When they found out about it whilst still training in the US, none of the pilots of the 6th Night Fighter Squadron were enthusiastic about flying the P-70 as they had all flown the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk prior. They would much rather be in the Lockheed P 38 Lightnings which were beginning to make their way into various squadrons in the Pacific.

There were not too many concerns about how effective the P-70s would be, but there was some doubt about how the radar would perform, especially in the humid forward air bases of the Pacific. Reading the radar scope accurately as to azimuth and elevation required much patience on the part of the radar operators. The pilot had no scope presentation, so the Radar Operators, seated in the back gun position, acted as the 'eyes'. On a night intercept, the aircraft was therefore only as effective as the radar operator, and as they became more proficient, the better the chances of making a 'kill' increased. Once the Northrop P 61s were operational, aircrew efficiency had reached perfection.

Detachment 'B' of the 6th NFS remained on station in New Guinea for what seemed like a long eight months, being recalled to Hawaii in the late autumn of 1943. They were replaced by the 419th NFS, which arrived on Guadalcanal in late November, using the 6th NFS' former aircraft. By this time, the aircraft inventory was down to just three P-70s and eight P 38s. They continued the same regime as the 6th had developed during its final four months the P-70s to be used for night intruder missions and the P-38s continuing to handle the night intercepts. By the latter months of the War, the P-61 had completely taken over all aspects of the operational and training regimens in this specialized brand of aerial combat.

Night fighter pilots were considered an elite fraternity whose expertise sealed off the only 'safe haven' the enemy had to operate in. To make this easier to understand, the US trained 35,000 day fighter pilots during World War Two. By contrast, only 485 night fighter crews were trained over the same period. Note the black panther squadron emblem on the nose,