[paulmcmillan]

With apologises to Charles Dickens - This is a Tale of Three Spitfires:

a) P7383
b) P7833 -- Presentation Name: Portadown
c) P7883 -- Presentation Name: Grahams Heath

I have consulted the following books:

1) Franks, Norman L.R. - Royal Air Force Fighter Command Losses (FCL) of the Second World War, Volume 1, Operational Losses: Aircraft and Crews 1939-1941, Midland Publishing, 1997 ISBN: 1857802861
2) Foreman, John - Air War 1941: The Turning Point, Part 2 (TTP) - From the Blitz to the Non-Stop Offensive, Air Research Publications, 1994. ISBN: 1871187257
3) Martyn, Errol W - For Your Tomorrow (FYT) - A record of New Zealanders who have died while serving with the RNZAF and Allied Air Services since 1915 - Vol 1: Fates 1915-1942, Volplane Press, 1999 . ISBN 0473063107
4) Halley, James, J (Editor) - Royal Air Force Aircraft P1000-R9999 (AB Serials); Air Britain (Historians Ltd) ISBN 0851302531
5) Boot, Henry and Sturtivant, Ray - Gifts of War - Presentation Aircraft in Two World Wars (GoW); Air Britain (Historians Ltd), 2005 ISBN 0851302483


But firstly, in Martyn's FYT Sgt Kean's, full name is given as Earl Joseph Kean - But is down as in P7833 (but qualified with a ?) against this serial, which indicators the author had his doubts

In Foremans TTP - for 20.4.41 - P/O C Colebrook is listed twice, once in P7883 and also in P7666.

Firstly P7666 was actually piloted by P/O J Stokoe who bailed out into the channel, but was rescued injured.

As for P7883, P/O C Colebrook could not have been in this aircraft as GoW has a full history of it which reveals that it crashed Barbers Booth 4 mls NE of Chapel-en-le Frith, Derbyshire 10.12.43 while with 53 OTU, F/Sgt R MITCHELL being injured.

For 17.5.41, Foremans TTP has Sgt EJ Kean on P7833 (I wonder if this is where Tony Wood got his information)

GoW again has a full history for P7833 and records this as being the aircraft that P/O C Colebrook was killed in on 20.4.41.

As previously stated AB Serials has the same fate for both P7383 and P7833 (54 Sqn are given as being missing, believed after engine failure on patrol off Clacton on 20-4-41) - This information is most probably taken from either the accident card or movement card - This information is also probably what is in the "Spitfire the History" (though I have not checked) - But indicates to me that someone updated the cards wrong back in 1941 and duplicated the same information on two different cards.

Finally, FCL does not have a serial for Sgt EJ Kean, but (IIRC) has P7833 against P/O C Colebrook

Therefore, and assuming the same mistakes keep happening (P7383 viz-a-viz P7833 viz-a-viz P7883 - and I had to check this posting 2 times to make sure I did not perpetuate the mistake!) That we can assume that:

Either Colebrook was on P7383 or P7833, with P7833 as the most likely (based on evidence) and Kean on P7383 or P7833 with P7383 as the most likely (by a process of elimination)

Comments?