I’ve only come across brief mentions of ‘Press On’ Fresson in various books. Jennie Gray’s ‘Fire By Night’ has a little info on p.95 – apparently he wasn’t well liked on 97 Squadron. His name crops up again in the ‘Salute Bomber Command’ magazine which has just been published – but again, a fleeting mention ( this time with 51 Squadron at Snaith ) and again, no photograph…..

They all went directly from the factory to 617 ( or, in the case of the protoypes, to Boscombe, Manston, etc ). I’ve never seen it confirmed anywhere as to whether the airframes were ‘converted back’ or ( more likely, as Eddie suggests ) altered on the production line.

One of the best sources for the airframe details is Ward/Lee/Wachtel’s ‘Dambuster’ history.

Just to add to this thread : the full story of the 582 Squadron Lancaster and its crew is contained in the book ‘Swifter Than Eagles’ written and published in Australia in 1987 by C B Hewitt. It’s a tough one to track down but well worth while.

Talk Down by Brian Lecomber. Aviation, non-war, and a good page-turning holiday read.

A portrait photo of Colin Francis can be found on p.142 of Kenneth G Wynn’s book, Men Of The Battle Of Britain.

Only the Lightning for me….

….the sheer power, 0-Mach 1 in the blink of an eye and an Eagle-comic shape which any 60s schoolboy could sketch……;)

Many thanks, LL !

McKinstry also did a very good job with his Lancaster book. He’s not a specialist aviation writer but he’s managed to find a fresh approach to familiar subjects – I’m looking forward to seeing his take on the Hurricane story.