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Re: eBay: Allied intrest
Gentlemen,
The answer is maybe not so strange. P4340 was either loaned or transferred to 83 Squadron at short notice. If a permanent transfer was intended maybe the paperwork was never completed due to the almost immediate loss in action.
P4340 was flown operationally four times by 61 Squadron during early August 1940 (Nights 2/3, 4/5, 7/8 and 10/11). On the last two missions it suffered from vibration and compass problems. Perhaps this made it an easy choice for 61 Squadron to part with. Therefore it could only have reached 83 Squadron on either August 11th or 12th, so there was no time to change the markings.
The above interpretation based on the 61 and 83 Squadron ORBs, the Scampton Appendices for August 1940 and the Form 78 aircraft record card for P4340 (which has no mention of 83 Squadron).
Hope this helps. Thanks for putting up the links to those photos.
Regards,
Martin Gleeson.
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