Like Icare9, my first reaction was denial:
...but surely they couldn't have a lone VV, where would they get any spares to keep it operational?..
.
It
can't be, therefore it
ain't !
Then I carefully compared the rudder, fin and tail unit with the line drawing in the Wikipedia "Specifications". Same thing, no doubt about it. Is there any other aircraft with a tail end which matches so exactly ? Anybody ?
So now the questions swarm in :
How did it get there ? (must've been after cessation of hostilities in Europe 1945, otherwise no chance of its survival so far)
Where had it come from - only possibility UK ? With a range of only 400 mi ? (never mind what Wiki says).
Why was it there ? (God knows !) Who was operating it ? My guess was it wouldn't need any spares (as it would probably never move again).
What happened to it in the end (could be it is still rotting in some Italian barn ?)
How come we've only found about it now from an old (73 yr) photo ?
I throw the question open to the Pprune community - there is always someone who knows the answer (but is he alive to answer it ?) ... A medium, perhaps ?
Danny.