Hawker Typhoon, Mitchell and Spitfire identity sought.

Hi Kurt,

Lubeck is in Holland, I think. a lot of Spitfire testing was done there just after the war especially with Spit PRXIX’s. is the XIV Clipped wing XIV or standard wing? low or high back?

cheers

mike

Hi Mike,

the wings on the XIVs were clipped and it was def a low back. Some great info coming out, thanks all, please keep it coming.

Kurt

The unusual nose shape of the Mitchell makes it a B-25G, the one with the huge 75 mm cannon.
A bit of googling shows that two(FR208 FR209) of this variant were supplied to the RAF but did not enter service.
I wonder if they were converted to a communication role after trials?

Richard

That photo is perhaps slightly more than that – note that is has a code letter on the nose. I’ve never seen that in the published photos of FR408/9. There was at least one other B-25G used by the RAF – 42-65094 was used by AVM Tedder as a personal transport in Italy and the Middle East. It is usually photographed in natural metal finish.

This one intruigues me, because there are reports of a cannon nosed Mitchell being used in combat. I wonder, I just wonder…….

There are photos of the 41 Sqn Fw190

Hi Kurt,

Lubeck is in Holland, I think. a lot of Spitfire testing was done there just after the war especially with Spit PRXIX’s. is the XIV Clipped wing XIV or standard wing? low or high back?

cheers

mike

Typhoon identity

The code letter style/position and camouflage pattern of Typhoon EL-P precisely match those on Typhoon EL-P RB395 which served with 181 Squadron between January and September 1945. (Photos in ‘Typhoon and Tempest Story’ and Air Britain’s ‘Sqns of the RAF and Commonwealth’, 1988).

Any chance of reading the codes on the Typhoon beneath the nose of the Ju352? EL, XM, SF or ZY and its probably Lubeck, F3, 5V or I8 would suggest Flensburg, while HH, BR or MR could mean Schleswig.

The unusual nose shape of the Mitchell makes it a B-25G, the one with the huge 75 mm cannon.
A bit of googling shows that two(FR208 FR209) of this variant were supplied to the RAF but did not enter service.
I wonder if they were converted to a communication role after trials?

Richard

Ah, that explains my head scratching with regars to a G model in RAF markings. Thanks for that!

FR209 was flown by A&AEE, the Empire Central Flying School, and the Met Research Flight before becoming an instructional airframe – 6891M at Dyce. Finally beng SOC 13th Oct 1951, the longest surviving Mitchell in the RAF. At some point it was converted to Mk II standard.

The unusual nose shape of the Mitchell makes it a B-25G, the one with the huge 75 mm cannon.
A bit of googling shows that two(FR208 FR209) of this variant were supplied to the RAF but did not enter service.
I wonder if they were converted to a communication role after trials?

Richard

I’ve managed to scan the images I’ve refered to above, and hope these may be of interest to members of the forum. If anyone can help with the where and whens etc, that’d be great.

Kurt

RAF Mitchells of various versions flew with 98, 180, 226 and 329 Sq, furthermore with 320 (Dutch) Sq, 305 (Polish) Sq and 342 (Lorraine) Sq. Check http://home.att.net/~jbaugher2/b25_22.html for some basic details.
Kind regards
Coert

Are there any pics of the FW 190 in 41 Sqn markings?

John

EL was 181 Squadron.

The He 111 on one undercarriage leg wasn’t this one, was it?

If so, it was 26 August 1940. Bracklesham Bay, Sussex.

The description sounded familiar.

Hi Tangmere,

No not this Heinkel. The pic I have i from the front left 3/4 view taken from high ground. It looks to be in a lake shore or a bay. Same undercarriage issues though! Stbd prop missing on the image I have and port engine would have stopped before “arrival” as lower 2 blades bent and third upper blade straight.

Great response from you both, much appreciated. I’ll pass the info on to my colleague tomorrow.

Any idea’s on the short cannon nosed B-25? I never knew the RAF operated that type, but you learn something every day. It had F for Freddy under the port cockpit window.

Keep it coming and thanks again.

Kurt

181 sqn Typhoons (EL codes) could have been photographed at one of dozens of bases as the unit was part of one of the 2nd TAF’s mobile Wings. However, 181 were at Lubeck for a month immediately after the end of the war – and so was Ju352 ‘Air Min 8’ which was captured at Flensburg but used by RAE Farnborough to ferry captured equipment to the UK. An apparently full log of its jouneys can be found in Phil Butler’s excellent ‘War Prizes’. It was also at Schleswig, another Typhoon base along with Flensburg, so there are at least three options for the photo location.

In this same immediate postwar period 41 sqn (EB codes) was based at Lubeck with Spit XIVs.

EL was 181 Squadron.

The He 111 on one undercarriage leg wasn’t this one, was it?

If so, it was 26 August 1940. Bracklesham Bay, Sussex.

The description sounded familiar.