FlyPast 2017-11

FREE PULL-OUT HURRICANE GUIDE AND POSTER Britain’s Top-Selling Aviation Monthly

LYSANDER EXCLUSIVE

UNDER COVER OF MOONLIGHT

Spotlight

RESTORING THE GROWLER

Mikoyan-Gurevich

MiG-15

Red Star jet Shackleton conservation in detail

COLD WAR

WORKSHOP

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PIONEERING TIGER MOTH TO VICTOR SPIRIT MUSEUM

Old Rhinebeck collection in detail

Three decades in the RAF MEMOIR

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11/09/2017 11:07

Welcome

O

n Sunday, September 17 – Battle of Britain Memorial Sunday – the St George’s Chapel of Remembrance at the former RAF Biggin Hill closed its doors to worshippers after an emotional ceremony. This came at the end of a very public fight against plans that will see the fabric of the iconic structure irrevocably altered in a bid to create a new museum at the site. A petition containing 18,000 signatures was handed over at Whitehall on the preceding Friday to the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture and Media, the Rt Hon Karen Bradley MP by a 12-strong deputation. It has now been passed to the Department for Communities and Local Government which was set up to give “more power to local people to shape what happens in their area”. The Grade II listed chapel was erected in 1951 on the orders of Sir Winston Churchill, who wanted to provide a lasting focal point that would respectfully honour the dead, and serve as a reminder of their sacrifice for generations to come. This modest and dignified building fulfilled its purpose with an emphasis on humility and its naturalistic setting among trees and shrubs exuded a sense of tranquillity. But not for much longer. In 2015 the Ministry of Defence withdrew funding for the chapel and the following year it was handed over to the airfield landlords, Bromley Council – which is now proceeding full steam ahead with a plan to incorporate this former place of worship into a memorial museum. Whilst the latter is long overdue, the ‘approved’ scheme is – in my view – wholly inappropriate and soulless.

Deputy Editor Steve Beebee

Contributing Editor Ken Ellis

EDITORIAL: Editor – Chris Gilson Deputy Editor – Steve Beebee Contributing Editors - Ken Ellis and Dave Unwin Group Editor - Nigel Price General enquiries to: Editor’s Secretary: Johanna Buckley FlyPast, PO Box 100, Stamford, Lincs, PE9 1XQ, UK Tel: 01780 755131 Fax: 01780 757261 E-mail: [email protected] www.flypast.com DESIGN: Art Editor – Mike Carr

Group Editor Nigel Price

Art Editor Mike Carr

Advertising Manager Alison Sanders

PRODUCTION: Production Editor – Sue Blunt Deputy Production Editor – Carol Randall Sub Editor - Norman Wells Production Manager – Janet Watkins ADVERTISING AND COMMERCIAL: Commercial Director – Ann Saundry Group Advertisement Manager – Brodie Baxter Advertisement Manager – Alison Sanders E-mail: [email protected] Sales Executive - Paige Hayward Ad Production Manager – Debi McGowan Ad Production Controller - Cheryl Thornburn E-mail: [email protected] Group Marketing Manager – Martin Steele Marketing Manager – Shaun Binnington

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The chapel is to be enveloped by a modernist slab-like structure. To accommodate this they will have to demolish the vestry, which although only built in 1990, was a sympathetically-designed addition. The beautiful Air Crew Association stained glass window that was located here will be re-sited elsewhere. And that’s not all, part of the St George’s Room – home to other famous commemorative windows – will be swallowed up by the new attraction. In future, visitors will have to pay a proposed £7.50 entrance fee if they wish to see inside the chapel. Alternative plans had been put forward for an entirely separate museum, but Bromley Council has rejected these and now effectively given itself planning permission to action the integrated scheme, work on which is due to start this autumn. I understand the dilemma the council faces – it reasons that this is the best way to safeguard the future of the chapel, but could there not have been a more sensitive solution? I’m astonished that in the face of such a strong public outcry and media condemnation this appears to be a done deal. The protestors feel their views have been ignored and that the council is riding roughshod over any opposition – they are still hoping it will be forced to reconsider. When Churchill ordered the building of the chapel, he pointedly said that, “As a nation we have short memories”. In the face of such bureaucratic blindness the unhappy truth is that he was, and is still, right.

Chris Gilson Editor

Below The petition is handed over in Whitehall on September 15. VIA RITA RADFORD

MANAGING DIRECTOR/PUBLISHER: Adrian Cox EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN: Richard Cox SUBSCRIPTIONS / MAIL ORDER: Manager – Liz Ward PO Box 300, Stamford, Lincs, PE9 1NA, UK Tel: 01780 480404 Fax: 01780 757812 E-mail: Subscriptions: [email protected] E-mail: Mail Order: [email protected] Readers in USA can place subscriptions by visiting www.flypast.com or by calling toll free 800-4283003 or fax 757-428-6253 or by writing to FlyPast, 3330 Pacific Ave, Ste 500, Virginia Beach, VA23451-9828. SMALL PRINT: While every care is taken with submissions, the Publisher cannot be held responsible for any loss or damage incurred. All items submitted for publication are subject to our terms and conditions. These are regularly updated without prior notice and are downloadable from www.keypublishing.com We are unable to guarantee the bonafides of any of our advertisers. Readers are strongly recommended to take their own precautions before parting with any information or item of value, including, but not limited to, money, manuscripts, photographs or personal information in response to any advertisements within this publication. The entire contents of FlyPast is © Copyright 2017. No part of it can be reproduced in any form or stored on any form of retrieval system without the prior permission of the publisher.

FlyPast (ISSN 0262-6950), November, is published monthly by Key Publishing Ltd, PO Box 100, Stamford, Lincs, PE9 1XQ, UK and distributed in the USA by UKP Worldwide, 3390 Rand Road, South Plainfield, NJ 07080. Periodicals postage paid at Rahway, NJ and at additional mailing offices. Periodicals Postage Paid at Piscataway, NJ and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to FlyPast, Key Publishing Ltd, C/O 3390 Rand Road, South Plainfield NJ 07080. DISTRIBUTED BY: Seymour Distribution Ltd, 2 Poultry Avenue, London, EC1A 9PP Tel: 020 7429 4000 Fax: 020 7429 4001 PRINTED BY: Warners (Midland) plc, The Maltings, Bourne, Lincs. PE10 9PH PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY: Key Publishing Ltd, address as Editorial

Printed in England ISSN 0262-6950

Britain’s top-selling aviation monthly

Features 20

Sky full of memories

36

Eastern warriors

82

28

American warbird

42

Moonlit wings

92

Noel Dunningham recounts tales from his extraordinary 32-year career in the RAF to Chris Gilson.

Writer and photographer Richard VanderMeulen goes air-to-air with a recently restored Douglas A-20 Havoc.

Roger Soupart takes a stroll through the China Aviation Museum’s unusual ‘boneyard’.

The Shuttleworth Collection’s ‘Dodge’ Bailey explains how the Westland Lysander was used for clandestine sorties behind enemy lines.

Privateer in action

Steve Grivno uncovers the story of Lady Luck II, a Consolidated Privateer with a charmed life.

Unlimited Avenger

Jake Peterson profiles the Texas Flying Legends Museum’s award-winning Grumman Avenger.

Contents November 2017

No.436

Front Cover

The Shuttleworth Collection’s immaculate Westland Lysander ‘V9367’ flying from its Old Warden base. See feature beginning on page 42. DARREN HARBAR US Cover: A view of Douglas A-20J Havoc 43-21709. See feature beginning on page 28. RICHARD VANDERMEULEN This page, main image: Polish-built Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15UTI N104CJ flying at Clacton Airshow in August. Our MiG-15 ‘Spotlight’ special begins on page 53. PHIL WHALLEY

20 Sky full of memories

42 Moonlit wings

92 Unlimited Avenger

News

Regulars

• • • • • •

18

Airshow

70

Museums – Old Rhinebeck

Sea Fury flies again Thunderbolt makes public debut Elvington’s Mirage unveiled Swedish Skytrain restoration New home for Invader Tracker engine run

Reports and images from around the world.

Stefan Schmoll visits the atmospheric living history museum at New York’s Old Rhinebeck aerodrome.

76

80

From The Workshop

Ken Ellis describes one of Newark Air Museum’s most ambitious restoration projects – Avro Shackleton MR.3 WR977.

Glory Days

A gallery of unseen images from the personal collection of World War Two veteran Ray Shakespeare-Smith.

90

FlyPost

98

Finals

Readers’ letters.

North American Mustang duo.

FREE! with this issue!

Spotlight

Your 16-page guide to airworthy Hawker Hurricane survivors and double-sided Hurricane poster.

Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15

FREE gift when you subscribe! Gift when you subscribe! Claim your FREE Introduction to Air Racing DVD or Pathfinder book when you take out a two-year or direct debit subscription to FlyPast. See pages 40 and 41 for details or visit www.flypast.com to find out more about our digital packages.

54 56

Origin and History

62

MiG in Combat

64

We recount the jet’s history.

Yuriy Tepsurkaev and Leonid Krylov present a ‘blow-by-blow’ account of the MiG versus Sabre dogfight of May 20, 1951.

‘Red 574’ in Profile

Andrey Yurgenson artwork.

Men Behind the Machine

Evgeniy Georgievich Pepelyaev, topscoring Soviet ace of the Korean War, is profiled by Leonid Krylov and Yuriy Tepsurkaev.

NEWS THE LATEST IN AVIATION HERITAGE

Hawker Sea Fury T.20 flies again The Fly Navy Heritage Trust’s Hawker Sea Fury T.20 VX281 (G-RNHF) returned to the skies at North Weald, Essex, on September 1. The aircraft was flown by Lt Cdr Chris Götke who was awarded the Air

Force Cross after skilfully landing the Sea Fury at RNAS Culdrose Air Day in 2014 after an engine failure. The T.20 is currently on loan to the Royal Navy Historic Flight and is displayed under an agreement between the Trust and

the Royal Navy. After the emergency landing at Culdrose, the Trust launched a £200,000 appeal to buy a new Bristol Centaurus 18 engine. The maintenance and repair work

has been carried out by Weald Aviation. Thanks to FNHT’s generous supporters and the skills of the team at North Weald, this popular warbird is now back where it belongs. www.navywings.org.uk

Hawker Sea Fury T.20 VX281 (G-RNHF) is now airworthy again. LEE HOWARD VIA NAVY WINGS

Dutch Tracker fires up at Lelystad

Dassault Mirage IVA BR 45 is unveiled at Elvington on September 3. COURTESY YAM

French nuclear bomber is formally unveiled at Elvington Dassault Mirage IVA BR No.45 was officially revealed to the public on September 3 at Elvington’s Yorkshire Air Museum by Brigadier Général Laurent Lesellier, Deputy Chief of the French Air Force. The jet was successfully transported to the attraction from France earlier this year. The bomber flew for the first time on May 6, 1966, in the hands of Elie Buge and Jean Cuny. It was delivered to the French Air Force on June 3 of that year, and went on to complete 6,309 hours of flying. 6 FLYPAST November 2017

After being withdrawn from service, it made its last flight (and the final flight of any Mirage IVA) on September 11, 1991, landing at Châteaudun. It was then exhibited at the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie in Paris from March 1995 to January 2009 before returning to Châteaudun, from where it was finally delivered by road to Elvington. It is now the sole Mirage IVA on display to the public outside of France. www.yorkshireairmuseum.org WITH THANKS TO IAN RICHARDSON

Grumman S2F Tracker V151 undergoing engine tests on August 20. A second Tracker – V159 – which provided donor parts, can be seen in the background. ROGER SOUPART

Grumman S2F Tracker V151 underwent engine trials on August 20 at the Aviodrome museum in Lelystad, the Netherlands. The former Marine Luchtvaartdienst (Dutch Fleet Air Arm) machine has been under restoration at the attraction for several years. On the day its right engine was powered up and its wings were folded several times. Its

other engine is sadly beyond repair, but a new unit has been acquired and will be fitted in due course. The aircraft continues to wear the KLM technical school livery it was painted in at the end of its service, but will eventually be restored into its original military colours. In Dutch hands the type was nicknamed ‘Stoef’, based on the letters S2F. ROGER SOUPART

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Restored P-47 Thunderbolt makes public debut Republic P-47D Thunderbolt 42-29150 Dottie Mae made its first airshow appearance at the Warhawk Air Museum’s annual Warbird Roundup at Nampa, Idaho, on August 26. Those involved with the recovery and restoration of Dottie Mae gave a presentation, prior to unveiling the fighter. The aircraft was then flown by John Maloney from California’s Planes of Fame Air Museum. It made several further flights during the weekend. Operating with the USAAF’s Ninth Air Force during World War Two, the Thunderbolt was lost over Austria on

May 8, 1945, when it ditched into a lake and sank. Its remains were eventually recovered and the aircraft has been brought back to ‘life’ by Caldwell, Idaho-based Vintage Airframes. The restoration has incorporated as many original parts as possible, with some replacement items used to finish the job. The original nose art panel was not suitable for use, but was put on display at Warbird Roundup. The Vintage Airframes crew has accurately replicated all markings, even an apparent anomaly on the data panel that lists it as a ‘P47-D’.

John Maloney flying Republic P-47D Thunderbolt ‘Dottie Mae’ over Nampa on August 26. FREDERICK JOHNSEN

Now flying in the colours it wore during its wartime service with the 405th Fighter Group, it is believed

to be the only surviving Thunderbolt that saw combat the Ninth Air Force. FREDERICK JOHNSEN

Wreckage of Short Stirling discovered in North Sea

An archive image of Short Stirlings flying during World War Two. VIA NATIONAL GRID

The wreck of what is widely believed to be a Short Stirling has been discovered by engineers carrying out sea-bed surveys in the North Sea. The bomber is thought to have been lost while carrying supplies to the Norwegian resistance in World War Two.

The discovery was made by specialists working on the North Sea Link interconnector, a joint project being developed by Britain’s National Grid and Norwegian electricity company Statnett, which will link the two countries via a sub-sea power cable, enabling them to trade electricity. Historian Bengt Stangvik has been recruited by the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research to investigate the find in more detail. He said: “Several Stirlings disappeared without a trace on missions to Norway in the winter of 1944 to 1945. Based on the location of this wreck, it is probable

that it was on a mission to drop supplies to the resistance forces in western Norway.” Thirty British aircraft went missing on similar supply missions to Norway, 19 of which were Stirlings. Bengt believes this discovery is likely to be one of the six currently unaccounted for. As the aircraft is almost certainly a war grave it is covered by the UK’s Protection of Military Remains Act 1986. Sue Raftree of Britain’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre – which co-ordinates investigations following the discovery of human remains of British service personnel

– acknowledged the potential find. “Discoveries at sea are relatively rare due to their location,” she said. “A number of aircraft are known to have been lost in the North Sea during the course of the war but we need positive evidence before we can confirm. We would class this aircraft as a war grave. It is protected under the 1986 Act which covers crashed military aircraft in both UK territorial and international waters. “There are many brave service personnel who have no known grave and who gave their lives fighting for their country.” WITH THANKS TO DAVID LAVENDER-NATIONAL GRID

Unique Reid and Sigrist to fly again in UK Carl Tyers of Windmill Aviation has restored unique Reid and Sigrist R.S.4 VZ728 (G-AGOS) at Spanhoe, Northamptonshire. The distinctive aircraft, previously based at the now defunct Snibston Discovery Museum in Leicestershire, carried out a series of successful engine tests on August 26 and is likely to fly in the near future. MICK BAJCAR

November 2017 FLYPAST 7

NEWS THE LATEST IN AVIATION HERITAGE

American Canberra completed for museum display The Kalamazoo Air Zoo in Portage, Michigan, has completed its restoration of Martin B-57B Canberra 52-1584. Built at Martin’s Baltimore, Maryland facility, it was delivered to the USAF on May 26, 1955. The exhibit is painted to represent a B-57B assigned to the 8th Tactical Bombardment Squadron during the Vietnam War. www.airzoo.org TONY SACKETOS

‘Steve-o’ sets new world speed record On September 3, renowned racing pilot Steve ‘Steve-o’ Hinton achieved a new world speed record for a piston-engined propellerdriven aircraft, flying highly modified North American P-51D Mustang Voodoo to an average speed of 531.53mph (855.42kmh). The Mustang is owned by Bob Button and was sponsored by Joe Clark and Aviation Partners of

Seattle. The record was achieved from Clark’s ranch in a remote part of central Idaho. The previous benchmark was 528mph, attained by Lyle Shelton in modified Grumman F8F-2 Bearcat Rare Bear on August 21, 1989. Due to rule changes and the retirement of an older timing system, Lyle’s record had in any case been officially ‘retired’.

Mitchell restored into Doolittle colours

briefings

The National Naval Aviation Museum has painted its North American PBJ-1D Mitchell into the colours of a B-25 used in the famous 1942 Doolittle Raid on Japan. Restoration work on the Pensacola, Florida-based aircraft took around 130 days, comprising 4,500 man hours. The finished exhibit commemorates the 75th anniversary of the raid. www.navalaviationmuseum.org ROGER SOUPART

8 FLYPAST November 2017

Several items that once belonged to aviation pioneer Jean Batten have been presented to the Museum of Transport and Technology in Auckland, New Zealand. The memorabilia includes Jean’s white leather flying cap, stopwatch, photographs and logbooks from her Percival Gull. Jean made a solo flight from England to New Zealand in 1936.

‘Van Berkel’ joins Aviodrome collection Van Berkel W-A ‘W67’ on display at the Aviodrome museum in August. ROGER SOUPART

Volunteers from the Stichting Neptune Association have unveiled their fullscale reproduction of a Van Berkel W-A floatplane. The replica, which took over 15 years to complete, was placed on display at the Aviodrome museum in Lelystad, the Netherlands, in August. Several original components have been incorporated into the project, which is

painted to represent Van Berkel W67 of the Marine Luchtvaartdienst (Dutch Fleet Air Arm). The W-A was a Dutch-built version of the Great War-era Hansa-Brandenburg W.12. The latter served with the Imperial German Navy. Thirty-five Dutch examples were produced from 1919, with the last of these being withdrawn from use in 1933. ROGER SOUPART

A reproduction of the unique Lambach HL.II biplane is to be restored to airworthy status by Stichting Vroege Vogels at Lelystad in the Netherlands. The machine, PH-APZ, was built by students from the Delft University in the 1990s to represent the aircraft designed by Dutch engineer Hugo Lambach, which first flew in May 1937. STEFAN SCHMOLL

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Lockheed Shooting Star repainted in Kentucky F9F-5 Panther and, since October 2013, a General Dynamics F-111. The latter is dedicated to Bowling Green native Col Arnie Franklin who led an F-111 raid on Libya in 1986. The most recent addition at the park is Northrop T-38 Talon N901NA, a former NASA machine. Left

The Aviation Heritage Park’s T-33A Shooting Star 51-8786 with T-38 Talon N901NA in the background. BOTH TONY SACKETOS Col Arnie Franklin – with a recent copy of ‘FlyPast’ – alongside the Aviation Heritage Park’s F-111.

Staff at the Aviation Heritage Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky, have recently completed their refurbishment of Lockheed T-33A-5 Shooting Star 51-8786. Built in 1951, the jet is now painted in a new silver scheme and is dedicated to two Shooting Star veterans. Gen Russell Dougherty

flew more than 70 types of aircraft, including T-33s, and commanded Strategic Air Command during the Cold War. Alongside his name beneath 51-8786’s cockpit is that of USAF Capt Robert E Mitchell who was killed flying a Shooting Star during a training exercise in 1962. Other exhibits include a Grumman

Well-travelled Harrier to be refurbished in Thailand

Hawker Siddeley AV-8S Harrier awaiting restoration at the Royal Thai Air Force Museum.

Hawker Siddeley AV-8S Harrier 3109 has been moved to the restoration hangar within the Royal Thai Air Force Museum, near Don Mueang airport in Bangkok. Formerly in service with the

Spanish Navy, the AV-8S was an export version of the Harrier, designated VA-1 Matador in Spain. The museum’s example joined 1 Squadron, 3rd Wing of the Royal Thai Navy in 1999. It was retired from service

Cessna 182 Skyline PG368 of the Argentine Air Force’s 5th Air Brigade has been repainted into a distinctive new scheme, marking the type’s 50th anniversary with the unit. The upper part of the tail is now adorned with the Argentine flag, while the lower part is decorated with aircraft silhouettes representing the longserving Cessna fleet. ESTEBAN BREA

LTV A-7E Corsair II 1411 has also been acquired by the museum. BOTH DINO VAN DOORN

in 2006 and was most recently in storage at the naval air base at U-Tapao. The museum has also acquired LTV A-7E Corsair II 1411 from the same source. The jet is one of 14

A-7Es purchased by Thailand from the US Navy for coastal defence and sea patrol duties. Delivered in the summer of 1995, it operated with 104 ‘White Shark’ Squadron, 1st Wing, based at U-Tapao. DINO VAN DOORN

Vickers Viscount CX-BJA has been moved to a Uruguayan Air Force base adjacent to Museo Aeronáutico in Canelones, raising hopes that it will be restored in the near future. The former Pluna Airlines machine had previously been in storage at Montevideo’s Carrasco Airport, and had fallen into a poor state of repair. EDUARDO LUZARDO VIA ÁLVARO ROMERO November 2017 FLYPAST 9

NEWS THE LATEST IN AVIATION HERITAGE

Avenger projects unveiled in Arizona and Florida A pair of Grumman Avenger restoration initiatives have made significant progress in the US this year. The Arizona Commemorative Air Force Museum (AZCAF), based at Mesa’s Falcon Field near Phoenix, has acquired Grumman TBM-3E Avenger 53914 from the Quonset Air Museum at Rhode Island. Volunteers from AZCAF flew to the northeastern state to disassemble the Avenger and load it onto a trailer for transportation across the continent to Mesa. The longterm aim is to return the TBM to airworthy status. Having served with the US Navy, the General Motors-built Avenger entered private hands and was used for fire-fighting. After crashing in woodland, the airframe was eventually recovered and restored to

static display condition by staff at Quonset Air Museum. Meanwhile, the DeLand Naval Air Station Museum in DeLand, Florida, has rolled out Grumman TBF-1 Avenger 01747, an aircraft that was lifted from Lake Michigan in 1991. The machine has been returned to the colours it wore in 1943. On June 11 of that year it ditched into the lake on a training exercise while operating from USS Wolverine. Its pilot, Lt Robert Banta, reported a fire on board his aircraft and was advised to bring the Avenger down in the water as the Wolverine had a wooden – and potentially flammable – deck. Robert carried out a successful ditching and was rescued. The TBF sank to the bottom of the lake where it remained for almost five decades. www.azcaf.org www.delandnavalairmuseum.org

The TBM lay in woodland for many years before being recovered and restored. AZCAF VIA ROGER SOUPART

ROGER SOUPART

Grumman TBF-1 Avenger 01747 has been unveiled in Florida. DNAS VIA ROGER SOUPART

Grumman TBM-3E Avenger 53914 arriving at its new home in Mesa recently.

briefings

AZCAF VIA ROGER SOUPART

The RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight temporarily grounded its Rolls-Royce Merlin-engined fleet for safety reasons in August. The aircraft affected were its Avro Lancaster, Hawker Hurricanes and some of its Supermarine Spitfires. On August 29, the Ministry of Defence said the Flight was investigating an issue with a pinion gear in one of the Merlins. Each gear was inspected to confirm that it was safe to operate and met the BBMF’s standards. At the time of writing, the Flight had returned Lancaster PA474 to the air, along with one of the Hurricanes. The other aircraft are expected to fly again shortly. The Griffon-powered Spitfires were unaffected.

10 FLYPAST November 2017

The Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum has started work on a third hangar at its Everett, Washington base. The project is expected to finish next spring. Work will not affect the museum’s operations, and its other hangars remain open. The attraction is home to Paul Allen’s extensive collection of aircraft.

A service of commemoration was held at the National Memorial Arboretum on August 16 to remember the 14 Auxiliary Air Force units that took part in the Battle of Britain. The ceremony was led by Sqn Ldr Richard Clement, with two veterans, Norman Monahan and Terry Clark, in attendance. WITH THANKS TO TONY FREEMAN

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12/09/2017 12:47

NEWS THE LATEST IN AVIATION HERITAGE

Naval colour scheme applied to Dutch Texan

North American AT-6A Texan PH-TXN being repainted in Dutch naval colours.

North American AT-6A Texan PH-TXN has been repainted at Lelystad in the Netherlands, and now represents UT-6 ‘313’ of the Marine Luchtvaartdienst (Dutch Fleet Air Arm).

The aircraft’s wings and other panels were completed in mid-August, with final stencilling and additional markings applied at the end of the month. The aircraft was expected to make its public debut in its new livery

Stencils about to be applied to wing panels and cowlings. BOTH RENÉ L UIJTHOVEN

at the Heldair Show Maritiem at De Helder Airport on September 16. During the recent refurbishment, engineers also fixed a minor oil leak near the magnetos. The Texan is operated by the Wings

Over Holland flying school and previously flew in an overall yellow scheme, representing SE-CHP of the Swedish Air Force. Its new colours commemorate the centenary of Dutch naval aviation. RENÉ L UIJTHOVEN

Kiowa helicopters destined for museum display The Australian National Aviation Museum (ANAM) in Moorabbin, near Melbourne, has acquired a trio of Bell/CAC 206B Kiowa helicopters from the Australian government’s Defence Disposals and Sales department. The ANAM tendered for the helicopters earlier this year and has been awarded A17-006, which flew with both the Royal Australian Navy and the army, plus A17-045 and A17055. The last two were built by CAC (Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation) and entered service in 1976 (A17-055 being the penultimate Kiowa to be built by the Melbourne-based company). Based on the civilian Bell 206 Jet Ranger, a total of 56 Kiowas were operated by Australian armed forces. The first 12 were built by Bell in the US, with the remainder produced by CAC. The museum plans to restore A17-055 to static display condition and will place it alongside CAC Wirraway A20-10.

Helicopters awaiting delivery to the Australian National Aviation Museum.

www.aarg.com.au

VIA ANAM

briefings

WITH THANKS TO DAVID SODERSTROM

12 FLYPAST November 2017

The Aeroplane Collection’s Ian Maddock is making good progress on Miles Messenger G-AHUI at Hooton Park, Cheshire. Ian is currently seeking a throttle box and handbrake to assist in the restoration. The team is also stripping out the cockpit and other sections of de Havilland Vampire T.11 XD624. www.theaeroplanecollection.org

Piaggio P.149 D-EHVO, an aircraft built under licence by Focke-Wulf, has been acquired by Simon Kopmann who will base it at Diepholz, Germany. Prior to its arrival in August it was repainted at Lodz in Poland and now represents JA+391, a machine of the Luftwaffe’s JG 71. The unit flew a few Piaggios from Ahlhorn in the 1960s. PATRICK DIRKSEN

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AVIATION ART PRINTS By Artist DAVID WALKER

“100 Years of Seek and Destroy”

“Shawberry Squirrel”

“Heartwarming Display”

“Evening Callout”

“Is This Is Plane”

“Return to Base”

“Calm Before the Storm”

“Reds Over Welshpool”

“Apache Dawn”

“Over Ironbridge”

Full postal service available. All images taken from Original Oil Painting.

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12/09/2017 12:48

NEWS THE LATEST IN AVIATION HERITAGE

Invader arrives at new home in Georgia The Museum of Aviation at Warner Robins, Georgia, has recently taken delivery of Douglas VB-26B Invader 44-34610. The aircraft is to be restored and repainted. Originally built as an A-26B, it

was delivered to the USAAF on August 6, 1945, and served at various air bases including Turner in Georgia (now Naval Air Station Albany) before being converted to TA-26B status at Warner Robins in November 1946.

It then served with various Air National Guard (ANG) units until being transferred to the ANG headquarters at Andrews, Maryland. It flew as a VB-26B (an unarmed variant used for administrative purposes) from

there until October 1972. After withdrawal from service, it was transferred to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC. www.museumofaviation.org TONY SACKETOS

Douglas VB-26B Invader 44-34610 awaiting restoration at the Museum of Aviation. TONY SACKETOS

Californian Falcon’s new colour scheme Staff at Castle Air Museum in Atwater, California, have refurbished Lockheed F-16A Fighting Falcon 80-0543. The jet served with four USAF units before being retired to the AMARG ‘boneyard’ in Arizona. It arrived at its current home on February 27, 2016, and now represents an aircraft that flew with the 144th Fighter Wing. www.castleairmuseum.org PHOTO-TONY SACKETOS

Swallow to take flight from Shobdon David Edwards has completed his restoration of BA Swallow L25C Mk.2 G-ADMF. The aircraft, pictured at Shobdon, Herefordshire, in mid-August, was built in 1935 and based in Ireland for many years. As a tribute to its previous owners, David plans to retain the Irish registration of EI-AFF in small lettering on the fuselage alongside a shamrock symbol. PAUL MORTON

Falklands Mirage returned to 1970s appearance briefings

Dassault Mirage 5 C-412 has been repainted into its original Argentine Air Force colours and placed on display outside the headquarters of VI Brigada Aérea in Tandil, Argentina. The jet, built in Israel as an IAI Nasher, stands alongside C-408 which was given similar markings in November 2015, when the nation retired the last of its 14 FLYPAST November 2017

Mirage III/5 fleet. Both aircraft have been returned to their appearance on entering service in 1978. C-412 flew six combat sorties during the 1982 Falklands War, including two successful strikes on British vessels in May of that year. Its addition to the display at Tandil marks the air force’s 105th anniversary. HORACIO CLARIÁ

Dassault Mirage 5 C-412 (nearest camera) with C-408 at Tandil in August. HORACIO CLARIÁ

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Well-travelled Skytrain being restored in Sweden The Swedish Air Force Museum is restoring Douglas C-47A Skytrain 4293706 to static display condition at its base at Malmen, near Linköping. Delivered to the USAAF on June 19, 1944, the aircraft was allocated to the 315 Troop Carrier Group in September of that year. It may have participated in Operation Market Garden later that same month and the museum would welcome further information about this. The aircraft was returned to the US after the war, and was modified by Canadair into a DC-3A airliner. Registered LN-IAH, it then served with Det Norske Luftfartsselskap in Norway, and from 1948, Scandinavian Airlines. After a further civil stint with Swedish airline Linjeflyg (as SE-CFR) it once again saw military service, flying with the Swedish Air Force as Tp 79 79007 from 1960. With 30,920 flying hours ‘on the clock’, it was donated to the museum in

Douglas C-47A Skytrain 42-93706 at the Swedish Air Force Museum recently. LENNART BERNS

1982. The aircraft was kept in the open, due to a shortage of internal storage space, and the Nordic climate has

‘Yorktown’ B-25D Mitchell to be restored North American B-25D Mitchell 41-29784 Furtle Turtle is to be restored aboard the USS Yorktown, part of the Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The aircraft will be repainted to represent a B-25B used in the famous 1942 Doolitte Raid, an attempt to strike the Japanese mainland using 16 carrier-borne Mitchells. The work is expected to cost $150,000 (£116,000) and will take around a year to complete.

Furtle Turtle was built in August 1942 and, following modifications in Kansas, was based in Alaska from November 3 of that year. Having spent some time at La Junta, Colorado, it was transferred to Mather Field, California towards the end of 1943. The aircraft had entered civilian ownership by 1949, firstly flying as N5078N. In April 1981 it was acquired by the museum and placed aboard the Yorktown. www.patriotspoint.org

taken a toll on its condition. Volunteers have recently cleaned and polished the Skytrain, and the ailerons and tail

rudders are being restored with new fabric. www.flygvapenmuseum.se LENNART BERNS

Morane monoplane restored for display in Paris

A team led by Laurent Rabier has restored Morane-Saulnier AI 2283 F-ABAO for static display at the Musée de l’Air et de l’Espace in Le Bourget, near Paris. The aircraft, which once belonged to 1920s aerobatic champion Alfred Fronval, is fitted with an original 130hp (97kW) Le Clerget 9Ba engine. ERIC JANSSONNE

North American B-25D Mitchell 41-29784 in its current display position. TONY SACKETOS

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NEWS THE LATEST IN AVIATION HERITAGE

New memorial to B-17 crew unveiled

Former RAF pilot Paddy O’Flynn, who was among those instrumental in the memorial’s creation, with the plaque on September 10.

A memorial plaque to the nineman crew of Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress 42-97479 Belle of Liberty was unveiled near Old Bolingbroke, Lincs, on September 10. The Poddington, Beds-based bomber had crashed in bad weather following an engine fire while returning from an aborted raid on December 30, 1944.

The initiative to create the tribute came after a wreath was laid at the site by Reuben Holmes on December 30, 2016, prompting villagers to investigate the circumstances surrounding the wartime incident. After a parish meeting it was decided to place a permanent memorial, featuring the names of the crew, as close as possible to the site of the

North Carolina’s ‘Thud’ to receive new colours

North American F-105B Thunderchief 54-0107 awaiting restoration at Hickory. TONY SACKETOS

Staff at the Hickory Aviation Museum in Hickory, North Carolina, are preparing to restore North American F-105B Thunderchief 54-0107. The exhibit, which is on loan to the attraction from Dayton, Ohio’s National Museum of the USAF, is to be refurbished in a project led by Kyle and Craig Kirby. The jet was originally delivered to the USAF in September 1957, initially 16 FLYPAST November 2017

serving at Eglin, Florida for cold weather testing. It moved to Eielson in Alaska the following year, and was later preserved at Lackland in San Antonio, Texas, before moving to Hickory. Although a final decision on its livery has yet to be confirmed, the aircraft is likely to be painted in a Vietnam War-era scheme. TONY SACKETOS www.hickoryaviationmuseum.org

The plaque lists the names of all nine airmen lost in the 1944 crash. BOTH COURTESY PADDY O’FLYNN

crash. Bolingbroke Parish Council agreed to take responsibility to maintain the memorial in perpetuity, the landowner consented for it to be laid on his property and residents of a nearby cottage volunteered to maintain the area around it. Donations amounting to more than £1,000 enabled a bronze plaque on a polished granite plinth to be

commissioned. It was unveiled and dedicated by the Rev Canon Peter Coates on September 10. Around 60 local people and three serving US military officers attended the ceremony, which was preceded by an address by Suzie Harrison, a guide from the Cambridge American Cemetery. WITH THANKS TO PADDY O’FLYNN

We salute you Lt Col Sam Drennan MBE DFC AFC – Army Air Corps helicopter pilot who was awarded the DFC for evacuating 16 soldiers from Mount Tumbledown, while under fire during the Falklands conflict – died on August 10, aged 71; Gp Capt David Galpin – navigator on 209 Squadron Sunderlands during the Korean War, who later commanded 30 Squadron before taking command of RAF Fylingdales – on August 26, aged 88; Sqn Ldr Mervyn Leyshon AFC – Wellington pilot with 214 Squadron, who later instructed with 21 OTU before returning to ‘ops’ flying Lancasters with 186 Squadron, including on 1944’s Operation Infatuate – on August 18, aged 98; Flt Sgt John Mann DFM – flew as a rear gunner on Lancasters, completing three ‘ops’ with 166 Squadron and 34 with 156 Pathfinder Squadron – on August 28, aged 92; Jack Perry MBE – flight engineer who was badly burned in a Halifax crash, becoming a member of the ‘Guinea Pig’ club and later a long-serving social secretary to the society supporting burns victims – on August 6, aged 92; Doug Radcliffe MBE – a wireless operator/gunner with 425 (RCAF) Squadron on Wellingtons in North Africa, later secretary of the Bomber Command Association – on Aug 31, aged 93; Sqn Ldr Nigel Rose – flew Spitfires during the Battle of Britain with 602 Squadron, claiming two German fighters destroyed and sharing a third – on September 10, aged 99; Denis Scott – Wellington pilot who flew two wartime tours with 38 Squadron, firstly to North Africa and then over the Greek islands – on July 6, aged 97; Flt Sgt Ken Tamkin – flew as flight engineer on 576 Squadron Lancasters from the age of 19 and completed 30 ‘ops’ – on August 25, aged 92; Air Cdre David Williams – Vulcan pilot and OC 55 Squadron on Victors during the Gulf War – on August 15, aged 67.

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Progress made on ‘Focke-Wulf’ and Parrakeets

The Erickson Aviation Museum at Madras, Oregon is currently restoring FlugWerk-built Focke-Wulf Fw 190A-8 reproduction D-FMFW, along with a pair of Rose Parrakeet sport biplanes. ‘Foxtrot-Whisky’ was previously at Virginia Beach’s Military Aviation Museum, while the two Parrakeets are the second and third of the original nine machines built. www.ericksoncollection.com ALAN KEY

Airspeed Oxford reproduction being built in Australia

Museum’s Gipsy Major engine restoration completed

The B-24 Liberator Restoration Fund group is constructing a replica of an Airspeed Oxford at Werribee in Victoria, Australia. The tailplane has recently been completed and work has begun on the starboard wing (pictured) and cockpit floor. On completion the exhibit will be placed on museum display. JUDY GILBERT VIA PHIL BUCKLEY Rod Scott and Peter Coard at work on the Gipsy Major engine. DHAM

Repaint due for Vietnam veteran Phantom

McDonnell Douglas F-4D Phantom 66-7550 is undergoing refurbishment at the Aviation Heritage Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and will soon be repainted. The jet was flown by Brig Gen Daniel Cherry in the Vietnam War, who used it to shoot down a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21. It was received by the park for static display in December 2005. TONY SACKETOS

A 1930s Gipsy Major engine has been put back on display at the De Havilland Aircraft Museum in London Colney after undergoing a major rebuild. The four-cylinder air-cooled unit, one of 14,615 built by de Havilland both in the UK and Australia, was sectioned for use by the company for tuition at its Aeronautical Training School. Gipsy Majors were built in 15 variants and fitted to 65 types of aircraft. Over the past few months it has been stripped down by volunteers Peter Coard and Rod Scott with all components refurbished and polished before reassembly. The block and head have been repainted in original de Havilland colours and a new Perspex section has been made to cover and protect the cutaway head. www.dehavillandmuseum.co.uk November 2017 FLYPAST 17

AIRSHOW HOME AND AWAY

California Dreaming We drop in on the spectacular Wings Over Camarillo Air Show in California, and feature some other highlights from closer to home

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his year’s Wings Over Camarillo Air Show, held on August 19 and 20, brought together an impressive array of warbirds and historical re-enactments. As usual, the show also included aerobatics

and modern jets, as well as an interesting selection of ground attractions. Among the highlights were displays by World War Two-era aircraft, a Vietnam War commemoration, and pleasure flights for visitors.

The Commemorative Air Force’s North American PBJ-1J Mitchell ‘Semper Fi’ flying with the American Aeronautical Foundation’s B-25J Mitchell ‘Executive Sweet’. ALL FRANK B MORMILLO

Douglas C-53 Skytrooper ‘D-Day Doll’ from the Commemorative Air Force dropping parachutists over Camarillo Airport.

The CAF’s Steve Barber flying Yakovlev Yak-3 N529SB. North American P-51D Mustang ‘Bunny’ gleams in the sun during a flypast at Wings Over Camarillo (also see ‘Finals’).

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Chris Fahey displaying the Planes of Fame Air Museum’s Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star ‘Pacemaker’ in California.

Spitfire Over Southend

The RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Supermarine Spitfire PR.XIX PS915 was among the highlights at the Vulcan Restoration Trust’s open day at Southend on August 20. PHIL WHALLEY

Yorkshire Thunder

The Yorkshire Air Museum’s Rolling Thunder Day on August 27 was a chance to showcase the Elvington attraction’s operable fleet. Among the aircraft performing ground runs was Andre Tempest’s magnificent Handley Page Victor K.2 XL231. GRAHAM BUCKLE

Golden Age Revived The Golden Age Air Tours’ Douglas C-41A makes a low pass over Flabob Airport, close to Mount Rubidoux near Riverside, California. The aircraft, a military transport version of the DC-3 airliner, regularly takes passengers on pleasure flights. FRANK B MORMILLO

Biggin Bonanza

The long tradition of air shows at the famous World War Two airfield has been maintained in recent times with the Biggin Hill Festival of Flight, which took place on August 19 and 20. The airfield will always be associated with R J Mitchell’s finest creation, and this year’s event included a spirited display from Dan Griffiths in Spitfire IX TA805. RICHARD HALL

Cambridgeshire Lady

The Little Gransden Air & Car Show in Cambridgeshire is always a popular attraction, and this year’s offering on August 27 was no exception. Visitors to the event – which raises money for BBC Children In Need and other charities – were delighted to witness a display from Duxford-based Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress ‘Sally B’. NEIL HUTCHINSON

November 2017 FLYPAST 19

PILOT CAREER NOEL DUNNINGHAM

V-BOMBER

F RO M TIG E R M OTH TO

NOEL DUNNINGHAM’S 32-YEAR CAREER AS AN RAF PILOT AND INSTRUCTOR TOOK HIM TO AFRICA, EGYPT, CYPRUS AND BASES ALL OVER BRITAIN BEFORE HE RETIRED AS SQUADRON LEADER. HERE HE RECOUNTS SOME OF THE MANY SPECIAL MOMENTS TO CHRIS GILSON

Bottom right

Noel grew to love the Handley Page Victor B.2 after being posted to 139 Squadron at RAF Wittering. As part of a Quick Reaction Alert unit, this scene - a V-Force crew running to its Victor - would have been familiar to him. Note the Standard Vanguard transport van on the left. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

T

o the teenage Noel Dunningham watching the contrails form above his home town of Ipswich during the monumental summer of 1940, there was only one place to be. It was the height of the Battle of Britain, and the sights and sounds of the fighting made an impression that has stayed with him to this day. Now 94, and living in leafy Suffolk, Noel, who retired from the RAF as a squadron leader, recalls that time clearly. “I was 17 and seriously thinking about going into the recruiting office and being a bit indecisive about my age. I heard others had done it and I was quite tall. “I opened the door, and after I’d looked around there was a reception with an RAF Warrant Officer. Before I could say a bloody word, he said, ‘What do you want, sonny? Does your mother know you’re here?’. He pricked my balloon, but in the end he did swear me in there and then, and gave me a number, 1800938.” With the promise that he would be called for pilot’s training when he was old enough, AC 2nd class (pilot under training) Noel walked away back to his other life in uniform. Just before the outbreak of war he’d joined his Local Defence Volunteer unit, which was later called the Home Guard, where he was issued with a rough khaki uniform, boots and a wooden rifle. “It was beautifully carved,” he recalls with a laugh.

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At around the same time, the would-be pilot was also inducted into the shady world of the Auxiliary Units (AU), Churchill’s so-called secret army, whose task was to cause as much trouble for the enemy should an invasion of Britain take place. After a terse meeting at his house during which he was told he would be shot if he mentioned anything about the AU to anyone, Noel became a member of the group, and found himself undertaking training events most nights in the nearby woods. Noel’s call up to RAF service came shortly afterwards, and he made the journey to Lord’s Cricket Ground in the London suburb of St John’s Wood, which had become the Aircrew Receiving Centre. “I remember the first thing I ever heard from an RAF NCO: ‘Right then you bloody awful little U/T [under training] pilot. Get those bleedin’ civvies off, because you won’t be needin’ them no more. Get them off and get fell in.’” “After that it was three weeks of square bashing, and then we knew we were going overseas [for training] but we didn’t know where, it could be America, Canada [or] Africa. On my day of departure from the UK, I stood on Colchester railway station and my dear father turned to me with a tear on his cheek as I left and said, ‘Now son, behave yourself. Never miss an opportunity for doing a

kindness or giving a smile, because it costs nothing and helps to make the world a better place.’” A five week-journey by troopship to South Africa followed, ending with them landing at Durban and travelling overland by train to Southern Rhodesia [now Zimbabwe] to begin ground school instruction. “The food was amazing,” Noel recalls. “Steaks, oranges, all the things you couldn’t get at home.” Noel had arrived at RAF Guinea Fowl, Gwelo [now Gweru] in the heart of the Midlands Province. The site had been opened in August 1940, and was the home to 26 Elementary Flight Training School (EFTS), which was mainly flying de Havilland Tiger Moths and Fairchild PT-19 Cornells – both single-engine basic trainers. However, life wasn’t smooth for the young recruit, and the initial course of ground instruction proved to be a testing time. “I did several weeks at ground school, but was never any good at maths. We wore khaki shorts in Rhodesia, and I used to help myself by putting mathematical ‘cribs’ on my leg, so that I could pass. I had a feeling that once I stuck an aeroplane to my bum, I knew I could do it. “Then I started on Tiger Moths. Boy, when I think of it now. The temperatures were very high and the aircraft was wallowing in the air, and it made me ill. I begged my

Left centre

A de Havilland Tiger Moth of 26 EFTS at RAF Guinea Fowl, Rhodesia, circa 1941. VIA ANDY THOMAS

Left

Noel Dunningham – a youthful 22. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

instructor, a very elderly 50-year old, to ‘scrub’ me. I said, ‘I can’t do this, because every time I try to be sick over the side, it comes back in.’ I owe my flying life to him, because we would be flying over the bush, and if I’d been sick, he’d see a farmhouse, would land beside it and go inside and say to the owner, ‘This young man wants to clean up’. “He encouraged me, and eventually I overcame that and moved [ten miles or so] to another station [RAF

Thornhill] flying [North American Harvards]. Finally, I graduated and when they called out ‘Pilot Officer Dunningham’ I felt like I’d won the lottery, especially after my sister had told me that I’d never become an officer as I had a Suffolk accent.” Upon graduation, the young pilot expected to be sent back to Europe the join the fray along with most of his messmates, but things were to turn out differently. “Because I’d tried so hard to get my wings, I ended up by being in the top three and they took

us straight away to 33 Flying Instructors School at Norton just outside the Southern Rhodesian capital, Salisbury, [Harare] where we qualified in October 1943, and then went straight on to instruction flying in Harvards. “I was instructing there, and

“Finally, I graduated and when they called out ‘Pilot Officer Dunningham’ I felt like I’d won the lottery, especially after my sister had told me that I’d never become an officer as I had a Suffolk accent” November 2017 FLYPAST 21

PILOT CAREER NOEL DUNNINGHAM

Above

The members of 33 Flying Instructors School, Norton, South Rhodesia pose for a group shot in October 1943. Noel is on the back row, far left. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

Right

The RAF Thornhill rugby team in August 1943. Noel is on the back row, second from right. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

Below

North American Harvard P5944 of 20 SFTS, Cranborne, Rhodesia in 1942. Noel describes the Harvard as a ‘delight to fly’. VIA ANDY THOMAS

“...we would begin our flying at six in the morning, stop at around 12 as it was too hot, then back at six in the evening and fly until midnight...” we would begin our flying at six in the morning, stop at around 12 as it was too hot, then back at six in the evening and fly until midnight, so I acquired a vast number of flying hours and I didn’t come home until the end of the war.”

S T E A DY H A N D S

Following the cessation of hostilities in Europe in May 1945, Britain began its slow economic recovery from the war. Flying was deemed an expensive luxury and was cut

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back, leaving many aircrew surplus to requirements. Noel smiles wryly as he recalls the situation. “All these pilots were at a loose end in 1945 and 1946, but the country was covered in unexploded bombs, so I and a couple of my friends volunteered to be bomb disposal officers and went to Doncaster [to the Bomb Disposal Wing].” The hard winter of 1946-47 meant that few bombs could be recovered, and Noel found himself once again at a loose end, although during his time with BDW, he did manage to capture an escaped convict who was hiding in a drainpipe near a disposal site. The job also had its lighter moments, as was the case when the man from the Prudential insurance company came round to ask Noel about his work. Upon being told that he worked with unexploded ordnance, the response came swiftly back, ‘Is this a bloody joke, asking for life insurance?’ The advent of the war in Korea meant that, once again, Noel’s services as a flying instructor were required, and he made the short journey to RAF Finningley, which

housed a variety of training units. “I was doing a refresher course on Harvards and Spitfires, and was posted to 20 Squadron at RAF Valley on the isle of Anglesey. For two years I was flying Spitfire Mk.9s and Mk.16s and some of the early Vampires, which didn’t have ejection seats at that time. “They asked me to go back instructing, so I moved to 202 Advanced Flying School at Valley, and was flying [Gloster] Meteor T.7s, Vampire T.11s and at the end of that tour I was posted quite rapidly to Egypt to 13 Squadron and Meteor PR.10s, and got to know the Middle East very well, often taking photographs where I shouldn’t be. “I’d ask the intelligence officer if I had permission to fly over certain areas. ‘Not exactly,’ he’d say, ‘but if you happen to find yourself over that way, don’t forget to switch your cameras on.’ This was just before the Suez campaign [in 1956]. After that, [in February the same year] I was sent to RAF Akrotiri [in Cyprus], and in fact I was the first pilot to land a jet there. After a year, I came back to the UK.” Noel joined 231 Operational Conversion Unit at RAF Bassingbourn, Cambridgeshire, to convert to the English Electric Canberra. “It was the first time I’d had a navigator,” he says. After his conversion course, he was posted to 31 Squadron,

Left

Relaxing in Durban, South Africa in July 1944 with Lts Joyce and Winning. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

Below

By now a Flight Lieutenant, Noel is pictured far right in 1946. It was around this time that he began work in bomb disposal at Doncaster. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

November 2017 FLYPAST 23

PILOT CAREER NOEL DUNNINGHAM

Right

Partying in 1951 while at Valley. NOEL DUNNINGHAM Below

Noel (in beret) giving ground instruction on a de Havilland Vampire T.11 in 1952 at RAF Valley. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

which was based at RAF Laarbruch in Germany flying the Canberra PR.7, having re-equipped with them in March 1955. In 1960, however, things altered again, with an unexpected posting to the RAF Flying College (RAFFC) Manby in Lincolnshire, where Noel was confronted with more training duties of a very different type. “At the time high-ranking officers, such as Air Marshals and Air Commodores used to go there,” he recalls. “And most of them had never flown anything but Blenheims, flying boats and the like. I was the sole flying instructor who was sent there to get them airborne in jet types such as Meteors, Hunters and Canberras. Boy, that was a dodgy business! “Trying to teach these men to land a Canberra on one engine requires a hell of a lot of skill and judgement, and these poor fellows were being sent up and

24 FLYPAST November 2017

coming back terrified. Eventually, they stopped the course. While I was there though, I got to see some good lectures, and one memorable presentation was by Dr Barnes Wallis – the ‘bouncing bomb’ man.” Shortly afterwards Noel moved from Manby to nearby RAF Strubby on RAFFC duties, to join what was part of what had been renamed the RAF College of Air Warfare. By now he was in charge of the Canberra contingent there, and spent a tour at the base on further training duties.

A CHANGE OF PAC E

Life with the Canberra unit was very much to Noel’s liking, and had fate in the form of the Air Ministry not intervened it is conceivable he would have remained there for some time to come. At the end of the tour though, he found himself in the office of the Station Commander at Strubby, who had some surprising news.

“He said, ‘Dunningham, you’ve done a brilliant job with that squadron and you’ll be well rewarded. You have been chosen to fly the Handley Page Victor Mk.2, carrying Blue Steel missiles, and that’s a very privileged job’.” Despite the accolade of being posted to a V-Bomber squadron, one that was flying the RAF’s newest and shiniest aircraft, Noel had his reservations

DOUBLE CROSSING CANBERR A One of Noel’s tasks was to assist in the handover of WT528 Aries V, the record breaking Canberra PR.7, which was sold to India on November 13, 1962. The Canberra was one of two extra PR.7s ordered by India to make up for attrition rates caused by accidents. It was upgraded to PR.57 standard and gained the identity BP-746. It was most famous for accomplishing a double Atlantic crossing in one day on August 23, 1955, flying from London Airport [later Heathrow] to Floyd Bennett Field, New York in 7hrs 29mins. It quickly turned around, and within 25 minutes set off on the return flight, arriving back at Croydon 6hrs 16mins later. The aircraft had also set a new Tokyo-London record on May 25, 1957 when it completed the journey in 17hrs 42mins, with Wg Cdr W Hay and Flt Lt J L Dennis as pilots and Sqn Ldr B Hamilton as navigator. Noel is pictured here with Aries V and the official servicing form for the aircraft on November 8, 1962.

and requested an interview with Air Chief Marshal Sir Augustus Walker, the then AOC Flying Training Command. Walker, a well-respected man, who was also a one-armed golfing champion, agreed to see Noel at RAF Bawtry, Yorkshire, where the younger officer put forward his case to stay in charge of Canberras or return to reconnaissance missions. The interview is firmly etched on Noel’s

mind to this day. “He said, ‘Now Dunningham, listen carefully to me. I couldn’t change this even if I wanted to. The Ministry of Defence took a long time studying who will fly this aeroplane. You, your drinking habits, your family, your way of life…we are looking for stability and reliability. You’re an A-category flying instructor, you’re

an instrument flying examiner. We cannot have plonkers flying around this multi-million-pound system. Dunningham, you will enjoy flying this wonderful aeroplane. I’m sure you will make a success of it, and now the interview is over.’” Despite his initial doubts, after converting to the Victor, Noel was posted to 139 Squadron at RAF Wittering, Cambridgeshire, and grew to love the sleek, crescent-winged bomber more than any other type he flew during his career. “I loved it because it was such a challenge. When I was in trouble, it never let me down, although I did have a couple of ‘interesting’ occasions on it. “I still look at the Victor and think it looks like a praying mantis, and I also look at that tailplane and think, ‘God, we were doing 480 knots, how did that not come off?’” One of the rare occasions that things went wrong is another vivid memory for Noel. “That particular night, the rain was belting down, the runway was flooded and the commanding

Above

Captured in profile, the Gloster Meteor PR.10. This is the variant flown by Noel while with 13 Squadron in Egypt and Cyprus. The aircraft is WB156, which was with 541 Squadron at the time. KEY COLLECTION

Below

Noel flying a 31 Squadron Canberra, this time PR.7 WT511. Note the squadron’s star insignia on the tail. This Canberra crashed at Münster, West Germany following a double engine failure on November 8, 1961. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

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PILOT CAREER NOEL DUNNINGHAM

was fully laden with fuel and carried a training [Blue Steel] round. We lined up to take off at midnight, and I asked the co-pilot to give me full power. The aircraft kept decelerating as we hit the puddles, but we lifted the nosewheel off at 180 knots.” So far, so good, but the mission was about to go disastrously wrong. “I said to the co-pilot, ‘Raise the gear’, and I saw his hand go forward, then he said, ‘Skipper, we have a fire Above

Fancy dress in Egypt, 1955. Even the tense atmosphere pre-Suez had its lighter moments. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

Right

Huddling together for warmth during a snowbound survival course in Germany, 1959. Noel is on the far left sporting a magnificent moustache. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

Below

Noel flying Canberra T.4 WJ861 with 31 Squadron over Germany in 1960. This aircraft was scrapped at RAF St Athan during 1992. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

officer [Gp Capt John Lawrence] came into the operations room and said that all flying was cancelled. Then he came up to the flying desk where I was and said, ‘That doesn’t apply to you. You can cope with this, when you come back at six in the morning, the weather will be good.’ “When we took off, the nearest safe diversion was probably Prestwick in Scotland. The aircraft

26 FLYPAST November 2017

in number two engine’. Boy. I said, ‘Shut down number two engine’, which meant we’d lost 25% of our power. Now I had to put the stick forwards, remember I didn’t have the extra thrust, and balance the aircraft, which wanted to turn. It requires skill and calmness. “We got up to 5,000ft and declared a ‘pan pan’ emergency. I said to my co-pilot to push the fire extinguisher

button. Normally the light would go out, but this time it didn’t go out and one of my crew said, ‘What’s going to happen now, skipper?’ I said, ‘We’re going home, we’re going to land back at Wittering.’” Given the conditions at the time in Wittering, which was to all intents and purposes shut down, this was a risky move, but Noel turned the big bomber onto a homeward course. “I called Wittering and said I would need a Ground Controlled Approach, as at that time we didn’t have ILS in the cockpit. We got lined up on instruments and to this day I regret never going to find the young WAAF who was sat on the windswept airfield with two radar scopes, and thank her for bringing me down. “That aeroplane came down so steady, and I said to my co-pilot once we get to 1,000 feet, call out every hundred. And he began, ‘900, 800, 700…’ then ‘lights, lights, lights!’, and I looked up and I could see these lights flashing and just eased the stick back and we went to the end of the runway, and turned off. I had to shut down there as the visibility was so bad I couldn’t see to taxi.” The relieved crew had made it back against all the odds, but one aspect of the night brings a big smile to Noel’s face. “One of the crew, my Air Electronics Officer (AEO), Ian Stewart, said to me, ‘Skipper, that landing that you just did…’ and I said, ‘What about it?’ and he replied, ‘That’s the smoothest landing you’ve ever done, it was like a cat pissing on velvet!’”

Below left

A Handley Page Victor B.2, complete with Blue Steel missile underneath the fuselage, on the apron at RAF Wittering. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

“We got lined up on instruments and to this day I regret never going to find the young WAAF who was sat on the windswept airfield with two radar scopes, and thank her for bringing me down”

I S T H I S WO R K ?

When Noel finally left the V-Force, he took up a series of increasingly prestigious posts, culminating in his appointment to RAF Station Commander at the Americanoperated base of RAF Mildenhall in his home county of Suffolk. He stayed until his retirement in 1972 and, after vigorously pursuing his hobbies of marathon running and barbershop quartet singing, now lives quietly in the village of Red Lodge,

not far from his last command. One memory of his career is particularly vivid and seems to sum up the life of this remarkable man. It was a spring day during his time with 20 Squadron, and Noel was flying near RAF Valley in a silver Spitfire Mk.16, enjoying both the flight and the uncluttered skies. Suddenly, he became aware that he wasn’t alone, as there was an identical machine not far away. Joining his new companion,

Noel saw that it was in fact his commanding officer’s aircraft serenely flying along. This was unexpected, as Noel was sure that he was the only pilot authorised up at the time. Pulling up beside the other aircraft, the two airmen looked at each other for a few seconds, before Noel radioed across to the other Spitfire, ‘Is this work?’ His CO’s response was a waggle of the wings and a sheepish grin, before the sleek aeroplane banked off to join the Valley circuit far below.

Above

This mock ‘Time’ magazine cover presented to Noel on his retirement from the RAF at RAF Mildenhall in 1972. NOEL DUNNINGHAM

Above left

The briefing room at Manby. Noel moved here to help convert senior officers to some of the RAF’s more modern aircraft. KEY COLLECTION

FlyPast thanks Squadron Leader (ret’d) Noel J J Dunningham for his time and help with this interview. November 2017 FLYPAST 27

WARBIRDS A-20 HAVOC

CREATING Richard Vander Meulen captured the world’s only flying Douglas A-20 Havoc in the skies around Oshkosh

Above right

An air-to-air view of Douglas A-20G Havoc 43-21709 flying in the US recently. Bottom right

Spectacular image of a 312th Bomb Group A-20G at work, New Guinea, 1944. ALL IMAGES BY, OR VIA, AUTHOR

A

s Stewart ‘Stew’ Dawson joined on the wing of the Beech Bonanza photoship above the lakes and marshes around Oshkosh, one might have been forgiven for imagining a squadron of A-20 Havocs forming over the swamps of a Pacific island en route to a Japanese-held target. This sortie took place on July 25 in the Wisconsin skies around the famous annual AirVenture gathering of the Experimental Airplane Association (EAA). Four days later owner Rod Lewis was awarded the coveted Grand Champion World War Two Lindy trophy at the EAA Warbirds Saturday night banquet. Aero Trader, Carl Scholl’s Chino, California, facility responsible for the A-20G project received a

28 FLYPAST November 2017

Golden Wrench for exceptional workmanship. Rod and the Lewis Air Legends team are rightfully proud of their first Grand Champion accolade. Lewis owns several aircraft with Grand Champion pedigrees gained by previous owners, including P-38F Lightning N17630 Glacier Girl. The Havoc is the first to garner the honour after restorations overseen by Rod and director of flight operations Robert ‘Bob’ Cardin, who worked closely with Scholl and Aero Trader.

On the shelf

Rolling out of the Douglas plant in Santa Monica, California, in 1943, A-20J 43-21709 had a onepiece glazed nose. It was quickly converted to A-20G standard with a solid nose and four 0.5in calibre

machine guns augmenting the two on either side of the fuselage. Removal of the bombardier’s position reduced the crew to pilot and rear gunner, the latter operating the Martin turret and single flexible ‘50-cal’ in the belly. USAAF records show 43-21709 being delivered on April 8, 1944 to the 46th Bomb Group, at Morris Field, Charlotte, North Carolina. It was employed primarily for pilot replacement training, never travelling overseas or seeing combat. As a single pilot aircraft, a student had to lie flat on a shelf behind the instructor to observe before positions were reversed. The pupil was talked through the flight; there was no way to physically intervene. By August 1945 the A-20G was struck from the USAAF

G

November 2017 FLYPAST 29

WARBIRDS A-20 HAVOC

Above

The A-20’s cramped, fighter-like cockpit. Above right

Early days of the restoration of the Havoc at Aero Trader’s workshop. Below

The Havoc on display to the public.

inventory and transferred to Searcy Field, Stillwater, Oklahoma, for disposal by the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. On February 19, 1946, Paul Mantz Air Service of Burbank, California purchased 43-21709 as part of a batch of 474 aircraft for a total of $55,425. The A-20G was placed on the civil register as N67932 in May 1948. Howard Hughes was said to have flown it while it was owned by Mantz. Ownership was transferred to Potter Aircraft Service at Burbank on September 17, 1951, and it was registered as N22M. It was converted to executive transport

configuration, with extra windows installed on both sides in the forward and waist positions. Within two months Houston, Texas oilman Glenn McCarthy, whose company was a sponsor of Paul Mantz’s air racing, purchased the newly converted Havoc. McCarthy operated N22M until early 1954 after which it went through several hands before suffering an off-field crash landing near Vicksburg, Mississippi, in 1956. The Havoc remained at or near the crash site for 14 years while passing through another succession of owners, including noted aviation personality Ike Burchinal of Paris, Texas.

Short and dumpy

On August 6, 1970, William J Farah purchased the derelict A-20, transporting it to his El Paso, Texas, base so the Wright Cyclone R-2600-23 radials could be overhauled and a military paint scheme reapplied. Carl Scholl referred to the work as “a typical 1970’s restoration”. Although crude by today’s standards, where great pains are taken to achieve absolute authenticity, Farah’s early attempt was largely ahead of the overall warbird community of the day. The Havoc took to the air again on June 10, 1977 by which time the airframe had accumulated a total of

“Although crude by today’s standards, where great pains are taken to achieve absolute authenticity, Farah’s early attempt was largely ahead of the overall warbird community of the day” 30 FLYPAST November 2017

880 hours since construction. Farah donated the aircraft to Washington DC’s National Air and Space Museum (NASM) in an attempt to strike a bargain with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in late 1989. Much of the information for this article was gleaned from a document generated by the USAF Historical Research Center at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama in October 1989 prior to the planned acquisition. In anticipation, the A-20 was placed with the Liberal Air Museum at Liberal, Kansas, until such time as NASM had sufficient space for it. By this time 43-21709 had added another 148 hours of flying time, amounting to a total of 1,028. Ultimately, the IRS disallowed the donation and put the Havoc up

for auction. NASM’s loss became an opportunity for the Lone Star Flight Museum (LSFM) when Bob Waltrip acquired it for the collection. Ronny Gardner of the Commemorative Air Force ferried the A-20 from Kansas to Galveston, Texas, where museum staff began restoration. It was at Galveston that Stew Dawson first saw the aircraft, noting that it was in its corporate configuration. He thought it looked “short and dumpy”. Little did he know that in the future his opinion would change dramatically. Australian Steve Searle purchased the Havoc in the early 1990s and enlisted Aero Trader to undertake its return to airworthiness.

It was trucked to Chino and work moved steadily forward for several years before Steve elected to sell the aircraft to San Antonio, Texas, businessman Rod Lewis.

Above

The A-20G flying over Wisconsin recently.

Scratch building

A full survey of the airframe and engines revealed that the low-time Havoc was structurally sound and requiring minimal work. Bob Cardin worked closely with Scholl and the Aero Trader staff to oversee the project. Additionally, Bob managed Lewis Air Legends’ exceptional collection of warbirds including Glacier Girl, P-39 N139RL Brooklyn Bum and famed racer Bearcat N777L Rare Bear. Although the A-20 was in good condition, work was

November 2017 FLYPAST 31

WARBIRDS A-20 HAVOC

Above

Radio equipment installed. Top right

The distinctive nose guns with skull and cross bones artwork. Right

Aero Trader reinstalled the dorsal gun turret.

far from simple or easy. Aero Trader maintains a significant collection of parts for types beyond the North American B-25s that many warbird enthusiasts associate the company with. Scholl continues: “we spent a lot of time rounding up original equipment. The biggest challenge, however, was the hydraulic system.” On the A-20 all hydraulic controls for the landing gear, wing flaps and cowl flaps are positioned behind the pilot’s seat. According to Dawson: “it’s not bad once you get used to it. You can feel the difference between the levers.” Further complication is added with separate upper and lower cowl flap controls. The fuel system on the Havoc is unusual, with a 400 gallon (1,514 lit) internal capacity limiting range. To overcome this, Douglas designed tanks as field modifications which fitted in the bomb bay without significantly impacting the 4,000lb (1,814kg) weapon load. This also extended the endurance to four hours. Unable to source originals, Aero Trader was compelled to research and build tanks from new. With many original parts long lost, Scholl notes: “We have a large collection of common parts like the Martin 250 turret which is common to the B-24 Liberator,

PV-1 Harpoon and other aircraft, but we had to build all the stainlesssteel feed chutes and ammo boxes from scratch, which is very time consuming.” In addition to reinstalling the Martin dorsal turret, the team had to recreate the unique and complex folding ventral mount for a flexible 50-cal firing aft and below. A full rack of period radios, also pulled from stores, were installed for authenticity, although not used for communications. It would appear the A-20 and B-25 both utilised R-2600s, which should

have provided a significant stock of engines. In reality, the Havoc’s R-2600-23s differ significantly from the Mitchell’s R-2600-29. In addition to producing 100hp (74.6kW) less than the -29, the -23 is built around an aluminium crank case, with each cylinder mounted with 16 studs rather than the B-25’s 20. These render the powerplants incompatible, except for a handful of internal parts. The A-20’s R-2600-23 is quite rare but Aero Trader happens to have a collection of the type and was able to overhaul examples for the project.

“In addition to reinstalling the Martin dorsal turret, the team had to recreate the unique and complex folding ventral mount for a flexible 50-cal firing aft and below” 32 FLYPAST November 2017

wing than the B-25, but the same aileron length. It manoeuvres real well – not hard to deflect at all. The cockpit is real neat, but a little tight of me at 6ft 2in.”

Engine out

Double first

The project was completed in 2015. With more than a decade having passed since the last Havoc flight, no current pilots were available for the test programme. Fortunately, Stew Dawson was already part of the Lewis Air Legends team, and had countless hours on warbirds. So, how does one gain a Letter of Authorization (LoA) for a singleseat type for which no pilot in the world has currency? Stewart: “Well, I went to the FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] for an LoA, studied

the book, then you just get in and go.” By definition, Stewart’s first A-20 sortie was also the first postrestoration test flight of 43-21709. All went smoothly and he ferried the aircraft to its new home in San Antonio before carrying out a type check-ride for local FAA officials. Dawson’s early opinion of the A-20 – “dumpy” – was significantly changed by this experience: “It’s a pretty neat airplane. I didn’t think much of it until I flew it. It’s very well balanced. A shorter

Stewart revealed that the A-20 is 25mph faster than a B-25 despite having 100hp less per engine. That performance served him well en route to AirVenture when he was forced to shut down a Cyclone and feather the prop before turning for the nearest airport in Freeport, Illinois. He didn’t even need to add power on the good engine on the descent and approach to landing. Jim ‘JD’ Dale, the Lewis Air Legends’ maintenance director, recounts: “We dropped into Freeport during the height of spray season, with planes taking off on three different runways and all without radios. And here we come with an A-20 with an engine feathered, followed by a B-25, P-47 Thunderbolt and an ‘amphib’ Cessna Caravan.” The team was most fortunate that a new

Left

A close-up of the A-20G’s nose section with panels open.

November 2017 FLYPAST 33

WARBIRDS A-20 HAVOC

Above

A view of the aircraft with bomb bay doors open.

corporate hangar had been completed that very day. Although a tight fit, the Havoc just fitted and the hangar became the A-20’s home for the next nine months. A quick inspection revealed filters full of metal. Borescope investigations of the other R-2600-23 revealed it too was near failure. Teardown showed that the overhauled cylinders (handled by a third-party vendor) had improperly installed rings. According to JD: “Aero Trader treated us very well and warrantied the engines.” Over the next nine months Dale and a team of mechanics made the 2,600mile (4,184km) round-trip from Texas five times to complete removal and eventual re-installation of the Cyclones. Aero Trader had the only known Quick Engine Change stand for early model R-2600s and this was invaluable during the two procedures. Dale could not stress enough how hospitable the people of Freeport had been to Lewis Air Legends. “They are great people! They would stop by to say hi, even bring cookies. For nine months, the hangar was a temporary A-20 museum.” Dawson began a brief flight test programme during May 2017. As the

Skull with 50-cal punch

An archive image of the 50-cal skull and cross bones carried by 312th BG Havocs in the Pacific.

aircraft was close to Oshkosh, the EAA Museum offered to host the A-20 until AirVenture in July. Throughout the arduous project, Dale maintained his sense of humour noting: “we were either the last airplane to arrive for [AirVenture] 2016 or the first to arrive for 2017!” All the hard work by Aero Trader and the Lewis Air Legends team paid off. After a summer in the EAA Museum, the A-20G once again moved to the Oshkosh flightline for display and evaluation by EAA

Rod Lewis chose to paint his A-20 to represent the distinctive skull and cross bones that adorned A-20Gs of the 387th Bomb Squadron of the Fifth Air Force’s 312th Bomb Group. The tip of the Havoc’s nose carried the unit’s motif with two of the four 50-cal machine guns protruding through the skull’s eyes and two more popping out of the tops of the crossed bones. This design began to appear in the spring of 1944 while the unit operated in New Guinea and the Philippines.

Warbirds’ exceptionally knowledgeable and critical judging teams before ultimately rewarding Rod Lewis with the Grand Champion trophy. Lewis’ sense of satisfaction was complemented by a flawless trip home to Texas. Special thanks and congratulations to Rod Lewis, Bob Cardin, Stewart Dawson and Jim Dale of Lewis Air Legends and to Curtis Boulware, pilot of the photoship. www.lewisairlegends.com

“After a summer in the EAA Museum, the A-20G once again moved to the Oshkosh flightline for display and evaluation by EAA Warbirds’ exceptionally knowledgeable and critical judging teams before ultimately rewarding Rod Lewis with the Grand Champion trophy” 34 FLYPAST November 2017

Littledart_fp.indd 1

11/09/2017 11:21

RELICS CHINA

Beijing’s

Broken Birds Roger Soupart takes a stroll through the China Aviation Museum’s ‘boneyard’

A

ircraft dumps, especially those of World War Two, with hundreds or thousands of hulks awaiting scrapping have always held special interest for enthusiasts. Lines of broken birds, be it at Kingman, Arizona, or Biak in what was then the Dutch East Indies, or Guam in the Western Pacific, or any other desolate airfield are the stuff of dreams. Those days are long since gone, but one such junkyard still exists in a remote corner of the China Aviation Museum, better known as Datangshan. Here a large collection of aircraft has been left to rust away quietly. Datangshan, which is near Beijing, is known for its large collection of aircraft, most of which are kept in pristine condition or are

36 FLYPAST November 2017

part of a restoration programme. At the far end of the museum compound a ‘boneyard’ of around 40 airframes can be seen through the trees. This site was like a magnet, and this intrepid visitor could not ignore it. The question, “What if it is forbidden to go there, let alone to photograph?” was at first a deterrent. Some Chinese people were heading purposefully towards the dump and they spent about an hour looking at, and even standing on the wrecks without any problems. Emboldened, it was time to take the plunge.

Made in China

Many of the hulks are Nanchang CJ-5 trainers. This was a licence-built version of the first original Soviet Yakovlev Yak-

18. Powered by a 160hp (119kW) Shvetsov M-11 five-cylinder radial, it featured pneumatically operated retractable main landing gear and a fixed tailwheel. Examples were exported to China in kit form in 1950 and the first of 379 CJ-5s appeared in 1954. In 1958 the indigenous CJ-6 trainer appeared and around 3,000 are believed to have been built. A

couple of CJ-6s were lying out in the elements in a derelict condition. One of these had been modified to look like an American Republic F-84 Thunderjet. The radial Housai HS-6 engine and its cowlings had been removed and replaced with a ‘jet intake’ and the canopy had been

modified to make it look like a single-seater. Faded USAF ‘stars ’n’ bars’ could be discerned on the fuselage, so this aircraft had probably once appeared in a movie.

Readily identifiable were several Shijiazhuang Y-5s, the Chinese-built version of the ubiquitous Antonov An-2 Colt general-purpose biplane. The An-2 is well known across the world, with many privately operated. As well as standard versions there was a rare float-equipped Y-5C slowly rotting, reportedly as a result of storm damage. In 1937 the Soviet Union purchased several Douglas DC-3s from the USA, along with a licence to build the type. The Russian version was known as the Lisunov Li-2, NATO reporting name Cab. Li-2s were easily distinguished by having the rear fuselage door on the starboard side; DC-3s and C-47 Skytrains had theirs to port. A pair of Li-2s were in the graveyard.

Left

Four-bladed propellers on a Lisunov Li-2. Below

One of the Chinese collection’s visually striking Il-10s. As can be seen, this example remains on its undercarriage.

November 2017 FLYPAST 37

RELICS CHINA

Above

A Y-5C floatplane. Above right

A much-modified CJ-6, intended to portray a USAF jet fighter. Right

Beyond salvation? Two of Datangshan’s ‘Sturmoviks’. Far right

Centre section and rear fuselage of a Tupolev Tu-2. Below

The hulk of a CJ-5 with a trio of Y-5s behind.

More modern types, including Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15UTI Midget jet trainers, a Mil Mi-8P Hip helicopter and the forward fuselage of a Hawker Siddeley Trident 2E jetliner were also found languishing at Datangshan.

Piston classics

Close examination of a rear fuselage and centre section lying in the undergrowth revealed the remains of a Tupolev Tu-2 Bat twin-engined bomber. Large

38 FLYPAST November 2017

numbers of the type were supplied to China during the immediate post-war period. The most surprising find was no less than five Ilyushin Il-10 ‘Sturmoviks’, known in the 1950s to NATO as the Beast. A couple were still perched on their undercarriage, the remainder lying on their bellies. A much-developed version of the Il-2, the Il-10 entered service in February 1945. Production continued in the USSR until 1950, with nearly 5,000 being built.

There was still life in the famous ‘flying tank’, with manufacture being transferred to Czechoslovakia where another 1,200 were made. China used the Il-10 extensively, including in the Korean War. During my visit to Datangshan I heard there was a rumour that the area would soon be cleared with any hulks considered beyond salvation scrapped. Whatever their fate, I will never forget slowly wandering among these once-beautiful broken birds.

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WORLD WAR 2 WESTLAND LYSANDER

BEHIND THE LINES

DARREN HARBAR TALKS TO THE SHUTTLEWORTH COLLECTION’S ‘DODGE’ BAILEY ABOUT THE LYSANDER AND WHY IT WAS IDEAL FOR CLANDESTINE DUTIES

Below right

An atmospheric nocturnal view of the Shuttleworth Collection’s Westland Lysander ‘V9367’. ALL DARREN HARBAR UNLESS NOTED

N

avigating a Lysander by the full moon into an unknown field marked out with three specially placed lights, required a very special skill. For the pilots of 161 Squadron this was a standard procedure, enabling them to deliver and recover agents and equipment into occupied France.

42 FLYPAST November 2017

The agents were ‘run’ by the Special Operations Executive (SOE). These men and women were ‘on the ground’ communicating strategic information obtained about enemy forces to the intelligence services in London; others taught the French underground fighters. Agents were highly trained in a variety of

skills including code reading and encryption, evasion and sabotage techniques.

BREAKING THE MOULD

Although the Royal Air Force was formed as an independent air arm in 1918 a great proportion of its work was in direct support of the

w e s t l a n d l y s a n d e r November 2017 FLYPAST 43

WORLD WAR 2 WESTLAND LYSANDER

Above right

The 150-gallon fuel tank as fitted to SD Lysanders. Right

The Lysander’s cockpit. Right centre

Side access ladder.

army. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s there was a constant need for specialised army co-operation aircraft, and from 1931 the bulk of the role fell to the Hawker Audax biplane, followed in 1937 by the Hector, a much-developed version along the same theme. However, the Hector’s career was to be short-lived. The Air Ministry issued Specification A39/34 for a Hector replacement and Westland put forward a radical solution, the P.8. This entered production as the Lysander, named after a 4th Century BC Spartan military commander. One of the best known survivors of the type is based at Old Warden, Bedfordshire, with the Shuttleworth Collection. Chief pilot ‘Dodge’ Bailey knows a thing or two about the type’s handling and can compare its operational use with a more modern platform. Dodge: “Chief designer [W E] Petter at Westlands took pains to consult with current army co-operation pilots before embarking on the design of the P.8. He must have decided that the days of the biplane were over – his new aircraft would do everything a biplane could in terms of low-speed flight and off–field landings, but it would be cleaner and faster. “So his design provided a robust fixed landing gear for off-airfield landings, but aerodynamically spatted so as not to compromise unduly his desire for speed. Its crew were seated in large glazed cockpits with the wing planform chosen to maximise the fields of view of both

44 FLYPAST November 2017

pilot and observer. The provision for a vertical camera was built in to the rear fuselage, and a retractable [message] pick-up hook fitted. “To maximise downward field of view the design incorporated a high parasol wing, which was too far from the ground for easy re-arming. This led to the addition of stub wings being fitted to the landing gear legs to carry supply canisters or light bombs. “Finally, the pilot had forwardfiring machine guns mounted in each landing gear spat, firing outside the propeller arc, and defensive armament was fitted in the rear cockpit. Westland had in effect designed the perfect aircraft to support a second round of World War One, but the new war was to be a very different affair.”

IDEAL CHOICE

First flown on June 15, 1936 Lysanders entered service from May 1938 and performed well in the Battle of France. Following the Dunkirk evacuation, the traditional army co-operation role in the west had gone and Britishbased Lysanders were given other, supporting roles. When a requirement for an aircraft to carry out clandestine landings in occupied Europe came about, the Lysander’s special capabilities and its availability made it an ideal choice.

Dodge continues: “The Lysander possessed the ability to operate off semi-prepared fields and had an outstanding downwards view to aid navigation, but it was essentially a short-range aircraft. The fuel capacity of a standard Lysander was 95 gallons which gave a maximum range of little more than 300 miles at cruise power. This was inadequate given that there would be no refuel possible during the turn-around in France. “To adapt it for this new role a special contract was issued to Westland. The resulting modification included a 150-gallon fuel tank carried under the fuselage and an external fixed ladder to facilitate rapid

passenger changeovers.” [As such it was designated Lysander III (SD) – special duties.] “While these excrescences increased overall drag, the extra fuel capacity gave a range of around 1,000 miles giving the capability to fly from the south coast of England down as far as Lyon and return. Although this represents the maximum range with a three-hour flight each way, the majority were somewhat shorter with between 1½ and 2½ hour legs being more typical.”

DEAD RECKONING

Above

“Giving the aircraft the physical capability to reach a landing site somewhere in occupied France was one thing – finding the place at night was another! In order to avoid destruction by flak or fighters these clandestine operations into occupied Europe had to be conducted during the hours of darkness and, to facilitate visual navigation, during periods of good moonlight. “Its secret agent ‘cargo’ was carried in the observer’s cockpit, so of necessity the navigation task fell to the pilot as the sole crew member. Since there was no

Shuttleworth’s Lysander represents a machine used during World War Two by 161 Squadron. Below

Based at Old Warden, ‘V9367’ flies as a tribute to all who operated the type.

“Giving the aircraft the physical capability to reach a landing site somewhere in occupied France was one thing – finding the place at night was another!” November 2017 FLYPAST 45

WORLD WAR 2 WESTLAND LYSANDER

Right

LYSANDER FLAREPATH 50yds

150yds WIND

Diagram of the L-shaped flarepath and how the Lysander would touch down, return and turn ready for quick departure.

TOUCH DOWN

SOE OPERATIONS autopilot, the pilot hand-flew the aircraft throughout – navigating to find a specific landing site, which might be a disused airfield but more likely was simply a farmer’s field deemed suitable for the purpose. “There were no on-board radio aids to navigation at that time, so a technique known as ‘deduced, or dead, reckoning’ – DR – was universally adopted. This method worked on the principle of vectors: if any two vectors are known the third can be established – hence deduced reckoning. “In normal practice, a flight sets off on a heading calculated to reach the turning point or destination, and an appropriate airspeed is maintained until the estimated time of arrival. If the airspeed indicator and

compass are accurate, the pilot flies the speed and heading accurately and if the wind is exactly as forecast, the aircraft will reach the point after the appropriate elapsed time. “But in the real world inaccuracies creep in, with the most significant, usually the wind, being other than as forecast. However, all is not lost. Provided the errors are not too great, the point may be seen and the error assessed and a correction made for the next sector to improve the accuracy. So, providing good fixes are obtained at suitable intervals, there is a very good chance of arriving at the destination in due course. “While this method is normally practised by a trained navigator working on a plotting table, it works too for the single pilot, provided as much precomputation as possible is done before the flight and provided suitable pinpoints are selected and subsequently seen.”

VITAL FIRST FIX

“In the case of the special duties Lysander operations, the pilots would be given the location and usually a reconnaissance photograph of the landing site. They would then select a suitable number of unmistakable pinpoints on the way. “On moonlit nights, water features show up quite clearly, as do areas of woodland. Towns may be harder to see if blacked out, while roads and railways should not be relied upon as they may not be discernible. Typically, a unique feature on the north coast of France would be chosen as the first fix. The pilot could be assisted in finding this point by requesting a bearing from a friendly DF [Direction Finding] station directly behind the aircraft. “In any event it was vital that this first fix was seen and accurately overflown if the

rest of the flight plan was to work efficiently. The pilot would fly directly over the initial fix on the heading for the second fix and when precisely overhead he would note the time and, in all probability, start the stopwatch. “He would have marked on the map the track line, chosen to avoid defended areas, and along that marked track he would have made additional marks at intervals of, say, five minutes. By this means he could estimate an approximate position along the track by reference to the stopwatch and the time elapsed since his last fix position. “The second fix would be chosen so as to be easy to spot from the air, hard to miss – these requirements being best served by features on a major river. For aircraft proceeding down to the unoccupied zone the Loire River offered the best choice of fixes. “As the hands of the stopwatch indicated that the second fix was approaching the pilot would search ahead to spot it and verify that he had the correct point by trying to identify three unique characteristics associated with the fix; perhaps a river confluence, and a nearby island with a bridge over. “Once certain of his position, the pilot would use the same procedure as at the first fix – fly right overhead on the next heading and start the watch. If, however, the pilot noticed that the aircraft was off the planned track, he might choose to maintain the heading until abeam the fix and then estimate how big the error was. Armed with this, he could make an adjustment for the next leg which hopefully might cancel out the original error.”

SHUTTLEWORTH’S LYSANDER Built in Canada in 1942 as a Mk.IIIa, the Old Warden Lysander served the Royal Canadian Air Force as a target tug before being sold into private hands in August 1946. The Lysander was imported into the UK in a far from airworthy state in October 1971 when it joined the Strathallan Collection at Auchterarder, Scotland. Registered as G-AZWT, it first flew following restoration on December 14, 1979. In 1998, Shuttleworth purchased the aircraft and it was ferried to Duxford on October 12, 1997 for another period of restoration. It was delivered to Old Warden in 2001 and has remained based there ever since. Currently marked as ‘V9367’, it represents the Lysander flown by Peter Vaughan-Fowler of 161 Squadron in 1942, based at Tempsford, just a short distance down the road from the home of the Shuttleworth Collection. It sports a replica long-range fuel tank and side access ladder as fitted to an SD aircraft. www.shuttleworth.org

46 FLYPAST November 2017

Centre left

Aerial reconnaissance map of a landing strip, taken by a PR Spitfire of the Bensonbased 541 Squadron in October 1943. Hand-written notes highlight a dry river bed and other potential obstructions. SHUTTLEWORTH COLLECTION

Left

Located under the fuselage of the Lysander, the red identification light was used to transmit a Morse code letter to the agents on the ground.

RECEPTION COMMITTEE

“Typically, the leg following would lead to the feature from which the pilot would set out to find the field. The feature had to be easy to find and identify, and not too far from the final destination. “Once there, the pilot would have prepared a large-scale map for the final leg to the landing site. As before he would accurately overfly the fix and start the watch. Proceeding on his precomputed heading and with an eye on the stopwatch he would know that the reception committee on the ground would hear an engine but could not know whether the aircraft was friend or foe. “As the ETA [estimated time of arrival] for the field approached, the pilot would use the downward

identification lamp to send a pre-arranged letter in Morse code – say, R – dot dash dot – which he would repeat. “The ground party would know what letter to expect and if it was correct, they would signal by hand torch a second letter back up to the aircraft. If the response was as anticipated, the pilot would set up his landing circuit. “On the ground, three torches would be turned on which constituted the landing lights. These were arranged at the corners of an inverted ‘L’ with the shorter bar of the inverted letter always pointing into wind. [See the diagram.] This gave the pilot the wind direction for landing and ensured that the takeoff was into wind.

“The pilot flew his approach to touch down abeam the light at the end of the long arm and aimed to steer between the two lights forming the short arm of the ‘L’. Once slowed down, he would taxi back to the first light, turn back in line with the flare path and prepare for an immediate take-off. “When his self-loading payload was on board, he would be given a

Above

Pilots of 161 Squadron at Tangmere in 1943. Left to right: ‘Jimmy’ McCairns, Hugh Verity (author of the exceptional We Landed by Moonlight) Percy Pickard, Peter Vaughan-Fowler (the Shuttleworth aircraft is painted as his aircraft) and ‘Bunny’ Rymills. SHUTTLEWORTH COLLECTION

November 2017 FLYPAST 47

WORLD WAR 2 WESTLAND LYSANDER

“Pilots selected for SD Lysanders were required to practise night navigation until they were proficient and confident in their own ability” Above right

Westland Lysander ‘V9367’ at night.

signal from the chief of the reception party and would take off without further delay. A typical turnaround time was three minutes. Once airborne he faced the same navigation task to get home but he could at least call on the radio for some assistance when he was over the English Channel.”

TURNING BACK

“Pilots selected for SD Lysanders were required to practise night navigation until they were proficient and confident in their own ability. A certain target was given to them to find at night somewhere in the occupied zone and only those pilots who not only found it but could describe accurately what the objective was would become ‘operational’. “Of course, things only rarely went precisely to plan, sometimes the ground was obscured by fog or the aircraft was in cloud and unable to obtain a visual fix. In such circumstance, the pilots usually carried on with the DR principle and turned onto the next planned heading at the ETA, hoping that a break in the cloud or fog would allow them to find themselves. “Sometimes this method worked, but with some, the cloud never cleared. After stooging about over where they thought the landing site was – looking for breaks – they eventually would have to set course for home while they had sufficient fuel to do so.”

LONG WALK HOME

“That is how they navigated but 48 FLYPAST November 2017

what of the night landing itself? The designers of the Lysander envisaged it landing on rough surfaces, and of course, nocturnal landings can be somewhat harder arrivals due to the lack of cues to judge height and rate of descent. Therefore, the robust nature of the landing gear was ideal for this role. “The field of view from the pilot’s cockpit – much better than for other single engine aircraft of the era – meant that the pilot could not only keep the landing torches in view throughout the circuit, but also throughout the approach. “The Lysander was also equipped with a powerful landing light in each spat and these were used briefly on the final approach and touchdown. The consequences of the pilot damaging the aircraft during the landing were serious, as it was a long walk home. “New pilots had to practise night landings at Tempsford [Bedfordshire] and other nearby landing grounds such as Somersham until they were proficient. This was not easy because the unique high-lift devices fitted to enable low-speed flight gave the aircraft unfamiliar handling characteristics that pilots of the time would find strange and challenging. “Although the Lysander can fly slowly, about as slowly as a biplane of similar weight, if it’s flown a bit too slowly, control of the flightpath is lost. A number of pilots lost their lives by pushing these limits a little too far.”

LIVING TRIBUTE

To conclude, ‘Dodge’ offered a modern comparison: “I used to fly [Lockheed] Hercules in the RAF and had some experience of landing on disused airfields and unprepared surfaces for relief flights into the desert. Many of the techniques used in Lysander operations were employed in the Hercules, but I had a navigator and Doppler radar to help me. “Having flown the Lysander, I have so much respect for the skills these pilots had. It is possible for a modern pilot to get some idea of what it must have been like for the SD squadrons by making short landings, perhaps turning off the GPS and navigating by DR. “We now have excellent weather information meaning we don’t often have to deal with the likes of unexpected icing or fog, and we can get more accurate wind forecasts. We certainly don’t have to consider the possibility of being shot down by friendly fire crossing the Channel, or less friendly fire from anti-aircraft defences or night fighters. “We don’t have to land in a field we have never seen before, with just three torches guiding us in. Nor do we have to live with the possibility of being captured on landing and treated perhaps as a spy or saboteur rather than a regular prisoner of war. “The preservation of an airworthy Lysander in the colours of the special duties squadrons is a living tribute to those courageous men and the even braver men and women that they carried into extreme danger.”

Christmas Gift Guide

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14/09/2017 09:49

The Shuttleworth Collection’s Westland Lysander runs its engine at its Old Warden base during an evening photo shoot. DARREN HARBAR

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12/09/2017 14:22

Spotlight Mikoyan-Gurevich

MiG-15

17 Pages in detail 54 Origin and History 56 In Combat - the MiG at War 62 Mig-15 in Profile 64 Men Behind the Machine

Main picture

The MiG-15UTI was a two-seat dual control training version of the successful jet fighter. Polish-built two-seaters were also used for reconnaissance. KEY

This month’s Spotlight subject is the MikoyanGurevich MiG-15, the first of a long series of successful jet fighters built by the Russian manufacturer. The MiG-15, given the NATO reporting name ‘Fagot’, was built in vast numbers, both in its homeland and by other nations. It was one of the first jet fighters to incorporate swept wings, and due to this and other advances it achieved air superiority in the Korean War until the arrival of the USAF’s North American F-86 Sabre. The Soviet machine nevertheless served for many years and was developed into the even more potent MiG-17.

Spotlight Mikoyan-Gurevich

MiG-15

Scrutinizes the history of...

The Mikoyan-Gurevich

Above

Several jets remain flying as warbirds. MiG-15 91051 is pictured flying with North American Sabre FU-012.

MiG-15 B

est remembered for its role in the 1950-1953 Korean War, the MiG-15 made for a feared adversary. Thanks to its swept-wing design and powerful Klimov turbojet engine, pilots flying straight-winged aircraft or anything piston-powered were advised to avoid combat with the swift, sleek jets if possible. The arrival of the North American F-86 Sabre in Korea ended the Russian aircraft’s outright superiority, but the MiGs continued to pose a dangerous threat for many years to come. The aircraft was allocated the rather inelegant NATO reporting name ‘Fagot’ when introduced to the Soviet Air Force in 1949. The term actually refers to a collection of sticks bound together to create fire, and continued the NATO process of giving all Eastern bloc fighters easily remembered names beginning with ‘F’.

54 FLYPAST November 2017

Early days

The Mikoyan-Gurevich design bureau’s first jet fighter, the MiG-9, a straight-winged aircraft, first flew on April 24, 1946. Around 600 of the twin-engined machines were built, but were quickly superseded by the MiG-15. The later jet was designed to accommodate a British-derived Klimov engine and had swept wings, an innovative feature inspired perhaps by Germany’s World War Two-era Messerschmitt Me 262. Unlike the Luftwaffe machine, the MiG’s single powerplant was housed within the rear fuselage. The first of its prototypes – designated I-310 and powered by a Rolls-Royce Nene engine – made its debut flight on December 30, 1947. It performed well from the outset, and further improvements were made to the Klimov-fitted MiG15bis (‘second’), which entered

service in 1950. The jet was fast, but not supersonic, its control surfaces becoming ineffective as it approached the sound barrier, and pilots were warned not to exceed Mach 0.92 in a dive. It was also difficult to recover after a stall – later models were equipped with an ‘all-flying’ tail featuring a stabiliser, which partly remedied the problem.

Into war

The type was ‘blooded’ by the People’s Republic of China during the final phases of the 1946-1949 Chinese Civil War. Chinese MiGs also participated in the first jet-versusjet combats of the Korean War, and proved superior to British Gloster Meteors and American Lockheed F-80 Shooting Stars and Republic F-84 Thunderjets. Sir John Slessor, Britain’s Chief of the Air Staff, was among those amazed at the enemy aircraft’s potency. “Not

5

SPOT FACT The type remains in service with the Korean People’s Army Air Force

Origin & history for training, extending the design’s longevity. It was also developed into the more potent MiG-17 ‘Fresco’, which served effectively in the Vietnam War. Several MiG-15s continue to fly in civilian hands today and, remarkably, around 30 Chinese-built Shenyang FT-2 versions are believed to remain in use as trainers in North Korea.

only is it faster than anything we’re building today,” he said, “but it’s already being produced in very large numbers.” He also predicted it would give Russia a four-year lead over Britain in aircraft development. The entry of the F-86 evened up the score. Both fighters were of similar configuration, and in the right hands the Sabre was generally regarded as being slightly superior. As well-trained MiG pilots became harder to find, and were replaced by less experienced airmen, the expertly drilled US units gained the upper hand, aided by radar coverage.

Left

MiG-15s of the Romanian Air Force, probably in the early 1950s. Below

An overhead view of a MiG-15. ALL KEY

The MiG-15 continued to be operated by the USSR and its Warsaw Pact allies throughout the 1950s, with some nations retaining them for much longer. Four squadrons of the Egyptian Air Force flew them during the Suez Crisis of 1956. Although the Egyptians had few pilots adequately trained on the type, they managed to damage a pair of Israeli aircraft and a British English Electric Canberra, as well as destroying a number of military vehicles. The original MiG-15 fighter was modified into the two-seater UTI version, which was mostly used

Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15

AT A GLANCE: RANGE (miles) 0

500

1,000

1,500 1,565

AT A GLANCE: SPEED (mph) 0

200

400

600

800

688

Construction: First Flight: Powerplant: Dimension: Weight: Performance:

AT A GLANCE: CEILING (feet) 0

15,00

30,000

45,000 50,840

Armament: 60,000

Crew:

At least 12,000 were built – plus another 6,000 under licence. The I-310 prototype made its first flight on December 30, 1947. One 5,950lbf (26.5kN) Klimov VK-1 centrifugal flow turbojet. Span 33ft 1in (10.08m). Length 33ft 2in. Height 12ft 2in. Wing area 221.7 sq ft (20.6sq m). Empty 8,113lb (3,681kg). Loaded 11,177lb. Max speed 688mph (1,107km/h) at 9,840ft (3,000m). Service ceiling 50,840ft. Rate of climb 10,080ft per min. Max range 1,565 miles (2,520km) with drop tanks. Two 23mm Nudelman-Rikhter NR-23 automatic cannons in the lower left fuselage, one 37mm N-37 automatic cannon in the lower right fuselage, plus two bombs or rockets. One or two, depending on type.

Note: performance and weights varied according to role and configuration.

142

Allied aircraft were shot down in the Korean War by Soviet MiG-15s November 2017 FLYPAST 55

Spotlight Mikoyan-Gurevich

MiG-15

Above

James Jabara being congratulated on becoming an ace, May 20, 1951. COURTESY SQUADRON/SIGNAL PUBLICATIONS

Below

A line-up of MiG-15bis fighters built by different factories for evaluation at the test institute at Zhukovsky, near Moscow. GENNADY PETROV AND LEONID KRYLOV ARCHIVE

C

aptain James ‘Jabby’ Jabara of the USAF’s 4th Fighter Wing, 334th Fighter Squadron, downed his fifth and sixth MiGs on May 20, 1951 in the skies over Korea. The all-important fifth victory takes a pilot into the realms of being an ‘ace’. So the 28-yearold F-86A Sabre pilot earned his place in history as the first ace of the Korean War and the world’s first jet ace. With access to data from Western

56 FLYPAST November 2017

Fog of sources and previously restricted Soviet archives, the authors have been able to re-examine events. First and foremost, let us look at what constitutes a ‘victory’. This need not be the overt destruction of an enemy aircraft. In our opinion, the belief the aircraft was shot down is sufficient for the deed to be credited to the personal score of the victor. Whether the aircraft crashed after the attack, was damaged or not, could return to its home airfield or, perhaps, simply got off with nothing more than a ‘fright’ is of no importance. What matters in our opinion is that it was reported shot down. So, was Jabara the first fighter ace of the Korean War? No. Captain Stepan Naumenko of the Soviet 29th Guards Fighter Air Regiment was credited with his fifth victory on December 24, 1950 – well before Jabara. Falling to his guns were a B-29 Superfortress, two F-84s Thunderjets and two F-86s. On March 19, 1951, the commander of the 28th Guards Fighter Air Regiment, Major Viktor Kolyadin, achieved his five: an F-51 Mustang, two B-29s and two F-86s. A month later, on April 22, Senior Lieutenant (S/Lt) Fedor Shebanov of the 196th Fighter Air Regiment raised his score to five: a

B 29 and four F-86s. So, Captain Jabara was the first American – Western – jet fighter ace but fourth overall.

Jet-on-jet

Now, let us consider the first ‘jeton-jet’ ace. Between April 3 and 22, 1951, Jabara scored four victories over MiGs. During this period, the USAF and its United Nations allies were suffering from a shortage of airfields capable of accepting jets. The 4th Fighter Wing (FW) could keep only a single squadron of Sabres at Suwon, south of Seoul. In early May 1951, Jabara’s 334th Fighter Squadron (FS) left for Japan to be rested; its place at Suwon was taken by the 335th FS. With four kills under his belt, Jabara was allowed to stay, and tried to raise his score to five. Nearly a month passed before he achieved this propaganda coup. On the same day that Jabara reached four victories, S/Lt Shebanov of the 196th clinched his fifth kill, a tally that included four F-86s. On May 20, both Jabara and Shebanov participated in a skirmish with others and the first all-jet ace in history emerged from that engagement. As is often the case, accounts of this dogfight in Western records and Soviet documentation vary so

56

MiG

SPOT FACT The Russian jet had a higher operational ceiling than any version of the F-86

of War

6

Yuriy Tepsurkaev and Leonid Krylov present a ‘blow-by-blow’ account of the MiG versus Sabre dogfight of May 20, 1951 – and assess its place in history much that they could be referring to completely different combats. However, there are two points where the descriptions coincide. First, that one of the MiG-15 pilots baled out and was parachuting to earth when a pair of the Sabres flew over him. Second, one of the Sabres had a fuel tank hanging askew under its wing. This will help us identify the first jet-on-jet ace.

MiG Alley

On May 20, pilots of the 4th FW led by Col Hinton took off in two groups of 12 Sabres, with a back-up group of four to provide a ‘fighter screen’ along the Yalu River near the North Korean/Chinese border. From Antung, in Chinese Manchuria, north of the border with Korea, two groups of eight MiGs of the 196th led by Captain N K Shelamonov and Lt Col E G Pepelyaev took off at two-minute intervals to intercept the Americans. As usual, the parties overestimated the strength of their opponents. According to Soviet sources, the MiGs faced 40 F-86s. Documents mentioned that “the enemy had no common combat formation; the

aircraft were flying in separate groups of three or four F-86s each, from different directions and different altitudes” – thus a mistake in determining the opposition’s strength is quite explainable. For their part,

MiG-15 in Combat

the Americans reported in the Daily Korean Bulletin, April to June 1951, that the 28 Sabres had to fight as many as 70 MiG-15s. The first group of F-86s, in two sub-groups of six, under the command of Lt Col Bruce Hinton entered ‘MiG Alley’ and encountered a superior enemy force.

Above

A MiG-15 caught in the camera gun of an F-86 Sabre over Korea. KEY COLLECTION

“As is often the case, accounts of this dogfight in Western records and Soviet documentation vary so much that they could be referring to completely different combats”

Above left

S/Lt Fedor Shebanov of the 196th Fighter Air Regiment, April 1951. ALL IMAGES VIA AUTHORS UNLESS NOTED

MiGs intercepted nine B-29s escorted by 34 F-86s and 55 F-84Es on October 23, 1951 November 2017 FLYPAST 57

SPOT FACT Below 26,250ft (8,000m), the Sabre had a slight advantage over the MiG in most respects Other Soviet MiG-15 aces in Korea

Captain B S Abakumov – five victories.

Captain B V Bokach – six victories.

Major Viktor Kolyadin – 15 victories in World War Two, five over Korea. I SEIDOV ARCHIVE

Major Stepan Naumenko – five victories. I SEIDOV ARCHIVE

Captain N K Shelamonov – five victories.

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according to Hinton, four Sabres had to return to Suwon just before the battle because their drop tanks failed to jettison. Captain Morris ‘Mo’ Pitts pulled in behind a group of MiG-15s and fired at the wingman of the second pair. After several good hits, the MiG immediately entered a steep dive. Pitts’ wingman, Lt ‘Rudy’ Holley, fired at the escaping MiG without success. When Pitts came in for his second attack, his gun sight failed, and he had to abort. Hinton remembers Captain Max Weill pulling in behind a MiG. After two long bursts, which hit near the engine, the MiG began trailing dense black smoke. Weill intended to finish him off but experimental 50-cal ammunition exploded in the barrel of one of his guns. This tore off a cover forward of the cockpit and Weill and his wingman had to return to the base. Another pair of the first group (Captain Ray Janeczek and Lt Howard Miller) noticed a single MiG east of Sinuiju. At first, Janeczek unsuccessfully attacked from 1,200ft (365m); then he came closer and gave another long burst. Hinton remembers: “This time he hit the MiG right behind the wing root and all over the wing. Fuel started streaming from the MiG’s wing, and it flipped over onto its back and entered a steep dive.” The description of fuel streaming from the MiG’s wing is undoubted confirmation of its damaged condition and is backed up by the memoirs

of other pilots. However, unlike the F-86, the MiG-15 had no fuel tanks in the wing.

Wave after wave

According to Soviet documentation, the group of eight MiGs led by Lt Col Pepelyaev was the first to engage the Sabres on May 20. In his post-flight report, Pepelyaev stated: “At 15:08 through to 15:58, in an air-to-air combat with a group of the F-86s, I was firing at an F-86 from a distance of 500 to 600 metres. During the firing, I saw the shells hit the aircraft and explode on the right wing; after that, the aircraft made a wing-over to the right.” Pepelyaev does not claim directly that the enemy aircraft was shot down; he only describes the results of the attack. This is the style typical of his reports. Initially, it was concluded that

40

Soviet

MiG

viet

MiG-15 in Combat

the Sabre had been damaged; however, later it was deemed shot down. It became the first of Pepelyaev’s 19 victories. Behind Pepelyaev was Captain B V Bokach and his wingman S/Lt Zykov. They attacked a pair of F-86s from behind. After firing two bursts, Bokach disengaged, but Zykov was taken on by a trio of Sabres. While shaking them off he fell into a spin, recovering after about 13,000ft only

to be confronted by another two. Only by descending to very low level did he escape, landing with a shoulder injury and ten holes in his MiG. The second flight of Pepelyaev’s group was led by Captain Nazarkin and his wingman, Litvinyuk. They tackled four F-86s head-on and both entered spins when breaking off. Litvinyuk returned to base, but Nazarkin was bounced by a pair of Sabres, which opened fire.

The Americans damaged the control linkage on the MiG and it fell into a steep dive. In an amazing piece of flying, by using the elevator trim tab, the Russian pilot managed to reduce the rate of descent sufficiently to bale out, just as the F-86s attacked again. He took to his parachute at about 12,000ft and at a speed of around 430mph (700km/h). The Sabres shot over his deployed canopy, about 30ft above him; he made a successful landing. The last pair of Nazarkin’s flight, Captain Abakumov and his wingman, Kirisov, climbed to confront the Sabres attacking their leader. An intense fight developed, with Abakumov employing violent escape manoeuvres; eventually breaking off at extreme low level before turning for home. Meanwhile Kirisov got behind an F-86 and got off several bursts. The enemy broke off, trailing black and white smoke from its right wing. The Russian pilot re-engaged, unleashing two long salvoes until he ran out of ammunition. As the Sabre went

Clockwise from above

A USAF press release showing the demise of a MiG-15, dated May 10, 1951. KEY COLLECTION Image from S/Lt Shebanov’s camera gun on May 20, 1951: the target is the F-86 flown by Lt Holley. Commander of the 196th Fighter Air Regiment, Lt Col Pepelyaev, at Antung airfield during the spring of 1951. An early series MiG-15bis built at Factory No.1 in Kuybyshev. GENNADY PETROV AND LEONID KRYLOV ARCHIVE

The first prototype MiG-15 (designated I-310, S-1) during factory tests in December 1947. GENNADY PETROV AND LEONID KRYLOV ARCHIVE

MiG-15 pilots were credited as aces during the Korean War - the true number is disputed November 2017 FLYPAST 59

SPOT FACT The MiG-15 threat forced the cancellation of B-29 daylight raids from November 1951 into a steep spiral, Kirisov disengaged as he realised that he had lost contact with Abakumov. Tucking in with a pair of MiGs, they headed for base.

$100,000 MiG Two months after the Korean War ended, North Korean pilot S/Lt No Kum-Sok defected to the south in MiG-15bis 2057, landing at Kimpo on September 21, 1953. The 21-year-old was delighted to learn that his mother had managed to flee to South Korea in 1951 and was reunited with her. No Kum-Sok was unaware of the $100,000 reward that USAF Far East Command had offered earlier in the year for an intact MiG-15. The North Korean pilot and his mother started a new life in the US.

Reinforcements

Under the command of Captain Shelamonov another eight MiGs arrived to reinforce Pepelyaev’s group. At the same time, a dozen Sabres, including Jabara’s, led by Colonel Ben Emmert entered the combat. They had left Suwon 15 minutes after Hinton’s flight. Emmert ordered his men to drop the fuel tanks, but found out that his own failed to jettison. Under the cover of his wingman, he turned around, bound for Suwon. The remaining Sabres joined the battle. Future fighter ace Lt Ralph ‘Hoot’ Gibson managed to pull in behind one of the MiG-15s and fired two long bursts, which: “struck the MiG on the wings and all over the aft fuselage”. Losing pieces of the wing and tail, and trailing black smoke, the MiG broke for the Yalu River. A pair of Russian jets prevented Gibson from finishing it off. Almost simultaneously, Lt Milton Nelson also went in to the attack and used up all 1,500 shells. His target, enveloped in flame around the fuselage, fell into a steep dive. During the combat, Captain Jabara had to face a special challenge, as quoted in The 4th Fighter Wing in the Korean War by Larry Davis (Schiffer, 2001): “We were still approaching the zone, moving along the western coast to the mouth, when we heard a message from Colonel Hinton stating that a lot of bandits were crossing the river. When we reached Sinuiju, I saw approximately 12 MiGs, which turned to us and started closing in. Here I noticed that my right underwing tank failed to drop [authors’ italics.]” According to standard operating procedures, a pilot whose underwing tank failed to drop had to return to the base. However, for Jabara it was, perhaps, the last chance to score the crucial fifth victory. It may be that he simply had no choice: there was little chance to escape the MiGs with a fuel tank hanging under the wing. There was nothing left for him to do but fight.

Fifth...and a sixth?

Jabara and his wingman, Salvadore Kemp, managed to approach a group of three MiGs. Jabara remembers

60 FLYPAST November 2017

Left

Defecting North Korean pilot No Kum-Sok in full flight gear. USAF Left

A view of MiG-15bis ‘616’ during evaluation at Kimpo, South Korea, 1953. KEY COLLECTION

At Kimpo the MiG was given USAF markings and the ‘serial’ 616, then shipped to Okinawa, Japan. In December 1953 it arrived at WrightPatterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio, where it continued to be evaluated. Retired in 1957 it was transferred to the co-located USAF Museum – now the National Museum of the USAF. Having been returned to its original North Korean colours, the MiG remains on show at Dayton.

he chose a MiG that was trailing slightly behind the others. Quoting Jabara, Davis records that it: “went into a constant left turn, and we went round and round for a while. At about 25,000ft I started to pull within range, fired once, then again. The second burst caught the MiG right below the cockpit, through the wing root, and across the left wing. It burst into flames, did a couple of snap rolls, and went into a spin. I could see him the whole time because he was trailing heavy black smoke. “I kept watching it and thought it was going to go straight in. But at about 10,000ft, the MiG levelled out just for a minute, and I saw the pilot bale out. The MiG then just exploded. I don’t think there was a big piece of it left at all. “I made a pass at the pilot with my camera rolling. I almost hit him when I bent down to turn on the camera, and had to pull up to avoid him. He was twirling in the ’chute, and all dressed in black.” Spotting six more MiG-15s, Jabara climbed back into the fray and latched onto one that was climbing straight ahead. “He suddenly dove down to the left. I had no trouble catching up with him. I got several good strikes. I don’t know whether he

was on fire or if he flamed out. But he was pouring white smoke out of his tailpipe. “I knew he was in trouble, and I wanted to see if he was going to hit [the ground]. I followed him down to 6,500ft. I think he was on fire, but I’m not sure because he was smoking like mad. He had definitely flamed out, going very slow, maybe 170 knots.” At this point three more MiGs arrived, laying tracer down against Jabara. Two of these were S/Lt Vladimir Alfeev and his wingman S/Lt Shebanov. The former’s combat report recorded: “at 15.06 to 15.50, in Tetsuzan area, I shot down an enemy aircraft type F-86. After four bursts from a distance of 600 to 300 metres...the enemy aircraft, which had a fuel tank hanging under the wing [authors’ italics], began to fall, being hardly controllable.” With that rogue drop tank ruining the aerodynamics of his F-86, Jabara was struggling with the controls. The asymmetric loading was constantly forcing his fighter to the left and down, and he needed both hands on the stick to correct this. His airspeed was down and the MiGs must have thought they had a ‘sitting duck’. Thankfully Holley and Pitts

MiG-15 in Combat

came to the rescue and took on his attackers. Alfeev pulled away and, in doing so, noted that he did not see the demise of Jabara’s Sabre, which he believed was doomed. Wingman Shebanov fired bursts at one of the new arrivals; his postaction report noting: “The enemy fighter dove abruptly down and away from the battle area, trailing fire.” The pilot of the third marauding

MiG was S/Lt Soskovets. He corroborated Shebanov’s actions: “Shebanov fired several bursts at the enemy at close distance. As a result, the enemy F-86 dove down trailing smoke. In my opinion, the F-86 was shot down by Senior Lieutenant Shebanov.” In his book, Davis quotes Jabara describing Holley’s intervention: “Holley got off a couple of good

bursts, hitting the MiG in the fuselage. The MiG started to smoke and dove away from us, heading straight for the Yalu. None of us could chase him down, even though he was crippled, as we were all way below ‘Bingo’ [adequate fuel reserves]. We joined up and headed back to Suwon, landing on fumes.”

Claim and counter-claim

Above

MiG-15bis 689 as flown by S/Lt Shebanov of the 196th Fighter Air Regiment from Antung on May 20, 1951. Shebanov scored his sixth and last victory on that day. He was killed while flying this aircraft on October 26, 1951 in a dogfight with an F-84 Thunderjet. YURIY TEPSURKAEV © 2017

According to results of the battle of May 20, 1951, Captain Jabara was credited with two shot-down MiG15s and Lt Nelson another. Gibson had a ‘probable’. Five other pilots were credited with ‘damaged’ MiGs. In spite of the many burning and smoke-trailing MiGs in the American descriptions, on that day the 196th Fighter Air Regiment lost only one aircraft, from which Captain Nazarkin baled out successfully. Another aircraft received battle damage and returned to the home airfield safely. On the other hand, pilots of the 196th were credited with four downed Sabres. According to American statistics, three F-86s were damaged due to their own experimental ammunition exploding, bringing about the failure of hydraulic lines to various degrees. All three aircraft returned to Suwon; although two of them (F-86As 49-1080 and 49-1313) crashed during landing and were written off. So, Captain James Jabara became the first jet ace in history. During the dogfight, he was attacked by Alfeev. In turn, Alfeev was engaged by Holley, and the latter, by Shebanov. According to pilots’ observations, Holley’s aircraft was deemed shot down; thus, Shebanov became – nominally – a jet ace several minutes after Jabara did.

Left

After shooting down a MiG-15, the pilot of an F-86 took camera gun images of the parachute, in similar manner to Captain Jabara on May 20, 1951. KEY COLLECTION

The authors would like to extend their thanks to participants of the discussion on the subject of air war in Korea at the forum within www.airforce.ru – Maksim Gorlenko, Vitaliy Naboka and Viktor Yashchuk.

22

victories were credited to Maj Nikolay Sutyagin, the top-scoring MiG-15 ace November 2017 FLYPAST 61

Spotlight Mikoyan-Gurevich

MiG-15

Red Stars

Over Moscow Andrey Yurgenson artwork of a MiG-15 that flew at 1952’s Soviet Air Forces Day

Artwork

Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15bis ‘Red 574’ of the 234th IAP, 9th Fighter Air Division of Moscow Military District, 1952. ANDREY YURGENSON-2017

L

ocated to the northwest of Moscow, Tushino airfield was home to an annual air parade organised by Russia’s military powers. The idea was to showcase the latest innovations in Soviet aircraft technology, and to demonstrate the strength of the nation’s armed forces. Held in August, it was usually called the Soviet Air Fleet Day or Soviet Air Forces Day. The first event took place in 1933. Four years later,

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the show was attended by nearly a million people, watching dozens of aircraft flying in separate formations that spelled out the words ‘LENIN’, ‘STALIN’ and ‘SSSR’ (Soviet Union). Among the numerous flyers at the 1952 event was our subject, the colourfully painted MikoyanGurevich MiG-15bis Red 574 of the 234th IAP, 9th Fighter Air Division. Its unit was part of the Moscow Military District, a centre

for reinforcement and training, established in 1864. The shows continued, mostly at Tushino, until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The tradition of the occasion continues today with the biennial MAKS Airshow at Moscow’s Zhukovsky International Airport. The event is now an important marketplace for Russian aerospace companies, as well as a spectacle for enthusiasts.

SPOT FACT The MiG-15bis (‘second’), entered service in 1950 with a Klimov VK-1 engine

12,000

MiG-15 in profile

is the approximate number produced in Russia November 2017 FLYPAST 63

Spotlight Mikoyan-Gurevich

MiG-15

Slaying

Sabres Leonid Krylov and Yuriy Tepsurkaev profile Evgeniy Georgievich Pepelyaev, top-scoring Soviet ace of the Korean War

Right

To quote Pepelyaev: an F-86 falling with “...a plume of white smoke from the left wing”. Recorded by camera gun on the aircraft of S/Lt Rybas, November 28, 1951. Far right

Major Pepelyaev in 1950.

T

he war in Korea broke out in the summer of 1950 and, in early November, Soviet fighters were put on an operational footing. On standby for a month, the 324th Fighter Air Division was at readiness and the Air Force Commander-in-Chief appointed the famous pilot Colonel Ivan N Kozhedub, thrice awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union honour, as Division Commander. Lt Col A S Koshel took over command of the 176th Guard Fighter Air Regiment and Lt Col Evgeniy Georgievich Pepelyaev took over the 196th Fighter Air Regiment. They were headed for China. Flight and technical crews dismantled the MiG-15s, packed them into crates and loaded them on railway flatbed cars. By December, aircraft and personnel had arrived at Dunfung, 124 miles (200km) behind the Korean border. No combat tasks were assigned, the men of the 196th set about testing the MiGs and intensive training. In late March 1951, the 324th Division was ordered to Antung airfield. The 176th Regiment deployed there on April 1, while the 196th arrived at about 12 noon on the 2nd. As soon as the MiGs were refuelled, Pepelyaev and his pilots carried out a familiarisation flight over the intended combat area. On the following day, the regiment began combat sorties.

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Intercept and destroy

Pepelyaev did not participate in the first operations; organisational issues kept him on the ground. But it was only a week later that he managed to enter the fray. Eight MiGs were ordered to intercept and destroy a USAF North American RB-45C Tornado reconnaissance flight on April 8. Pepelyaev recalled: “We climbed to the required altitude and closed in. The reconnaissance aircraft was escorted by four [F-86] Sabres, with the fighters flying slightly behind and above it. I started to approach from the rear, but I also saw an enemy approaching behind my fighter. “I told the leader of the second flight, ‘Attack the reconnaissance airplane and I will engage the fighters!’ My flight engaged the four Sabres. I almost managed to get to one of them from the rear. It was such a feeling… My heart pounded so hard that I felt as if somebody were hitting me on the head. I had hard breathing, thinking that I was going to shoot him down right about now! “But of course, I did not damn [well] shoot it down… I saw the second pair of Sabres closing in on me from behind and I switched my attention to them. We whirled around for some more time and the reconnaissance aircraft managed to fly away. One of the pilots from the second flight took an excellent picture of it from a distance of 150200m! “It turned out that its cannons were not charged, but his camera gun was on. That is why the picture turned out to be excellent.

When you fire from cannons, pictures usually get vague due to vibrations…”

First victory

Pilots of the 324th Division initially flew the MiG-15, but in May 1951 they received the improved MiG15bis direct from the factory at Novosibirsk. One of them, tactical number Red 325, was handed over to Pepelyaev. His first victory came on May 20. Two teams of eight MiGs each from the 196th encountered up to a dozen F-86s in groups of two or three. Pepelyaev’s team went into action at once. He approached a Sabre from behind and fired “from a distance of 500 to 600m. When firing, I saw rounds hit the right wing and explode, after which the aircraft, which was banking to the left, rolled to the right.” His team did not see any enemy aircraft falling, but from analysis of the camera gun footage, Pepelyaev was credited with an F-86. A Sabre pilot who had been shot down explained that it took about 58 to 60 seconds for the American jet to make a 360° turn. That was 6 or 7 seconds longer than it took the MiG-15bis. On the morning of July 11, Pepelyaev led a group to intercept fighters with Senior Lieutenant Ivan V Larionov as his wingman. Encountering a pair of F-86s, Pepelyaev approached from behind and fired at the wingman. The lead Sabre entered a turn and the Soviet pilot remembered the words of the debriefed American pilot, and decided to ‘outplay’ his opponent in a turning engagement.

SPOT FACT The MiG-15 made its service debut in 1949

Men Behind the MiG-15

s

647

mph (1,042kmh) was the speed reached by the prototype November 2017 FLYPAST 65

SPOT FACT The first production version of the MiG-15 flew on December 31, 1948 Right

The Pepelyaev family, left to right: Evgeniy, his mother, Konstantin, and Lyudmila, 1937. Below

MiG-15 108023 of the 196th Regiment, which was damaged in air combat, at Antung, April 1951.

After a while, the F-86 appeared behind Pepelyaev and hit his MiG on the wing with three bullets. During disengagement, Larionov became separated from his leader and did not return. He was searched for but no trace was ever found. S/Lt Larionov is still considered to be one of the three Soviet pilots missing in action in the Korean War.

Stop the fight

On July 21, the 196th Regiment took off to intercept a group of American aircraft. Pepelyaev said:

the leader of a pair of the F-86s to fire; the Americans dived, in a left roll. (According to US data, F-86E 50-671 was shot down.) The Soviet fighters were engaged by the second pair of

Sabres headon. Pepelyaev recalled: “The American leader hit me and tore off a big part of my air intake... At the point of Above

MiG-15bis 1315325 as flown by Lt Col Pepelyaev of the 196th Regiment from Antung, June 1951 to January 1952. Note the North Korean national markings. Built by Factory 153 at Novosibirsk in April 1951, Pepelyaev scored at least 17 of his 19 Korean War victories while flying this aircraft. YURIY TEPSURKAEV © 2017

“We caught up with eight F-94s [Lockheed Starfires] when they were already approaching the coastline. De facto, I had no right to attack them, as they were already over the Yellow Sea. “I ordered Captain Bokach to [engage] the four leading airplanes and aimed my team at the rear flight. I attacked the enemy in a climb. I fired at one of the F-94s from below and pieces flew around. After that, I did not follow it any longer. I climbed up and saw another aircraft turning to the left. I shot off its tail when he was turning; all the debris flew right towards my airplane. I even hunched my shoulders lest my head should be ripped off. However, fortunately, the debris did not hit my aircraft. “The group of F-94s dispersed and so did my pilots; each of them was attacking his own target. The whole battle was already above the Yellow Sea, thus I ordered to stop the fight. “I do not know the exact results of

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this particular air engagement. Our regiment was credited with seven or eight victories; I even had to report that one of my pilots had destroyed two F-94s [instead of stating] that he had not shot them down, but that they had collided in mid-air during his attack. In fact, I did not believe it. However, divisional commanders made me do this…” Pepelyaev’s opponents in that engagement were not F-94 nightfighters but Grumman F9F Panther carrier-based jet fighters, of which F9F-2B 123464 was downed. A Panther is also shown in the pictures taken by Pepelyaev’s gun camera.

Head-on

In early autumn, engagements and their scale increased considerably as the Americans assumed the tactic of massive air strikes. At 08.51 Beijing time on October 6, ten MiG-15bis of the 196th, headed by Pepelyaev, engaged up to 16 Sabres. In the first attack, he subjected

Men Behind the MiG-15 disengagement, the Sabres turned to the right and up, while I flew along the horizon a little and started a combat turn towards the Sabres. “As soon as I achieved a pitch of 40° to 50°, I switched from the right turn to the left one and got behind the leading Sabre – above it and slightly on the right. He was ahead of me at a distance of just over 100m. I pushed the control stick and tried to get him in the gunsight. However, the aiming mark always turned out slightly above the Sabre, while the negative g-load was pulling me out of the cockpit. “Then I rolled over to make the g-load push me into the seat; thus, I was able to do the aiming better. As soon as I rolled over, the American did the same, but I had already locked my aiming mark on his canopy and fired at it from a distance of 130m. The 37mm round hit the enemy fighter accurately behind the canopy. An explosion followed and the Sabre plunged to the ground. I did not follow it – that would hardly be necessary after a direct hit like that. “The Sabre pilot could not bale out as his ejection seat had been damaged. Therefore, he headed for the Korea Bay, with his engine barely working and leaving a plume of black smoke behind. His lead was escorting him. The American pilot made an emergency landing on the tide strip of the shore.”

35-40

From trainee to MiG commander Evgeniy Georgievich Pepelyaev graduated from the Odessa Military Pilots School in 1936, aged 19. By 1942 he was in command of the 1st Squadron, 300th Fighter Air Regiment. He was in combat from late 1943, spending much time in the Soviet Far East. As the Great Patriotic War came to a close in early September 1945, Pepelyaev was flying Yakovlev Yak-9Ts against Japanese ground targets. By 1946 he was in command of the 300th, which was based in Manchuria. In December 1947, he was deputy regiment commander with the 196th Fighter Regiment, 324th Fighter Air Division, at Volosovo, near Moscow. In July 1948, the 196th redeployed to Kubinka and in Deputy Commander of the 300th Regiment, August, the pilots began to master the Captain Pepelyaev near his Yak-9 at Zheltiy Yar, Yak-15 'Feather' jet fighter. The regiment autumn 1944. converted to the problematical Lavochkin La-15 jet in mid-1949, by which time Pepelyaev was a major. In October, the switch was made to the MiG-15. When the Korean War broke out, Major Pepelyaev was deputy to Hero of the Soviet Union S F Dolgushin, the 324th’s Regiment Commander.

This F-86A, 49-1319, was taken to the USSR and studied in detail by Soviet industry specialists. Another F-86A-5NA, 49-1147, was shot down by Pepelyaev on October 16.

Never lend your MiG

November 1951 was the most successful month in Pepelyaev’s combat career. In 22 days, November 8 to 29, the commander

Below left

Camera gun footage from Pepelyaev’s aircraft on July 21, 1951; the target is a Grumman F9F.

of the 196th Regiment scored six victories. At 12 noon on the 8th, he led three squadrons to intercept enemy fighters and fighter-bombers. Having encountered four F-86s, Pepelyaev approached one of them from behind, firing all his guns at it at a distance of 490 to 650ft. He recalled: “I hit this Sabre so hard that it disintegrated in the air. At first, patches of its skin started falling off its right wing, then the tail unit and the wing tore off. The Sabre rolled and plunged sharply to the right. “One of my pilots said, ‘Cool!’ I responded: ‘Watch, bastards, and learn how to shoot down the enemy!’ “I remember thinking that, after the sortie was over, I would show them the film from the camera gun, so that they could see how to shoot. However, when the film was extracted from the aircraft and developed, it showed a factory across a river and a brick chimney, instead of the Sabre falling apart… “Before this flight, I had lent my aircraft to a pilot on combat alert whose aircraft was out of order. He had begged me, so I said: ‘Fine, to hell with you, here is my aircraft, sit in it!’ He had fallen asleep in the cockpit, pressed his stomach against the control column and thus pressed the trigger. The camera gun had switched on and the whole film had been spent.

MiGs equipped a typical Korean War interceptor regiment November 2017 FLYPAST 67

SPOT FACT The type’s first air-to-air ‘kill’ was made against a P-38 Lightning on April 28, 1950

Ryzhkov climbed, while Captain Bokach and Lt Frolov extended their air brakes and followed the descending Sabre to finish it off – but this precaution was unnecessary, F-86A 48-301 did not recover from the dive; it crashed into a hill and exploded. December began with another victory. On the 1st, Pepelyaev shot down Lockheed F-80C Shooting Star 49-855 east of Pyongyang. Scrambled on the 5th, Pepelyaev’s section found nothing at the point Above

Camera gun image from Pepelyaev’s aircraft on November 28, 1951: F-86E 50-673.

“However, I was credited with the kill, because the enemy airplane crashed and its debris was brought to the airfield later on.” Three hours later, Pepelyaev led 16 MiG-15bis to intercept fighterbombers. On seeing the MiGs, the aircraft attempted to escape. He and his wingman attacked eight F-84s and dispatched one of the Thunderjets. On the 27th, Pepelyaev was credited with another Republic Thunderjet. The following day he scored victories against two F-86s. According to US data, F-86E 50-673 was shot down and F-86A 49-1184 was damaged.

Momentary slip

On November 29, the entire 196th Regiment took off, led by its commander, to intercept the enemy. A single Sabre attacked Pepelyaev’s pair but he avoided it by carrying out a combat turn, approaching the Sabre from behind and firing at it. The American fighter tried to shake him off by carrying out descending rolls, but failed. A long burst from all three of the MiGs’ cannons hit the F-86. Pepelyaev and his wingman S/Lt

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Flight Commander After Korea, Hero of the Soviet Union Evgeniy Georgievich Pepelyaev was appointed deputy commander of the 15th Guard Fighter Air Division. In early 1954, he joined the Combat Training Department of the Fighter Aviation of the State Air Defence Force, briefing pilots on the Korean experience. He also helped to introduce pilots to the radar-equipped MiG-17PF 'Fresco' and, during 1955-1956, Pepelyaev as Leading Engineer of the Moscow Scientific Research Institute of Automatic to bring in service the Yakovlev Yak-25 Instruments in 1985. 'Flashlight' twin-jet. Pepelyaev entered the General Staff Academy in late 1956 and, two years later, was appointed Commander of the 133rd Division of the Air Defence Force. The regiments of the 133rd flew MiG-17s and later MiG-19 'Farmers'. In May 1960, he was appointed Commander of Aviation of the 7th Fighter Corps of the 52nd Air Defence Army and began to master the cutting-edge Sukhoi Su-9 'Fishpot'. Sadly, a burst blood vessel near his right ear abruptly terminated Pepelyaev’s flying career. Retiring from the air force in May 1973, he joined the Moscow Scientific Research Institute of Automatic Instruments, where he worked for another 12 years. In 2000, Pepelyaev wrote MiGs against the Sabres: A Pilot’s Memoirs. Colonel Pepelyaev, Hero of the Soviet Union, was decorated with ten orders including two Orders of Lenin, three Orders of the Combat Red Banner, two Orders of the Red Star, two Orders of the Great Patriotic War and the Order of the Soviet-Chinese Friendship. There were also many medals, among them the Gold Star, Combat Services, Victory over Germany, Victory over Japan, 30 Years of the Soviet Army, 40 Years of the USSR Armed Forces and Service Excellence medal 1st Class. Evgeniy Georgievich Pepelyaev died on January 4, 2013, aged 95.

Men Behind the MiG-15

assigned by the Corps Command Post, so the commander instructed his men to sweep south of the Pyongyang-Wonsan line. There the Americans seemed unafraid of attack from MiGs. Spotting a group of F-80s, the 196th engaged them. At the end of the dogfight, the MiG formation was strung out and the ‘mutual cover’ principle was violated. One of the Shooting Stars managed to subject Pepelyaev’s wingman to a long-range shot and Ryzhkov was killed.

Three in three

On the morning of January 6, 1952 Pepelyaev led 16 MiG-15bis and engaged several Sabres. In 15 minutes, the Soviets forced the enemy 38 miles to the southeast. Pepelyaev got one of them from a distance of 1,000ft and he saw his rounds rupture the fuselage and wing. F-86E 50-655 crashed northwest of Sunchon. The following day, he was at the

29

Above left

Damage to Pepelyaev’s MiG-15bis 1315325, during the combat of October 6, 1951 and the aircraft after repair. Above

Salvaged components of F-86A 49-1338, which was brought down by Pepelyaev on November 8, 1951. Left

F-86A Sabre 49-1319 shot down by Pepelyaev on October 6, 1951.

head of a formation of 18 MiG15bis, scrambled to counter an air strike against targets near Antung. The 196th encountered F-86s and, in 20 minutes of combat, forced them back. In the first moments of the fight, Pepelyaev fired two long bursts at one of the Sabres, F-86E 50-651, which caught fire, entered an uncontrollable dive and exploded in mid-air. On the 8th, he claimed another victory, although US sources record that F-86E 50-679 was only damaged and repaired. The commander of the 196th Regiment had scored three victories in as many days. Three days later, as usual, Pepelyaev was at the head of 18 jets, looking for Sabres. A long burst from his three cannons made an F-86 descend abruptly, trailing a plume of white smoke. F-86E 50-612 became Guard Colonel Pepelyaev’s 19th and last victory of the Korean War. Later that same day, he came close to bringing his score to 20. Fourteen MiGs of the 196th Regiment encountered 16 F-86s on the approaches to Anju. He said: “I

could not reach the enemy aircraft. I recovered from a dive, but then I was not able to catch up with him no matter how hard I tried. And when I almost reached him, I got in his wake. I was less than 100m away and the wake turned my airplane upside down and forced it downwards...” His 109th and last combat sortie in Korea took place on January 15, 1952. Pepelyaev led 14 fighters of his regiment to escort 16 MiGs in service with the air force of the People’s Army of Korea. The Soviet and Korean fighters did not encounter any hostiles. The 324th Fighter Air Division was withdrawn from the theatre on February 1. Pepelyaev returned to the Soviet Union as the top-scoring ace: in 109 combat sorties he had scored 19 victories, comprising 14 F-86s, two F-84s, an F-80 and two ‘F-94s’ (F9Fs). In addition to being a talented warrior, Pepelyaev proved to be an excellent commander. Under a Decree of the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Council of April 22, 1952 Evgeniy Georgievich Pepelyaev was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

Left

Pepelyaev’s wingman, S/Lt A D Ryzhkov (four victories in Korea). ALL VIA AUTHORS

US aircraft were claimed by MiGs in April 1951 – American sources state 23 November 2017 FLYPAST 69

MUSEUMS OLD RHINEBECK

Living

the Dream Below

Built in 1975, Rhinebeck’s Albatros D.Va replica is powered by a Fairchild Ranger engine.

Stefan Schmoll visits charismatic Old Rhinebeck aerodrome, home to a wonderful gathering of classics

Aeronautical entertainer par excellence: Cole Palen. KEC

B

ritish understatement against American entertainment: both have their charm. The Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden in Bedfordshire and the Rhinebeck Aerodrome Museum north of New York are often compared. Each is located on an idyllic little grassy airfield, but at the American venue the appeal is aimed not just at the aviation enthusiast but at

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providing entertainment for the whole family. After World War Two, Cole Palen became a mechanic at the commercial airport of Roosevelt Field on Long Island, New York. Languishing in one of the hangars was a small cache of aircraft from a moribund museum project. With the airfield due to close in 1951 these treasures were put up for sale.

Classically informal Old Rhinebeck – top to bottom: Curtiss Robin N534N, Fokker D.VIII replica, a Piper Cub and Fleet 16 Finch N24197.

Cole scraped all his savings together and for a reported $1,500 became the owner of an Aeromarine 39, an Avro 504, a Curtiss JN-4 ‘Jenny’, a Sopwith Snipe, a SPAD XIII and a Standard J-1. He kept the machines at the family property and began restoring and acquiring more aircraft. In 1958 he bought a dilapidated farm surrounded by forest at

Rhinebeck in the Hudson Valley, where he built some small, crude hangars and turned the meadows into an aerodrome, soon to be name Old Rhinebeck. Two years later, he opened his ever-growing collection to the public for the first time – with about two dozen spectators coming to the first day. Cole and his pals went on living their dream and gathered more aeroplanes. When they

m

Old Rhinebeck’s 1909 Blériot XI with a hangar visible behind.

November 2017 FLYPAST 71

MUSEUMS OLD RHINEBECK

“In 1958 Cole Palen bought a dilapidated farm surrounded by forest at Rhinebeck in the Hudson Valley, where he built some small, crude hangars and turned the meadows into an aerodrome...”

couldn’t purchase an original, they built replicas – another major difference compared to Old Warden. Over the years the enterprise grew. The original rough and ready hangars were supplemented by more robust structures with the operation run on a much more professional basis. But informality and the fun element continued to shine through. After a stroke in early 1993, Cole decided to transfer his collection and the airfield to the Rhinebeck Aerodrome Museum Foundation. In December that year, aged 68, he died peacefully at his Florida estate, where he spent the winter months together with his wife Rita.

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Weekend stars Today at Old Rhinebeck visitors can see almost 70 aircraft, memorabilia from the early days of aviation, and classic cars. Around 40 volunteers make sure that, after all these years, the nostalgic weekend shows Cole devised – making Old Rhinebeck world famous – continue to be staged. On Saturdays, exhibits from the ‘Golden Age of Aviation’ are paraded. Without doubt one of the highlights is an original Blériot XI from 1909. After Old Warden’s example, it’s the second-oldest aircraft still flying in the world. But, for safety reasons, this valuable Edwardian, as well as replicas of a Hanriot Monoplane and a Curtiss

Pusher, only make ‘hops’. Nearing its centenary is Curtiss JN-4H N3918, built in 1919. The first Jenny acquired by Cole, in 1951, was exchanged for a Nieuport 28 which is now with the National Air and Space Museum, while the current example arrived in 1957 as an engineless wreck. The early Jenny models were equipped with a 90hp (67kW) Curtiss OX-5 engine, but N3918 is one of 929 improved H-models fitted with a 140hp Hispano-Suiza 8, the only survivor of this version. In July this year a very special machine returned to Old Rhinebeck when the museum acquired 1941built Fleet 16 Finch N24197. The biplane had been the very first

aircraft to land on Cole’s newly established aerodrome. Meanwhile a recently completed replica of the Ryan NYP Spirit of St Louis, as flown solo by Charles Lindbergh across the Atlantic in 1927, was still in its testing phase during the writer’s visit. In between all the US classics is de Havilland Tiger Moth N3529, wearing the fictitious British registration G-ACDB. There are other examples of European design, but the overriding theme at Rhinebeck is ‘made in America’. Typically American is the New Standard D.25, a large fourpassenger biplane from the late 1920s aimed at the barnstorming market. At weekends, 1929-built D.25 N176H makes pleasure flights

over the Hudson Valley. Also part of the museum, D.25 N19157 – built in 1937 as a crop sprayer – is currently in restoration. A third New Standard, N9194, has been in private hands at Old Rhinebeck for several years. On Sundays, the focus is on World War One, with a staged story about ‘Sir Percy Goodfellow’ and his bride ‘Trudy Truelove’. She is kidnapped by the evil ‘Black Baron’ who is intent on robbing her of a kiss. Staged in a slapstick manner, this spectacle might not be to everyone’s taste but these shows, conceived by Cole

Palen in the 1960s, are definitely fun. When Fokker Dr.I and D.VII, Albatros D.Va and Sopwith replicas go up in the air, it’s always impressive. Some of the aircraft used in the early years have meanwhile been relegated to the static park – but more and more of the perfect reproductions built by well-known engineer and collector Brian Coughlin are flying at the shows.

Aladdin’s caves The aeroplanes that perform in front of large audiences each

weekend are only a small part of the collection. Across the road is a trio of hangars built in the early 1960s, each an aviation Aladdin’s cave. This is no place for modern museum pedagogy; instead, true treasures – original and reconstructed – from the early years of aviation are here to savour. Inside one hangar are replicas of Wright types, a Santos-Dumont Demoiselle, a Nieuport 2N and a Short S.29 plus an original Thomas Type E Pusher from 1912, built in Hammondsport, New York, by William and Oliver Thomas.

One of Brian Coughlin’s exacting replicas, Sopwith Pup N5138, completed in 2016. Far left

Brunner-Winkle Bird mailplane N850W. Left

Aladdin’s caves: the three hangars from the 1960s.

The cockpit of Fokker D.VII replica N70814, built in 1993.

Rhinebeck’s Fokker D.VIII replica on the flight line.

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MUSEUMS OLD RHINEBECK

A replica of the Ryan NYP ‘Spirit of St Louis’, close to flight test in July.

Morane-Saulnier MS.130 N7MS.

“Old Rhinebeck is a two-hour drive from metropolitan New York, and in Rhinebeck itself and the neighbouring small towns, visitors will find accommodation and restaurants to suit every pocket” The middle hangar is dedicated to World War One. In addition to the well-established replicas of a Fokker Dr.I and Siemens-Schuckert D.IV N1918G is a new reproduction of a Fokker E.III. For followers of British types, Sopwith Camel replica N7157Q is kept here along with a Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5a reproduction, which is dismantled and hides in a dark corner. Suspended upside down above the SE.5a is an original Albree-Pigeon Fraser monoplane of 1917. One of only three built, it never flew, Cole Palen acquiring it in 1961. The theme of the third hangar is the ‘Golden Age of Aviation’ – the 1920s. There are no replicas here, but among the exhibits are two non-US designs: Aeromarine AKL 26 N320N, an American licence-built version of the German Klemm 25 monoplane, and French Morane-

Thomas-Morse S-4B N74W. ALL STEFAN SCHMOLL UNLESS NOTED

74 FLYPAST November 2017

Saulnier MS.130 parasol monoplane N7MS. Believed to be the last of their kind, Nicholas-Beazly NB.8G parasol N576Y, Brunner-Winkle Bird N850W and Spartan C3 N285M biplanes are displayed here too. As well as the aircraft, these ‘founder’ hangars also house cars and engines.

Place of pilgrimage While the exhibits in the early hangars are not in the best condition, a large, modern display hall holds some of the oldest aircraft in America. Inside, in addition to a second Blériot XI, built in 1911, the museum has an original Voisin biplane from 1908. From World War One is a parasol Morane-Saulnier A1, ThomasMorse S-4B N74W and the world’s only original Nieuport 10, which

Frenchman Charles Nungesser flew in the USA after the conflict. These rare originals have not flown for many years and remain in the static collection. From the 1920s and 1930s are classics from companies that didn’t survive the Great Depression and have largely been forgotten. Among them is A-129 biplane N513H from the American Eagle Corporation: around 400 were built from 1929, the museum’s example featuring a Kinner radial engine. More famous are the museum’s high-wing Monocoupes produced by Mono Aircraft and designed by Don Luscombe – Monocoupe 90 N429N, built in 1931, and Model 113 N8955 of 1927. Another well-known type is Pitcairn Super Mailwing N15307, built at Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, in 1937. Several small hangars on the

aerodrome hold aeroplanes being restored or waiting for their turn. SPAD VII replica N8096L, freshly renovated during my visit, was awaiting its engine. For ease of operation, the biplane fighter will be fitted with a Lycoming ‘flat-six’ engine within the original cowl lines. Making slow progress is Sopwith Dolphin N47166 replica which, built in 1970, suffered a crash-landing two decades later. It will be fitted with a 200hp Hispano-Suiza engine. Old Rhinebeck is a two-hour drive from metropolitan New York, and in Rhinebeck itself and the neighbouring small towns, visitors will find accommodation and restaurants to suit every pocket. Cole Palen’s pioneering aerodrome is a place of pilgrimage that will never disappoint. www.oldrhinebeck.org

p075_FP_Nov17_ad.indd 1

11/09/2017 11:52

FROM THE WORKSHOP AVRO SHACKLETON Festooned in scaffolding, Newark’s Shackleton MR.3 WR977 at the beginning of the project.

‘Scaffoldton’ N

ewark Air Museum has two impressive aircraft display halls, but neither is in a league to take an airframe the size of an Avro Shackleton maritime patroller. This year is the 40th anniversary of MR.3 WR977’s arrival at the Nottinghamshire collection, all of that time spent as an external exhibit. To prepare it for many more years on show, a major refurbishing programme initiated in early 2016 had to be carried out in the open air. The wingspan of a Mk.3 is 119ft 10in (36.52m) with an area of 1,458ft 2 (135.44m 2), or half a

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Wimbledon tennis court. All of that structure needed careful inspection, de-corroding, repair if necessary, preparation for painting, application of primer and top coat, plus detail markings. That’s just the top of the wing, there’s nearly as much underneath, plus engine nacelles and fairings. The span of the tailplane is 33ft, the fins and rudders have an area of 222ft 2, each side. Then there’s 92ft 6in nose to tail of fuselage to consider. So, a Shackleton is the rough equivalent of three-and-a-bit tennis courts. As the top of the tail

of the Shackleton stands 23ft 4in off the ground there’s no stepping back to admire your work. The solution was to hire scaffolding to provide a safe, secure floor at the height of the wing leading and trailing edges, down the rear fuselage and either side of the cockpit. Museum staff and ‘regulars’ were not put off by the vast extent of the venture, but with the expense of the scaffolding and vagaries of the British weather, time was of the essence. In March 2016 Newark launched an appeal for volunteers from

within its wider membership and from WR977’s owners, the Lincolnshire’s Lancaster Association. The invite pulled no punches, describing the task as: “not particularly glamorous and hard work.” There were hopes the project might encourage ‘new blood’ to join the regular crew. The contractors finished on April 7 and what inevitably became known as the Avro ‘Scaffoldton’ awaited its painting team.

Ultimate model The Mk.3 was the ultimate development of the Shackleton,

n’

Ken Ellis examines one of Newark Air Museum’s most ambitious projects – completed in open air conditions and a quantum leap from the prototype of 1949. Tricycle undercarriage and wing tip tanks were the most obvious changes. The systems were improved and the weapons fit could include the Mk.10 ‘Lulu’ nuclear depth charge and acoustic homing torpedoes. The most complex modification improved performance in overload and ‘hot and high’ conditions. An Armstrong Siddeley Viper turbojet was installed in the rear of each outboard Rolls-Royce Griffon 57A engine nacelle to provide boost on take-off. The first Mk.3, WR970, had its

maiden flight on September 2, 1955. The RAF took 34 up to 1959, and the South African Air Force ordered eight. RAF Mk.3s served until the advent of the Hawker Siddeley Nimrod jet in the early 1970s. See the panel overlead for WR977’s career.

High-level progress With the scaffolding in place, the giant was pressure washed prior to an induction session for volunteers staged on April 9, 2016. Travelling from all over Britain, the ‘day-member’ painters set to that afternoon.

“In March 2016 the museum launched an appeal for volunteers. The invite pulled no punches, describing the task as: ‘not particularly glamorous and hard work’.” November 2017 FLYPAST 77

FROM THE WORKSHOP AVRO SHACKLETON Avro Shackleton MR.3/3 WR977

Work on the forward fuselage, with the cockpit canopy masked off. Behind is Vulcan B.2 XM594. Shackleton MR.3/3 WR977 with 42 Squadron, 1968. PETER GREEN COLLECTION

Aug 1957 First flown at Woodford, near Manchester. Sep 14, 1957 Issued to 220 Squadron at St Eval, Cornwall. The unit was re-numbered as 201 Squadron at nearby St Mawgan on October 1, 1958. May 1959 Returned to Woodford for Phase 1 upgrade. Nov 1959 Transferred to 206 Squadron at St Mawgan. Jan 1962 More comprehensive Phase 2 modifications carried out by Avro at its out-station at Langar, Notts, from January 1962. Apr 1963 Joined 201 Squadron at St Mawgan. Jul 1965 Upgrade to Phase 3, including AS Viper jet boosters, also performed at Langar. May 1966 Issued 42 Squadron, also based at St Mawgan. Jan 1967 After Rhodesia’s unilateral declaration of independence from the British Commonwealth in November 1965, the RAF maintained a patrol of the waters off the port of Beira, Mozambique to prevent sanction-busters from breaking the UN oil embargo to Rhodesia. From January to April 1967 WR977 was deployed to Majunga, Madagascar, for these duties, as part of Operation Mizar. Jul 1968 Taken on charge by 203 Squadron at Luqa, Malta. Jul 1969 Loaned to 206 Squadron at Kinloss, Scotland and to 42 Squadron in August 1969. Aug 1970 Returned to 203 Squadron at Luqa. From mid-1971 the unit took on its first Nimrod MR.1s. Nov 7, 1971 Ferried to St Mawgan where WR977 was slated for fire-rescue training. This was rescinded and instead, the Shackleton took off two days later, on its last-ever flight, bound for Finningley, Yorks, which was an out-station for the RAF Museum. Total flying hours came to 6,696. Mar 1977 Finningley was picked as the venue for HM Queen Elizabeth’s Silver Jubilee Review of the RAF, and WR977 was put up for tender. Long-term Newark Air Museum benefactor Stuart Stephenson offered the £1,000 (£11,000 in present-day values) the Ministry of Defence was asking. Apr 12, 1977 Dismantling began and the main sections left the Yorkshire airfield on May 1. The job of putting it all back together again began a week later. On display ever since. The Newark Air Museum has published two detailed books on the life and times of WR977 and its crews: Duty Carried Out and Dedication to Duty. More details at: www.newarkairmuseum.org

“What kept Anthony and the others going? ‘There were a few people who were expecting us to fail; we were having none of that!’” 78 FLYPAST November 2017

In the clement early summer, progress was impressive and in just 12 weeks and one day, WR977’s upper surfaces had been completed. The high-level scaffolding was removed in early July. Key during this first phase were Alan Foxwell and Dave and Samantha Taylor: all three later becoming full museum members. Alan went on to take part in the renovation of Blackburn Buccaneer S.1 XN964. As this feature was written, Dave and Sam were involved in further tasks on WR977 while stalwart Andy Otter was tackling the internal surfaces of the bomb bay. The underwing areas, including the engine nacelles and undercarriage bays, proved particularly arduous. One of the museum stalwarts said the wings: “may provide shelter from the sun or the rain, but there is nothing more sapping than to be continually working with your hands above your head.” During the summer Newark’s president, Mich Stevenson, also took part. In the late 1950s he was employed at the Avro out-station at Langar, Notts; completing many of the drawings for the three-phase Shackleton update programme. The museum restoration manager, John Rankin, guided the operation from the start, putting in many

hours of hard toil to make sure the scaffolding deadline was achieved. John retired from his post in late 2016 but, like others, he found the museum’s ‘gravitational pull’ hard to resist and returned as a volunteer earlier this year.

Endurance Despite his army background, including nearly two decades in Germany, Anthony Walker has always had a passion for aircraft. When he heard “the call to arms” for volunteers he “felt it would be a bit wrong if I missed the opportunity to change something for the better”. He recalled that at the first gathering in April, including a health and safety brief and a howto session, there were about ten “eager beavers”. Veteran museum hands know not to be seduced by the attendance figure at the start of a project; it is always going to take a dive. Anthony noted that: “by August we were down to a skeleton crew”. There were times when WR977’s bulk was overwhelming. “When you were on top [of the wings/fuselage] you could see the progress and this provided a boost. The undersides were the opposite – you never seemed to be getting anywhere.

The rear fuselage, May 2016.

The port upper wing with the other 40th anniversary aircraft behind, Hastings T.5 TG517.

The rubbed down starboard undercarriage bay.

The surface preparation became so monotonous at times you could see why people would go and find other things to do.” From November to the start of April was the hardest part: shorter and colder days, with many wiped out altogether by the weather. Anthony was determined to settle in to a routine, turning up every Saturday, with occasional Thursdays or Fridays depending on job commitments.

Final push Come the spring, the weather broke and the port rear side of the

A celebratory glass at the end of the project in May 2017 for Daren Wilson, James Newton, Anthony Walker and Aaron Strickland.

fuselage was readied for painting in just a day and a half. Anthony said: “That was such a rush of satisfaction - real progress!” What kept him and the others going? “There were a few people who were expecting us to fail; we were having none of that!” Their determination shines out. The museum had aspired to have the transformation completed by mid-May this year, in time for the special weekend marking the 40th anniversary of the arrival of WR977 and Handley Page Hastings T.5 TG517. To achieve this some of the team

booked holidays from their day jobs for an intensive final ‘push’. Apart from some details, WR977 was ready for the ‘curtain up’ and is a tribute to the hard graft of all involved. Not content with the marathon on WR977, Anthony was part of a working party that travelled to the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Visitor Centre at Coningsby, Lincolnshire, in June for a special assignment. They repainted the ‘Tallboy’ and ‘Grand Slam’ bombs displayed outside the entrance. By inviting day members to join in the Shackleton

repaint, Newark’s hopes of adding to its regulars worked in Anthony’s case. I caught up with him at the museum’s unique ‘CockpitFest’ gathering in June when he was restoring DH Sea Vixen FAW.2 XJ560. He said he had been “galvanised” by his involvement on WR977. I pointed out that once again he was sanding down an airframe in the open. He grinned: “Well, you get the bug for it.” Gesturing to the twin tails of the Sea Vixen, he added: “Besides, this one’s much smaller!”

The pristine finished product: May 2017. ALL HOWARD HEELEY - DOWN TO EARTH PROMOTIONS UNLESS NOTED

November 2017 FLYPAST 79

GLORY DAYS PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORIES

NE MAN’S

WAR W

e present a collection of rare images from the archive of Frederick Shakespeare-Smith, who after leaving the army in 1941 transferred to the RAF. He qualified as an air observer and navigator, with his flying training taking place in the United States and Canada. Among his postings was a move to 194 Squadron, which was flying the Douglas Dakota IV in the South East Asian theatre. At the end of the war Shakespeare-Smith was working in the airfield planning department at the headquarters of 229 Group in Delhi.

Above right

Frederick Shakespeare-Smith (right) seen in an Avro Anson during his time with 31 ANS. Far right

A portrait of a Bristol Blenheim crew, thought to have been taken at Poona, India on August 12, 1943. Frederick Shakespeare-Smith is far left, while the other two crew members are listed as ‘Jack’ and ‘Bill’. The image was probably taken after a map reading exercise. Right

An informal portrait of the drawing office staff at the airfield planning department, 229 Group headquarters, Delhi. The image was taken in late 1945 and has been hand tinted.

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A Douglas Dakota IV of 194 Squadron. Note the Rebecca radar aerial fitting on the side of the nose and the two-tone fuselage roundel, which consisted of two shades of blue to avoid confusion with the red Japanese national marking.

Above

A wrecked Stearman at Tuscaloosa in September 1941. Left

The entrance to 31 Air Navigation School (ANS) at Port Albert, Canada. The unit became operational on November 18, 1940 and disbanded on February 17, 1945. The main aircraft type used at the station was the Avro Anson.

Two Stearman Kaydet trainers at Tuscaloosa, Alabama circa September 1941. Frederick Shakespeare-Smith undertook his initial flight training here as part of the Arnold Plan – a scheme to train RAF pilots in the United States.

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Luck

BE A LADY Steve Grivno uncovers the story of Lady Luck II, a Consolidated Privateer with a charmed life

O

n a day trip to Fargo, North Dakota, in the autumn of 1995 I visited a store owned by Earl Fankhanel and his wife in the small town of Hillsboro. Looking over the merchandise I observed a wooden model of a Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer and asked the price of it. Earl said it had been a gift and wasn’t for sale. He went on to say that he’d been a tail gunner on the type in World War Two. We talked for a few minutes and I took a couple of

pictures of him, and the model, before leaving the store. About nine years later, after our sons were out of college, my wife and I retired and moved to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Going through some old photos I found the pictures of that day in Hillsboro. After writing a letter to the mayor, I was pleased to learn that Earl was still very much alive and our subsequent conversations revealed some fascinating history. The exploits of Earl and ‘Crew 10’ would make a

producer of action movies envious. Seventy years ago, the men in this story were young warriors, although they would be the last to call themselves that. “Just a bunch of guys doing their job,” was their collective reply to suggestions of heroism. They were part of a savage

Below

An archive image of a Consolidated Privateer in US Navy service. KEY

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WORLD WAR TWO CONSOLIDATED PRIVATEER

“The strip sure is bad. There’s always a crosswind and the runway is always muddy. It’s a wonder anyone gets off at all. There’s an average of one crack-up per day – mostly P-51s and B-29s”

Top

A wooden-hulled fishing vessel (or ‘Sugar Dog’) that was attacked and sunk on April 22, 1945 by Crew 10 in PB4Y ‘Anchors Away’. JIM SUTTON COLLECTION

Above

A wartime map of Iwo Jima. Right

Enemy shipping at a small island in Tokyo Bay. JIM SUTTON COLLECTION

war that showed no mercy, and if the enemy wasn’t enough of a threat there was the vastness of the Pacific Ocean always waiting to swallow them up.

Halfway house

The Japanese volcanic island Iwo Jima might well be described as a barren piece of debris in a very large blue ocean, and of little interest to anyone. That was until the final years of World War Two when the little atoll became a stepping stone in the Allies’ ‘island hopping’ strategy, which brought Boeing B-29 Superfortresses within range of striking the Japanese homeland from their massive bases on Tinian. About halfway between Tinian and Japan, Iwo Jima offered damaged B-29s an emergency landing field and a base for their P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt escorts. It

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also served as an advanced airfield for shorter-ranged aircraft. The collective aim was to strangle Japan by destroying the shipping that was the lifeblood of the island empire. Invaded by the US Marine Corps, Iwo Jima was wrested from the defenders after a fierce, no holds barred battle in February and March 1945. On April 21 a group of young men called Crew 10 arrived to play their part in sealing the fate of the Japanese Empire. They landed on Iwo Jima after a ten-hour patrol that had

started at Tinian earlier that day. They were one of 18 crews and 14 aircraft comprising the US Navy’s Patrol Bombing Squadron 108 (VPB108), which had formed up only the year before. Iwo Jima was a forward base VPB-108 crews would operate from for about two weeks at a time. The day after arriving, Crew 10 mounted a patrol in ‘their’ aircraft, PB4Y-2 59483 Anchors Away: the Privateer was a navalised, single-tailed and stretched version of the USAAF’s B-24 Liberator bomber.

rocks and finally boulders. This was not a tropical paradise. The island was considered ‘secured’ but, at night, gunfire could be heard coming from Mount Suribachi as surviving Japanese troops occupying tunnels carved deep within the mountain tried to attack the airfields. Usually the Marines prevented this but, just in case they didn’t stop all the enemy troops, an airman would be delegated to spend the night with each PB4Y, armed with a Thompson submachine gun. Walking around the island after dark was extremely dangerous as the chances of being shot by ‘friendly fire’

They sank a ‘Sugar Dog’ (a wooden-hulled coastal vessel) and probably sent to the bottom a ‘Victor Able’ (a smaller, single-masted boat) three miles off Kobe, Japan – and had fired more than 3,000 rounds of 50-cal ammunition and dropped all eight 250lb bombs during the attacks. The geographic make-up of Iwo Jima included shades of volcanic black and grey ash, and sand, which worked itself into everything: food, weapons, engines and people. The further one walked inland the larger and coarser the volcanic debris became – from sand to pebbles to

Crew 10

were far more likely than the threat posed by any surviving Japanese. On days when they didn’t fly, ‘souvenir hunting’ was always an option. On one such venture, Earl, along with fellow gunners Jim Sutton and Jim Schroer, found a tunnel and decided to investigate it. They went in with their revolvers drawn but after about ten feet decided this could be a stupid idea as the darkness increased. There could have been booby traps within or even survivors of the Japanese garrison. Occasionally during their stays on Iwo Jima, they would observe Marines using flame throwers and ‘satchel charges’ just to make sure there would be no further opposition, while bulldozers sealed tunnels to prevent any further use.

Crew 10 in April 1945 – from left to right in the order as given in the table (except Robert Brodine, who joined the crew later). Apache was killed in action in April 1945.

Rank and Name AMM 1/c Albert Bagwell AMM 3/c Earl Fankhanel Ensign Claude Slack Lt William Hazlett Lt (jg) George Riffe AMM 3/c Robert Schroer gunner ARM 1/c Lester Storms AMM 2/c Wiley Parker ARM 2/c James Watts AFC 2/c Harold Fisher AMM 1/c Wilbert Mullinix turret AMM 3/c James Sutton gunner ART 2/c Robert Brodine Dog 1/c Apache

Age 24 19 27 25 27 19

Position Bow turret gunner Tail turret Navigator Pilot Co-pilot Teardrop turret

24 19 20 19 23

Radio/forward turret Aft upper turret Aft upper turret Bow turret gunner Crew chief/upper

20

Teardrop turret

19 ?

Radar operator Mascot

Notes: Grades – 1/c, 2/c and 3/c are 1st, 2nd and 3rd Class; jg – junior grade. Petty officer ranks: AFC – Aviation Fire Controlman; AMM – Aviation Machinist’s Mate; ARM – Aviation Radio Man; ART – Aviation Radio Technician. All turret gunners were cross-trained in bow, upper, teardrop and tail turrets.

Central Field

Above

Crew 10 was billeted west of the South Airfield in tents with no floors or lights. Water was always in short supply: to make it go further, and taste better, it was mixed with canned pineapple juice. The version served in the mess tent was water and a powdered lemonade mixture, which those who drank the concoction called ‘battery acid’. Showers were a memory and if you wanted to bathe there was always the Pacific Ocean. All patrols were flown from the short and bumpy Central Field, originally built by the Japanese. Port teardrop turret gunner Jim Sutton wrote in his diary on May 3, 1945: “The strip sure is bad. There’s always a crosswind and the runway is always muddy. It’s a wonder anyone gets off at all. There’s an average of one crack-up [accident] per day – mostly P-51s and B-29s.”

Jim Sutton standing by ‘his’ turret on ‘Anchors Away’. JIM SUTTON COLLECTION

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Crews initially operated from Iwo Jima for five days and would then rotate back to Tinian for maintenance and rest for seven days. The last part of their deployment comprised 12 days on Iwo Jima and eight on Tinian – from where they flew patrols to protect the fleet from the increasingly desperate and fanatical attacks the Japanese forces were making.

‘Breaking things’

On June 11, Crew 10 was slated for a search mission, which involved looking for downed aircrew while monitoring enemy shipping. The PB4Y they were assigned that day was Lt Baumgartner’s 59446 Lady

Above

The original bombardier’s aiming window was converted to accept two 20mm cannon. Above right

A remarkable shot taken from Lt Hill’s Privateer of the explosion of the ‘Sugar Charlie Love’ vessel. ‘Lady Luck II’ emerged through the top of the blast a second later. ROBERT SCHROER COLLECTION

Luck II: their relationship with him was already a bit strained after Crew 10 ditched ‘his’ aircraft several weeks earlier when they got lost on a long-range patrol. The main recollection Crew 10 had of Lady Luck II was its particularly bad nose-art. It was common practice for an enterprising serviceman with a knack for painting the female form and doing lettering to earn a large amount of cash – or several bottles of liquor – in return for adorning aircraft of all types. In Crew 10’s opinion, Lady Luck II’s artist was not the most gifted. However, they knew they weren’t there to be art critics but to “kill people and break things”. The mission would be flown in company with another PB4Y from VPB-108, captained by Lt Cyrus P Hill, and unescorted – but that was usual for Privateers as they bristled with armament: six power turrets with two 50-cal machine guns each as standard. Additionally, the VPB-108 engineering crew had mounted a

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20mm cannon on each side of the bombardier’s sighting window. They flew so low that a bomb aimer was inessential, the pilot operating the cannons and dropping the bombs using a ‘Mark One Eyeball’. Skip bombing had been developed earlier in the war as an effective lowaltitude method of delivery. Though not always perfect, when it worked the bomb would penetrate the hull of the target, almost always ensuring a sinking. On smaller vessels, in particular wooden-hulled types, the bomb would go in at one side of the hull and out of the other before exploding. For the cannon, sighting involved

highly defended Daio-Zaki area a wide berth. The wind had subsided and the bay’s surface was comparatively smooth. They spotted several vessels about two miles off shore, which were identified as two SCLs, along with several smaller fishing vessels. A ‘Sugar Charlie Love’ (SCL) was a steel-hulled coastal freighter, and at this stage of the war even tiny fishing boats were being secretively used to transport military goods and personnel. Sailing parallel to the coast the SCLs were making around eight knots on a heading of 260° – and very aware of the pair of bombers that had suddenly appeared. Hill was a couple of miles

following the splashes of the rounds hitting the water and ‘walking’ the projectiles into the target.

ahead of Lt William R Hazlett in Lady Luck II as each informed the other of the target they had picked. Hill took those further ahead, leaving Crew 10 to take care of one of the SCLs and one of the smaller boats, while Hazlett tried to line up for a run across the stern of the SCL without having to fly over the nearby land. (See panel on page 85 for full crew details.) The captain of the SCL kept the bow of his vessel aimed at the Privateer so that he could bring his twin 40mm guns to bear. As the aircraft’s crew prepared the attack, the rear bomb bay doors light on the pilot’s instrument panel indicated they were not open. Crew chief Wilbert Mullinix went back to investigate, making his way along the narrow catwalk past the bladder-type fuel cells that occupied the forward bomb bay. Entering the rear bay he noticed the doors were only partially open – and after manually opening them notified Hazlett on the intercom and stayed in the bay holding them open, despite the howling slipstream. The six 250-pounders were ready to be dropped.

Tough neighbourhood

The area to be patrolled on June 11 was just off the east coast of Honshu, the main island of Japan, at around 300ft, paralleling the coast, bays and inlets. Even at this late stage of the war it was a tough ‘neighbourhood’ for two American patrol bombers to be flying through. At 06:50 hours the two PB4Ys lifted off, tucked up the landing gear and lowered the retractable radomes to begin electronically searching a 100-mile section of ocean along their flight path. The weather was good on the outbound leg but about 40 miles off Honshu they encountered haze, cutting visibility to five miles. As they rounded the Shino-Misaki promontory the wind picked up to 25 knots from the northeast. The crews spotted two small ships in one of the many inlets but didn’t attack them – they were looking for bigger targets. Entering Nagoya Bay they gave the

“Just as Hazlett was about to drop another two bombs, the freighter exploded violently and debris towered several hundred feet into the air. Lady Luck II was flung upward nearly 500ft in a matter of seconds” All guns blazing

Recognising he’d have to make a bow-to-stern run over the SCL, Hazlett swung Lady Luck II into position and bore down on the vessel at an altitude of 75ft with all guns blazing, including the two cannons he controlled. As was usual in any attack, the bow and tail turret gunners worked over the target on the way in and out. Then, as the Privateer circled around for another pass, the two top turrets and the teardrop turret also fired at it. Fire from the SCL was described as “meagre but fairly accurate” – in addition to the twin cannon it had several 12.7mm machine guns – and its captain tried to make a last-minute manoeuvre to avoid the bombs he knew would soon be dropped. Hazlett lined up and at the appropriate moment pressed the button and dropped two of the six

bombs. These had three- to foursecond delay fuses to allow the bomber to escape the blast. The 250-pounders exploded, but narrowly missed the target. The strafing had started a small fire on the SCL which had slowed dramatically. At the same time, a smaller fishing vessel drew near, either for protection or to take off survivors. Hazlett swung around in a 180° turn to finish off the crippled SCL. The bow turret, top turret forward and the two waist turrets were blazing away while the two cannon in the nose of Lady Luck II barked out a staccato rhythm. Crew chief Mullinix doggedly hung on, keeping the bomb bay doors open. Just as Hazlett was about to drop another two bombs, the SCL exploded violently

and debris towered several hundred feet into the air. Lady Luck II was flung upward nearly 500ft in a matter of seconds. From Hill’s Privateer it looked as if their colleagues were ‘goners’. The view from the flight deck and turrets on Lady Luck II was instantly obscured by oil and sea spray. In the weapon bay three of the four remaining bombs had been blasted loose from their shackles. Thrown violently across the catwalk, Mullinix had miraculously not followed the bombs out of the aircraft. As the shaken and soaked crew chief entered the rear fuselage, gunner Jim Sutton opened his turret and asked: “Did we hit the water?” Mullinix replied: “No, it’s okay. We’re still flying.”

Top left

Jim Sutton stands beside the nose-art of Crew 10’s ‘Anchors Away’. Top right

Earl Fankhanel, the man behind the camera for several of the photographs used in this feature. US NAVY PHOTO VIA EARL FANKHANEL

Below

Mustangs from an unidentified squadron on Tinian. ALL EARL FANKHANEL COLLECTION UNLESS NOTED

Concludes in the December issue, on sale from November 1

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MARKETPLACE ACCESSORIES

AVIATION ART

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www.visoni.com 88 FLYPAST November 2017

The Fly the Rolls Royce is an Imperial Airways 10½ Days To excellent piece of art work by the Australia 1935 late Frank Wootton (1911-1998) Connected with this print, there are archival charts BEA FLY THE for each journey undertaken to ROLLS ROYCE Australia, showing WAY TO the gradual progress LONDON of the flight, logging Ca. 1953 By all stops for refuelling and Frank Wootton servicing etc. incl. passenger details.

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COLOUR SLIDE AND B&W PHOTO/NEG COLLECTIONS WANTED - TOP PRICES PAID - All other aviation related items considered, will collect. Contact Chris Tel: 0208 422 5899 Email: [email protected] AIRCRAFT-MILITARY PLASTIC KITS WANTED unmade, especially large collections, individually priced, cash paid, will collect. Tel: 02476 542196.

ALL MAKES OF UNMADE PLASTIC KITS PURCHASED Courier collections arranged for large quantities. Unit 8 Cedar Court, Halesfield 17, Telford, TF74PF Telephone: 01952 586457 Email: [email protected] OLD WOODEN PROPELLERS in any condition. Tel: 07808 727939 AVIATION BOOKS, MAGAZINES, photos, slides, models,

ephemera wanted. Whole or part collections bought. Please phone Mark 01264 334779. Email: [email protected] November 2017 FLYPAST 89

FLYPOST

FlyPast, PO Box 100, Stamford, Lincs, PE9 1XQ, UK email: [email protected]

Contributions from readers are always welcome for this column. Views expressed in FlyPost are not necessarily those of the Editor, or publisher. Letters may be edited for style or length.

Note that letters sent by e-mail will not be published unless the contributor includes their full postal address for possible contact. Letters intended for FlyPost should be clearly marked as such.

A whale of a time On finals to the USS Saratoga in 1960. ALL AUTHOR

Having been a FlyPast subscriber here in the US for a few years, I was most pleased to see the Whalers article on my old friend the [Douglas] A3 [Skywarrior]. I am a retired US Naval Aviator and of my total 5,717.8 hours of military time 3,010.5 hours were in A3 variants with most of it in the RA3B (A3D-2P) with

Payment in kind The recent article on test pilots prompted me to write down a story related by my stepfather Philip Pickwick. He was a senior designer at Avro Woodford until retirement some 20 or so years ago, having worked there all his life. Jimmy Jackson was the son of a successful motor dealer and worked at the family business (Sidney Jackson & Son), located on the B5358 Wilmslow Rd to the immediate southwest of Woodford

Lancaster help needed A neighbour in the small town of Bergstadt Lautenthal in the pretty Harz Mountains area of Germany, Herr Ernst Jago told me how he, as a 14-year-old Hitler Youth, was on duty on the evening of January 14, 1944. The second big RAF raid of 1944 on Braunschweig (Brunswick) was in full swing when a 101 Sqn ABC-equipped [for jamming] Lancaster appeared very close and very low down, lighting up the night sky and the town with

90 FLYPAST November 2017

Heavy Photographic Squadron SixtyTwo (VAP-62) based at NAS Jacksonville, Florida from September 1957 until April 1965. I also spent almost three years flying the ‘only’ true VA3B, 142672, out of Andrews AFB from late April 1965 until December 1967 when I then transitioned into the [Grumman] A6 Intruder at NAS Oceana in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

The author, his wife and young daughter in front of a VA-62 RA3B, NAS Jacksonville, Florida.

Aerodrome. One day early in the war Jimmy and his father were standing on the garage forecourt when they heard the sound of an approaching motorcycle, clearly in some difficulty. The rider pulled up on the forecourt and to Jimmy’s surprise it was his local hero Syd Gleave, a successful motorcycle racer. “Got any petrol?”, shouted Syd, which was viewed with some suspicion by Jimmy’s father. “How much do you want?” he replied, to which Syd said, “I only need a

pint!” Mr Jackson relented and provided the requested petrol. When Syd asked how much he owed, Jimmy’s father said that it was of little value and added “next time you’re passing give me ten fags”. “You’re on,” said Syd, “be on your forecourt in 30 minutes’ time”, and sped off. Sometime later there was a tremendous deafening roar and a Lancaster bomber flew very low over the Jacksons’ business, the pilot leaning out of the cockpit window with his

the glare of its wing tanks [which were] well and truly on fire. It just missed the house we were sitting in, and his family home (both in Schützenstrasse, on the edge of the town), and crashed a few hundred yards further north in a slate quarry. My friend was ordered to help clean up the four recoverable dead and take the bodies to the local church the next day as well as help recover any salvageable parts (Perspex fragments, armament etc). Amazingly one crewman was captured the next

day, apparently unharmed! The bodies were buried in Lautenthal church cemetery, with respect, and post war reburied in the war cemetery at Hannover. The aircraft was LM367, one of two 101 Sqn ABC Lancasters based at RAF Ludford Magna, which carried an extra radio operator (eighth) crewman for the ABC equipment. I want to create a memorial cairn at the crash site and the locals, including the mayor, seem quite supportive. For that, the accuracy of the crew names and their fate is of course important. Herr Jago

Unfortunately for me, I never flew any of the A3s shown in the article. The last picture of the RA3B in the article with its drag chute streaming, 144825, is now I believe the ‘gate guard’ at NAS Whidbey Island, Washington. JOHN R. ‘DICK’ PITMAN, LCDR, USN RET, CHESTER, VIRGINIA , USA

The crew of the VA-3B. From left, Cdr E ‘Doc’ Savage, the author, CPO Bud Theesen.

arm outstretched. He dropped something and the Jacksons recovered a packet of ten cigarettes bound to a stone! Jimmy’s father said, “Blimey, I never expected the next time he was passing to be in a ruddy Lancaster bomber!” Sydney Gleave was not only a successful motorcycle racer/ builder but he became a test pilot for Avro during the war. He was tragically killed testing Lancaster PB579 on September 11, 1944. PAUL GEERING

remembers only four bodies being brought in, and is very clear that one crew member did survive. But who was he? I now have the crew list for LM367 (SRC) which suggests all eight died that night.  Anyone who has any information about this sad event would be helping to get the details right before a memorial is created. NIGEL DUNKLEY MBE BERLIN [THE FLYPAST OFFICE WILL PASS ON ANY CORRESPONDENCE]

Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky choes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky m the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky oes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky ky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky s from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky he Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from theSEE SkyBOOK Echoes fromIN the Sky Echoes from the Sky REVIEW oes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky OCTOBER ISSUE hoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky PAGE 118 m the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky hoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky he Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky s from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes fromFollowing the SkytheEchoes Sky the Sky air raids offrom WW1, the Britain wasEchoes left with nofrom effective warningfrom of thethe approach enemy aircraft, human from the Sky Echoes from the Sky from the Sky Echoes Sky of Echoes fromother the than Skythe Echoes and ear. Acoustic Defence based on battlethe fieldSky gun Echoes ranging from the Sky Echoes from the Sky oes from the Skyeye Echoes from the Sky was Echoes from and used highly developed technology to track aircraft twenty years Sky Echoes frombefore the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky the emergence of RADAR. Tangible remains of these ‘sound om the Sky Echoes from Sky Echoes Sky Echoes mirrors’ canthe still be visited aroundfrom the UKthe and ‘Echoes From Thefrom Sky’ the Sky Echoes from the Sky oes from the Sky offers Echoes from understanding the Sky Echoes the Sky the clearest of their from development and Echoes design. from the Sky expanded andthe revised includes information from Echoes from theThis Skymuch Echoes from Skyedition Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky many new sources, archives and pictures and with 448 pages, and the Sky Echoes from the Sky the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from photographs and illustrations forms a complete history of Echoes from the115 Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Acoustics Defence. m the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky ISBN: 978-1-872836-17-1 Large format paperback: 235 x 156mm rom the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky £12.95 Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Available Crecy Publishing rom the Sky Echoes from from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Ringway Trading Echoes from theUnit Sky1a Echoes from the Estate Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Shadowmoss RoadSky Echoes from the Tel: 01614990024 s from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes fromEmail: the Sky Echoes from the Sky Manchester [email protected] Echoes from theM22 Sky5LH Echoes from theOrder Sky Echoes the Sky online at:from www.crecy.co.uk m the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky Echoes from the Sky

The History of Acoustic Defence

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12/09/2017 12:49

WARBIRDS GRUMMAN AVENGER

“VT-86 attacked surface vessels at Kure Harbour, near Hiroshima, Japan. Harry Badgerow got a well-placed shot off and torpedoed the cruiser Oyodo” 92 FLYPAST November 2017

UNLIMITED

AVENGER Jake Peterson profiles the Texas Flying Legends Museum’s award-winning Grumman

“A

nyone who flew a singleengine airplane off a carrier, over shark-infested waters and over enemy territory, must have been crazy.” These were words of Jim Staker quoted in the Moscow-Pullman Daily News in October 1999. Jim and Harry Badgerow were pilots in US Navy torpedo squadron VT-86 on board the carrier USS Wasp. The veterans were attending a VT-86 reunion with their old bird, the TBM Avenger, in Jerome, Idaho, in 1999. The occasion was used to unveil the newly restored TBM-3E Avenger 85938 (N7226C). It had been restored by John Lane and his crew at Airpower Unlimited in the city. For Harry it was a welcome sight as it was his aircraft throughout World War Two. While it no longer passes over shark-infested waters, today

Congressman Sam Graves flies 85938 for the Ellington Field, Houston-based Texas Flying Legends Museum around the US to fulfil the attraction’s desire to honour the old and inspire the young.

Left

Grumman Avenger and Vought Corsair (in the background) - two greats of US naval aviation that still fly today. ALL IMAGES BY JAKE PETERSON

Re-enlisting

Built by the Eastern Aircraft Division of General Motors at Trenton, New Jersey, TBM-3E 85938 was accepted into military service on March 29, 1945. The following month it was ferried to Naval Air Station (NAS) Alameda, California, as part of Carrier Aircraft Service Unit (CASU) 6. Between May and June, 85938 was assigned to VT-86 as part of the contingent on the Wasp. The carrier had been damaged in combat during March and was under repair at Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Washington November 2017 FLYPAST 93

WARBIRDS GRUMMAN AVENGER

State. On July 12, 1945 the Wasp, with 85938 on board, set sail for the western Pacific. It didn’t take long for 85938, coded ‘308’, to enter combat. On July 28 it was being piloted by Lt Harry Badgerow as VT-86 attacked surface vessels at Kure Harbour, near Hiroshima, Japan. Harry got a wellplaced shot off and torpedoed the cruiser Ōyodo. Later that same day, ‘308’ sunk the destroyer Nashi with another pilot at the controls. These were the first and last vessels sunk by the TBM but not its final combat mission. The day the atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima, August 6, Harry was flying ‘308’ when he received a radio message to return to base. He jettisoned his bombs and turned around. He also flew ‘308’ over the battleship Missouri during the signing of Japan’s official surrender

94 FLYPAST November 2017

on September 2. Later, Harry flew relief packages to prisoners of war at Nagoya Castle. Fifty-four years later, Lt Badgerow had another mission in ‘308’ during the reunion at Jerome. His response to pilot/owner Danny Summers after the flight was: “I think I’m going to re-enlist!”

Second life

After five months of active service, TBM 85938 was unloaded at CASU 22, Quonset Point, Rhode Island. The next three years were spent flying across the country from one NAS station to another, in Florida, New York and Virginia. It last served with the Naval Air Reserve Training

Unit at Los Alamitos, California, where it stayed until August 1948. Declared surplus, 85938 was sent to NAS Litchfield Park, Arizona, before going to NAS San Diego, California, where it was sold at auction in 1957 to the Selk Company of North Hollywood. It was in 1957 that 85938 was given a second life when it entered civilian hands as N7226C. The Avenger was bought by the Sonora Flying Service based at Columbia Airport in California to fight wildfires in July 1958 with the call-sign Tanker 61. The TBM was fitted with a 400 US gal (1,514 lit) tank for dropping borate. Mel Coeur, one of the partners working with Sonora, acquired N7226C in September 1958. Two years later the TBM joined Wen Incorporated at Porterville, California, and was allocated the

callsign Echo-44. Wen’s aircraft were used to help fight Californian fires and the company remains active in this duty today. Wen handed on N7226C to another Porterfield operator, Whirlybird, in October 1963. It was with the latter for just over a year before being sold in November of 1964 to Sonora Aviation and then Capitol Aire in April 1970, both based at Carson City, Nevada. The aircraft’s fire-fighting days ended in October 1974 when it was sold to Craig Aero Service of Buttonwillow, California. There it was converted into a crop sprayer and it was certified for its new work in April 1976. It was flown by Buttonwillow Dusters, a partner of Craig Aero Service, up to 1979. In that year, along with two other TBMs, N7226C was acquired by Walt Bumgarner’s Stewart Aviation at Bakersfield, California. Walt, who in his lifetime had owned seven Avengers, moved his operation to Moses Lake, Washington State, in 1980. For 11 years Stewart Aviation operated N7226C – in fact, it became the last TBM ‘sprayer’ to be so employed in the US.

“The day the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, August 6, Harry was flying ‘308’ when he received a radio message to return to base. He jettisoned his bombs and turned around”

November 2017 FLYPAST 95

WARBIRDS GRUMMAN AVENGER

“...one of its propeller blades is signed by former US President and Avenger pilot, George Bush (senior), while another carries Lt Harry Badgerow’s autograph” Above

An airto-air view of Grumman TBM-3E Avenger N7226C, which has been repainted into the colours of 85938 ‘308’. Bottom, left to right

The aircraft was flown in World War Two by Lt Harry Badgerow. A propeller blade tip has been autographed by former US President and Avenger pilot George Bush.

Grand Champion

In May 1990, N7226C began the last part of its journey. It was sold to Summers Farm and Ranch in Sugar City, Idaho. John Lane’s Airpower Unlimited in Jerome started a six-year restoration to return the Avenger to its wartime appearance. Having been repainted into the colours of 85938 ‘308’, it was flown again in 1996 and certified that July. Wasting no time, Danny Summers and John Lane brought N7226C to AirVenture at Oshkosh, Wisconsin,

A close-up of the aircraft’s distinctive nose-art.

96 FLYPAST November 2017

for judging in that year’s competition. It won Grand Champion World War Two and the Gold Wrench award for John and his team at Airpower. In February 2012 the Texas Flying Legends Museum entered a lease arrangement with Danny for N7226C, and purchased the machine in October 2013. Today the long history of this TBM-3E can be enjoyed and appreciated – as well as participating at airshows, it functions as a kind of travelling museum. For example, one of its propeller blades

is signed by former US President and Avenger pilot, George Bush (senior), while another carries Lt Harry Badgerow’s autograph. Texas Flying Legends Museum pilot Sam Graves sums it up well: “I’ve been fortunate enough to have flown her to every corner of the United States. I’ve criss-crossed the country several times. I’ve flown her 1,200 miles out into the Caribbean and back. For me, it’s humbling to have the honour of flying her.” www.texasflyinglegends.org

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12/09/2017 12:49

FINALS AMERICAN MUSTANGS Pictured at the Wings Over Camarillo Air Show on August 19, Tom Nightingale is flying the Palm Springs Air Museum’s North American P-51D Mustang Bunny (top) with the Commemorative Air Force’s Ken Gottschall in Man O‘ War. See pages 18-19 for more from this event. FRANK B MORMILLO

next 98 FLYPAST November 2017

In our next issue, we take a close look at the Hawker Siddeley Harrier in the last of our Spotlight specials. With exclusive artwork and rarely seen images, we reflect on the famous jet’s rise to prominence in its early years of service. The packed December issue will be in UK shops on November 1, or see page 40 for our latest money-saving subscription offers. * Overseas deliveries are likely to be after this date.

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11/09/2017 11:36

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11/09/2017 11:35

FLYING HURRICANES www.flypast.com

Our guide to airworthy survivors

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The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight is commemorating its 60th anniversary in 2017 and, as part of the celebrations, an exciting new book has been produced in association with the RAF ‘THE FLIGHT’ features: • Foreword by Squadron Leader George “Johnny” Johnson DFM, Lancaster Bomb Aimer who flew with 617 Squadron on many missions during WW2 including the famous Dams Raid. He is the last surviving British “Dambuster” • Introduction by OC BBMF, Squadron Leader Andy Millikin.

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‘THE FLIGHT’ is a photographic commemoration of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, arguably the most famous collection of flying warbirds in the world. Featuring exclusive contemporary and historical imagery, combined with personal accounts, ‘THE FLIGHT’ offers a new and exciting volume that celebrates the work and the ethos of the BBMF. The carefully considered and specially commissioned air-to-air imagery by award winning photographer John Dibbs is supported by insightful and fascinating interviews and quotes from veteran aircrew compiled by Clive Rowley, former OC Hardback, c180 pp BBMF and unit historian. ‘Lest We Forget’ — The mission of the BBMF is to commemorate the past of the RAF’s air combat power. The aim of ‘THE FLIGHT’ is to take that message to a new audience.

• Contemporary photographs of the BBMF’s unique collection of World War 2 aircraft, including Spitfires, Hurricanes and the Lancaster in their natural environment • Archive photography from World War 2. • Veteran Stories. Interviews and quotes from veterans who flew the types operated by the Flight are woven into the imagery. • Brief historical backgrounds to the aircraft types used by the Flight and their roles in WW2 • Boxed featurettes, period graphics and World War 2 memorabilia add a vintage feel PLUS! • How the BBMF was born • The BBMF today • Keeping the dream alive

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23/08/2017 11:08

WELCOME H

ello and welcome to your special 16-page supplement, which lists surviving airworthy Hawker Hurricanes and where you can find them. There’s no doubt that the RollsRoyce Merlin-powered Hurricane was one of the most important aircraft to ever fly with the RAF. Strong and sturdy, it may never have attained the fame of the Supermarine Spitfire, but it was much loved by its pilots, could absorb large amounts of damage, and was a stable gun platform in

the air. It was also notable for fighting in several different theatres. Its essential role in the Battle of Britain is well known, but the type also performed capably in the Far East, Malta, the Western Desert and the Soviet Union in a variety of roles. With the last Hurricane built – PZ865 – emerging from Hawker’s Langley production line in 1944, the type had a shorter construction span than the Spitfire, and for many years airworthy survivors were few and far between. Numerous restorations, including

two UK-based Mk.Is, which have both flown in recent months, have changed this, and now one of Sir Sydney Camm’s finest designs can once again be seen in the skies at airshows. The history of each of the survivors is documented by Hurricane authority Gordon Riley, who also lists their current locations and identities. Some aircraft have been painted multiple times in their flying ‘careers’, representing several different fighters. Enjoy your guide to a truly classic aircraft.

Below

The first production Hawker Hurricane at Brooklands after being rolled out from the factory in November 1937. Equipped with a two-bladed propeller and ‘rag’ wing, L1547 looks every inch the thoroughbred. Sadly, this significant machine was lost on October 10, 1940 during its tenure with 312 Squadron. KEY COLLECTION

Hurricane Supplement 2017 FLYPAST 3

HAWKER HURRICANE SURVIVORS

P2902 L Right

An air-to-air view of recently restored Mk.I P2902.

atest to join the increasing band of airworthy Hurricanes, MkI P2902 made its first post-restoration flight at Hawker Restoration’s new base at Elmsett, Suffolk, in the hands of Stu Goldspink on June 19, 2017. It is painted as ‘DX-R’ – R-for-Robert, hence its registration G-ROBT – of 245 Squadron’s ‘B’ Flight, which it joined on May 19, 1940. The unit was based at Drem, Scotland, but detachments were made to Hawkinge, Kent, for patrols over Dunkirk and the English Channel. Robert had only eight hours’ flying time recorded when it took off from Hawkinge on May 31 in the hands of 19-year-old Scot, Kenneth ‘Mac’ McGlashan. As he prepared to attack a pair of Messerschmitt Bf 109s, he was ‘bounced’ from the rear by another five. Mac successfully force-landed the damaged P2902 on a beach. He attempted to set fire to it, but it would not catch so he abandoned the Hurricane to its fate. He managed to board the Thames paddle steamer Golden Eagle, which took him to Margate.

Over the years, P2902 disappeared from view in the sands and remained undisturbed until 1989, when its substantially intact remains were revealed and recovered. The fuselage, centre section and engine, complete with Rotol three-bladed propeller hub, were displayed in the Mémorial du Souvenir in Dunkirk. In April 1994, warbird restorer Craig Charleston secured a deal to acquire both P2902 and the remains of another Hurricane, P3311 (the latter is under restoration in the USA). Within days, the project had changed hands, going to Rick

Roberts. A few weeks later, Craig received a letter from Sqn Ldr Kenneth McGlashan AFC from his Australian home. In the letter he commented that if he “hadn’t put it down on the beach so gently there would be nothing to restore”! Registered as G-ROBT in September 1994, restoration was carried out at the Milden, Suffolk premises of Hawker Restorations. In May 2016, the project was sold to Anglia Aircraft Restorations. Robert had its first public outing at Flying Legends, Duxford, in July 2017.

DR393. No operational details have been located for DR393’s career in Soviet hands, but it is believed to have crashed in the winter of 1943. The wreck was recovered in 1991 and brought to the UK by Sussexbased recovery specialist Jim Pearce and purchased by New Zealand enthusiast, Sir Tim Wallis, in 1992. Hawker Restorations undertook the rebuild at Milden, with engineering design support provided by Air New

Zealand Engineering’s Technical Services. Late in 1995, the project was shipped to New Zealand and, registered ZK-TPL, its postrestoration flight took place on January 12, 2000 at Christchurch. Leaving New Zealand by ship on February 10, 2013, P3351 was bound for a new home in France, as F-AZXR, with Jan Frisco Roozen at Cannes-Mandelieu.

P3351 Right

Hurricane Mk.IIA P3351 is on the French civil register as F-AZXR.

A

t the end of May 1940, Mk.I P3351 joined 73 Squadron and the following month was based on farmland at Gaye, south of Reims. As the German forces advanced, the unit retreated and P3351 left Nantes on June 18 on route to Church Fenton, Yorkshire. Issued to 32 Squadron at Acklington, Northumberland, on September 6, P3351 was reassigned to 71 ‘Eagle’ Squadron, at Kirton-inLindsey, Lincolnshire, and was later based at Martlesham Heath, Suffolk. On April 18, it was transferred to 55 Operational Training Unit at Usworth, near Sunderland. Allocated to Rolls-Royce at Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, on September 16, P3351 was upgraded to Mk.IIa status with a Merlin XX engine as part of a batch being prepared for Russia and was allocated a new serial number,

4 FLYPAST Hurricane Supplement 2017

P3717 I ssued to 253 Squadron at Kirton-in-Lindsey, Lincs, in July 1940 and coded ‘SW-P’ – by the following month, Mk.I P3717 was based at Kenley in Surrey. On August 30, Plt Off W M C Samolinski attacked two Messerschmitt Bf 110s while flying P3717 and was credited with the destruction of one of them. By mid-September the fighter was with 257 Squadron at Debden, Essex, but was damaged on the 23rd. Repaired, the Hurri’ was assigned to 43 Squadron at Drem, Scotland, on January 20, 1941. There was little action for the aircraft, and subsequently P3717 was transferred to 55 Operational Training Unit at Aston Down in Gloucestershire, in April, and on to 8 Service Flying Training School at Montrose, Scotland, on June 12. On June 28, P3717 was issued to Rolls-Royce at Hucknall, Notts, to be converted to Mk.IIa standard, including the installation of a Merlin XX engine. It was destined for supply to the USSR and was struck off charge in October. Its Russian service details are not known, but its crashed remains were recovered from the Kola Peninsula in Northern Russia and brought back to the UK by recovery specialist Jim Pearce. The wreck was acquired by Steve Milnthorpe of Hinckley, Leicestershire, on October 28,

1990 and with the help of Hawker Restorations, Geoff Rodwell of Autokraft, Chris Chippington of the Imperial War Museum, Peter

Rushen of The Fighter Collection and many others, Steve began to restore the Hurricane to static condition.

After ten years of work, Steve sold the project to Tony Ditheridge of Hawker Restorations to be brought up to airworthy status. The aircraft was then registered to Hugh Taylor of Hawker Hurricane Ltd as G-HITT on December 19, 2008. Much of the work was completed at Milden, before P3717 was moved by road to Turweston, on the Northamptonshire border, on February 10, 2015. There, Bygone Aviation completed the task and on March 21, 2017, P3717 was successfully test-flown by Stu Goldspink. ‘Tango-Tango’ arrived at the Old Warden aerodrome in Bedfordshire on May 9, bringing the resident fleet of airworthy Mk.I Hurricanes up to three.

Above

A dramatic view of Hugh Taylor’s Mk.I P3717 (G-HITT). Left

Hurricane Mk.I P3717 was returned to airworthiness by Hawker Restorations.

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HAWKER HURRICANE SURVIVORS

R4118

where it languished outside in a courtyard. Vintage car enthusiast Peter Vacher was lucky enough to stumble upon it four decades later while searching for vintage Rolls-Royces. After tortuous negotiations, R4118 returned to the UK in July 2001. Entering the UK civil register, R4118 became G-HUPW, after its codes with 605 Squadron. After three years’

Above

Hurricane Mk.I R4118 turns to port in this evocative air-to-air study. Right

This atmospheric black-and-white image captures a pair of Hurricane Mk.Is – P3717 (right) with R4118. Right

Five enemy aircraft were shot down by Hurricane Mk.I R4118 during the Battle of Britain.

B

ased at Drem in Scotland, 605 Squadron deployed to Croydon, Surrey, on September 7, 1940 with Mk I R4118 ‘UP-W’ included in the contingent. On the 24th, Plt Off Jock Muirhead was flying it when he shared a Dornier Do 215 ‘kill’ with Plt Off Witold Glowacki. Three days later, in R4118, Canadian Plt Off J A ‘Archie’ Milne downed a Messerschmitt Bf 110. Other pilots who flew R4118 at the time included Plt Off (later Wg Cdr, DFC) Bob Foster, who damaged a Junkers Ju 88 on September 28, and shared another kill on October 1. In less than two months, R4118 had flown 49 sorties with 11 different pilots and had been directly or partially responsible for the destruction of five enemy aircraft. On January 18, 1941 the Hurricane was issued to 111 Squadron at Dumfries, Scotland. It remained with 111 until April 26

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when it was sent to 59 Operational Training Unit (OTU) at Crosby-onEden, Cumberland, then joining 56 OTU at Tealing in Scotland in May 1942. After overhaul and a period of storage, R4118 was allocated to Air Command, South East Asia, in June 1943. It left the UK aboard the SS Singkep and arrived at Santa Cruz, Bombay (now Mumbai) India, in February 1944. It saw no service in India and ended up at the Hindu University at Banaras (presentday Varanasi) Hindu University,

work by Hawker Restorations at its Suffolk workshop, it was lifted off the ground on December 23, 2004 at Cambridge Airport by Pete Kynsey – airborne for the first time since 1943. For 11 years, R4118 made its home at an Oxfordshire airstrip until September 2015, when James Brown of Hurricane Heritage acquired it. On October 3, R4118 left for its new home at Old Warden in Bedfordshire, where it is maintained by Bygone Aviation.

‘K

Z7015 B

uilt by the Canadian Car and Foundry at Fort William, Ontario, Canada, Z7015 was delivered to Henlow in Bedfordshire, in March 1941. June 27 saw it allocated to General Aircraft Limited (GAL) at Hanworth, Middlesex, for conversion to Sea Hurricane Ib configuration – including slinging points, catapult spools and an arrester hook, plus airframe strengthening. Now in full naval configuration, the fighter was issued to 880 Squadron at St Merryn in Cornwall on July 29, 1941 – later serving in the Shetland and Orkney islands. By December 1942, Z7015 was on charge with 759 Squadron at Yeovilton, Somerset, as a fighter trainer. In November of the next year, the Sea Hurricane was retired to Loughborough in Leicestershire, becoming an instructional airframe for the College of

Aeronautical Engineering. The Sea Hurricane was donated to the Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden on February 21, 1961. During the summer of 1967, Z7015 was surveyed for possible restoration to flying condition for the film Battle of Britain, but was only used in ground scenes. Dowty of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, undertook to carry out a restoration to flying condition and Z7015 was moved to Staverton in April 1975, but the fuselage was badly corroded so the attempt was abandoned. The Sea Hurricane was moved to Duxford in 1982, but it was not until June four years later that the project was put onto a formal footing. Nine years, nine months and nine days after restoration began, Z7015 was test flown by Andy Sephton at Duxford on September 17, 1995. For the first few years after restoration, Z7015 was based at Duxford, but it is now permanently based at Old Warden.

‘KZ321’ T

he true identity of this Hurricane IV is unknown; all manufacturer’s plates having disappeared in the years between its discovery in a Jaffa, Israel, scrapyard in 1983 and its acquisition some ten years later

by Stephen Grey of The Fighter Collection. It was found with another (KZ191, held in storage in Berkshire) and probably served with 6 Squadron in Palestine. It may well have seen previous service in Yugoslavia. Warbird operator and restorer

Above

Sea Hurricane Mk.IB Z7015 is owned and operated by the Shuttleworth Trust. Left

Inside the cockpit of Hawker Sea Hurricane Mk.IB Z7015 (G-BKTH).

Doug Arnold repatriated this machine in 1983 bringing it to Blackbushe, Hampshire, later moving it to Biggin Hill in Kent. Arnold had purchased a pair of wings and other components from Dehradun, India, during a visit in February 1976, and these and the Israeli fuselage formed the basis of a restoration project. During 1991, the Hurricane was obtained by The Fighter Collection and moved to Duxford. The project was entrusted to Hawker Restorations at Milden, and flew again on July 8, 2003, registered as G-HURY. The final configuration chosen was representative of North African-based, cannon-armed Mk.IId KZ321, which served with 6 Squadron. It was based at Duxford for three years until being sold to Michael Potter’s Vintage Wings of Canada, arriving at its new home at Gatineau, Ottawa, Ontario, on May 18, 2006, taking up the Canadian registration C-FTPM.

Below left

Based in Canada, Hurricane KZ321 is currently the only airworthy Mk.IV. It is seen here flying with Supermarine Spitfire XVI SL721. ERIC DUMIGAN

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HAWKER HURRICANE SURVIVORS

LF363 F

irst flown at Langley, Berkshire, on New Year’s Day 1944, Mk.IIc LF363 joined 63 Squadron at Turnhouse in Scotland, on March 30. It moved to 309 (Polish) Squadron at Drem, Scotland, on May 23. The Hurricane re-joined 63 Squadron – by then at Manston in Kent – on November 2. This was brief as at the end of the month, LF363 was issued to Tangmere, Sussex, joining 26 Squadron. The unit re-equipped with Mustangs in December 1944 and the Hurricane was transferred to 62 Operational

Above

Hurricane Mk.IIC represents the aircraft flown by 1 Squadron’s Sgt Arthur Clowes. Right

The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Hurricane Mk.IIC LF363.

Training Unit at Ouston, near Durham, where it served for the remainder of the war. At the end of August 1945, LF363 was taken on charge by the Station Flight at Middle Wallop, Hampshire. On February 6, 1948 this notable machine was transferred to the Station Flight at Thorney Island, West Sussex, where AVM Sir Stanley Vincent DFC AFC was Senior Air Staff Officer, Fighter Command. Vincent’s ‘boss’, Sir James Robb, had a Spitfire XVI SL721 (presently airworthy in Canada, see page 7), as his personal ‘hack’ at the time and Vincent ‘acquired’ LF363. With Vincent’s retirement in 1949, LF363 was put into storage

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at Langley. In August the following year, it was issued to Waterbeach in Cambridgeshire and made appearances in the films Angels One Five (1952) and Reach For The Sky (1956). Following this, it returned to Langley for a major overhaul and on June 10, 1956 was delivered to Biggin Hill where it became the first member of the Historic Aircraft Flight (HAF), founded by Wg Cdr Peter Thompson DFC. The Flight’s first official sortie was on Battle of Britain Day (September 15), 1957 when LF363 and a Spitfire XVI (presently displayed in

a museum in Beijing, China) flew over London. The HAF became the present-day Coningsbybased Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, of which LF363 was a founder member. An engine fire on September 11, 1991 reduced the Hurricane to a charred wreck after a forced landing at Wittering in Cambridgeshire. Reconstructed between 1995 and 1998 by Historic Flying Limited at Audley End, Essex, Hurricane LF363 currently represents the wartme aircraft flown by 1 Squadron’s Sgt Arthur Clowes.

PZ865

T

he last Hurricane ever built, Mk.IIc PZ865 made its maiden flight at Langley, Berks, in late July 1944, in the hands of Hawker chief test pilot, ‘George’ Bulman. It was retained by the manufacturer and flew from Langley until December 9, 1945 when it was inhibited and stored. It received a special category Certificate of Airworthiness and was registered as G-AMAU. Test flown on May 12, 1950, it made a surprise appearance at the Royal Aeronautical Society’s garden party at White Waltham in Berkshire, two days later. It was finished in an Oxford Blue and gold trim colour scheme. The King’s Cup Air Race

Above

Hurricane Mk.IIC PZ865 was the last of the 14,533 examples of the famous Hawker fighter to roll off the production line. Left

The last Hurricane to be built – PZ865 – was christened ‘The Last of the Many’at a special ceremony in July 26, 1944 at Hawker’s Langley factory. KEY COLLECTION

Below left

was held at Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, on June 17 that year, and G-AMAU was entered on behalf

of HRH Princess Margaret and flown by Gp Capt Peter Townsend CVO DSO DFC*, coming home second with an extremely low pass over the finishing line. The Hurricane took part in many more races and airshows throughout the early 1950s. It appeared in the films Angels One Five in 1952 and Battle of Britain during 1969. During 1971, PZ865 was presented to the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. John Farley carried out a test flight at Dunsfold, Surrey, on March 21, 1972 and it was flown to Coltishall in Norfolk shortly afterwards by Duncan Simpson. Since 2012, it has carried the 1944 colours of 34 Squadron, South East Asia Command.

The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Hurricane Mk.IIC PZ865 has worn a South East Asia Command paint scheme since 2012.

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HAWKER HURRICANE SURVIVORS

AE977

Above

The Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar’s Hurricane X began life as Hurricane Mk.I AE977. It was repainted to represent P2921 in 2015. STEVE BRIDGEWATER

Right

Biggin Hill-based Hurricane X AE977 undergoing maintenance.

B

uilt at Fort William, Ontario, Mk.Ia (later designated Mk.X) AE977 arrived at Henlow in Bedfordshire on April 21, 1941. After a period in storage, it was issued to 759/760 Squadrons in August 1941; the combined unit conducted shorebased operational training. On December 5, 1942, AE977 was involved in a mid-air collision with another Hurricane, Z4702,

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and crashed close to Godney, on the Somerset Levels, near Glastonbury. The pilot escaped unharmed, but the Hurricane was beyond repair and was written off. Much of the wreckage remained at the crash site until the 1960s when it was recovered and placed in store at Milford, Surrey, eventually passing into the ownership of Malcolm Clube who in turn passed it on to Tony Ditheridge of Hawker

Restorations in 1994. Over the next six years, this rare aircraft was restored to flying condition, effectively as a Mk II – as evidenced by the deeper radiator and oil cooler characteristics of the later Hurricanes. Civil registered as G-TWTD, the airframe was taken by road to Wattisham in Suffolk, where Stu Goldspink took it up for its first test flight on June 7, 2000. Sold to American operator Tom Friedkin, AE977 was shipped to Galveston, Texas, in April 2001, becoming N33TF. Its new home was at Chino, California, with the Planes of Fame Air Museum. On April 19, 2012, AE977 was re-registered to Tom’s new company, Comanche Warbirds, and flown to Houston, Texas. The Hurricane returned to Britain and on March 12, 2013 was re-registered in the UK as G-CHTK, joining Peter Monk’s Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar Collection. It flies in the markings of 32 Squadron, as flown from Biggin Hill by Flt Lt Pete Brothers during July and August 1940.

BW874 A s with other Hurricanes whose history can be traced back to wellknown Canadian collector Jack Arnold of Brantford, Ontario, BW874 has been misidentified by some sources in the past. Its Canadian manufacturers identity plate bears the number ‘CCF R30040’ which confirms it as BW874. Originally built as a Sea Hurricane I, BW874 was delivered to 118 Squadron Royal Canadian Air Force at Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, on January 8, 1942. As part of an upgrade, BW874 was returned to CCF on June 23, 1943 for conversion to Mk XIIA standard before being issued to 1 Operational Training Unit at

Bagotville, Québec, on September 20. Flown by Sgt Raymond W Bailey, BW874 went missing from Bagotville on November 15, 1943 when a sudden heavy snowstorm hit the entire area, resulting in ‘zerozero’ conditions. An extensive search revealed no trace; and it seemed likely that Bailey had crashed through the ice of a lake close to the base. Thirty years later a logging crew discovered the wreck of BW874 and the body of its pilot in dense woodland. Bailey was buried at Chicoutimi and the wreck found its way to Jack Arnold. Arnold traded the centre section to Matt Sattler, who in turn passed it to Tony Ditheridge of Hawker Restorations. Tony sold it to Classic

Aero Engineering at Thruxton in Hampshire, where it was registered G-CBOE in May 2002. Work on the fuselage was subcontracted back to HRL. Later, the Hurricane project, together with hangar space and some workshop machinery, was acquired by Phil Lawton, who set up a new company – Phoenix Aero Services – to carry on the restoration of BW874. Stu Goldspink carried out the first air test, at Thruxton on July 16, 2014. That December, BW874 was sold to German enthusiast Karl-Friedemann Grimminger of Munich and it is based at Bremgarten under the care of Meier Motors. It flies in a distinctive silver paint scheme.

Below

Distinctively painted Hurricane Mk.IIB ‘AG244’ (G-CBOE) is owned by Karl-Friedemann Grimminger. STEVE BRIDGEWATER

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BW881 B

uilt in 1941 as a Sea Hurricane I by Canadian Car and Foundry, BW881 was intended for use by the Fleet Air Arm. Royal Canadian Air Force records indicate that the naval machine was assigned to 118 Squadron at Dartmouth, Nova Scotia on January 22, 1942. Eventually, it returned to Fort William, where conversion to Mk XIIA standard took place, after which it was issued to 1 Operational Training Unit at Bagotville, Québec, on September 20, 1943. The Hurricane crash-landed, wheels up,

at base on September 7, 1944. Three weeks later, it was declared a write-off. Eventually, the battered remains were acquired by Matt Sattler, of Carp, Ontario, who sold them in the summer of 1987 to Tony Ditheridge, of Hawker Restorations (HRL). Tony passed BW881 on to Henry Pearman who kept the dismantled aircraft at Ulcombe in Kent. After several years in storage, BW881 was sold to Mustang pilot and restorer Maurice Hammond and it became G-KAMM on February 23, 1995. The project found its way back to HRL at Milden, where, on

1374

Above

Peter Teichman flying Hurricane IIB ‘BE505’ .

F

irst laid down at Fort William, Ontario, for the RAF as Mk I AG287, this Hurricane was soon transferred to the RCAF. It joined 125 Squadron on April 30, 1942 at Sydney, Nova Scotia, transferring to 128 Squadron, also at Sydney, on June 7 the same year. It was returned to Fort William on

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September 2, 1943 for conversion to Mk XIIA standard by the installation of a Packard Merlin 29 engine and fitting 12-gun wings. In this guise, 1374 joined 1 Operational Training Unit at Bagotville, Québec, on November 18. A crash at Bagotville resulted in the Hurricane being written off for salvage and disposal on April 22, 1944.

December 10, 1998 the welltravelled aircraft was re-registered to Sir Tim Wallis’ Alpine Deer Group of Wanaka, New Zealand. The Flying Heritage Collection acquired BW881 from Wallis and work continued at Milden. It made a successful return to the air in the hands of Stu Goldspink, at Wattisham in Suffolk, on March 15, 2006. Registered in the USA as N54FH, the Hurricane was shipped to Arlington, Washington, in August 2006 and is now based at Paine Field, Everett.

Hurricane 1374 became one of the wrecks collected by Jack Arnold of Brantford, Ontario, who traded parts for Hurricanes across the world. Arnold sold five Hurricanes to Americans David Tallichet and Bob Schneider in the late 1980s and 1374 is known to have been one of them. Schneider, trading as RRS Aviation, and Tallichet’s Military Aircraft Restoration Corporation, were also well known for trading in warbirds. When RRS wound down, Hawker Restorations acquired a stock of drawings and parts from at least three aircraft. As 1374 still carried its manufacturer’s data plate, it was decided to restore this example. It was placed on the UK civil register as G-HRLO on September 26, 2005 but following the sale of the partially completed project to Peter Teichman’s Hangar 11 Collection, the identity was changed to G-HHII. The restoration was completed in January 2009 and its first postrestoration flight took place from North Weald, Essex, on January 27, 2009. It carries the markings of Manston-based BE505, which served with 174 Squadron in the spring of 1942.

5481 A

nother Ontario-built example, 5481 was taken on charge by the Royal Canadian Air Force’s 3 Training Command on October 7, 1942. From early November, it served with 1 Operational Training Unit at Bagotville, Québec before being used by 9 Bombing and Gunnery School in Mont Joli, Québec, from July 6, 1944. After just over two years’ service, the aircraft was struck off charge on November 29. Hurricane trader Jack Arnold of Brantford, Ontario, began the restoration of this airframe over a long period and, in 1984, the rebuild project was acquired and continued by Terry Dieno, of

Davidson, Saskatchewan. Unfinished, 5481 was sold to pilot/restorer Charles Church of Micheldever in Hampshire, in 1986 and shipped to the UK. Restoration started once again, this time by Paul Mercer at Sandown on the Isle of Wight. Following Church’s death in the crash of his Spitfire V EE606 (G-MKVC) on July 1, 1989 the Hurricane was registered as G-ORGI and transferred to Dick Melton’s workshop at Micheldever. It was completed and test flown on September 8, 1991. The aircraft had already been sold to David Price of Santa Monica, California, being shipped there in March 1992. Next registered as

N678DP, it was initially based at Santa Monica with the Museum of Flying, before being loaned to the Camarillo-based Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force from April 1, 2003. April 27, 2004 saw it sold to Ed Russell of Niagara Falls, Ontario, and registered in Canada in May 2005 as C-FDNL. In 2013, Russell decided to part with his collection and the Hurricane was shipped to Scone in New South Wales, Australia, arriving on April 7, 2014. Overhauled by Col Pay’s Vintage Fighter Restorations, it was registered as VH-JFW to Galway Scone. It is the only Hurricane flying in Australia.

5677 B uilt by Canadian Car and Foundry at Fort William, Ontario, Mk.XII 5667 was issued to 126 Squadron Royal Canadian Air Force at Dartmouth, Nova Scotia in February 1943. It moved during July the same year to 127 Squadron, at Torbay, Newfoundland, returning to Dartmouth and 129 in December. By May 1944, its flying days appeared to have ended with its issue to 3 Training Command and move to Ottawa in October for use with the 7th Victory Loan Drive, as a static display. After that it was placed in storage and is recorded as having a total of 615 hours’ flying time when the aircraft was handed to the War Assets Corporation for sale on October 1, 1946. A farmer in Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan, bought the now-dismantled Hurricane, but he inexplicably ended up receiving two starboard wings. It remained stored until discovered by Neil Rose who bought 5667 in June 1965 and took it to Vancouver, Washington, USA, for restoration. The problem of

Left

Hurricane XII 5667 is operated by Jerry Yagen’s Military Aviation Museum in the US. It is seen here with Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IX MJ730. COURTESY JERRY YAGEN

the two starboard wings was solved in August 1970 when a swap was arranged with Rem Walker’s group in Regina, Saskatchewan, who had acquired two port wings for their project, 5711 (see overleaf). After 29 years, the Hurricane,

registered N2549, returned to the skies on May 10, 1994. Jerry Yagen of Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA, acquired it on June 1, 2001. Registered as N943HH, it is based at the owner’s Military Aviation Museum.

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RCAF 5711 Right

The Historic Aircraft Collection’s Hurricane XII G-HURI marked as Z5140, a Mk.IIB of 126 Squadron. It has since been repainted to represent P3700 of 303 (Polish) Squadron. Right

An array of Hurricanes and Spitfires on the grass at Duxford. Hurricane XII ‘P3700’ (G-HURI) is nearest to the camera.

B

rought to the UK as an unfinished project by The Fighter Collection’s Stephen Grey in 1982, Mk.XII 5711 was built by Canadian Car and Foundry at Fort William, Ontario. Grey had bought it from a four-man group based in Regina, Saskatchewan: Rem Walker, Bob Hamilton, Gary Rice and Laurie Wright. The quartet’s first discovery was a complete tail assembly in Shaunavon, Saskatchewan, and two port wings on a nearby farm in January 1970. The problem of the two port wings was solved when they learned that Neil Rose of Vancouver, Washington, had two starboard examples with his project, 5667 (see page 13), and a trade was arranged in August 1970. The partial fuselage of 5424 came from the (then) Aero Space Museum in Calgary in September 1970.

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The group spent 12 years working on the Hurricane’s restoration, but realised the task was beyond their means and, in 1982, Stephen Grey took it on. Registered as G-HURI, the project was initially stored in Coventry, before moving on to Coningsby in Lincolnshire, where Paul Mercer had been contracted to restore it to flying condition. Work was transferred to Duxford in January 1988 and Mercer continued to oversee the process, assisted by Peter Rushen and other engineers from The Fighter Collection. It first flew on September 1, 1989, finished as Z3781, coded XR-T of 71 ‘Eagle’ Squadron. G-HURI was acquired by the Historic Aircraft Collection, Duxford, in August 2002. The deal included an exchange of Hawker Nimrod I S1581 (G-BWWK). Today, the aircraft flies in 303 (Polish) Squadron colours.

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