Pete TrumanOr even Sea Furies.
Pete TrumanAnd mine, can’t they use Kermit Weekes Tempest restoration.
Pete TrumanPlease use the BF-109 picture, I actually have a colour slide of the P-47 taken on the same day, my problem is transferring it to this medium.
Pete TrumanNice pics, somewhere in my vast collection of slides I have a shot of the SR-71 doing a fuel dump and burn at Mildenhall, I have a rather awesome video of an Aussie F-111 doing the same trick at Fairford 1993.
Tomcats are rare beasts, apart from the Arromanches flypast, the only display I’ve ever seen was Mildenhall, 92?,which I have somewhere on video. There was one on static at Fairford 93.
Pete TrumanMost of the other venues where the A-6 was present or scheduled to be present seem to have taken place whilst I was in Germany. Oh well c’est la vie.
You should have been at Arromanches in June 1994, the JFK was off Omaha and dispatched 4 Tomcats, A-6’s, F18’s and I can’t remember what else, they linked up with a C-17 and a B1 and roared across the back off the town, I have a very wobbly video of it somewhere.
Pete TrumanI forgot, another Time Team one to look out for was the excavation of 2 USAAF A25 Invaders near Liverpool, shown a few months ago, seemed to cause a bit of contraversy on these pages, but a good programme.
Pete TrumanRay Holmes Hurricane
I see here in the states , this Sunday at 10pm est ( eastern standard time), the History Channel is showing this hour long program on a British RAF Hurricane pilot , Ray Holmes who rammed his Hurricane into a German Bomber and brought it down during the Battle of Britain. The program says a team comes to the site where it crashed and excavates the site not far from
Buckingham Palace. The History Channel website says this is the only fighter plane to crash in the street of London during the Battle of Britain? I take it they are refering to the Hurricane belonging to Ray Holmes, which crashed after he use it to ram this German bomber ( JU-88 ?) Looks like a good program…guess you guys & gals have already seen it ? Can you give us a review of the program.Thanks!
BlueNoser352!
This programme went out more or less live last year on British television, the road was closed off and the estimated point of impact was dug out in the road, fortunately it was spot on. The problem with the programme was that the presenters were really ‘ in your face ‘ and new little about the subject, it wasn’t helped by dear old Ray Holmes giving the impression that he couldn’t see what the fuss was about and probably prefered to be somewhere else, preferably with the female presenter!
Various bits were pulled out of the hole, including parts of the control column I recall, however, if they ever show the Time Team dig of a Spitfire crash site in Northern France on US television I thought it was a much better programme.
Cheers.
Pete TrumanThe Japanese lost a lot more ships and it was the first time that they had done so. It was the first time they met any real opposition in their advance down through the Pacific as far as I’m aware.
Cheers for that, I must look it up on the web.
Pete TrumanCoral Sea
As you have complained about the lack of replies, here goes. I’m not a Pacific war expert even though my late uncle was a Corsair armourer on board HMS Illustrious, but I thought that the Battle of Coral Sea was a disaster, did we not lose the Exeter, USS Houston and an Australian cruiser as well as several destroyers or were they a diversion away from the main American fleet which was succesful, I’d like to know more about what happened.
Cheers.
Pete TrumanJersey
I made a mistake with reference to Dave Homewoods query, the south west France last redoubts were on the estuary out of Bordeux, to the west of Royan, can’t find my French map as the house is in upheaval, but there is a headland there with some massive fortifications which I have visited, I gather it prevented the use of the port for some time.
When the Germans left Jersey all their artillery was dumped in the sea, some has been recovered since I was there 40 years ago, in those days some of the farmers were driving around in Mercedes trucks from the occupation, and there were real treasures to be found in some of the bunkers, a lot of it had just been left untouched. My mate went to Guernsey and got into an ammo store, finding loaded machine guns and grenades.
I remember flying back to East Midlands Airport that year in an empty BM Handley Page Herald, as an excited 15 year old I was allowed to sit in the cockpit all the way across the Channel, unfortunately we hit a severe thunderstorm and I had to go back and strap in, now that was hair raising.
We should be about halfway through Duxford by now and the weather here, only about 15 miles away, is appalling, I have’nt been able to go because of my hand injury, perhaps that was lucky considering the weather, however I have just heard the sound of some heavy metal props in transit to the east of the village, couldn’t see what they were though.
Pete TrumanNorth Weald
I have loads of slides of the pyro’s but can’t reproduce them here. I recall that at one display, the explosives failed to go off and had to be detonated after the show, the resulting blast nearly burning my face. During a scenario involving military vehicles one of them was positioned too near to the blast and caught fire.
The strafing sequence was interesting, the first time I saw it the charges were lined up heading straight for me and I cr***d myself, there was also a dodgy looking sequence involving flak bursting around Moose that was quite interesting.
Down at the fighter pan, I witnessed the near demise of Stephen Grey, Paul Day had been frantically trying to start the BBMF spitfire and it eventually fired just as Stephen walked past the prop, then stopped, the exchanged looks were interesting to say the least.
I should be off to Duxford today but the weather looks grim and I’ve cut my hand making driving difficult so this will be the first show missed for years.
Pete TrumanNice photos Ian. Thanks for sharing them.
Please excuse my ignorance, but who actually liberated the Channel Islands? British Army? Americans? Canadians? Royal Navy?
And why did it take so long after D Day? I’d have thought they’d have been taken soon after the French landings. I’m quite surprised to hear it was not till the end of the war.
The problem with Jersey was that it had been turned into a massively fortified island, any invasion attempt would have resulted in a bloodbath to invaders and locals alike. The decision was taken to starve the Germans out, the locals were recieving Red Cross parcels while the Germans were reduced to eating rats.Following the German capitulation at Luneberg Heath, a token British force arrived at Jersey in a destroyer and accepted the German surrender without any fighting.
There were similar pockets of German resistance in south west France on the mouth of the estuary up from Marsaille.
When I was a kid and did rather foolish things like climbing cliffs, I was at Bouley Bay on the north of Jersey and halfway up the cliffs found a line of canon shells sticking out of the rockface, I always assumed that this the result of a straffing attack by the RAF.
Pete TrumanPete,
From the Essex Aviation Group’s book:
“On Sunday 3rd August 1941 No 52 OTU at RAF Debden lost two Hurricanes due to a mid-air colision. Both aircraft were Mk1s (serials R4101 and W9149) and were totally destroyed by the crash with the pilots, Sgts Wiliam Flemming and Ian McDonald both being killed.
During September 1982 and August 1983 the Group recovered the majority of the fuselage, engine and wing centre section from one of these aircraft, including 4 machine guns, and selected items from this crash now form one of the more significant displays at Duxford. Unfortunately it has not been possible to identify which of the two Hurricanes has been recovered from this crsh site at Great Sampford.”
Sadly the EAG’s hut at Duxford is no more… So where the stuff has gone I know not.
Given that there seems only to be thee and I left in this thread, do you think we should post the Wellington story in a new thread and see if someone can come up with chapter and verse?
Adrian
Ron Hawkins has a full acount of this Wellington story, I’m sure it was published in the Villager, possibly with a photograph, I’ll see what I can do.
I have a good story that Sir John RB told me.
He showed me a stained glass screen in Spains Hall and said that he came back from a visit to London and found it in pieces on the floor. Apparently the first F-100’s had arrived at Wethersfield and did a very low pass over the house causing some damage.
He noticed that the take off path came right overhead and complained to the commander of the base.
The response from our American friends was that he was invited to the base and taken up in a 2 seat F-100 in order to select a new flightpath, he said he found the experience rather stimulating!
His Home Guard colonels uniform is still hanging on a hook in the kitchen.
The last aircraft I saw take off from Wethersfield was a C-141 Starlifter that ignored Sir John’s flightpath, probably finished off the Royal Doulton.
Pete TrumanFinchingfield crashes
I am afraid I know nothing about a Wellington. However as a boy of 7 I was there when a Hurricane was dug out of a field near Spains Hall (just where the little kink is in the road with the spinneys on either side as you head from Spains Hall towards Howe Bottoms) – I have the Essex Aviation Archaeology Group’s booklet from the days they were at Duxford which covers it. AFAIK the Havoc was dug out of a field at Mill End – below Spains Hall, at the bottom of the hill. I remember the day because it was pouring and Mum wouldn’t let us go and have a look. As it happens, I don’t think they found a lot – I think the sight was mostly cleared at the time. I have walked across both fields since and there is no sign on the surface.
Any help?
Adrian[/QUOTE]
The old boy to talk to about all this is Ron Hawkins, unfortunately he now lives in Braintree and we’ve lost contact, he has meticulous records on everything. By coincidence I just walked in the door from work and picked up the latest edition of The Villager, I shall quote from an article entightled ‘My life in Cornish Hall End’ by Ray Cardy.
” During the late 1940’s, one Sunday night, I was coming home from church when I heard this loud bang. Two English fighter planes had collided in mid-air. One fell at Spains End in a field called Mall Post, next to the farm, the other one at Mill Meadow , Great Sampford. The one in Mill Meadow was pulled out by the Air Ministry, but the one at Spains End is still there in the field to this day. This one fell in a lovely field of wheat. About a week or so after, I had to cut the wheat on a hot day and the smell was not very pleasant. Parts of the plane were spread all over the field.”
What a coincidence.
The Havoc was on a mission from Wethersfield, with a full bomb load. One of the chefs from the base had stowed away to see what real action was all about. Unfortunately the aircraft lost power on take off and exploded on impact right where you said, there is evidence of a crater, only visible when the field has been ploughed, we did a survey with a metal detector last year and found quite a few fragments.
The Wellington was returning from a mission and got lost over the North Sea and started to run out of fuel. The pilot thought he was over Holland and attempted an emergency landing in a field at night. This entailed just missing Finchingfield church tower and coming in over Duck End, the aircraft landing up in a ditch next to the Folly Cottage on Stambourne Road. The crew hid in the ditch for hours, the army units sent to look for them being mistaken for German troops. Eventually they surrended to the great embarrasment of all concerned. The Wellington was recovered and I think taken back to Newmarket where it was repaired. I’ve been told that there are a few artifacts in this ditch perhaps I’ll take the dogs for a walk up there now, they are getting very restless so I have to go.
Pete TrumanJust a thought, Pete, isn’t there supposed to be a Polish BoB pilot living in Finchingfield?
Adrian
(If I haven’t mentioned this before I grew up in Cornish Hall End, hence my interest in Finchingfield!)
When did you leave Cornish Hall End?
I used to help out with the Scouts at the Rememberance Day ceremony and I don’t recall any Polish vets, neither do I know of any Polish residents in the village. The local old boy who was the village historian has now left so I can’t wander up the road and ask him.
There was a Danish wartime spy who lived in Swan House which links in with a possible connection.
In 1940 a German bomber attempting to flatten Courthalds in Bocking was intercepted by a Hurricane and shot down over Gainsford End, unfortunately the Hurricane succombed to return fire and came down near Little Bardfield, the pilot being killed. The German crew parachuted to safety and landed on our village green, the pilot hitting the war memorial, ironic, and breaking his legs, they were taken into Swan House for a cup of tea and the Danish spy acted as interpreter until the Army came from Dunmow and took them away.
I was going to say maybe the Hurricane pilot was Polish, but I have just been given some new information.
Incidentally Sir John Ruggles-Brise who still lives at Spains Hall, bless him, has shown me round the house a few times and has got a piston from the Hurricane displayed in the attic.
My missus just peered at what I was doing and informs me that the Polish pilot lives in a bungalow on Wethersfield Road, well he did 3 years ago.
She said that she got into conversation with him while taking the dog for a walk, she says he’s a lovely old boy with a strong Polish accent and a Labrador dog, he told her that he’d been a pilot in the war and she said that we would have to be introduced. I must admit that I couldn’t remember this occurance, but I was told!
I don’t recall any obituries in our village magazine so watch this space.
Incidentally, how much do you know about the Wellington crash landing at Duck End and the Havoc exploding into the field near Spains Hall.
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