NX611 has on the port side the 630 Squadron codes LE-H. Squadrons repeated the aircraft’s individual code on the nose. 630 had a white box around theirs. It’s historically accurate. On the starboard side is the 57 Squadron codes DX-F. The F is repeated on the starboard side of the nose. That squadron didn’t have a white box around it. I’m sure you can guess why H and F were chosen.
The Soviets got at least two flying again, with modified noses. One crashed, the other scrapped post war. This wasn’t known about in the west until a Russian magazine article in the 1990s.
The film “Memphis Belle”, when I saw it at the cinema had listed in the final credits the serial numbers, registrations and owners of the five B-17s used in the film. I noticed when this was last on TV, that bit had gone from the credits.
The recording is the famous one made by BBC war correspondent Wynford Vaughan-Thomas and BBC sound engineer Reg Pidsley. They flew to Berlin on a 207 Squadron Lancaster. This is a recent Radio 4 programme about the making of the recording.
It is a real shame that this story keeps appearing on the Internet. It is NOT true. it is an urban myth. The idea that the whole of north of the City of Lincoln and the Cathedral would have been destroyed just shows what nonsense it is. Just look at a map!
The story is often told that Lancaster NX611 would have been the gate guardian, despite the fact this was supposed to have happen in the late 1950s and NX611 wasn’t on the gate until 1970.
Recently someone from in Australia said he had evidence that this was true. He never produced any evidence to support this story.
The BBMF doesn’t gave insurance as you or I understand it. They are paid for by the taxpayer and are a taxpayer liability. So they don’t take our “insurance cover”. Any issues come from government money….the taxpayer.
Farnboroughrob, where exactly was the yard at Church Crookham? The road it was in? I lived there for many years but never found out where it was. Many thanks
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