The Guvnor
10th Dec 2001, 14:32
From today's Telegraph:
Diver claims wreck of Spitfire
(Filed: 10/12/2001)
THE operator of a diving school in Cyprus who claims to have found the wreckage of an RAF Spitfire off the island's northern coast is refusing to tell the Ministry of Defence its exact location.
Gurdal Mehmetcik, 37, wants to preserve the Spitfire as a wreck dive site for his business, but the MoD insists that it is a war grave and should not be disturbed until its future has been decided.
The remains of the unidentified pilot are still in the aircraft and the MoD said his next of kin should be consulted before any decision was taken to remove the body or leave it untouched.
Mr Mehmetcik has offered to lead an MoD diving team to the site to recover the body, but only on condition that the Spitfire is left as a dive site.
He said: "We are ready to help recover the body, but not the plane. There is a lack of wreck dive sites in Northern Cyprus and we are against the plane being taken away. This is my plane."
Mr Mehmetcik, a former major in the Turkish army, said he found the Spitfire in July. It is thought to have crashed during the Second World War and is lying in 80ft of water in Morphou Bay. Although he said the aircraft was coated in silt and sand, it was in "perfect" condition.
Mr Mehmetcik said he had dived at the site on five occasions, but had not attempted to remove silt from the fuselage to read the Spitfire's recognition number, which would identify the pilot and when the aircraft crashed.
British airfields in Cyprus were extensively used during the Second World War, particularly during the North Africa campaign. The MoD said there were "proper procedures" to follow the discovery of the Spitfire and Mr Mehmetcik should first notify the Cypriot authorities, who would then officially inform the ministry.
A spokesman added: "It is not his choice whether the body is repatriated or not. He does not own the site and it is incumbent upon him to go about this in the proper way.
"It is possible that the RAF and the pilot's next of kin will want the aircraft to remain a war grave, which should be left untouched."
Diver claims wreck of Spitfire
(Filed: 10/12/2001)
THE operator of a diving school in Cyprus who claims to have found the wreckage of an RAF Spitfire off the island's northern coast is refusing to tell the Ministry of Defence its exact location.
Gurdal Mehmetcik, 37, wants to preserve the Spitfire as a wreck dive site for his business, but the MoD insists that it is a war grave and should not be disturbed until its future has been decided.
The remains of the unidentified pilot are still in the aircraft and the MoD said his next of kin should be consulted before any decision was taken to remove the body or leave it untouched.
Mr Mehmetcik has offered to lead an MoD diving team to the site to recover the body, but only on condition that the Spitfire is left as a dive site.
He said: "We are ready to help recover the body, but not the plane. There is a lack of wreck dive sites in Northern Cyprus and we are against the plane being taken away. This is my plane."
Mr Mehmetcik, a former major in the Turkish army, said he found the Spitfire in July. It is thought to have crashed during the Second World War and is lying in 80ft of water in Morphou Bay. Although he said the aircraft was coated in silt and sand, it was in "perfect" condition.
Mr Mehmetcik said he had dived at the site on five occasions, but had not attempted to remove silt from the fuselage to read the Spitfire's recognition number, which would identify the pilot and when the aircraft crashed.
British airfields in Cyprus were extensively used during the Second World War, particularly during the North Africa campaign. The MoD said there were "proper procedures" to follow the discovery of the Spitfire and Mr Mehmetcik should first notify the Cypriot authorities, who would then officially inform the ministry.
A spokesman added: "It is not his choice whether the body is repatriated or not. He does not own the site and it is incumbent upon him to go about this in the proper way.
"It is possible that the RAF and the pilot's next of kin will want the aircraft to remain a war grave, which should be left untouched."