Today it is 62 years since F/Lt Francois de Spirlet, Flight Commander of 609 (West Riding) Squadron was killed in a take-off accident at Duxford.June 26.
From the 609 Squadron Form 540 Opperations Record Book.
At 04:50 hours 10 pilots are at Readiness. But nothing happens. At 06:00 F/Lt de Spirlet, P/O Ortmans and P/O Lallemand set off on formation practice. Immediately after the take-off F/Lt de Spirlet and P/O Lallemand collide, the latter’s a/c cutting off the formers tail. De Spirlets aircraft plunges to the ground and explodes; de Spirlet is killed. Lallemand manages somehow to land, and though his engine is torn from its frame, he only suffers from shock. After this shocking tragedy it is well that the squadron remains busy. 2 a/c are required at Readiness all day, 266 and 56 respectively gone to do duty at Coltishall and Kirton. And from 08:20 till about 10:30 a series of pairs of aircraft take off to participate in a large army exercise known as ‘Test Match’. Pilots are in R/T contact with the army they are supporting, attack targets in the shape of tanks, lorries, R/T tenders etc., reckon they have done considerable damage. Under the heading of ‘Reaction of Target’ P/O Ortmans reports that personnel continued their lunch. In the middle of all this F/Lt du Monceau flies over from Debden on a visit of sympathy. And there is air firing and a section formation.
Francois de Spirlet reached England with F/O Malengreau in 1940. After being assigned for a fortnight to a Wellington station, both went to 87 and 56 squadrons in succession. Taking some part in the Battle of Britain. As P/Os they came to 609 with the first batch of Belgians in April ’41. After being twice shot down, and shooting down 2 Me109s, Francois succeeded F/Lt Richey as ‘A’ Flight Commander in August. Since then, and especially since the death of F/Lt Offenberg in January, he had in almost every way become the rock of the squadron, administratively, technically and socially, and he was always the one to whom people reffered when they wanted anything done. The most impartial of the Belgians, he understood English humour and ways of thinking the best, while his own ironic humour was always a delight to everyone. As a leader, and as a friend, Francois will be hard to replace.
By: planejunky - 15th October 2004 at 14:18
Thanks Snapper, curiosity satisfied! 😉
By: Snapper - 15th October 2004 at 00:31
Ah, yes, good question. It’s actually Alec Ingle, the CO. A Fw190 pilot had mistakenly landed at Manston, been captured and had his uniform borrowed.
By: planejunky - 14th October 2004 at 23:47
What’s the story with the Luftwaffe pilot standing next to the 609 Sqn Crest?
By: macky42 - 14th October 2004 at 19:04
Snapper,
I think they are publishing lists of names in batches, but there’s no reason why you can’t email Stephen Gleeson [email]bobhsmembership@btinternet.com[/email] and ask if you have particular names you want to sponsor.
Here’s the certificate I received, it was quite unexpected to see a pilot’s name that was so familiar:
By: Snapper - 14th October 2004 at 18:15
Good Lord! Well done Macky. I followed the link last time, but couldn’t see a list of who was still to be sponsored – are there names that you can choose?
By: macky42 - 14th October 2004 at 16:59
My honour
As has been posted here before, you can sponsor the name of a Battle of Britain pilot on the new memorial to be built in London:
http://www.battleofbritain.net/bobhsoc/monument.html
I asked to sponsor any one of the remaining names, and received my certificate today. By chance I have the honour to sponsor the name of
Pilot Officer Francois X. E. de Spirlet
No. 87 Squadron
If you haven’t done so already, do follow the link and give it some thought.
By: coanda - 6th July 2004 at 15:46
if anyones interested i have an official rendering of 609’s badge dated 1941 in a 1942 copy of “spitfire pilot” by d.m.crook. i can scan it and put it here.
I am also fortunate enough to have a 1941 copy of paul richeys “fighter pilot”
By: Arabella-Cox - 5th July 2004 at 13:34
Kev’s words sum it up.
And they also give me an excuse to bump this back up to the top again. See you all there on Sunday morning.
By: kev35 - 3rd July 2004 at 13:38
Just thought this deserved to be at the top again.
Legends is close now, and for any of us able to be there, what better way to complete a day than by going to pay our respects and give Honour to a man who died in the service of this Country. There is a quote, “Greater love hath no man than that he lay down his life for his friends.” Although we were never priveleged to meet the likes of Francois de Spirlet and others who made the supreme sacrifice, they are our friends. What they achieved for us means they are forever deserving of a place in our hearts.
Mark, this is yet another wonderful gesture on your part and allows us to repay a small part of the debt. For that, I will be eternally grateful. Thank you for making this possible.
regards,
kev35
By: EN830 - 28th June 2004 at 12:36
Looking forward to being there, no news on the aerial addition yet but there is still time.
By: ettrick40 - 28th June 2004 at 07:52
Thank you for remembering an outstanding pilot
lest we forget
Ettrick40
By: Snapper - 27th June 2004 at 22:21
These are three contemporary renderings of the badge from photographs. None of which would have been official. Note Squadron / Fighter Squadron. The one used is that signed off by ‘Chester Herald and Inspector of Royal Air Force Badges’, College of Arms. Note that I do agree with everything you say and that it is all valid.
Apart from the Royal / Royal Auxiliary question, there is also that of Kings Crown and Queens Crown to be considered – this being the Kings Crown. To my knowledge no official rendering of a pre-Royal Warrant Squadron Badge exists. Perhaps there is, but we don’t have it. I don’t believe there is a Queens Crown version of the crest either for the current squadron.
By: allan125 - 27th June 2004 at 21:09
609 squadron crest
Hi Snapper – thanks for your reply about the crest. But, again not wishing to be pedantic, they would have been issued with an official AAF crest then and the RAuxAF one would have come post-war. I have copies of 602 (City of Glasgow) and 610 (County of Chester) AAF and RAuxAF crests so surely 609 would have been operating to the same criteria. I attach colour copies of 602’s to show the difference. 🙂 – cheers – Allan
By: Snapper - 27th June 2004 at 20:43
Thanks for that Allan. You are 100% correct that the crest post-dates Francois’ loss and that the Royal Warrant came later. However, this is the ‘official’ squadron crest and thus is the one I use (the top image is the plaque. 12″x8″ in brass, infilled with black lettering).
To further add, on the crest saga:
14/11/41 – No. 35
Air Ministry News Service
Air Ministry Bulletin No. 5606
WEST RIDING SQUADRON GETS ITS CREST
The West Riding Squadron of the R.A.F. was today presented with a crest which has been approved by the King. It shows two hunting horns surmounted by the white rose of Yorkshire. The motto is ‘Tally-Ho’, which is the phrase used by fighter pilots when they see an enemy in the sky.
The squadron, with 161 enemy aircraft known definitely to have been destroyed, has helped to build up the record score of 811 enemy aircraft destroyed by the station from which it now operates. The presentation of the crest was made by Air Commodore Harald Peake, Director of Public Relations at the Air Ministry, who was the first Commanding Officer of the squadron.
“I see many familiar faces that I knew when I was C.O. of the squadron,” said Air Commodore Peake, addressing the squadron on parade. “You are an auxiliary squadron which has had to wait a long time for its crest, but have waited until you have gotr a record in operations to be proud of.
“Your motto of ‘Tally-Ho’ is a very good one and one which has been heard many times during the air fighting which has taken place. The crest includes a Yorkshire rose and Yorkshiremen are good fighters.”
It was a member of the squadron, Flight-Lieutenant Dundas, D.F.C., who shot down Major Wieck, the German fighter ace.
By: allan125 - 27th June 2004 at 20:27
61 years ago at Duxford
[QUOTE=Snapper]Today it is 62 years since F/Lt Francois de Spirlet, Flight Commander of 609 (West Riding) Squadron was killed in a take-off accident at Duxford.June 26.”
Hi Snapper – superb reminder of the tragic events of that day – but, not wishing to be pedantic or anything, you show the post-war 609 RAuxAF crest when at the time it was AAF. “The Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF) owes its origin to Lord Trenchard’s vision of an elite corps of civilians who would serve their country in flying Squadrons in their spare time. Instituted by Order in Council on 9th October 1924, the first Auxiliary Air Force (AAF) Squadrons were formed the following year. By September 1939, there were 20 Flying Squadrons, equipped with a variety of operational aircraft, which included Hurricanes and Spitfires; there were also 47 Balloon Squadrons.
These AAF Squadrons scored a number of notable successes before and during World War II: the flight over Mount Everest, the first German aircraft destroyed over British territorial waters – and over the mainland, the first U-boat to be destroyed with the aid of airborne radar, the first kill of a VI flying bomb; the first to be equipped with jet-powered aircraft, and the highest score of any British Night Fighter Squadron.
In the Battle of Britain, the AAF provided 14 of the 62 Squadrons in Fighter Command’s Order of Battle and accounted for approximately 30% of the accredited enemy kills. The Balloon Squadrons also played their part, downing and deterring many hostile aircraft and were accredited with the destruction of 279 VI flying bombs. These achievements were honoured by the prefix Royal conferred by King George VI on 16 December 1947.” cheers – Allan
By: Snapper - 26th June 2004 at 18:22
From the diary of Flight Sergeant Bob Walling
“On June 26th we had our first fatal crash with ‘Typhies’. F/Lt De Spirlet in ‘E’ and P/O Lallemande in ‘D’ were taking off early in the morning when ‘D’ swung into ‘E’ and tore the tail off. ‘E’ crashed and burst into flames. De Spirlet never had a chance to get out. Lallemande was badly shaken, but apart from that he was OK. Both aircraft were complete write – offs. Flying was suspended whilst ‘A’ and ‘B’ flights removed the wreckage from the ‘drome. The same evening, the squadron dance was held in the College Hall, Sawston, but there was a cloud over the entire evening. A great contrast to the boozey hilarious dances at Digby and Dorchester.”
By: Snapper - 26th June 2004 at 09:50
At 9am on the morning of Sunday 11th July, the second day of the Flying Legends display, there will be a short service of remembrance held for Francois, during which time a bench with plaque affixed will be unveiled in the grounds of the Red Lion Hotel at Whittlesford amongst fellow pilots of 609.
You are all invited to attend.
On this note, I would like once more to say a big thank you to all of you who contributed to the raising of funds for this memorial. I hope that you can be there to see what you have managed.
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June 26, 2004 at 9:22 am