BobKatI’m very glad that the latest items have sparked some old memories WV-903. We seem to be thinking along similar lines on item 80.
Another couple of thoughts – might the ‘handle’ (if that’s what it is) have come from a box to store some of the more delicate equipment aboard, such as the Aldis lamp, or maybe a navigator’s sextant (if this was carried on an Oboe-equipped aircraft? It seems to be the wrong shape for a thermos flask carrier.
This may be another piece that ends up in the ‘too difficult’ box!
BobKatPeter, you have confirmed what I thought – many thanks.
So we are looking for something which swivels, possibly a handle? Would the crew carry any kit on board which would have a handle attached, although it doesn’t look quite right for that? What might be carried about on the aircraft? I don’t think the oxygen bottle carriers looked like this did they?
As you say, the mystery deepens!
BobKatPeter, thanks for that. I think you must be right – changing tack completely, Laurent said it was made of aluminium alloy (not steel). That being so, I wonder whether it might be a handle of some sort. It doesn’t look like the pictures of the first aid box access point or of the direct view cockpit window. Might there be something else of that nature?
BobKatThanks, Peter – I guess that could well be possible. I have a picture of the inner shackle (with a more rounded shape), but I am not sure about the outer one.
It is difficult to see what else our piece might be, but if anyone has a picture of what these shackle points looked like on wartime aircraft, that would be a great help. Or, of course, any other thoughts will be welcome.
BobKatLaurent has confirmed to me that our item 80 is solid and appears to have been hinged. So very much like the picketing shackle, but seemingly not the right shape. It was found well away from the main fuselage – somewhere between where the tail-fin and what we have assumed to be the port wing came to earth. I can’t see anything on my diagrams of the tail-plane which might fit what we have – any more ideas anyone? The black paint should help, but we seem to be struggling with this one.
BobKatThanks, Peter. If you can’t put your hands on a good image, please don’t trouble further. With Air Ministry’s diagram and the AP2062A reference, we probably have enough, albeit that a picture is always a bonus!
BobKatWow! Many thanks Air Ministry. It seems then that this is nothing to do with the undercarriage, but it relates to the general hydraulics. I will see what I can find in AP2062A, Vol 1, but perhaps Peter can throw further light on the whereabouts of the valve on the aircraft?
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Got it – Fig.14 in Vol.1, Sect.4, Chap.3 !!! Part number C.7168 is shown. So it seems that this will be situated in the undercarriage well which makes sense from where it was found.
Thanks again, Air Ministry.
Do you by any chance have a picture to identify it, Peter?
BobKatPeter, Air Ministry,
I have had a look at AP2062A and found the diagram of the Main Wheel Unit Shock-Absorber Struts. I can see what is called the damping valve assembly which I assume is what we are talking about? From photographs that I have seen , the most obvious place for the serial number ‘tested’ plate which Laurent has found is where you show it, Peter, but I cannot get a close-up picture which shows whether our plate is the same as this or not.
Air Ministry,
Are you able to provide a copy of the page with the C.7168 reference in your parts listing or other source, please? This would be most helpful for my records.
Does anyone have any more ideas about item 80? As it is painted black, it seems likely to be from the underside of the fuselage, but it doesn’t seem to be quite the right shape for the picketing point shackle according to the pictures I have seen. It seems unlikely to have become mis-shapen on impact with the ground unless it was subjected to extreme heat, which is of course possible.
BobKatPeter,
That’s an interesting thought – many thanks. The pictures I have on my Lancaster Explored CD suggest the shackle is rather more rounded than it appears in Laurent’s photograph, but perhaps these came in slightly different shapes? Or maybe ours has been flattened slightly on impact?
Air Ministry,
Good to hear from you – you seem to have cracked the second one – much appreciated. The serial number plate is not AM marked, so Dowty is a clear candidate as an external manufacturer. It is probably too much to hope that you have a picture or diagram (I will see if I can find anything), but presumably the valve is undercarriage related?
BobKatDispersed Sites
Last weekend I visited the Dispersed Sites to the east of Little Staughton Airfield. Comparing the buildings on the 1944 Site Plan with Google earth views (now some years old) showed that there were several buildings still surviving from the wartime era. However, some of these no longer exist and must have been demolished over the last few years.
The former Communal Sites Nos. 2 and 3 are now both small industrial estates and the surviving buildings have nearly all been modified with new roller doors, or in some other way to adapt them for modern usage. I had been hoping to find a few buildings, the original structure of which was largely still intact, having been subject only to general repairs and maintenance work over the years. There were a small number and I thought I would post a few photographs on this thread.
The first is the old building #440, the former Sergeant’s & Airmen’s Ablutions & Drying Room, on the old Site No.8, now part of a farm, and used as a barn. The farmer was happy for me to take a few pictures. The building seems only to have been adapted to make a larger entrance along one side, but otherwise the buttress work and windows appear intact with what I assume is the original louvre window below the apex of the roof on the end elevation, as shown in the second picture.
The next is a now derelict Nissen hut, part of building #270, the Sergeant’s Mess, on Communal Site No.3. The end entrance has been bricked-up, but, again, the louvre window survives, as seen in the third picture.
These two buildings are the only ones I have found on the entire airfield with the louvre windows intact. Others have the spaces bricked-up.
The last structure still largely in its original state is what was originally on the end of building #261, the Airmen’s Showers Ablutions & Decontamination unit on Communal Site No.3. The main building has disappeared but its intriguing chimney-like structure remains. The fourth picture shows the outline of the original building on the brickwork. Elsewhere, the rendering is beginning to deteriorate. As far as I can determine, the small square part which protrudes on the top is a simple chimney. I have concluded that the purpose of the rest of the high tower was to house a water tank, and this is possibly why the building still remains. There is another similar structure attached to building #237 on Communal Site No.2, now the Little America Industrial Estate.
Can anyone confirm whether I am correct in my assumption about the water tank, please?
Finally, there are some buildings surviving which are described as ‘Institutes’ in the Site Plan. My assumption is that these were areas for relaxation, distinct from the Messes. Can anyone confirm this wartime nomenclature, please?
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Edit: the pictures have been attached in reverse order – sorry!!
BobKatItems 80 and 81
Laurent has found two more items. No.80 is made of aluminium alloy and is painted black: it was located high on the forest slopes some distance from other items and looks to be intact. Laurent says that No.81 has been subjected to extreme heat and so the numbers and letters are not all distinct. It was found close to undercarriage and engine parts and appears to be a fragmented serial number plate for an unidentified part. A quick online check on the patent number revealed two irrelevant items from the US and Canada, so I am assuming it is likely to be a UK patent relating to an engine or undercarriage component.
Does anyone recognise either of these items, please?
BobKatThank you Mike, but, as you say, I am not sure what this has to do with ED908!!
BobKatMany thanks for trying Peter. Sorry to hear you were unsuccessful. It looks as if we may have to rely on the number (3SK 10374) if anyone can trace it in a parts list.
BobKatMike, as you will have gathered I am also very impressed with the picture which went through three versions before we were all satisfied that we had an accurate depiction of the scene as best we could judge from the eye-witness reports. I can well understand why you are an admirer of Piotr Forkasiewicz’s work!
BobKatThanks for posting the links mike9. Some while ago I was approached by Lincolnshire’s Lancaster Association whose name is referred to on the first link. I provided some guidance on the depiction of the scene and I think the result is outstanding. The picture shows the closely-packed formation, flying in pairs in echelon with the reserve Mosquito at the rear, just after ED908 (60-Z) was hit by anti-aircraft fire.
60-H flying alongside was hit by the same burst of flak as ED908 and inadvertently released its bombs prematurely. Taking this to be the signal, all the other aircraft have released their bombs early, about a mile short of the target.
ED908, with bombs still aboard, is continuing to the target with its bomb doors open, while the crew quickly assess the damage, with less than a minute to go before reaching the aiming point. The attention to detail is extraordinary – the bombs painted on the nose of the leading aircraft to note the number of their missions: 38 for 60-Z and 25 for 60-H. It is possible to count the rivets on the fuselage on the full-resolution version!
I would like to thank Piotr Forkasiewicz for the result which is quite stunning.
An appropriate way in which to mark the second anniversary of the start of this thread!
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