Got an answer today from BA Museum, Mr. Keith Hayward, the Consultant Archivist:

“Our records show that the fuselage was moved from Hythe sometime after 1951 by BOAC to Heston for open storage. Prior to this approaches were made to see if Saunders Roe or Power Boats would retain the fuselage, but they declined.

In 1954 thoughts of a national aircraft museum were being formulated and approaches were made to BOAC to see if the Sea Eagle could be placed under cover before it rotted away. The Royal Aeronautical Society also became concerned about the airframe. BEA offered to accommodate it or arrange for it to be transported to Weybridge for storage under cover with the famous Nash collection. There was even the possibility that Vickers could be persuaded to add mocked-up wings and tail unit and thus exhibit the complete aircraft.

Sadly there seems to have been a complete breakdown of communications with BOAC at this time.

On 20 January 19544 the BOAC Stores Superintendent was ordered by Supplies Management to burn the fuselage at Heston where it was in a very deteriorated states. He contacted the Fire Section who destroyed the Sea Eagle on Saturday 13 February 1954 after originally planning to do it the following week. As BEA had offered to move the fuselage, BOAC management telephoned the Stores Superintendent on Monday 15 February telling him not to arrange for the aircraft to be burnt, not knowing that this had already taken place.

Ironically, misunderstanding and a 48-hour change of plan caused the loss of this historic aircraft. A sorry story.”

AA, maybe some answers to your questions…

Martin

… simply “WOW” – thanks edit: Moggy and Tangmere1940 😉

I would bet my life that this is the incident.
The photo I got from here, but no HI-REZ. — https://www.flickr.com/photos/sdasmarchives/albums
Maybe try here, for more info. — http://aviation.hawaii.gov/
Regards Duggy

Already asked SDASM per email for help with the BuNo at the vertical stabilizer!
Martin

4-P-10 vs 10-P-4 slightly irritating…
Here is another photo of 10-P-4 http://www.vpnavy.com/pby/vp9_vp10_pby_01_16jul2006.jpg

…maybe Douglas PD-1 ?
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Douglas_PD-1s_VP-4_over_Hawaii_1930.jpg
“U.S. Navy Douglas PD-1 flying boats of patrol squadron VP-4D14 over Hawaii (USA), March 1930. “D14″ designated the 14th Naval District.”

edit: The Consolidated P2Y photo is circa 1937…guess it’s the so called second VP-4 founded 1943

edit 2: here is a photo of 4-P-11 http://www.vpnavy.com/vp4_aircraft.html

edit 3: Douglas PD-1 4-P-10 http://www.vpnavy.com/h16/vp4h16_01_19mar2001.jpg
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Does anyone know if there is a published account – on paper or online – of the history of the Heston Sea Eagle from its withdrawal from use in 1929 (if it was actually G-EBGR but painted with the marks G-EBGS) or its being sunk by a boat off Guernsey in 1927 (if it was actually G-EBGS) until its destruction by fire at Heston in 1954?

Imperial Airways, G-EBGR named -SARNIA- / Withdrawn 1928 The service between Southampton and Guernsey was taken over by the Calcutta, G-EBVH in October 1928 and therefore the Sea Eagle G-EBGR was considered redundant and was withdrawn from use. The hull was preserved and exhibited alongside the Short Empire flying boat, Capella, at the British Power Boat Company’s display at Hythe, Hampshire, in February 1938. Finally, wrongly marked as G-EBGS, it was presented to John Brancker of BOAC in September 1949 by Victor Paine (half-brother of Hubert Scott-Paine) then publicity manager of Vickers (Aviation) who had acquired Supermarine in 1928. It was stored at Hythe base and then moved to Heston where problems of maintenance and storage caused it to be burnt on 13th February 1954.
http://www.imperial-airways.co.uk/Aircraft_information_g_ebgr.html

G-EBGR ‘Sarnia’ built at Woolston in 1923, by Supermarine Ltd. to R.J. Mitchell’s design, with G-EBGS, in following on from G-EBFK, flew across Poole Bay + occasionally visited.
Withdrawn from use then conserved by Imperial Airways at Hythe in 1938: Scrapped 1954…
http://archive.pooleflyingboats.com/01%20Poole%20Flying%20Boats%20Earlies.pdf

Imperial Airways, G-EBGS / Sunk, Guernsey 1927. On 10th January 1927, while at its moorings, G-EBGS was rammed and sunk by a ship in St Peter Port.
http://www.imperial-airways.co.uk/Aircraft_information_g_ebgs.html