Serial tie-ups.

It might not be of help to you Kev, but ‘Poles in defence of Britain, by Robert Gretzyngier (Grub Street) – ‘a day-by-day chronology of Polish day and night fighter pilot operations July 1940 – June 1941’ is full of s/n to code tie-ups. Very often where a Polish pilot has flown as part of a squadron, the tie-ups are given for the other aircraft, not just that for the Polish pilot.

Remarkably, aircraft are listed by s/n in the index, so you can look up individual a/c, as you can pilots in other books for example. There is also a complete code to s/n index for 302 and 303 sqdns, showing the aircraft that in turn inherited each code letter, and a list of Polish pilots and the units they served with during the period covered by the book.

As a researcher/historian, I feel that this book is damn near perfect, and only £20 too. If only there was an RAF equvalent series, I’d definately buy it.

Geoff.

Thank you all for your responses, it’s very much appreciated. The main aim at the moment is for me to discover the fates of certain aircraft in which a gunner flew 39 operations with the Desert Air Force.

Thanks again.

kev35

RAF aircraft did indeed get moved from one squadron to another, and for various reasons, such as handing them over to an/other squadron/s when going overseas, re-equipping with another Mk, changing sqdn role, or when two sqdns were swopping bases – they left their aircraft behind, and just the personnel moved airfields. Sometimes when an a/c went away for repair, and it came back to the sqdn, it had been replaced, and so was recoded, often they went to another unit once repaired off site.

I have a partial s/n to code letter tie-up list for 131 sqdn, but there are big gaps. The list was done by cross checking logbooks with the a/c code letter recorded for sorties against the sqdn ORB. When doing such a list, it soon becomes obvious that some pilot’s logbooks or the ORB have the wrong s/n or code letter, or a sortie recorded in the logbook is not matched by one in the ORB or vice-versa. I seem to recall reading about one ORB compiler who when writing up the ORB would look out his window and put down the s/n of the first a/c he saw. I suspect that the list they had of what a/c in the sqdn carried what code letter wasn’t always up to date either.

Of course, the more instances you have of an a/c carrying a particular code letter, the more reliable the tie-up is. If the tie-ups for an a/c come from more than one logbook that’s even better.

The AirBritain books would have been great, if they’d had the same level of info as ‘Spitfire-the history’, though the a/c histories there are often not complete, they record an a/c going away for repair to an MU, but not the date it came back. This info is on the Aircraft Movement Card (AM form 78), but they didn’t bother with it. Also squadrons that never flew the Spitfire, in any form, are listed in some of the histories, so they haven’t checked that the units listed are correct for the type. I only use the AirBritain books & Spitfire-the history for a quick check, whilst a photocopy of the Movement Card is on order from DoRIS.

For Wellington code to s/n tie-ups (& other types) I would contact people researching Wellington squadrons, they might have done a list for their squadron as I have for 131 sqdn.

Geoff.

Uhmm… did aeroplanes in those days get transferred from one squadron to another as well? If that’s the case (and i can’t see why it isn’t), i think it would be impossible to find a reliable cross-reference for serials/codes.

Even such lists for current or recently retired types contain plenty of mistakes, let alone lists from a day when there were better things to do than make papers match.

Kev, as it’s Wellingtons, I wonder whether the Brooklands Museum might be able to assist…?

And still doesn’t contain the squadron codes – which is what I was enquiring if he was after. 🙁 Don’t think it’ll happen. – Nermal

Ooops!

DA 100 – DZ 999

Doh!:rolleyes:

& it was just over 200 extra registrations, of Mossie.

Double Doh:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Hi Kev,

One way of matching aircraft serials to squadrons is to use Air Britain Publication. As long as you know all the registration letters, you can get the relevant books. It’s alot of work, but can be done.

The other thing you have to look out for is when bits of aeroplanes are mated together, this also throws a spanner in the works, too. When Andy Dawson was doing the Mosquito serial No.’s he found the number of actual Mosquitoes registered was nearly 300 more than the official count!

Below is a typical page from Air Britain Serials DA 100000 – DZ 999.

Cheers,
Neilly

Kev,

I´m afraid it could be a lot of work involved in getting a match between serials and squadron codes. I’ve not done this kind of research myself, but I’ve been looking over my friend’s shoulder when he has been trying to match up, amoung other things, Hudsons of 269 sq.

He started by dropping in at the public records office to get all relevant forms for the squadron and started on the day they got the Hudsons, ’cause usually serials are matched to codes when the first batch of new aircraft arrives. After the first batch, it comes more and more Sherlock Holmes stuff, crossreferencing photographs against times, checking old logbooks (where available) against squadron forms etc, etc. It is a truly daunting task, as the aircraft conserned are sometimes referred to in the squadron documents by serial and sometimes by code!! And then you have the “Ghost ships”, aircraft that were officially struck off charge due to accidents or battle damage, but are apparently in good health months or even years after being officially taken off the order of battle!! In 269 there were apparently at least two such aircraft used as hacks. It has taken my friend almost ten years to complete the job (taking it as a hobby) and he still has two unknown aircraft in 269.

Bottom line is, it can be done, but involves a lot of research.

Regards,
Galdri

How do you mean tie-ups? Serials to squadron codes, or something else? – Nermal