Identity of Gloster Gladiator lost over Holland

[kaki3152]

While going through my old "Air Combat" [Vol 1, No. 5 1968] series from late 60s-70, I came across this picture of a downed Gloster Gladiator lost on August 31,1940(?) Can anyone identify?

[kaki3152]

Another Picture:

[Larry]

It is possible that it was from 247 Sqn at Roborough (Plymouth) and it got lost on one of its night patrols?

I cannot think of any other RAF Sqn in UK that used Gladiators on ops in Aug 1940 so the other possibility is the FAA.

Lastly - could it be the photo was taken in Aug 1940 but that it is an RAF wreck from May or June 1940 or even a Belgian machine from the same time?

[udf_00]

Old thread on the Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces board :
http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=7111

[ahafan]

Hello
my 50% maybe a dutch plane shot down .they had a few in france..
april may 40..
or as a British FAA plane, why would it have crashed and not landed .if it was flying at night .then YES?..
the date maybe wrong or month!!
as i know not All Naval Gladiators or any RNN planes lost were ever reported in the battle of britain..as been shot down.over land or seas.
just look at bomber commands losses .then.
to say we lost say 30 fighters. but not bombers on raids- his a cheek.in the battle of britain..
yet this did happen a lot.
Sharon

[Jaap Woortman]

Was it a Gladiator?
Could it not have been the Swordfish L9716 of Lt. G.Villiers Tuthill of 812 Sqn? It came down at August 31, 1940 at 2340 hrs. at Rozenburg. Rozenburg is about 6 km. from Schiedam in the Netherlands.

Jaap

[kaki3152]

Thanks to all for their valuable input.

[Leendert]

Please refer to http://www.studiegroepluchtoorlog.nl...n-vlaardingen/
where picture also appears and is identified as Swordfish L7646 like Jaap wrote.

On 2 July 1940 there was another Swordfish loss in approx. the same vicinity: L7646 of 825 FAA Squadron.

Nice spellings by the way: "Fare" for Fairey and "Whentley" for Whitley.....

Dutch website deals with a Flak unit in the greater Rotterdam area and its successes.

Regards,

Leendert

[Leendert]

Sorry, I mixed things up: Jaap mentioned L9716 of the picture indeed and not L7646.

Regards,

Leendert

[kaki3152]

Looks like we have an identification. It makes sense after all, Swordfish were the only biplane military planes used near the Dutch coast and indeed, operated until 1945.