There is indeed a photo of Peter Olver (note spelling), 84963, on page 152 of volume 1 of The Greatest Squadron of Them All. Another photo of him appears on page 290 along with brief details of the combat of 25 October 1940. A footnote records that in 1972 P7309 was the subject of a major archaeological dig by the Wealden Archaeological Group. Is this how you came to acquire your chunk?

This officer was 36182, Kenwyn Roland Sutton, commissioned as a Pilot Officer in the General Duties Branch of the RAF (rather than RNZAF) on 15 March 1939.

Full details appear in Men of the Battle of Britain and a short summary of his career is as follows (more details in the book itself):

Born in Wellington on 18 May 1919
Enrolled in the Civil Reserve of Pilots in October 1937
sailed for the UK on 1 February 1939
Joined 105 Squadron on 28 March 1939
Posted to Central Gunnery School, Warmwell in September 1939
Posted to 98 Squadron in April 1940
Posted to 142 Squadron in May 1940
Posted to 264 Squadron on 15 August 1940
Posted to 23 Squadron on 1 May 1941
Posted to 287 Squadron on 11 February 1942
Posted to 605 Squadron on 17 July 1942
Attached and later posted to 85 Squadron from January 1943
On 2 April 1942, returning from a daylight operation he was shot down by Canadian AA gunners over Hove. He crashed on a railway line south of Hove Cemetery with severe injuries, which resulted in the loss of his lower left leg and left arm.
Posted to HQ Fighter Command on staff duties on 19 June 1943
Post to Llanbedr as Station Commander in August 1943. Using a special arm attachment he flew Magisters and Oxfords.
Transferred to the RNZAF on 16 March 1944
Posted to Hutton Cranswick as S/L Admin in November 1945
Posted to 61 OTU on 1 July 1946
Sailed for NZ in April 1947 and released from RNZAF on 1 August 1947
Joined National Airways Corporation in 1950
Retired in 1980

So although he never flew operationally after his crash, he did certainly fly non-operational types.

Is it just me, or are the aircraft identity letters, and fuselage roundels, way oversized? To me they just look so unrealistic.

Just to update you guys, the Concorde is due to arrive on site around 11 April, so it should be there by the 24th. Whether or not we’ll be able to get a peek at the bits is another matter, but I’ll certainly see what I can do.

I understand that the rocket collection (which is apparently the best in the UK) has not been moved off-site, so theoretically this should still be viewable.

I should also perhaps mention that Concorde isn’t going to be open to the public until August, and therefore not ready for the airshow in July. I believe that it may be the intention to have the doors open slightly so that a peek can be had, but little more. And to make matters worse, it’s likely to be early next year before the interior of Concorde is ready for tours.

However, ending on a positive note, there should still be plenty to see for the get-together and I look forward to seeing you all there at 10am on the 24th.

FYI, Serrate was a device which enabled the Mosquito crew to home in on a German night fighter’s airborne radar transmissions. If you need more detailed information, let me know.