The December Reading Material Has Arrived

Thanks, Mark. The Daily Mail story taught me that although Bill Kirkness died in 1994, it has been 25!! years since his death. The wonders of math! Yep, there are a few errors in this piece [I wonder if the DM writers/editors screw up on purpose because they hate their jobs], but I’m grateful for it, nevertheless.

Matt,

Despite a few glaring errors the Daily Fail has done you proud.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5421725/RAF-gunner-fought-Japanese-skies-Burma.html

Mark

Thanks, DaveF68. Yes, the Mk IIs were the early aggressors, both in the Middle East and then after 159 Sqn relocated to Salbani, W. Bengal, India. The last Mk II op for 159 Squadron was on the night of 24-25 July 1943.

The first Mk III arrived on 159 Sqn on 20 July 1943, and in late August the squadron received seven more Mk IIIs.

Still two more Mk IIs arrived in August, though they were not flown on ops. Some of the new Libs were used for training on the newly-established 1584 Conversion Unit, also at Salbani. 1584 CU later became 1673 Heavy Conversion Unit.

After the monsoon season ended, ops resumed, in early October. Now 159 Sqn flew only Mk IIIs. It wasn’t until the night of 22-23 Jan 1944, after 159 Sqn’s relocation to Digri in late Oct ’43, that the Mk VI made its operational debut with the squadron.

Attached — 1) Mk II AL564, D for Donald, which pranged at Salbani on 15 April 1943, the day after Bill Kirkness and crew arrived on the squadron with Mk II Lib AL597. (Photo credit: 159 Sqn pilot Ken Brailsford, via his great-niece, Ann Lyons) 2) Mk III BZ906, A for Algy (nose art painted by Bill), date unknown. (Photo credit: Bill Kirkness DFM)

Cheers,

Matt

Fascinating story Matt – I hadn’t realised mk IIs or mk IIIs had been used operationally in the Far East

I can’t listen to myself (when I’ve done short bits for aviation podcasts) either!

Thanks, Errol. I appreciate your comments. I cringe at the sound of my voice, but for the most part I did OK, I think. Thanks for your Thunderbolt book endorsement, too.

I listened to the podcast over the weekend, and hadn’t connected the name with the forum poster! You certainly came over well on audio (including the bonus interview).

A book I’ve read that also validates and expands on a pilot’s memories is Check Six!: A Thunderbolt Pilot’s War Across the Pacific.

For those with a Forgotten War interest, a 51-minute snippet of my nearly three-hour chat with Angus Wallace, webmaster of ww2podcast.com, went on-line this past week. I discuss the book RAF Liberators over Burma and my research into 159 Squadron. The full link to the interview is:

http://ww2podcast.com/ww2-podcast/61-raf-liberators-burma-flying-159-squadron/

A 31-minute bonus interview, culled from additional material from our Skype chat, is offered to those who financially contribute to ww2podcast.com.

Cheers,

Matt

Mark,

Jagan Pillarisetti sent me some Indian logbooks with great Liberator detail, and I have the Air-Britain book “The Liberator in Royal Air Force and Commonwealth Service” by James D. Oughton, but the bottom line is that there is a huge hole in the compilation of IAF Lib serial numbers, and few of them are correlated with their original RAF serials.

Jagan has counted 43 IAF Liberators, and at this point my list has 44, including one instructional airframe, the former RAF serial KH191, which now flies with the Collings Foundation in a US paint scheme.

At this time, there is no way to know how many had a 159 Sqn lineage, though I’d venture a guess that none of them would have been flown by Bill Kirkness. He finished up at the beginning of April ’44, and I bet all of the refurbished Libs were later arrivals. Definitely some of them were later marks than Bill flew in, and not all were bomber variants, like Bill’s aircraft.

I did find one definite Lib flown on 159 Sqn, however: HE773 of the IAF was KN820 with the RAF, and it had flown as “R” on 159 Squadron. Attached is a photo when on 159 Sqn, plus one from the Canadian Aviation and Space Museum’s website, after it had been painted in a bogus livery (as a general reconnaissance, not a bomber, variant).

The museum, at last word, doesn’t even publicly display this gem, even in its false paint scheme. Furthermore, twice by email I offered the museum copies of photos of their Liberator from its RAF days plus excerpts from the logbooks of two RAF airmen who had flown aboard their Liberator. Twice I received no response. My emails didn’t bounce; they were ignored by one or more museum staffer lacking even an ounce of historical sensibility. I should try again…and again.

ADDENDUM: In the old black & white image, it is not obvious that the airframe is unpainted (except for anti-glare paint and, of course, the usual national & squadron markings not seen in the photo). The museum paint job is in a reconnaissance Liberator paint scheme — 100% covered in paint. Incidentally, you might note the pierced steel planking, at this airfield laid down at Pegu, Burma. 159 Sqn sent Liberators there as part of ‘OPERATION HUNGER’, a rice-dropping assignment to aid starving Burmese. This KN820 photo dates to about Feb 1946.

Matt

‘RAF Liberators over Burma’ indeed I wonder if any of those 159 Sqn B-24’s ended up among the aircraft recovered by Harjinder Singh.

Matt/Jagan. Can you compare the serials in the 159 Sqn ORB with a known list of the B-24’s in Indian Air Force service?

Mark

Thanks, Mark, for your opinions. Glad you enjoyed it. I’ve seen too many memoirs that are sparse when it comes to details, especially when describing ops. Targets, bomb loads, aircrew, dates, and serial numbers are important, if presented tastefully. Naturally, trivia can bore to tears and distract from a good yarn. Because I had access to the 159 Squadron ORB and Bill’s logbook, plus my own records, I was able to support Bill’s basic recollections for the sake of those who love to dig into the weeds for substance, without going overboard (I think). I feel that Bill and I were a great match, separated by a mere 26 years since I last saw him (and 23 years since his death). Gotta thank his daughter Sue for trusting me.

Fonthill did a wonderful job on layout, and in colorizing black & white photos for the cover.

RAF Liberators over Burma.

Just finished it. Nice job Matt. I particularly liked the way you have used the 159 Squdron ORB to pump more detail of the missions, full crew, and the individual aircraft histories in to the basic logbook entries of Bill Kirkness’s operational tour.

Mark

Please post more pics John, extremely interesting…

I have today received my copy of Spitfire Singh, looking forward to diving in later.

I attach a few further images from Palam, hopefully not too distracting from the original thread.

Thanks to Mark12 and Jagan for their very kind words about RAF LIBERATORS OVER BURMA (subtitled FLYING WITH 159 SQUADRON). And to Mark12 for posting the photo of the book alongside the bio of the fascinating Harjinder Singh. The hardcover edition of RAF LIBERATORS OVER BURMA is 224 pages (not what is listed on bookseller sites). Please be mindful that the main title happens to be the subtitle of another Fonthill Media book, B-24 BRIDGE BUSTERS, by Colin Pateman.

A synopsis can be found on most bookseller sites, such as fonthillmedia.com and amazon.co.uk.

This is not a book about tactics or technology. Instead, it is the heartfelt, and at times heartrending, offering of a thoughtful and dedicated ‘everyman’ – just a bloke from Horsforth, near Leeds. He was fortunate to survive a tour of 32 ops (including the especially harrowing 32nd), unlike some of his crewmates and others with whom he trained and flew, and about whom he wrote.

Many booksellers offer a Kindle version ‘Look inside’ option which includes all 53 photographs, but not much text. 7 DEC EDIT: On amazon.co.uk, the Kindle version and the ‘Look inside’ option keep disappearing, then reappearing. If the Kindle isn’t available there, try amazon.com, where a Kindle book (but not yet a hardcopy book) can be purchased, and where there is a ‘Look inside’ option still.

Spitfires are mentioned, but only as pertaining to the UK and Malta.:dev2:

Cheers,

Matt

Mark, I swear, my brain can fool my eyes into seeing what it wants to.. I wanted a hardbound and almost saw one! thanks for clarifying.

For what its worth Mike Edward’s Twitter feed has an amusing theme running … related to ‘Spitfire Singh’. His copy keeps popping up at various places and cockpits around the world….. check https://twitter.com/MikeEdwardsMBE/media

Jbs always interesting to see photos, I would love to see more of what you’ve taken. Thank you.

Hopefully a little thread creep will be permitted here.

On a trip to the IAF Museum at Palam in October 2008 I was lucky enough to meet up with Paul B from the BBMF who was there advising the IAF Historic Flight. This good fortune continued when I was allowed access to the normally inaccessible Historic Flight hangar upon where I saw Spitfire Mk.VIII NH631.

Here are just a couple of shots showing the Spitfire and also the B-24. I do have more but do not want to hijack the thread.

Dang.. is that “Spitfire Singh” a Hard cover?

Jagan,

Mine is a soft back version printed in India.

I see in the January 2018 issue of Flypast, out today, the UK printed version is positively reviewed. Still Soft back and priced at £12.99.

Mark

Dang.. is that “Spitfire Singh” a Hard cover? I need one ! because they never released a hard cover edition in India.

Yes its a cracking read by Mike Edwards. Harjinder is a bit of a legend in the IAF – the senior most tech officer who was there right from Day 1 the IAF was started. He is acknowledged as a brilliant engineer who can fix and repair anything. He gave the Brits a tough time when in service, and laid the foundations of the IAF for its post independence growth. In his later part of the career, he butted heads with other senior officers who were his friends and peers in the early days. He was one of the first to write his memoirs – and it was published in a now out of print book “Birth of an Air Force” and he pulled no punches in it. Mike Edwards has ofcourse more sources and more information since that early memoir was published and he has been able to add more colour and detail to his life.

A few more points about him:
– To Harjinder goes the credit of not just the Spitfire NH631, but also restoring the Hurricane and the Wapiti . He laid the seeds of the ‘IAF Museum’ in Kanpur even before it was officially opened in Delhi in 1966.
– Being the Tech wizard that he was, putting together the Spitfire, Hurricane was no big deal for him.
– He built a home grown AOP aircraft Kanpur 1 and Kanpur 2, and it was him who led India into the HS-748 deal and started the HS-748 assembly as an IAF operation (not HAL!) Building the Avro in India
– There is a bit of a dispute if he was ‘solely responsible’ for the restoration of the B-24 Liberators – because the some sources attribute it to a team from HAL. Link

I second Mark12 – its a cracking read and gives a rare glimpse into the IAF of the 40s/50s
———————

I am not done yet – I also have the second book mentioned here – Matt Poole’s RAF Liberators over Burma. Since this deals with the RAF in India and Liberators – Recently I wrote about Liz Dent’s book about her Dad’s photographs and how one forum member (John Aeroclub)’s chance encounter with her resulted in the book being published – it is to Matt’s credit that this memoir by Bill Kirkness, languishing with the family in search of a publisher finally saw the day light and is in our hands in form of this lovely book. Bill Kirkness (With matt’s dilligent research) writes about his operational tour – sortie by sortie – with tension buidling up as he gets close to his 30 sortie tour.. Great perspective from the eyes of an WO/AG. And a whole bunch of rare unpublished photographs of Kirkness’s tour in India – with a generous sprinkling of aircraft photos.

You cant go wrong if your interests spans the RAF in the Indian Subcontinent/ Burma front.