Aha, gotcha, sorry I misread that bit.
Haydn talks about being hit and coming down, but he wasn’t “inside” the Allied line, he was right on the front line with Germans on one side and Allies on he other of his crashed aircraft.
Plus you book is wrong, he was not “with no operational experience”, he’d been flying ops with No. 610 Squadron since mid 1943.
Obviously the recognition of sarcasm has clearly died in Pommieland though? ๐
Thanks Allan.
Gawd, on a page dedicated to reporting the deaths of the well known and much loved, we now learn that the poor old English language has also died?
Here I was thinking it was still as vibrant, expanding and ever adapting to the changing world as it always had been. Sad to hear of its demise snafu. RIP ๐
I do not know Allan, I was just going by what he said. He mentioned his second crash, just after the end of the war, was in a Mk. IX Spitfire, if that helps, but you’ll have to have a listen for other clues I guess. He did mention that was in Norway.
I do not find anything surprising in this loss of five Avengers through bad navigation. It was a common occurrence. The US Navy lost several flights/squadrons on them in the Pacific too, they just vanished while on transit between islands or on their way to/from targets when unescorted.
In RNZAF service the Avengers had a three-man crew, Pilot, Navigator and Wireless Operator-Air Gunner.
In Royal Navy service they had a three-man crew, Pilot, Observer and Telegraphist-Air Gunner.
In US Navy service they had a three man crew, Pilot, Wireless Operator, and a Gunner.
Having a specialist navigator onboard was obviously an advantage, one the US Navy thought they didn’t need and they paid dearly for it.
It’s audio Martin.
Every time I get a notification link by email and click it I am taken to the spam site. Key must have a bug in its system.
I doubt anyone will bother to do anything to fix it though, they’ve never bothered to fix the search engine
I;m sure they’d appreciate that Rob.
You can hear about the Oxford’s restoration from one of the chaps involved, Barf, and see more photos of it here, on the Wings Over New Zealand Show
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WONZShow/2016/11/wigram-part-1/
I thought this thread may have generated at least a little interest here on the Spitfire forum, since he’s an English RAF Spitfire veteran who served two years in a famous squadron…
It is that same Stuka replica, but at some stage it got badly damaged in a storm. It was rebuilt and was purely static after the rebuild. More recently it was completely rebuilt again to much more closely represent the genuine article, so it could go into the new display hall.
More photos including the P-40 here
http://rnzaf.proboards.com/thread/24782/omaka-dangerous-skies-opening-photos
From the HARS website
“History of HARS Aircraft
The HARS aircraft is a French-built NORD and was used by the French Navy until 1960, when it was sold to a Belgian owner.
She was later bought and freighted to Canada by WW11 Luftwaffe Fighter Ace Franz Stigler (28 Victories). Stigler lived in Vancouver Canada after the War and owned the 108 for 16 years. He had her painted up the same as his own personal aircraft in Luftwaffe JG27, a Messerschmitt 109 fighter.
Stigler was the German pilot who during WW11 chivalrously refused to shoot down a badly damaged and crippled US Air Force B17 Bomber over Germany. Rather he guided it and escorted it back to the North Sea towards England. The B17 pilot Charlie Brown safely landed the plane in England and in 1990 both pilots met for the first time and became friends. Both died within a few months of each other in 2008.
Our 108 is close to being airworthy and the only one in Australia.”
http://hars.org.au/messerschmitt-108-nord-1002/
And
“Aircraft: Nord 1002 Pingouin II
Airline: Private
Serial #: 285
This 1951 Pingouin (essentially a Nord-built Messerschmitt Bf 108) appears to have been directly civil registered as F-BGVD(2). In 1965 it was re-registered in Belgium as OO-GVD. In 1973 it was exported to the USA as N108R but immediately re-exported to Canada as C-GRIT. Painted in the WWII colours of Franz Stigler and named โGritโ after the ownerโs wife. Sold to Australia and registered VH-HUN on 16 November 1999, re-registered VH-OFS in 2006.”