Thanks everyone.

Yes, I did read the report at the time but I don’t remember all the details, just that it was some occasionally-eyewatering stuff. I was more wondering whether attitudes/rulings from one Aviation Authority would be adopted by others around Europe similar to my line of work, where the approval (or otherwise) of one state’s Notified Body is generally accepted by other member states.

Getting back to the aircraft, I notice that they claim to be up-to-date on all technical instructions, serviced, etc. Again, from what I remember of the report – I would be wanting a second opinion before I climbed into one, just in case it was ‘High in Shergar’!

Alas, Mr. Abramovich left his wallet in his other jeans, so for me the point is moot.

I know nothing of old instruments, but I do tinker with old watches. Bezels are usually either snap-on (often v. tight!) or screw on. Given that this instrument supposedly contained a vacuum of some sort (cf. Dry Crank) I wonder if it was assembled from the back, i.e. glass was dropped in first and sealed into the case, then the mechanism, then the back with some sort of spigot to draw out air and/or replace with an inert gas like Nitrogen?

Is the glass flush with the bezel or proud? If the glass is proud, they were usually (in watches, at least) mounted by heating the bezel ring to make it expand and then dropping the glass into its seat. When the bezel cooled, it gripped the edge of the glass very firmly – no need for glue or other adhesive. As ian_ said, a photograph or two would probably help.

Good luck – just try not to do anything irreversible!

Jeff

Hi Paul,

After a judicious Google, I have turned up the following in Flight on 18 Aug 38:-

The undermentioned reserve officers have recently been tested at
the Central Flying School, and are awarded the following categories
: —
A.2.—Fit. Lt. D. H. V. Craig.
B.—Fit. Lts. T- D. H. Slade, A. W. R. Lawson, P. C. Lawrence,
R- N. Younghusband,

http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1938/1938%20-%202345.html?search=Younghusband

The name and rank seem a little too close to be a coincidence. Of course, this doesn’t give you an answer but may present other lines of enquiry (e.g. CFS ORB).

Regards,

Jeff

Pilot was Roland Beamont.

I wondered if he meant Roland Beamont – but for a different reason. In Against the Sun it’s claimed that Beamont got a flight in an F86 in May 1948 and took it to Mach 1.01 indicated in a dive over Muroc due to a bit of a misunderstanding, which caused a stink with the USAAF types. This is after Chuck Yeager but would be before John Derry, the first British pilot to exceed the sound barrier (Although there seems to be some uncertaintly about that, too!).

Beamont was supposedly encouraged to keep this quiet, and later it was shown that the position of the pitot tube meant that the real airspeed would have been slightly lower – backed up by the lack of a boom.

So I’m assuming that a couple of stories have been conflated in the original example.

Matt, I must admit that if I didn’t know you personally, I don’t think that I would have bothered registering – and the Whirlie holds a special place in my heart! Without registering, there is relatively little to encourage you to do so. Obviously, there needs to be some sort of incentive to do so, but I think there needs to be some more content available to the unregisterd to lure them in.

I am naturally leery of spreading my personal details around the internet – case in point; it took a couple of years before I registered on Key!

Regards,

Jeff

From the squadron diary/ORB -can you confirm the aircraft number or code ?

Hi Brian,

From the ORB:-

Aircraft: P.7090
Pilot: F/O Harvey
Up: 23:00
Down: (Blank)
Details: “Ordered to look for trains between BAYEUX and CAEN nothing was heard of him after he left WARMWELL”

There is also an Appendix for this series of operations which I haven’t transcribed yet, but unfortunately the quality of image I have is very poor. The section relating to F/O Harvey appears as follows:-

“No. 6. F/O Harvey, Warmwell 2300 — was ordered to reconnoitre the railway from Bayeux to Caen. Nothing was seen or heard of him after he left Warmwell. F/O Harvey was also interested in the possibility of the armed trawler mentioned above. He was personally familiar with the flak area at Caen and Caen/Carpiquet.”

The armed trawler reference relates to a vessel encountered north of Ouistreham on several previous nights. I reproduce this section below:-

“No. 2. F/O Abrams, Warmwell 2248 — was ordered to reconnoitre the seaward area from Houlgate, ten miles West of Ouistreham, to the St. Marcouf
He hoped to find the armed trawler which at a point 3 miles North of Ouistreham on the previous night (16th April) (See Warmwell Composite Night Rhubarb 25 Report of 16/17 April) had been attacked at about 2355 by F/Lt. Blackshaw and which had fired accurately at him from 3 or 4 light gun positions. It was probably the same trawler which at about 1640 on 16th April slightly damaged F/O. Lee-White’s A/C with 13 m.m. flak after he had bombed Mondeville; and it was possibly this which, reported as at 20 miles North of Ouistreham, damaged a Beaufighter of 409 Squadron at about [illegible] hrs. on 16/17th April. It is also possible that this trawler shot down F/O E. Brearley on the night of 16/17th April. F/O Abrams accordingly proposed to look for this vessel on the 17/18th of April, assuming that it might be in the same area again. In fact, nothing was heard of seen of F/O Abrams after he left Warmwell. He did not return.”

If all the damage and losses above can be attributed to the same vessel, they must have had a real crack crew indeed. All in all, a very bad night for 263 Sqn, with the loss of three of its most experienced pilots.

I hope you find this useful.

Kind regards,

Jeff