In my experience of reading World War 2 aviation history and narratives, I too found that the phrase seemed to relate to equipment failure more often than human death or disappearance. Men 'bought it', 'went west' or 'got the chop'. But often it would be, 'Skipper, the radio's just gone for a Burton'.
Last edited by Captain Dart; 26th Feb 2016 at 21:52.