[PhilHoff]

Hello,

There's a short article about MK366's crash landing in "Le Fana de l'Aviation", Nr 207, february 1987, by Hans-Heini Stapfer (Un Spitfire en Suisse, p. 21). Here's a short resume:

On april 20th 1945, at 06h35, 20 Spitfire of GC 1/7 "Provence" take off from Strasbourg-Etzheim for a sweep in southern Germany. The mission is relatively uneventful, but at 07h55, the Lieutenant de Vaisseau Henri Jean Louis Koechlin leaves the formation due to engine problems. He crash lands in Merishausen, almost without injury. He is later transferred to a hospital.

His plane, a Spitfire IX MK366, coded "Y" (without squadron code), is written off and subsequently scrapped in Switzerland. There are two pictures of the wrecked plane in the "Fana", the Spitfire appears to wear french roundels, a three colour rudder and the code "Y".

HTH

Philippe