[Adriano Baumgartner]

Brian, good evening (or morning).

I am finishing Commander Charles Lamb, DSO, DFC most pleasant book "War in a Stringbag". He flew at least two "Cloak-and-Dagger" sorties on Stringbags (Swordfishes) from Malta, delivering VIP and agents on the North Africa coasts, the last one being his final sortie, because he overturned on a salty lake (nobody told him it was mud instead of dried salt - hard surface) and became a POW of Vichy for quite a lot of time.

According to this Fleet Air Arm officer, there was some kind of arrangement with the Air-Vice Marshal commanding Malta, that on such kind of sorties, one Heinkel He 115 was on the stand-by to give those airmen a lift, if problems have arisen. They would meet at a certain place on the coast.

According to Cdr. Lamb; on his last sortie the He 115 landed or waited for him and his Navigator (who were captured) and then took-off, but on the return journey the machine caught fire and crashed, killling all on board. According to Cdr. Lamb, his "guardian-angel" actually saved his life, because due to some clashes with his Navigator they were captured, a difficult event who actually saved both their lives.

If you want I can send you the relevant passages and copies of the relevant pages. I do not know who were the pilots or crew of this crashed machine...neither had time to dig further, but it seems an interesting mention.

Most humbly yours

Adriano Silva Baumgartner, ASV 00.344