Although not a Wartime one:

Where.
Where once my dwellers did service and fly,
where once my aircraft roared into the sky,
where once men dreampt of life and of fears,
where once someones loved one was thought of in tears,
where once my runways spread out so vast,
where once my aircraft returned to at last,
where once my buildings and Tower stood tall,
where smoke from my fallen did rise like a pall,
where now I in ruins on the landscape so fair,
like a scar from the past in the twilight air,
remember me gently, for I was your home,
where once my aircraft went forward to roam.

KBS

On a side note to the USS Montgomery tale one of the most fascinating places I have been to was Fauld in Staffordshire. This was the site of the largest Explosion in the UK when I think thousands of tons of Bombs detonated while in underground storage in the former Gypsum mines in 1944. it broke windows 40 miles away, the farm on top of the hill and its occupants dissapeared without trace.read from the link below.

http://www.carolyn.topmum.net/tutbury/fauld/fauldcrater.htm

Nuthampstead near Royston , home of the 398th BG had its Bomb dump in Scales Park during the war, ordnance was still present and had to be dealt with as late as the mid sixties, nearly twenty years after the airfield was closed.

Dengie Marshes off the Essex coast and near to RAF Bradwell was used as a live firing and bombing target, the Royal Navy still maintain a constant presence there dealing with all manner of items that regulary emerge from the mud.

Heres a true tale with a twist, Some years ago I was loading a truck in Hamburg, one of my collections involved going off to a small industrial estate on the outskirts of the city, when I arrived there were police everywhere, after failing to gain entry I asked one of the police officers what was going on and he told me that they had just dug up an unexploded bomb, I replied by saying that they still found bombs in London from the war, Bombs in London? he asked, yes I said, who’s bombs he replied, well er …your bombs, German bombs he said?, well I replied, I dont think anyone else dropped bombs on London (trying to be diplomatic) again he said German Bombs? How could they have possibly failed to go off! 🙂 .

I think the question of ‘will she fly again’ will be often asked by those with an interest, Lord knows I have asked myself the same thing every time I have seen NX611.
Robbo is certainly right in his viewpoint of the Heritage museum having its reason of existance removed. NX611 is in the best possible place for its future, joe public can get up close and personal with a Lancaster that would otherwise be ‘out of bounds’ like the remaining examples. I have had a love of Lancasters for more years than I care to think of, it took me from school age to being fifty years old before I ever set foot in one for the first time, and this I achieved a couple of weeks ago by taking a taxy ride in her (hence the new avatar!) before then the only option was gazing at ‘Sugar’ at Hendon or Duxfords example, there is an eighty year old former Lanc navigator across the road from me who had tears in his eyes when I took him to see ‘Jane’, for this reason alone the Heritage centre should stay as it is for the benefit of former Bomber Command aircrew who have not as many years as us to view the aircraft they went to battle in, Elvington has the composit Halifax in Yorkshire, all we need is the elusive Stirling to complete the trio of Heavies!
There is also something unique in the RAF Memorial flight Lancaster being the only airworthy specimen, you know it will receive TLC and be flown with its future well and truly catered for. NX611 has a decent roof over it’s head now and is looked after equally well by her keepers. If something (shudder!)drastic should ever happen to PA474 then I would still like to see NX611 remain at EK.
I for one dont mind the question being asked now and again 😉

Hello guzzineil,
I think only two raids into British airspace were achieved by the Italian Air Force in 1940, I know that Bob Stanford Tuck claimed a CR42 somewhere near Ipswich, offhand I am not sure about other losses without digging out the relevent books. I am also fairly sure that Mussolini wanted in on the action so to speak and badgered Goering for his AF to take part in raids on the UK. Others on the forum will no doubt be able to help you much more!.
Best Regards.

Flight Lieutenant George “Screwball” Buerling was Canada’s leading ace in WWII with 31 kills.
http://www.beentheredunnit.com/GBuer.htm

488 (New Zealand) Squadron were at Hunsdon for a while in 1944/45 flying Mosquito’s.
Airfields in Hertfordshire included:
Hunsdon.
Sawbridgeworth.
Nuthampstead.
Leavesden.
Bovington
No Keith Cawdwell was Station commander at Hunsdon though.
Hunsdon and Sawbridgeworth are covered on my webstite , URL in the signature below!.

The British Powerboat Trust has it now and is refurbishing it…to pull it back to aviation…they have a couple of ASR launches and a seaplane tender too!

RAF HSL 142 or the remains of are with the BPT, although its future is not at all certain, How do I know?, It belongs to a very good friend of mine.

I downloaded it to my Windows media player and it was 40 MB of film, terrific stuff aero51 …..thanks!.