Mistaken Identity.

Andy you are a gent!.

Indeed!

Next time I am at Kew, I’ll have a look.

One of the Few;

No worries! Glad to be of assistance. Hope you enjoy your winning beer! I may pop in for one myself..I could just manage a beer right now.

Andy;

Sorry, I omitted to include the page number! I guess that you may have found it by now. I hope that the case isn’t closed though, as I would like to identify the pilot myself. We need a 72 Squadron roll call for 1942!

Regards;
Steve

Andy to be fair the book is rather a large tomb to find just one picture. I missed it myself at first. RAFRochford many many thanks for finding the article that i knew i had read!. That winning drink will taste a lot better now!. 🙂

Why didn’t I look there? Doh.

I looked in Mk III, but not very well…because it is there, too.

If correct, then it certainly narrows it down!

Perhaps this is where the OP saw it?

If it is of any help…

Battle of Britain Then and Now Vol 5 discusses this photograph after it appeared in a earlier volume mis-identifying the pilot as Glendon Booth.

Apparently, the photo in question was taken on the 10th of January 1942, and depicts a pilot of 72 Squadron. Unfortunately, it doesn’t state who.

However, if this information is correct, it should help narrow things down a bit.

Regards;
Steve

Bananasplits

I think you are absolutely right! Hadn’t looked very carefully at the Mae West, and my cursory glance had assumed it to be a yellow-doped ’32.

As you say, the lightness of the colour of the rest of the Mae West (which should be green, of course) is a give away. Plus, if it was a yellow-doped ’32 pattern then it would invariably have the crackle-crinkle marks where the material had been bent or folded and the yellow paint flakes had come away. There is no evidence of that at all, is there?

I would defer to your knowledge on strap placements, tube position etc but I am convinced; this is probably a ’41 pattern jacket. The battledress therefore makes more sense, too. Thus; we are looking for a G Booth on a squadron associated with Gravesend, probably some time in 1941 or perhaps into 1942?

Bananasplits thank you for your post. It has helped in my “debate” about the pilot in the picture that Avion Ancien kindly posted for me after i sent him the picture. Even though we have not been able to identify the sleeping pilot, the type of Mae West he is wearing does 99% eliminate the pilot as being Glendon Booth. Its bugging me now because i know i have DEFINITELY read an article that positively identified him but i have so many books and magazines on the B of B period that it would take forever to read them all!

Post Battle of Britain picture

In my opinion the picture is post Battle of Britain as i`m 99% certain that the Mae West that the chap is wearing is either a flap type or a 41 pattern Mae West and not a 32 pattern (the only type of Mae West worn during the Battle of Britain). I can tell by the strap arrangements, position of the inflation tube, lightness of colour and what looks like the C02 release lever on the left hand side as you look at it (32 pattern Mae West`s didn`t have C02 cartridges). While the classic 32 pattern (green) Mae West carried on after the Battle of Britain (i have a 41 dated example), this is not the case in this photo in my opinion and both the flap type and 41 pattern were issued too late for the Battle of Britain.
Just my five penneth though, hope this helps :confused:

Thank you, AA.

The more I think about this, the more I am inclined to think that this particular ‘G Booth’ is a post Battle of Britain pilot – hence the difficulty in sorting out who he is.

It seems quite unlikely, I think, that he would have boots and Mae West that seem to belong to a ‘G Booth’ if they were not the wearers. I could go with it being somebody else’s Mae West. Not sure about the boots, though!?

This is quite a well know photo of the period, and so it would be nice to be able to put a proper identity to him.

Here is the picture to which One of the Few referred in his original post.

Hi all,
I know this picture well. I have seen books identifying the pilot as Christopher Riddle of 601 squadron as well as Glendon Bulmer Booth.
I will post a copy here when i get home.
Gerry

If it is of help, One of the Few, you could send the image to me, as an e-mail attachment, and I’ll then post it for you on this thread. If you wish this, please send me a PM and I’ll then PM my e-mail address to you.

Ahh i see. Thank you for the clarification Andy. I thought the boots were the later “Escape boots”. I did`nt realise they did a cheaper looking flying boot in 1939. I thought that all RAF pilots before the war started would have been issued the much coveted Black leather flying boots when issued with uniform. Glad to see that i have learned something new! 🙂

I will try to scan and post the picture later if I can find it.

One thing though, he is wearing 1939 pattern boots. The “detachable upper part” to which you refer were only found on the much later “escape” boots that could be turned into something that looked like civilian lace-up shoes.

The photo is certainly at Gravesend, and on the full image there is also a bell push on the wall which can be seen in the shot of 66 Squadron pilots in that same room. The name “Booth” also appears on the top of the boot and this can be made out faintly.

Maybe this is another G.Booth (not Glendon Booth) and possibly a post Battle-of-Britain pilot, anyway? This would explain the lack of any other G Booth on the Battle of Britain roll.

Yes sorry about not posting the picture. I`m not sure how to attach it. ( Bill Gates has nothing to worry about!). Andy you are spot on with the location. The fact that the pilot in the picture has Booth written on the detachable part of his flying boot and the initials that LOOK like GB on his Mae West has my friend stubbornly refusing to listen to me when i say that it is not Glendon Booth. I must admit i thought that Battle dress came in after the Battle of Britain, but now you mention it Andy, i do recall seeing the picture of Brian Lane that you have brought to my attention.

I don’t have a copy to hand, but maybe the OP can oblige?

I have the advantage of knowing the photograph in question…!

By the way, photos exist of Sqn Ldr Brian Lane (19 Sqn) and Fg Off J R Hardacre (504 Sqn) both wearing battledress tunics at the height of the Battle of Britain.

Maybe if you posted the picture…………

Yes it may help someone abit.:)

Maybe if you posted the picture…………

It is certainly not Glendon Booth.

Are we even sure the initials are GB? What about CB? Or OB? Must admit, it looks more like a G. But….

However, I am fairly certain it is taken in the club house at Gravesend. The leather armchair and brick fireplace being the clue for me. (Yes, I know – I really must get out more) There is another famous photo of 66 Sqn pilots in this room. Sadly, I have even compared the bricks!

The battledress might be misleading. Surprisingly, a few pilots had them in 1940. Equally, ‘GB’ could be misleading as it was not unknown for pilots to wear others kit. In fact, I have a Police report of a crash giving a deceased pilot’s name. In fact, it was incorrect and the name was gleaned from the Mae West and was a pilot who had been posted and, in fact, survived!

However, I think 85 Sqn were at Gravesend for a while – so perhaps this was the Glendon Booth ‘link’?

Probably doesnt’t help much, but at least you have a reply.