Grand Slam bomb

In Pompey there is (was?) a Tesco next to the Inland Revenue Office on Commercial Road. This was opposite the hospital just outside the dockyard. A few years back (15-20?) it was discovered that the 6in shell used at the Tesco’s as a door stop was a live round…. My step dad & sis both worked in the tax office at the time & got most of the day off… :rolleyes:

bump

Urban myth gets my vote – but the Grand Slam was certainly there when I took this photo (with my Agfa Silette – 11 gns – lotsa packetmoney) from a passing bus – on my way to Barkston Heath for the Flying Model Aircraft Nationals in, I think, 1962.

Perhaps, I’d better check up on the 25 pounder shell I keep in the fireplace and use as an ashtray.
I remember looking over R5868 when it arrived at the gate in the early 60’s, don’t recall a Grand Slam.
Isn’t the total devastation of North Lincoln scenario a bit over the top, as the blast at Hemel Hempstead registered 2.5 on the Richter scale but only affected buildings in the immediate vicinity. On a scale of distance, the detonation of this bomb at Foulness would have blown up Southend or even set off the sunken Montgomery ammo ship and detonated Canvey and the Isle of Grain refineries.
Incidentally, whats the latest on the stability of the Montgomery, I used to do a lot of business at Grain refinery in the 80’s and they hadn’t got a clue about the contents of the wreck until I told them.

Boy I bet there were some red faces over this…

http://www.gunnies.pac.com.au/gallery/grand_slam.htm

Sounds a little apocryphal to me – still sillier things have happened. Back in the early 20th Century a well known collector of American Civil War relics used two fully loaded shells as andirons in his fire place – after several years of winter fires they blew up and took the house with them.

After the Civil War many surplus musket barrels were sold as fence posts – many turned out to contain full loads. So there might be some truth in the story.

Shoeburyness is in Essex, but it had crossed my mind that Donna Nook would have been nearer and required travelling through less heavily populated areas.

If the base plate had been removed, presumably it would have been possible to steam the explosive out.

Urban myth sounds feasible.

That amount of explosive would have taken a hell of a long time to steam out, plus the passage of time could have made it unstable – presumably safer to just detonate from a very large distance. On the other hand, transporting it all that way can’t exactly have been considered all that safe either. Does begin to sound like an urban myth…

There must be records from Shoeburyness that can confirm or deny?

Shoeburyness is in Essex, but it had crossed my mind that Donna Nook would have been nearer and required travelling through less heavily populated areas.

If the base plate had been removed, presumably it would have been possible to steam the explosive out.

Urban myth sounds feasible.

Who is kidding who? Bit like that story of six Lancasters buried at Elsham Wolds. Since 617 and 9 squadrons operated from Woodhall and Bardney, why would live ordnance be moved to Scampton?. let alone be transported to Kent to dispose of it.

The claim of 1958 gate guard in the story looks incorrect then.

Depends. A bit of Googling has shown that this story has been repeated in various fora over the last few years and though most of the wordings seem to be from the same source and are a little vague, they seem to point to the bomb being there earlier than the Lancaster. The time frame also varies from “about 1958” to “late 50s”.

SEE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Scampton

EDIT
A little research later and this turns up from the movement record of R5868.

“1961
Display enhanced with addition of ‘Grand Slam’ and ‘Tallboy’ bombs”

So – is this bomb a replacement for the earlier display items blown up in “1958”? Or are we dealing with Urban legend?

R5868, now in the RAFM, was on the Scampton gate from 1960 to 1970. She was at Scampton (though not on the gate) from April of 1959 and of course had also been there 17 years earlier!

The claim of 1958 gate guard in the story looks incorrect then.

R5868, now in the RAFM, was on the Scampton gate from 1960 to 1970. She was at Scampton (though not on the gate) from April of 1959 and of course had also been there 17 years earlier!

wow could have been a real disaster and a terrible loss for the warbird movement. 😮

R5868, 467 Sqdn PO-S “no enemy aircraft will fly over the Reich”. Now at Hendon.

Which Lanc would have been on the gate at Scampton in 1958? NX611 did not arrive there until the early 1970’s.

Amazing story!

Can you imagineg it was a LIVE bomb sitting there all that time.! How many people had climbed onto it for a photo! :confused: 😮

Cripes!

Anyone know how far (assuming it’s trimmed and flying level) a Lancaster went upwards when it released it’s 22,000lb load?

Roger Smith.

Gotta laugh though really…. 😀

Blimey!

Given that when I was in digs in Herne Bay we could hear old Bofors ammunition being let off at Shoeburyness, I suspect that ten miles as an estimate of who it woke up is at least a factor of ten out!

Adrian