I apologise for only now picking up this thread, but wanted to submit my penny’s worth.

As a seven-year-old, I witnessed the collision of the two Spitfires over Fleet in 1950. I was on my way home (Kings Road) from Sunday School, which would have been at the Albert Street Hall, so I was somewhere along Clarence Road when it happened. I can still feel the excitement, (perhaps fear?) that the sound of six Merlins produced, only to be replaced by bewilderment at the site of a tailplane fluttering to earth. I recall the tailplane rather than the forward fuselage, but I knew a crash had occurred, and ran to my grandparent’s smithy at 23 Clarence Road screaming blue murder. I was afraid that the bombs would explode!
As a way of easing my troubles, my brother took me back to the crash site, the location of which seemed to have spread around. We found the field in Aldershot Road where the Spitfire had come down. A policeman was at the double-barred gate of the field and wasn’t letting anyone in. It was the first and fortunately only time I have had that smell in my nostrils. Then we went round to Regent Street to see the tailplane that had hit someone’s roof and landed in their front garden.

Some 10 years later I was doing a holiday job, cleaning out ditches for the Council, together with father of a schoolchum. Suddenly old Mr. Lovelock disappeared in a swarm of bees or wasps, having sliced through their nest with his sickle. I did what I could (I must have almost drowned him), and scrambled up the bank to the bungalow next to the stream. The lady responded to my demands for half a lemon with alacrity, and I rubbed the poor man’s face and body with it, which brought some succour. He was taken to the RAMC hospital in Aldershot, where he recovered.

That bungalow is situated on the field where the Spitfire came down!

On 1 September 1958 I watched the Seahawk XE462 crash at Blackbushe and was the first to reach the pilot, who had ejected.
The year before, Hawk Trainer G-AFBS cartwheeled on landing at the ‘Bushe, but I don’t believe it belongs here as it may not have been an organised do.

Then there was the Maule at one of the September Cranfields, but I don’t have details right now.

Apart from that, I watched the two MiG-29s collide at Fairford in 1993. I recall thinking that there was something decidedly wrong with the trajectory, and so it was. I showed photos of the blazing aircraft later to Anatoli Kvotchur, pilot of the MiG-29 that crashed at Paris in 1989, and he told me ruefully that one of the Fairford pilots had been his wingman when they were stationed together at Ribnitz-Damgarten. I’m the proud possessor of the helmet ‘Toli was wearing at Paris.

I hope this has been of interest, and will help place the Spitfire crash more accurately

vbrgds
Alan Lathan
http://www.english-for-flyaways.de

I recall Tom Moloney having his Harrier gate guard sprayed one night at Shoreham while he was out on a trip, and just prior to the press coming to visit. (Could it have been FP perhaps..?) Cost a thou or two to have it cleaned I believe.

Another time, I was admiring the Berkut G-REDX at Cranfield when a family from one of the former colonies arrived and suddenly you had the kids sitting on the stub wings, which were of course invitingly close to the ground. Needless to say, Glen was not amused!

Must admit I’m not free of itchy fingers either, but at least my collection of bits and pieces has been acquired quite legally, except that is, for all those warning signs removed from Russian bases (in the good old DDR), most of which state that you are likely to be shot (….if caught removing this from the fence, etc).

I even zapped an SU-27 with the company sticker at an open day in Damgarten, but Anatoly Kvotchur allowed me to do it, and seemed to be quite chuffed too. He could have cared less, he was on a high, being back at the base where he had spent some of his BBC time. (thinks, when did HE work for the BBC?)

He almost caught me that time grabbing the helmet off his head as he floated down to earth at Paris in 1989. It took me a couple of year’s to get it, but there it was at last (and if I can get it to work, there might be a photo of it too).

Lots of tongue in cheek, and half a gotlle of Clot de Gleize (honest) later, I wish you all happy snapping, spotting (or whatever you like doing most) in 2005!

Yours till the cows come home.

b_d

didn’t work…aaarghhh 🙁