Sometimes I really love Google! (Reach for the Sky images)

I meant this one….

[ATTACH=CONFIG]255480[/ATTACH]

It isn`t in the film Daren because it shows the actual Douglas Bader climbing into his Spitfire ahead of the September 1945 flypast over London and not the delightful Kenneth More from the film.

Originally posted by boguing

bazv, do you know anything else about that picture of Bader climbing in? The young airman looks very like my Father…

Sorry Boguing – I do not have any details of the G/crew – poor lad was probably thinking ‘Why me ?’ when detailed to see off DB.

rgds baz

That DB-marked aircraft is puzzling. As far as I can tell, it’s not seen in the film. The bail-out sequence, from memory, shows the DB codes to be bigger….?

bazv, do you know anything else about that picture of Bader climbing in? The young airman looks very like my Father…

thank you Mark 12…the line forward of the roundel appeared angled.

Just wondering about the QV-V code on the second Spitfire, would the Q be rearwards towards the tail ?…there seems to be (slanted) straight lines otherwise, and too spaced out to be another V ?

The starboard code in the image reads V-QV.

The ‘V’ is partially obscured by what looks to be the pitot of the adjacent Spitfire.

I have rotated the image below so that the datum longeron is horizontal.

Just wondering about the QV-V code on the second Spitfire, would the Q be rearwards towards the tail ?…there seems to be (slanted) straight lines otherwise, and too spaced out to be another V ?

I was unfortunate enough to see the bad side of Bader when I was in the RAF and he was living on his past ‘glories’ and thought himself to be God. Since then, I’ve met several pilot who flew with him and they all say the same. He had no people skills at all, was very arrogant and not a nice man at all.
Was he a good pilot, no, he got shot down several times. His only good idea was the new concept of wing men rather than every man for himself.

hi,
that second photo for me is the quintessential view of a RAF officer/pilot, and Kenneth More was made for his part. The photo shows him in a Gp Capt. uniform, according to wiki he was made up to temp. Wg.Cdr. on July 1st, after the flypast in June….or am I mistaken?

regards,
jack…

Let’s hope then that Bader himself wasn’t the ideal and quintessential RAF officer then as it would be interesting to know how much of the ‘personality’ section on his Wikipedia entry is true and see where the comments are sourced but it doesnt say very much for him.

Yes it was Trumper – probably the Keith Park Loco.

I did realise after I posted this morning that it was a postwar pic (1947 ?) but had to go out.

This is the famous pic I should have posted LOL – just to confirm that DB was an acting G/C at the time of the victory flypast.

Is that a B o B class loco behind them ? was it part of a naming ceremony ?

And here is a(one amongst many) pic to confirm !
DB with Park and Clouston.

RAF Unit Histories has his record of Promotion thus –

F/O – 06.06.1932 [26151] (retd 30.04.1933)
(A?) F/Lt.- 04.1940
(WS) F/Lt.- 24.09.1940
(A) Sq.Ldr.- 06.1940
(A) W/Cdr.- 03.1941
(T) W/Cdr.- 01.07.1945
(WS) W/Cdr.- 01.12.1945
(A?) Gp.Capt.- 06.1945 (retd 21.07.1946)

So I am not sure if he was promoted Gp Capt in june 1945 or if Gp Capt was indeed his retired rank.

Edit – there are quite a few pics on the internet of Bader wearing the 4 rings of Gp Capt so I guess at some stage he was indeed an acting ‘Groupie’ before he retired.

So would depend on the dates he was checked in at the stork Paul 😀

What rank was he when he stayed at the Stork Hotel in Liverpool?

Originally posted by jack windsor
hi,
that second photo for me is the quintessential view of a RAF officer/pilot, and Kenneth More was made for his part. The photo shows him in a Gp Capt. uniform, according to wiki he was made up to temp. Wg.Cdr. on July 1st, after the flypast in June….or am I mistaken?

That is about right Jack – when you look through some military officers promotions/careers the ranks achieved can be a little complicated.

From the London Gazette –

Air Ministry, 28th August, 1945
ROYAL AIR FORCE
GENERAL DUTIES BRANCH
Promotion
Sqn Ldr to Wg Cdr (temp) —
ist July 1945

D R S BADER, D S O , D F C (26151)

2nd Dec. 1945.

Wg. Cdr. (temp.) D. R. S. BADER, D.S.O.,
D.F.C. (26151) is granted the rank of
Wg. Cdr. (war subs.), ist Dec. 1945.

Reversion to retired list.
Wg. Cdrs. retaining the rank of Gp. Capt.:—
.D. R. S. BADER, D.S.O., D.F.C. (26151). 2ist
July 1946

Yes, 3W-V of 322 Sqn.

Mark

Will it be in its original guise, Mark?

Image three is the highest resolution I have seen of this shot.

Just visible to me now on the second Spitfire is the aircraft code ‘V’ to the left of the roundel.

QV-V is TB885, a survivor, and currently well on the way to airworthy under rebuild at BHHH.

Further confirmation is the unique spinner tip and light colour back plate.

Mark

hi,
that second photo for me is the quintessential view of a RAF officer/pilot, and Kenneth More was made for his part. The photo shows him in a Gp Capt. uniform, according to wiki he was made up to temp. Wg.Cdr. on July 1st, after the flypast in June….or am I mistaken?

regards,
jack…