Buried Spitfires in Burma
I was in those parts from the end of '42 to '46 (ABDA ? - I had to Wiki it - didn't last long, apparently, ACSEA ruled the roost in my time). First reaction: "to Hell with this for a tale". India then abounded in stories of (commonly) the brand-new family car which had to be left behind in the withdrawal and was buried (and that takes a fair amount of labour!) or hidden in a cave somewhere where the Japs wouldn't find it and you could go back to it later (you hoped).
Only ever heard of one such success: a padre buried the Mess bar stocks of Scotch and Gordon's in the Mess garden; it so happened that the Squadron did go back to the same spot in '45, and it was all there (shows the power of prayer!)
Spit XIVs in 1945 ? They would certainly be out there at the end, I think my old Squadron (8 IAF) got them when they got rid of their Vengeances. Why scrap them (or bury them ?) when soon-to-be independent India was using them for some time, would be glad of them, and we were on good terms ? Is it possible to determine the Mark on the ground radar scans ? Or distinguish a Merlin from a Griffon ? (always supposing the things are there).
And if for some weird reason you wanted to destroy them, why not burn them where they stood (as I was ordered to do with my Lend-Lease aircraft - or chuck 'em overboard if they were deck cargo ?). 1945 and XIVs ? - I think not.
1942 and Mark IIs ? I would have scoffed at that too, but for the fact that it starts to tie in with a tale which was going the rounds in the autumn of '42. I finished Spitfire OTU then, was sent out to India with 35 other new pilots.. The story on the ship was that a Spitfire Wing was to be set up out there; we were going to be part of it. A Wing Commander Paul Richey (of Battle of Britain renown) was on board; it all seemed to fit. Of course, Burma was past praying for then, but India still had to be defended. It is just possible that these aircraft had been shipped out there CKD much earlier, the hope being that they could assemble them there before Burma fell to the Japs, and if the worst came to the worst (which it did) at least ferry them back to India.
As for the burial story, I don't see the US Cee-Bees being around there at that time. Bulldozers ? - you'd be lucky! It would be all hand labour, plenty of it and the odd elephant. In the event, they would hardly have had the time to bury them before the Japs overran the site. Our dreams were shattered. The first Spits (Mk VIIIs, I think) got out there late in '43, and did sterling work from then on. We were no part of it.
I think Milo Minderbinder (#25 - p2) may be closest to the truth. Me ? Like the Doubting Thomas: "All this will I believe when I shall See".
Danny 42C
Last edited by Danny42C; 21st Apr 2012 at 15:00.