Noone would be interested in recovering it anyway… Its not a Spitfire…

I’ll get my coat….

I believe that you’ve got to look a bit beyond the obvious and start to look at the personal level:

For example:

The erks working in all weathers,

There is a good study of 51sqn photos from the Nuremberg raid, from the initial briefing to anxious commanders waiting for the returns, and the tired crews being debriefed. These types of image have a story to tell in them because of the people there, much more powerful than a static bomber.

Somehow you will need to capture the fact that Britain was a huge aircraft carrier, from Teesside to the South coast. A huge undertaking. Nobody has yet captured the enormity of Bomber command in 1945 with its massive infrastructure.

A comparison of a base in 1945 with all the associated activity and a disused base today returned to agriculture would be good. Having spoken to veterans from aircrew, groundcrew and admin folk I am still in awe of just how big an undertaking the whole thing was. It is hard to imagine as you stand on an empty disused airfield that up to 2,000 people could be working on each of these bases and there was a lot of them!

You could also do with a picture or two of surviving veterans from the 40’s and now.

The Imperial war museum collections are great for browsing through.

Try and get beyond the typical picture of a Lancaster, (There were many more planes in bomber command – a bit like the spit and BoB) and concentrate on the people that did the work.

Just my two p’s worth.
Paul.

Nice photos.

There was a publication made for the L.A.P workers to celebrate the production of their last Halifax… “London Pride” and a Silver commemorative Halifax model. There was one on Ebay a few years ago… The price was a bit rich for me though.

(Often thought this picture should be in the “how low can you go thread”)… Cracking aircraft the later Mk’s of Haibags….

It hasn’t changed my outlook on historic aviation – But it has made me realise how old I am!!! Aircraft I knew as a boy now being historic!!!

the sound was incredable with 5 B-17s, god knows what a large formation would sound like..

My mother says it was horrible… Day and night constantly. Mind you her brother was a flight engineer who didn’t come back.

There is a good write up of this operation in Chris Blanchett’s excellent book “From Hell, Hull and Halifax”. Pages 64-68 describe the preparations and operation from No4 groups perspective. It also gives details of the ditching. The pilot W/C B V Robinson sounds quite a character, he even went back into the ditched Halifax to retrieve his pipe!

I would also recommend digging out a copy of F/Lt R.C.Rivaz’s book “Tail Gunner”. He was the rear gunner of Halifax V9978 A-apple and also recounts the ditching (His second)!

How these guys did what they did amazes me.

It sounds like after the bombing runs the large bomber formation broke up and they headed back in twos and three’s having running battles with the fighters swarming over them!

None of the descriptions have any of the Halifaxes having a crew of eight but is certainly wasn’t unusual for a second pilot to be aboard.

My 1st choice:

0/400
Halifax
Victor

Not an Avro in sight! 🙂

But realistically to keep us all happy I’d like:

a vic of Hampden, Whitley, Wellington lead by a Blenheim Mk1
followed by: Stirling, Halifax, Lancaster lead by a pathfinder Mossie.

Postwar its got to be: Valiant, Victor, Vulcan

That Mk1 Spitfire Propeller

.

Not this one again!.. I seem to remember a thread on this propellor a few months back. (I couldn’t find it in the search). Didn’t the owner claim it to be off K5054 and want shed loads of cash for it.

I now see that it is being offered by a brand new seller with no feedback….. All rather dodgy stuff… Stay well clear.