Spitfire I "B" down on beach at Dunkirk @6/40

[Larry Hickey]

I recently acquired a printed photo of a what I think is a Spitfire I that force-landed on a beach at Dunkirk, according to the caption on the back. The cockpit section back to the cocarde is burned out, but the a/c letter "B" is very clear. Unfortunately, the quality does not permit indentification of the serial number. Can anyone identify this a/c, including unit, pilot and crash date?

Thanks

[Franek Grabowski]

Yes, I think so. If nobody can help you here, drop me a preview scan on e-mail and I ask a friend. I suppose it is a certain well photographed aircraft of I think a famous pilot.

[Andy Mac]

Larry, this one is on ebay, is it the same or from a different angle ? I wonder if it belongs to 92 squadron ?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FOTO-abgeschos...QQcmdZViewItem

Andy.

[Larry Hickey]

Andy Mac,

The "new" photo in your reference on eBay is the same image that I recently acquired, which is actually a printed version, rather than an actual photo print. Not exactly what I expected. It seems that the serial number should be visible, but it isn't. I can't determine if it is 92 Squadron or some other one. I'm still looking for info on this one.

Thanks,

[Alex Smart]

Hello,


Well at first glance, 65 Sqdn's YT-O, But NO.
The burn marks are different.

So, Why do you think it may be a 92 Sqdn a/c ?

If it is, then it is one of only a few lost by them in this period.

March 5th - N3291 - engine trouble, crashed Edenbridge, Kent.

May 23rd - N3290 - Gillies - S/D by Me110 as was Bushell
May 23rd - N3194 - Bushell - reported to be "QJ-Z"
May 23rd - N3167 - Green - wounded, a/c returned to service
May 23rd - P9370 - Learmond - Flamer, pilot killed
May 24rd - P9374 -Casenove - ex "GR-J"

July 26th - N3167 - landing acc, Pembrey UK.
July 27th/28th - N3287 - Wade - Bailed - Night Patrol UK

Alex

[Larry Hickey]

Thank you Franek, Andy and Alex,

This a/c is definitely not YT-O. It is also not Bushell's a'c, which I can confirm was QJ-Z. This could be Gillies a/c from 92 SQ, but the sizing on the "B" is somewhat different from the "Z" on Bushell's a/c, so it probably isn't a Spitfire of 92 SQ. Which leads us back to whose is it?

Larry

[Pete Burges]

A stab in the dark, but might it be N3180, Alan Deere's plane shot down on 28th (?) May - assuming this was one of his KL-B's?

Pete Burges

[Smithy]

Actually Pete could be right. Looking at the photo of Kiwi I from Gerard Morris´s "Spitfire - The New Zealand Story" this shows the "B" to be of the same height and style as the one in this photo.

It´s definitely one possibility.

[Larry Hickey]

Franek, Pete & Smithy,

It turns out that all of you had clues to the ID of this plane. Franek, it WAS flown by a famous pilot, as you remembered. Pete and Smithy it definitely was KL-B, N3180, force landed on the beach near between Nieuport and Ostend on 28.5.40 by P.O. Alan C. Deere of 54 SQ. This is dead nailed by a photo of the other side showing the KL Sq codes that appears in the photo section of "Alan Deere" the authorized biography by Richard C. Smith. Everything matches now perfectly.

Since you guys are so hot, I'm going to post some of my other Spitfire questions tomorrow.

Thanks