RAF Bovingdon - 1960s
Company was William Dempster Ltd. Kozubski was 'Chief Pilot of the Tudor Fleet'. (Tony Merton Jones - British Independent Airlines 1946-1976). http://www.aviapc.com/nonmember/news...econd%20Glance
Scroll down to read 'The Polish Eagle and the Falcon' (Written by a fellow Ppruner).
Scroll down to read 'The Polish Eagle and the Falcon' (Written by a fellow Ppruner).
Last edited by OUAQUKGF Ops; 3rd Aug 2020 at 14:39. Reason: Link added.
Sorry about this, now you are going to get the photo twice! I meant to explain that the registration appears to be a military one. I remember now these were trooping flights and the crews changed into an RAF uniform for the last part of the flight into Egypt. I think Dad said this was so they were not accused of being spies in Egypt but I couldn't swear to it. I do remember he had two uniforms though.
I do not know if this film/movie has been mentioned on here previously...The Liquidator (1965)
A spoof/comedy spy film with Rod Taylor and Trevor Howard.Some lovely 60's scenery (Nice/Monte Carlo),a couple of lovely 60's cars and the finale scenes set at the mythical 'RAF Gayborough' actually start with a couple of nice shots at Bovingdon Airfield and then switch to Wisley Airfield - this includes a Valiant doing a RATO take off and during the landing scene you get the best quality images I have ever seen of Wisley airfield and the Assembly/Flight Test buildings.
A spoof/comedy spy film with Rod Taylor and Trevor Howard.Some lovely 60's scenery (Nice/Monte Carlo),a couple of lovely 60's cars and the finale scenes set at the mythical 'RAF Gayborough' actually start with a couple of nice shots at Bovingdon Airfield and then switch to Wisley Airfield - this includes a Valiant doing a RATO take off and during the landing scene you get the best quality images I have ever seen of Wisley airfield and the Assembly/Flight Test buildings.
Many of us cadets from squadrons in Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire would do the same scrounging at Bovingdon, in fact the Guardroom had a separate book for ATC cadets to sign on and off the station. When they amalgamated FCCS and CCCS into 'Southern Communications Squadron' (at the same time at Northolt the different units initially became 'Metropolitan Communications Squadron' long before they were assigned the squadron number of '32', and that was only when The Queens Flight became part of the squadron) it was easier because they used the 'old' terminal building which had been occupied by the USAF so you only had one place to visit to enquire about 'spare seats' rather than 2.
Sorry to be pedantic but you are way out on your time lines for 32 squadron. The Metropolitan Communications Squadron was rebadged as No. 32 Squadron in 1969, along with all the other RAF Communications units, way way before the Queens Flight disbanded and was merged into 32 Squadron in 1995, thus giving the existing 32 squadron the title 32 (The Royal)Squadron.
5th January 1945
Note the newly laid hard standings by the threshold of R/W 35 and to the north-east of the Control Tower. Most of the aeroplanes appear to be C47s. Photo credit Military Airfield Directory.
4th January 1946
In this image the hard standings between the Control Tower and R/W 35 have been completed.
Many C47s are on the dispersals. Control of the airfield passed from the USAAF to The Air Ministry 15th April 1946.
Afraid I can't enlarge. Credit American Air museum in Britain.
\
Slightly better definition.
Last edited by OUAQUKGF Ops; 16th Aug 2020 at 08:39.
William Wyler's Film 'Memphis Belle'
I expect many of you are familiar with this classic. I must admit I've never watched it through until recently. The closing sequences were shot at Bassingbourn and then Bovingdon commencing with the presentation of Captain Morgan and his crew to General Devers by General Eaker. In the closing moments of the film Memphis Belle departs from Bovingdon's R/W 04 and then performs a flypast. You can just catch a glimpse of the Control Tower as it was on June 9th 1943. However all was not what it appeared to be. Graham Simons and Harry Friedman's researches have revealed the following:
The timeline of the journey home – from last mission to Washington DC.
May 17 – Morgan’s 25th mission.
May 19 – Memphis Belle’s 25th mission.
May 26 – King George VI and Queen Elizabeth’s visit to Bassingbourn.
Date Unknown Medal ceremony at Bassingbourn.
June 8 – Test flying/filming/proficiency flying from Bassingbourn
June 9 – Depart Bassingbourn -filming en-route for one hour. Land at Bovingdon.
June 9 – ‘26th Mission’ ceremony at Bovingdon.
June 12 – Depart Bovingdon for two hour thirty minute flight to Prestwick, Scotland.
June 13 – Depart Prestwick, Scotland for eight hour flight to Greenland.
June 14 – Refuel. Depart Greenland for ten hour flight to Bangor, Maine.
June 14 – Refuel. Depart Bangor, Maine for three hour flight to Chicopee, Massachusetts.
June 15 – Arrive Washington DC area.
June 16 – Official arrival at Washington National Airport.
Graham Simons has identified other film locations as Bassingbourn, Alconbury, and Chelveston. The B17 concerned was 41-24485 of the 91st Bomb Group.
William Wyler and his Film Crew previously visited Bovingdon in 1943. I've extracted the following from Brig.Gen. J. Kemp McLaughlin's Memoir (The Mighty Eighth in WW11). He, together with his Captain, Tom Hulings were then Duty Pilots at Bovingdon with the 11th CCRC.
'Sometime in February1943, Major William Wyler arrived at our station with a group of cameramen experienced in aerial photography. All of them were Commissioned Officers and being ten to fifteen years our senior, they were all First Lieutenants and Captains. Tom Hulings and I were assigned to fly for them and we began immediately to experiment with manned camera stations all over the airplane. We set one up in the radio room hatch, with the camera on an installed tripod and the cameraman's head and shoulders outside the airplane. Other photographers were set up in the nose, tail, waist gun and ball turret positions. After preparing these camera positions, we flew several orientation flights to give our cameramen an opportunity to adjust to their tasks of photography from an aerial platform. We then flew to Bassingbourn the home field of the 91st Bomb Group. There after several meetings and briefings, we finally took off, climbed to about nine thousand feet, where six of our P-47s began making fake combat gunnery passes at us. Their maneuvers were from all quarters, both high and low, while we cruised as slowly as possible so that the cameramen, especially the one whose head and shoulders were outside the airplane, could get good shots. These films turned out to be excellent footage, and we were told that they would be used to help train aerial gunners. About a month later I saw some of these shots on the Pathe News in a London movie theater shown as actual aerial combat over Germany ! '
William Wyler at Bassingbourn. January 1943. Photo credit American Air Museum in Britain.
Memphis Belle quite possibly photographed en route to Bovingdon from Bassingbourn on June 9th 1943. Photo credit American Air Museum in Britain.
Ditto...
Memphis Belle at Bovingdon June 9th 1943. Photo credit American Air Museum in Britain.
Bob Morgan and crew. General Devers at the microphone, General Eaker looks on. Photo credit American Air Museum in Britain.
The timeline of the journey home – from last mission to Washington DC.
May 17 – Morgan’s 25th mission.
May 19 – Memphis Belle’s 25th mission.
May 26 – King George VI and Queen Elizabeth’s visit to Bassingbourn.
Date Unknown Medal ceremony at Bassingbourn.
June 8 – Test flying/filming/proficiency flying from Bassingbourn
June 9 – Depart Bassingbourn -filming en-route for one hour. Land at Bovingdon.
June 9 – ‘26th Mission’ ceremony at Bovingdon.
June 12 – Depart Bovingdon for two hour thirty minute flight to Prestwick, Scotland.
June 13 – Depart Prestwick, Scotland for eight hour flight to Greenland.
June 14 – Refuel. Depart Greenland for ten hour flight to Bangor, Maine.
June 14 – Refuel. Depart Bangor, Maine for three hour flight to Chicopee, Massachusetts.
June 15 – Arrive Washington DC area.
June 16 – Official arrival at Washington National Airport.
Graham Simons has identified other film locations as Bassingbourn, Alconbury, and Chelveston. The B17 concerned was 41-24485 of the 91st Bomb Group.
William Wyler and his Film Crew previously visited Bovingdon in 1943. I've extracted the following from Brig.Gen. J. Kemp McLaughlin's Memoir (The Mighty Eighth in WW11). He, together with his Captain, Tom Hulings were then Duty Pilots at Bovingdon with the 11th CCRC.
'Sometime in February1943, Major William Wyler arrived at our station with a group of cameramen experienced in aerial photography. All of them were Commissioned Officers and being ten to fifteen years our senior, they were all First Lieutenants and Captains. Tom Hulings and I were assigned to fly for them and we began immediately to experiment with manned camera stations all over the airplane. We set one up in the radio room hatch, with the camera on an installed tripod and the cameraman's head and shoulders outside the airplane. Other photographers were set up in the nose, tail, waist gun and ball turret positions. After preparing these camera positions, we flew several orientation flights to give our cameramen an opportunity to adjust to their tasks of photography from an aerial platform. We then flew to Bassingbourn the home field of the 91st Bomb Group. There after several meetings and briefings, we finally took off, climbed to about nine thousand feet, where six of our P-47s began making fake combat gunnery passes at us. Their maneuvers were from all quarters, both high and low, while we cruised as slowly as possible so that the cameramen, especially the one whose head and shoulders were outside the airplane, could get good shots. These films turned out to be excellent footage, and we were told that they would be used to help train aerial gunners. About a month later I saw some of these shots on the Pathe News in a London movie theater shown as actual aerial combat over Germany ! '
William Wyler at Bassingbourn. January 1943. Photo credit American Air Museum in Britain.
Memphis Belle quite possibly photographed en route to Bovingdon from Bassingbourn on June 9th 1943. Photo credit American Air Museum in Britain.
Ditto...
Memphis Belle at Bovingdon June 9th 1943. Photo credit American Air Museum in Britain.
Bob Morgan and crew. General Devers at the microphone, General Eaker looks on. Photo credit American Air Museum in Britain.
Last edited by OUAQUKGF Ops; 3rd Jan 2023 at 14:13.
Page Three
Page Three? Good Lor ! Here we are on Page One again......... Emma Peel was never on Page Three. Here she is at Bovingdon in 1965 but sadly not heavily featured. I remember when 'The Avengers' came to Luton in 1967. We gave them the use of one of our clapped out Heralds (awaiting upgrade and reintroduction with Autair following a hammering up in The Highlands and Islands with BEA) and John Steed came and used our staff lavatory where a notice from The Chief Pilot complaining about fag ends in the bog had been recently defaced. Sadly there was no sign of Mrs Peel......
https://archive.org/details/the.aven...ver.was_201910
https://archive.org/details/the.aven...ver.was_201910
Gnome de PPRuNe
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She's gotta lotta bottle...
[QUOTE=OUAQUKGF Ops;10850890]9th October 1942
1944
I found this image somewhere but can't tell you anything about it!
Just noticed that this image is reversed.
Richard
1944
I found this image somewhere but can't tell you anything about it!
Just noticed that this image is reversed.
Richard
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Flipped and cleaned a bit. Mosquito VI from the LR3xx range. P-47, 7U, 36th Fighter Group, 23rd Fighter Squadron?
Last edited by goofer3; 22nd Sep 2020 at 06:57. Reason: Add a bit.
Recording of Eric W Bowkett (obit 2012)
In 2009 Eric Bowkett retired ATCO and one time Navigator recorded his memories for The Imperial War Museum. Eric joined The Lancashire Aircraft Corporation at Bovingdon as a Halifax Navigator and served on the Berlin Airlift based at Schleswigland Germany flying Diesel Oil into Berlin (Tegel). The Company operated a dozen Halifax/Halton aeroplanes on the airlift with a pool of twenty crews. It seems very likely that a crew would remain together for the duration.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/80024106
Reels 3-5 cover the period in question.
Most of the images below extracted from The Berlin Air Lift booklet published by The Lancashire Aircraft Corporation (I found a cheaper copy than that offered on that auction site.)
I dare say some of us oldies have come across one or two of these chaps during our time. Credit LAC.
With regard to the above Captain Robert Freight, Navigator James Sharp and Flight Engineer W.J. Patterson were killed when Halton G-AJZZ crashed at Schleswigland on 21 March 1949. The Radio Operator J.Hamilton survived.
In addition three LAC Ground Engineers were killed in a ground accident with a Hastings at Schleswigland on 15th January 1949:
They were Theodor Supernatt, Patrick Griffin and Edward O'Neil. I believe their German driver also died.
Eric Bowkett mentions both these incidents.
The U.S Mobile canteen at Tegel mentioned by Bowkett. Photo credit LAC.
Hastings TG534 of 297 Squadron. Fuel leak on startup at Schleswigland 6th April 1949. Mentioned by Bowkett. Photo credit the Late Peter Hewins.
Photo Credit LAC.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/80024106
Reels 3-5 cover the period in question.
Most of the images below extracted from The Berlin Air Lift booklet published by The Lancashire Aircraft Corporation (I found a cheaper copy than that offered on that auction site.)
I dare say some of us oldies have come across one or two of these chaps during our time. Credit LAC.
With regard to the above Captain Robert Freight, Navigator James Sharp and Flight Engineer W.J. Patterson were killed when Halton G-AJZZ crashed at Schleswigland on 21 March 1949. The Radio Operator J.Hamilton survived.
In addition three LAC Ground Engineers were killed in a ground accident with a Hastings at Schleswigland on 15th January 1949:
They were Theodor Supernatt, Patrick Griffin and Edward O'Neil. I believe their German driver also died.
Eric Bowkett mentions both these incidents.
The U.S Mobile canteen at Tegel mentioned by Bowkett. Photo credit LAC.
Hastings TG534 of 297 Squadron. Fuel leak on startup at Schleswigland 6th April 1949. Mentioned by Bowkett. Photo credit the Late Peter Hewins.
Photo Credit LAC.
Last edited by OUAQUKGF Ops; 18th Oct 2020 at 07:21.
Richard Karl Otto Neumann was the driver who died. The accident appears to have occurred when the Hastings was taxying in after landing and collided with the vehicle.
Why for me?
Obviously parked on the Whelpley Hill side although I thought this area had been closed down by the '60s.
Obviously parked on the Whelpley Hill side although I thought this area had been closed down by the '60s.
Last edited by chevvron; 8th Mar 2021 at 00:57.