Friendly fire WWII

[mhuxt]

Many thanks for the information Frank - on the off chance I might push my luck with you, I'm posting another thread re: a Luftwaffe loss on 24 July 1944. If you're able to have a look, I'd be most grateful.

[Juha]

I had a little more time to study the subject today.
the whole caption reads as “Firefly NF1 MB564 of No 746 Squadron in 1945. This was the type 746 used for their night interceptions of flying bomb-carrying He IIIs(sic.) in late 1944.”
For other readers, according to Harrison 746 Sqn was NFIU.

On colours, the two upper colours are rather dark and the difference of their darknesses is clearly less than the difference in those b/w photos that I have seen on for ex. 2 TAF and ADGB Spitfires in 44.

HTH
Juha

[BIGVERN1966]

Originally Posted by Juha

I had a little more time to study the subject today.
the whole caption reads as “Firefly NF1 MB564 of No 746 Squadron in 1945. This was the type 746 used for their night interceptions of flying bomb-carrying He IIIs(sic.) in late 1944.”
For other readers, according to Harrison 746 Sqn was NFIU.

On colours, the two upper colours are rather dark and the difference of their darknesses is clearly less than the difference in those b/w photos that I have seen on for ex. 2 TAF and ADGB Spitfires in 44.

HTH
Juha

Hi Juha

That would mean that the aircraft would have been in the Standard RN Extra Dark Sea Grey and Slate Grey upper colours and Sky undersides of the period. Does the aircraft in the photograph have any unit codes on the side that are visible besides the Royal Navy and Aircraft Serial. The profile I wish get the correct markings on is attached.

Regards Richard

[Juha]

Hello BIGVERN1966
regretfully I cannot enlarge the thumbnail, most probably because my b….. PC is acting again, but after looking the small thumbnail I noticed that I should have written before that the spinner of the a/c in the photo is very dark, probably black. And the front half of the radar pod shows in the photo as light grey and the after half as white. The starboard wing conceals the fuselage in front of the side roundel, but behind the roundel there is no unit code. The starboard wing underside is badly in shadow, but there seem to be only rather small roundel, which isn’t at the tip of the wing but maybe halfway between tip and the outer cannon.

As You know MB419 seems to have flown most of the Firefly interception missions from Coltishall.

HTH
Juha

[Laurent Rizzotti]

On September 30th (1941), S.Ten. Franco Ferrari of 371ª Squadriglia was shot down and killed in the Nowo-Petrikowka area by German Flak, which mistook his Macchi as a Russian fighter.

http://disc.server.com/discussion.cg...7;article=3224

[Brian]

Many thanks Laurent - another 'new' incident to me.

Cheers
Brian

[Laurent Rizzotti]

Hi Brian,

I continue to find friendly fire incidents here and there, and will report them here.

Here are two, both for 49th FG USAAF:

31 October 1944:
To start the day wrong, the ack ack shot down a P-38 from the 7th squadron while it was landing. There was a strafing raid in progress, but that was a scant excuse for the tragic incident.
Source: http://www.flyingknights.net/unit/oct44b.htm
The pilot may have been 2nd Lt Robert W. Searlight who was KIA this day but I have no confirmation of this, or any serial.

4 April 1942
See the following link: http://www.armyairforces.com/forum/m_89349/tm.htm
It describes a raid on Darwin. Returning intercepting US fighters were fired on by Australian AA fire and two shot down, with one pilot KIA.

Best regards

Laurent