Ok, so I already know there are some sceptics regarding what may, or may not be buried in some corner somewhere…. Here are a couple of posts I picked up on another Forum. Interesting…..
“About five years ago, myself, ***** and others went to explore the old railway tunnels on the old Meon Valley railway in Hampshire, it used to link Alton and some other place which I can’t think of at the moment. Well anyway when we arrived at the first tunnel West Meon I think or was it Privett, well anyway, as always you’re usually met with a bricked up entrance which we were. Good thing for us though some one had knocked a small hole in it, we couldn’t believe our eyes that day for the tunnel was full off stuff, what we didn’t know as it was a big drop to the bottom. So we decided to make a rope ladder and return, which we did the following week. We arrived that day and got to work, one by one we dropped into the darkness. Before I go any further I forgot to mention the “guards on patrol” sign which was pretty faded and abit worrying. Well we had a good look round inside and the place was chockerblock with disused RAF gear, generators, aircraft wings, engine parts, boxed never used. Cockpit covers, parachutes, wheels and drop tanks. Most off the Hunter aircaft, it was amazing, we couldn’t beleive what we were seeing. A year later some of us went back for a nose, the doors the other end were wide open and inside was a skip, most of the bits had gone, we guessed a scrappy must have brought the lot. Well I went back there beginning of 2002 and found the doors closed and locked. The thing that got me was there were two sets of steal doors, the bottom of the first concreted, so there’s no chance of digging under it to get in. Beyond the doors inside is a big mobile home. I’d be really interested if any of you guys know anything about this as it’s got me stumped. We also asked at the local air field (Lasham) if they knew anything about it, which they didn’t.
Cheers”
“As I recall it, the one with the rope ladder and the aircraft bits was West Meon, Privett we had to be a bit more inventive with (what fun we had getting She who must be Obeyed under that door) but it was empty. “
Date of post: 31st December 2002……
Does anyone know anymore about this?
By: robbelc - 25th June 2003 at 21:52
As a newbie to this board I was facisnated by this . I heard about these tunnels about 15 years ago and scoffed! It was said to me that they were in the Alton area and contained Hunters,Meteors and Sabers. The guess was that one of the then proliferant scarpies(perhaps Staravia from Lasham) used these tunnels as stores?
From the same source I was told that at the end of WWII B-17’s were buried in a field near Mitcheldever(near Popham), but we have all heard stories like that!
By: Willow - 20th June 2003 at 09:37
Unfortunately all the railway tunnels I get to visit still have trains running through them, so as yet I haven’t found any aircraft parts.
I’ll keep looking though. You never know!
The only aviation related ‘treasure’ that I’ve ever found beside the railway was a pen. Not too exciting, but I found it near Hatfield, and it had ‘Hawker Siddeley’ inscribed on it, so I was happy with the find.
Willow
By: Nikumba - 19th June 2003 at 10:34
There is a similar tunnel system down near Rudloh (spelling?) Manner near Bath.
It was used during the war to load and off load ammo and supplies onto trains. The idea was the Germans would not be able to spy on them. The system was set up so a train would drive in and stop on a siding and another train identical to the one that entered would leave on the main line full of supplies, so to anyone looking it was as if the train proceded through the tunnel normally.
The caves are very good, also the workers had a cave called Catherdral which was mightly impressive
Nikumba
By: DOUGHNUT - 19th June 2003 at 10:16
MERLIN wrote
“Another story I was told but dont believe was that the old airfield buildings where I live were once bricked up. A friend of mine put a hole in the bricks and went inside to discover road signs, barbed wire and old rifles. But I would only trust him as far as I could throw him.”
Such story do have a thread of truth, it was not unknown Civil Defence Units and the Home Guard to have secret stock piles of weapons and other materials with which to confuse and harass the Germans should they ever have invaded the UK. However finding such ‘time capsules’ today would appear very unlikely.
BIGGLEWORTH mentioned that a railway tunnel he tried to investigate had two sets of steel door embedded in concrete, with a mobile home inside, I seem to remember various schemes in the 1970’s to develop public nuclear shelters using existing tunnels and caves, maybe thats what was seen.
DOUGHNUT
By: Merlin3945 - 19th June 2003 at 00:30
Similar story
I was told a similar story to that last week.
I fly model aircraft and at our club we have full sized aircraft designers, servicemen and allsorts. Well it was one of the allsorts who told me this story.
When he was younger say by about 35 years a bunch of his mates found an underground cave (bricked up) so they decided to make a hole in the wall. They went in and found a whole stash of tnt, gas masks, rations, old rifles ( a bit bent and past it) and a whole load of other stuff. So they played about a bit with the stuff and decided to take some tnt with them for a bot of fun. (silly laddies with not much sense). When they got onto the road again a farmer was ploughing his field and saw them larking about so went to see what they were doing. He caught them throwing the tnt about to each other. So he realised what it was and told them to put it down on the wall and bugger off. Well boys being boys they did what they were told in fear of being found out where they had been. they turned an ran off after doing what they were told and the farmer went about his work until the bomb disposal guys had turned up. Well no sooner had the farmer turned his back than BOOM the wall was blown to pieces. It turned out the tnt was very old and unstable and the heat of the sun that day with the tnt on the wall ignited it.
Another story I was told but dont believe was that the old airfield buildings where I live were once bricked up. A friend of mine put a hole in the bricks and went inside to discover road signs, barbed wire and old rifles. But I would only trust him as far as I could throw him.
One story I have yet to confirm for myself but fully intend to at some point is that an airfield fuel tank farm near where I live was being built (wartime) and to weigh the tank down or to do something a Merlin engine (using quote from the veteran that told us the story. But could actually have been any old engine) was dumped into the bottom of the tank and never retrieved.
Also a few stories about quarries being used to dump stuff in. especially complete aircraft but wings cut off etc. I havent a clue if these stories have any truth but it seems likely that the quarries that were once there but now gone must be filled with something.
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June 18, 2003 at 11:22 pm