I was given this piece of fabric some years ago, but have been unable to establish which aircraft & incident it came from.
The writing on the back of the fabric was there when it was given to me. It says ‘Piece from “Flying Fortress” which exploded in mid air over Castle Dykes, N’hamptonshire, 18 Oct 1944 crew killed’
Castle Dykes is about 9 miles WSW of Northampton, & just N of Farthingstone.
I have tried the Harrington Aviation Museum, but they couldn’t help, saying there were no aircraft incidents in Northants on the 18th Oct 1944. I have also tried The Eighth Air Force Historical Society, again with no joy.
Can any of you help to pin this relic down to a particular aircraft or incident? Does the fabric iteself hold any clues as to where/what it came from? I don’t know how accurate the writing on the back is, so the a/c type, location, and date could each be wrong, but hopefully not all three! I suppose there is always the chance it might be RAF, rather than USAF!
Is there anyone who could check records of USAAF casualties on/around the 18th Oct 1944 for possible matches, without having any names to go on?
Anyway, ANY information, ideas, & suggestions would be very welcome.
Geoff.
By: von Perthes - 1st December 2003 at 23:52
Skipper,
I think you could well be right about the writer of the info on the back possibly assuming it was a B-17, rather than KNOWING it was a B-17. It which case it could perhaps be ANY American bomber, such as a B-24. Would a B-26, A-20, A-26, or B-25 have had such fabric on them? I suppose it can’t be ruled out that it could have been ANY American aircraft, such as a P-51 etc, though this is probably a long shot.
Is is possible to search for any crew (whatever the size) that was lost on the 18th Oct 1944, rather than try to locate the aircraft through the type?
What if it was lost on a non-op flight, would it still show up in the loss records that you chaps are looking in?
I’m afraid that I can’t add any info to what I’ve already posted, but keep posting your ideas & sugestions.
Geoff.
By: Arabella-Cox - 1st December 2003 at 22:39
Hi
Very definitely the material used for the control surfaces on a B-17. It’s finished to complement the all-silver (non painted) finish as seen on the B17 G models (Jan 1944 onwards). This would tie on with the date of the crash when there were VERY few of the original olive/drab Forts still about.
Having said this, I cannot find any record (in the Missing Aircrew Database) of a B-17 having crashed in the UK on this date. Only two USAAF B-17s were lost and both crashed on the Continent.
Long shot this one – but might it be from a B-24 – I’ve seen the exact same material used for their control surfaces?
Might the originator of this artefact assumed that since it was an AMerican bomber that it would automatically be a Fortress??? Obviously just a wild guess!!
Any more info you can provide I shall do my darndest to help
Regards
Skipper
By: RobAnt - 1st December 2003 at 17:08
Looks like a bit of duct tape to me!
By: von Perthes - 1st December 2003 at 10:34
The other side
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December 1, 2003 at 10:33 am