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Old 21st September 2008, 18:22
veltro veltro is offline
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Join Date: Dec 2004
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Re: SAAF Spitfire shot down by....

All I can say is that on 3rd June 40 Sqn had the task to establish contact with "...British paratroops dropped South of Avezzano..." No data about which was the unit involved is supplied either by G. A. Shepperd in his "The Italian Campaign 1943-45" and by E. F. Fisher Jr. in "Cassino to the Alps".

The "Eagles Victorious" book reports: "...the first pilot spotted only white ground signals ar Civita d'Antonio (sic - the correct name was Civita d'Antino) and a parachute on a patch of grass, and a second reconnaissance revealed nothing further. When Mustangs dropped six canisters of supplies, 40 Sqn Spitfires remained over the area for an hour but saw no one remove item. Only next day did a pilot on tactical reconnaissance of the Avezzano-Ortucchio-Gioia (dei Marsi) areas see that the canisters had gone. Meeting intense light a/a fire, he had to crash-land near Alvito but was not injured. (...) On 5 June, 40 Sqn's first task was a special mission to locate the paratroopers, and when the pilot spotted smoke rising on a series of puffs from two wood fires about 25 m apart, he made several low passes to identify himself. From Aquino a/f a second effort was made near Capistrello, and in spite of cloud three fires were seen smoking in a series of puffs."

That's it. Nothing else is available, at least from me.

Glad to have been of help.
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