Spitfire Cockpit/Canopy ??

response to KNIFEEDGETURN

H, just to say I do know the Keelings and wiil try to find out if anyone in their family remembers the particular plane crash involving P8799.

Thanks Brian

response to KNIFEEDGETURN

H, just to say I do know the Keelings and wiil try to find out if anyone in their family remembers the particular plane crash involving P8799.

Thanks Brian

RAF form 540 & The National Archives

Hi All, Does anyone have any experience of obtaining operational details for particular squadrons and planes from the National Archives at Kew. I understand from searching the web that an RAF form 540 was filled out for each operation and these are filed at The National Archives in Kew. Tried their website and found 63 squadron operational details are filed in Book AIR/587/8 but am not sure if those form 540 details will be there or elsewhere in other record books. I have emailed them for an estimate to supply copies but would like to ensure I am looking in the right place. Would appreciate any ideas.

On the subject of the practice bombs my Friend has about 10 of these. Are they of any value ? Would seem to be somewhat of a rarity.

Where would one go about selling such items ?

Thanks Brian

RAF form 540 & The National Archives

Hi All, Does anyone have any experience of obtaining operational details for particular squadrons and planes from the National Archives at Kew. I understand from searching the web that an RAF form 540 was filled out for each operation and these are filed at The National Archives in Kew. Tried their website and found 63 squadron operational details are filed in Book AIR/587/8 but am not sure if those form 540 details will be there or elsewhere in other record books. I have emailed them for an estimate to supply copies but would like to ensure I am looking in the right place. Would appreciate any ideas.

On the subject of the practice bombs my Friend has about 10 of these. Are they of any value ? Would seem to be somewhat of a rarity.

Where would one go about selling such items ?

Thanks Brian

One of the Keeling family may know something, as they’ve been there forever, and are still farmers and contractors.

One of the Keeling family may know something, as they’ve been there forever, and are still farmers and contractors.

Thanks for Info

Hi Just to say thanks for all your responses. Its great to see what knowledge is out there.

Re Jon H post the perspex does not have plastic covering is is just very dirty. There are traces of Dark green paint on the frame

We will continue to try to find out how the pieces came to be there. The previous owner of the property was Victor Wallace probably around 90 when he died a few years ago. Strangely enough when trolling the net I came across references to my Brother’s Father in Law William (Bill) Revening who also lived at Crays Hill. He had reported details of various air crashes in essex and even mentioned crew members of a zepellin that crashed nearby in WW1. It is very possible they knew one another as it was a small community (Till the Travellers arrived) Maybe they shared similar interests – they are all dead now so We probably wil never know.

Re P8799 I will try at the local library to see if any newspapers (were there local papers then ?) reported anything. The limited research we have done so far it seems that P8799 was based at North Weald and when it crashed was with 63 Squadron. I believe also at that time there were lots of Norwegian pilots in 63 Squad. Is it possible to research what colours that plane would have been painted ? Or who may have flown it. ?

I understand your comment re being wary of associating this plane with the canopy. There is probably no way of determing what plane it came off. All I would say is that where my freind, Den, Lives is the bottom of a very long quiet lane and all around that area is still very woody !

One lives in Hopes

Regards Brian

Thanks for Info

Hi Just to say thanks for all your responses. Its great to see what knowledge is out there.

Re Jon H post the perspex does not have plastic covering is is just very dirty. There are traces of Dark green paint on the frame

We will continue to try to find out how the pieces came to be there. The previous owner of the property was Victor Wallace probably around 90 when he died a few years ago. Strangely enough when trolling the net I came across references to my Brother’s Father in Law William (Bill) Revening who also lived at Crays Hill. He had reported details of various air crashes in essex and even mentioned crew members of a zepellin that crashed nearby in WW1. It is very possible they knew one another as it was a small community (Till the Travellers arrived) Maybe they shared similar interests – they are all dead now so We probably wil never know.

Re P8799 I will try at the local library to see if any newspapers (were there local papers then ?) reported anything. The limited research we have done so far it seems that P8799 was based at North Weald and when it crashed was with 63 Squadron. I believe also at that time there were lots of Norwegian pilots in 63 Squad. Is it possible to research what colours that plane would have been painted ? Or who may have flown it. ?

I understand your comment re being wary of associating this plane with the canopy. There is probably no way of determing what plane it came off. All I would say is that where my freind, Den, Lives is the bottom of a very long quiet lane and all around that area is still very woody !

One lives in Hopes

Regards Brian

If you look in the “Big book of Spitfires” I believe a mkV crashed at Crays Hill however I can’t remember the ID, and there are 60 pages of mkV’s to go through; wont be much left now, what with all them pikeys…..

That would be P8799, (I’d be very weary of assuming a connection though!)

The Spitfire Production website has this to say about her:

P8799 Mk. Vb, Built at Castle Bromwich. Engine: Merlin 45

….and last entry: Engine failed, hit trees in force-landing. Crays Hill, Essex. Cat. E damage, 13-11-44

Is it not a new old stock item given the perspex still appears to have the protective coating on?

Jon

Does anyone know where I can get this book ?

Regards Brian

I expect he means the book “Spitfire-The history” by Morgan & Shacklady. You could probably get it through Amazon. Nice find !!

Steve.

big book of spitfires

Does anyone know where I can get this book ?

Regards Brian

If you look in the “Big book of Spitfires” I believe a mkV crashed at Crays Hill however I can’t remember the ID, and there are 60 pages of mkV’s to go through; wont be much left now, what with all them pikeys…..

Bomb

The device shown in the lower of the photo is a practice bomb. It is designed to have a smoke charge fitted into the rear tube (over which a tail will slide) and when it impacts the ground there is a puff of smoke to show where it has landed.

It’s perfectly safe as long as the rear tube is empty. They were usually made of metal but it seems perfectly sensible to have made them out of bakelite during war time.

It should weight about 12.5 lbs and this will be marked on the case somewhere. This gave it the same trajectory as a conventional bomb.

Anon.

more pics of “strange bomb!!!

Here is a couple more pics of the bomb like device. They are not too clear and they may not be off a plane at all. They were all together in the shed.

I would like to thank everybody for their great responses. They are most appreciated.

Brian

Is the bottom object a part of a radio mast, joining two sections of cable?

Hi Can you tell which MK of spitfire it came off ?

Regards, Brian

Sorry Brian, no. That canopy was standard for most spitfires from the later built Mark Vs onwards. Hopefully, one of the other forumites with deeper knowledge can give you more precise info on it.

Thanks for Response

Hi Can you tell which MK of spitfire it came off ?

Regards, Brian

As Bruce says, theres no possible way to identify the specific aircraft it came from and even less to find out how it got to where it was. All I can say is that Crays Hill is only about a dozen miles from two wartime fighter airfields; Hornchurch and North Weald.

Secondly, it’s a later type Spitfire canopy, so 1942ish onwards.

Nice find, and yes, definitely Spitfire.

I doubt there will be any way to tell which specific aircraft it came from however.

Worth a tidy amount if he decides to sell!

Bruce