Do18 loss 17 October 1939

[alex crawford]

At 1240hrs ‘B’ Section scrambled ‘Blue’ Flight (Flt Lt Sample K7995 AF-O, Plt Off Craig and Fly Off Whitty K8026 AF-L) to search for some German seaplanes that had been spotted off the East Coast. At about 1330hrs they intercepted a Do18 some 25 miles from the coast at 1,500ft. Flt Lt Sample lead the Flight on a diving attack from 8,000ft. Each of the Gladiator pilots carried out individual passes on the Dornier and pieces were seen to fall from the aircraft. Trailing smoke the Dornier headed out to sea where it eventaully came down 35 miles from the coast near the destroyer HMS Juno, who resecued the crew.



The Do18 was M7-YK of KüFlGr. 806. All the crew were rescued and taken prisoner.

Does anyone know the base from which the Do18 was based? The identities of the crew? The werke number of the Dornier?

Thanks,

Alex