Zdenek Hurt in Prague has just sent me this stunning shot taken at RAF Penrhos, North Wales where a detachment of No 312 Sqn was based in 1940/41. It deserves a wider audience and was taken by Ladislav Sitensky, a world class photographer, then ground crew with 312.

One other possibility is 3501 Servicing Unit at Cranfield in the summer of 44 but I have no proof for that suggestion!

Andy, you may have been thinking of the Ju 88 near a small reservoir at Woore south of Nantwich, Cheshire. Shot down by ack-ack.

Contemporary newspaper reports say a ski-equipped light aircraft landed near the site a few days after the crash and the occupants reported no sign of life. Ground teams were said to be heading for the area. So not really missing but perhaps simply abandoned because of its inaccessibility.

For Keefy’s benefit, the only Wyvern I ever saw was high up and climbing steeply out of Stretton. It was a turbo-prop version and made a very loud droning noise!

Try this fantastic archive, Chris. There are literally dozens of Prestwick photos if you dig around. If it’s a private publication for family consumption only, I can’t think it would be difficult to get permission to use some of them. There are a few WW2 images floating around the Web but I can’t remember where.

http://www.dhc-2.com/Ken_Marshall.html

Thanks for posting that very sad news, Mo. I never met Don but spoke to him on the phone when he was in the UK many years ago. I treasure a signed and personally dedicated copy of No Moon Tonight. That book is as much a memorial to Bomber Command as the stone one will be. He was a remarkable gentleman.

That’s Martin Hearn on the extreme right. The presence of all the suits possibly indicates that this was the first glider to be built by MHL at Hooton.