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Re: Some different fate's of Hurricane losses
Dear firship and Alex,
Those contained in “Hurricanes over Tobruk” aren’t the only combat claims of the couple Flying Officer Ernest Mason – Hurricane P3722. In fact it seems that Mason claimed almost all his victories flying this plane. More in detail (all this victories were claimed on P3722) :
DATE
HOUR
CLAIM
CORROBORATION
9.12.40
12.30
1 S79 shared
Conf. S79 of 22a Sq. 45° Gruppo 14° Stormo
9.12.40
16.08
1 CR 42
Likely 9° Gruppo 4° Stormo, lost three CR 42s force landed and one shot down in exchange for five-seven R.A.F. claims.
11.12.40
15.40
1 CR 42
Unconf. CR 42 of 368a Sq. 151° Gruppo only damaged.
14.12.40
10.30
1 S79
Likely four RAF claims around this hour in exchange for one S79 shot down, one crash landed and four damaged all of 41° Stormo.
23.12.40
9.15
1 Ca 310
Possible a machine of APC. There is a lack in Italian records.
23.12.40
9.40
1 S79
Unconf. S 79 of 15° Stormo only damaged.
5.01.41
12.20
2 CR 42
Conf. Tenente Oscar Abello and Sergente Pardino Pardini of 70a Sq. 23° Gruppo K.I.A.
9.01.41
16.00
1 CR 42
Conf. In fact CR 32 of an “ad hoc” composite fighter unit formed at Derna with disbanded pilots. Pilot safe.
10.01.41
10.00
1 S79
Unconf. Possibly only a returning plane making an hurriedly landing.
10.01.41
16.05
1 S79
Unconf. Possibly only a returning plane making an hurriedly landing.
26.01.41
15.10
3 CR 42
2 Conf. 1 unconf. Already detailed
Just a last couple of notes. These data came from Form 541 of the 274 Squadron’s ORB, from Italian Squadriglie’s war diaries and from the existing literature. It is interesting to note that according with the ORB Mason claimed fourteen victories during the first Libyan thus making his grand total of sixteen individual confirmed victories (Shores in “Aces High” spoke of only fifteen victories downgrading to a “damaged” the CR 42 claimed on 9 December. In the official documents –instead- it seems that Mason claimed a confirmed, producing also a Combat (Fighter) Report to substantiate it).
The victory of 30 January over a CR 42 is unconfirmed, the 368a Sq. 151° Gruppo’s plane of Sergente Mario Turchi was only damaged when colliding in a desperate head on attack with the plane of Mason and Turchi landed (not force landed) on Benina immediately after, being welcomed like a hero by his Squadriglia comrades that had witnessed his solo (and quite successful) combat against Mason and Patterson. Turchi claimed two damaged, his plane M.M. 6255 was slightly damaged.
This claim is not comprised in the above list because Mason in this occasion was flying P3723. This information is given in “Aces High, volume 2” and is also consistent with the data present in 274’s ORB.
This gives another clue on the fate of P3722. In my opinion the Hurricane was shot down by Ricotti on the 26th. Then it was recovered but was still not back in action when the Germans invested El Adem and was lost there. In accordance with this there is the fact that up to 31 March 1941, 274 didn’t flew any more P3722, (I don’t have data for April).
Regards
Ludovico.
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