Hillman Periodicals changed the title of its Air Fighter Comics to Airboy Comics to capitalize on their most popular air ace character. Airboy is just that, a boy. The blond-haired lad sports yellow gauntlets and boots, blue pants and scarf, and a red shirt with a buttoned yellow "V" on the chest. Our hero has just flown 2100 miles mainland China to deliver the "spot," a new invention designed to wipe out the Japanese High Command. The American commander of the base refuses to send Airboy to tokyo for the final leg of the mission because 1) Airboy is just a boy, and 2) Airboy is too valuable to be sacrificed on what is sure to be a suicide mission. Like any red-blooded boy hero, Airboy ignores the orders and steals a plane to deliver the devastating "spot" to the enemy. It turns out that 'the spot is a radioactive element. Its attractive electronic force is attuned to whole bomb loads in our ships -- and it will draw those bombs right to it! Whoever carries the spot will probably be killed -- it's a suicide job!" The spot is also drawing bullets from the fleet of Japanese Zeroes trying to stop Airboy.
Airboy is shot down but is able to send a radio signal to his "bird-plane." (I see you're scratching your heads. The "bird-plane" is just a plane that obeys Airboy's commands and has with bird wings that flap. Okay?) Birdie takes Airboy to the outskirts of Tokyo and Airboy decides to destroy his beloved plane rather than let the Japanese capture it. Instead of capturing the bird-plane, the Japanese capture Airboy and begin to torture him, but the scrappy lad will not talk. (All ends well and I have a feeling the Japanese will lose the war.)
Airboy is not the only air hero in this comic book. There's also Sky Wolf, who fights the Nazis while wearing a white wolf's skin and head. This time he's trying to solve the mystery of the bird with one wing -- a token that somehow will bring renewed power to the Third Reich. For grins, there's Pvt. Skinny McGinty, a hapless soldier on guard duty at an American base when a Japanese spy mistakes him for his contact. Through dumb (and the emphasis is on dumb) luck, Skinny does a number on the spy.
If you thought the guy in a wolf costume was stretching it, wait until you see the Iron Ace. This flyboy wears a full set of armor. He even wears the armor, including helmet, when infiltrating a Japanese camp while disguised as Uncle Sam. Honest! (Uncle Sam looks a bit bulky because of all the armor underneath the costume.)
They just don't make them like this anymore.
Enjoy.
http://comicbookplus.com/?dlid=39401&b=i
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