Dear Forumites
I’m hoping that you will be able to help me with the following questions relating to the trialling of parachute containers being dropped from the Westland Whirlwind Mk1 in early 1943.
Question 1
What did they look like? Does anyone have a picture or reference that they could direct me to?
Question 2
What were their dimensions?
Question 3
What colour scheme(s) did they have?
I’d like to convert an Airfix Whirlwind to model the containers.
I have the following from 263 Squadron’s ORB.
January 1943 – APPENDIX A
From :- Commanding Officer, No.263 Squadron, RAF
To :- H.Q., No.10 Group
Date :- 15 January, 1943
Ref. :- 263S/S.46/Air
PARACHUTE CONTAINERS
2 of the Containers sent to us were loaded up 120lb. with sandbags. No difficulty was found in attaching them to the bomb racks and the container did not interfere with the flap. A rather longer run than usual was necessary for the take off, but the machine handled as usual in the air and the stalling speed was the same as when carrying 2 x 250lb bombs. The containers were dropped from 500’, the parachute opening practically instantaneously, and there will be no difficulty in dropping these containers in a very small space.
(sgd) G.B. Warnes
Sqn Ldr, Commanding
No.263 Sqn, RAF
February 1943
8th.
P7094 S/L G.B. Warnes DFC Army Co-Operation Exercise 1540 – 1635
P7095 F/O E. Brearley Army Co-Operation Exercise 1540 – 1635
P7052 F/O C.P. King DFM Army Co-Operation Exercise 1545 – 1625
Equipment Containers were dropped on Netheravon Aerodrome at 1600. F/O Brearley’s containers hung up.
As an aside it should be noted that P7095, as recorded here, was lost the previous month whilst with 137 Squadron. I suspect that it may have been P7059 (or P7099) which was with 263 Squadron at this time.
Thank you all in advance for your help.
Paul
By: Arabella-Cox - 1st January 2011 at 21:20
Thanks for the link Tea Brewer.
The CLE containers were only trialled on the Whirlwind. They were never carried operationally.
Paul
PS Time to brush up on my schoolboy French and then translate the page when that doesn’t work!
By: Tea Brewer - 1st January 2011 at 12:00
SOE containers
Here is a link that most of you may already know about, but which I post anyway
http://philippe.chapill.pagesperso-orange.fr/les_parachute_de_largage.htm
It is in French, but Google translate helps. It has a lot of information about containers, their size etc.
The containers used on Lysanders are described. No mention of the Whirlwind, but I doubt they were used for SOE.
By: Arabella-Cox - 7th August 2009 at 11:12
Whirlwind + Parachute Containers
Hi Aeronut
Thank you, thank you, thank you! I don’t quite know how else to put it!
The answers you have provided to my questions are simply mind blowing – especially the photo of Warnes, King and Brearley dropping them.
I know that quite a few other Whirlie ‘nutters’ apart from myself will enjoy your response and the photo for quite some time to come.
Thanks once again.
Paul.
By: Arabella-Cox - 7th August 2009 at 10:54
Whirlwind + Parachute Containers
Hi Stu
Thanks for that one. It wasn’t one of the ones I found. But through Google I did find a couple at:
http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/diaries/news.htm
Paul
By: MrBlueSky - 7th August 2009 at 10:29
Yes fantastic info…:D
Lets just say you’ll be able to try this for yourself at some point in the near future…;)
Stuart
By: bradleygolding - 7th August 2009 at 05:17
Hi All,
I think that it is amazing that after all this time we are still finding out new stuff about this aircraft. Keep it coming.
All the best,
Steve
By: Arabella-Cox - 6th August 2009 at 18:19
The containers are likely to have been CLE Mk I or CLE Mk III. I’d go for the Mk III if only because being circular its easier to model, the Mk I was more D shaped.
What colour? That’s a good question. From what I can find out as supplied they were black or RAF Blue grey but in service they would be painted to suit identification on the DZ by the troops whose kit they contained.
As for sizes here’s a page from an AP which will give you all you need.
[ATTACH]175412[/ATTACH]
As to the details of the trial you may be interested in this photo which comes from the collection of the late Laurence Wright (Author of the book ‘The Wooden Sword’) held in the Museum of Army Flying, Middle Wallop. If it shows the actual drop you describe, and I think it does, its interesting to see that only three out of six containers have dropped so it wasn’t only F/O Brearly’s containers that hung up.
The containers would have been hung to travel crash head forward with a short length of cord (no static line) would have been attached to the bomb rack to deploy the parachute as the container left the bombslip.
[ATTACH]175413[/ATTACH]
By: MrBlueSky - 6th August 2009 at 16:48
Interesting…
Found this on Google, but I’d expect you’ve already done that, so you might already have seen it…
Sign In
August 6, 2009 at 1:04 pm