9 fighter. This was followed by The first MiG-15 being downed on the 9 November 1950 by U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander William (Bill) Amen of VF-111 "Sundowners" Squadron flying an F9F-2B. Two more were downed on 18 November 1950, and the other two were downed on the 18 November 1952. The US Navy successes during the Korean war from the Panther variants F9F-2s, F9F-3s and F9F-5s downing two Yak-9s and five Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15s with a loss of one F9F. The Astronaut Neil Armstrong flew the F9F extensively during the war, even ejecting from one of the aircraft when it was brought down by a wire strung across a valley. Panthers were withdrawn from front-line service in 1956, but remained in training roles and with Reserve units until 1958. Total F9F Panther production was 1,382, with several variants being exported to Argentina.

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Captain R M Butch Voris USN Squadron details

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