Is there a website that lists RAF serial numbers for WW2 types, in the same way that the Air-Britain RAF s/n books do? Especially interested in Hurricane II at the moment, but would be handy to be able to look up other types. I came across a website once with RAF serials in the XA— onwards range, but what is there for WW2? Really need one that list the squdrons that an a/c served with and the dates.
I have many of the Air-Britain RAF s/n books, but would like to know if there is an on-line info source I can check for quickness, whilst the Movement Card is on order from Hendon.
Re the Hurricane, I shall be going to Motor Books (London)tomorrow, to get a copy of Mason’s book, which has a/c histories in it, just in case anyone was going to post a mention of that!
Geoff.
By: Arabella-Cox - 4th October 2003 at 02:34
Air Britain do seem to be quite receptive to book ideas, as long as they’re factual. Having seen a copy of the Beaufort File on their stall at Duxford a few years ago, I asked if there was a Beaufighter File available. The answer was ‘No, but if you want to write one, we’ll publish it for you’. Can’t say fairer than that. Pretty much sums up Geoffs views too. Just wish I could devote the time to do it.
By: Flood - 4th October 2003 at 00:53
And while you are at it you might want to ask why the latest Warbirds Directory isn’t just published straight on to the net!
Correct me if I am wrong but nobody does anything for nothing (or next to nothing) and a labour of love like that would cost time and money (for the web space if nothing else), and almost certainly be inundated with moans and complaints about (relatively tiny) points of detail (let alone inaccuracies) right from the off (“Well, strictly speaking it was originally made as a Mk.I but it was converted to a Mk.V but later the engine was the same as in the Mk.IX, so shouldn’t you…” or even “It was NOT a Mk.XXI, it was a Mk.21…” – you know what I am on about!) and probably closely followed by enquiries about copyright from the people who wrote the books that were copied onto the net – the people who did the original legwork and would therefore be losing money from the potential sales drop off.
Probably.
If anyone was going to do it then it would probably be Air Britain, but that would always depend on how computer-literate the authors are or getting someone who was technologically minded and also knew their aeroplanes (there being more than enough unfortunate misspellings out there due to ‘corrections’ by spell-checkers!), and even then would almost certainly be on a Air Britain members only website. And since it does take quite a while between editions for the RAF serials books to be published (or updated and republished) I imagine it would be quite a while before this happens.
Sorry.
Flood.
By: von Perthes - 3rd October 2003 at 17:55
It’s recently been reprinted in a soft cover edition. Saw a copy at Hendon a couple of weeks ago.
The only way to get the reference book you really want, is to write it yourself.
Geoff. 😎
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October 3, 2003 at 1:31 pm