Hawker Sea Hurricane Mk1B G-BKTH Z7015. Photo: M. van Leeuwen Z.A.P.P.

The unique Shuttleworth collection holds a range of airworthy aeroplanes from the start of the 20th century up to the 1950′s. Truly the birth of aviation as we know it today. In these early years aviation was for adventures and wealthy people that caught the ‘bug’ of flying. Everything changed as the world plunged into the first world war.

Visit our Photo report to the September Air Display of the Shuttleworth Collection! 

Supermarine 361 Spitfire LF9B G-ASJV MH434. Photo: M. van Leeuwen Z.A.P.P. Group

Britain however had an important novelty: an Integrated Air Defence System. A large network of the (civilian) Royal Observer Corps (equipped with telephones) and the new Radar stations was sending early warning  information of enemy aircraft closing into the British coast to a central plotting room where the squadrons of Hurricanes and Spitfires were directed from. Working this system the RAF didn’t have to send out as much aerial patrols and was capable to make a strong stand to the Luftwaffe with the smaller numbers of aircraft they had.

Of course this is describing the Battle of Britain in a very small nutshell, but even though I am a huge aircraft fan, I think that the combination of the Royal Observer Corps, Radar and the aircraft of the RAF was unique for it’s time and should not be forgotten.

On the morning of September 4th we (Rob Vogelaar and myself) arrived at Duxford. a few years ago we also set out to report from an autumn show at Duxford, and we were aware of the risks we take with the weather.. but we were lucky, a beautiful sky and early morning sunshine gave us good light for a walk along the flight line. Duxford in my eyes is special because of it’s flight line and the opportunity that not only the press, but also the public get to walk past it without annoying fences that make it hard to take some nice pictures.

Unfortunately while getting closer to the showtime the sky filled with grey clouds and we lost the sun. But looking at the program we knew it would be a special day anyway.

When you visit a lot of air shows every year you pretty much saw it all, but Duxford has something that other shows don’t have, a flight of 4 Hurricane’s including a Sea Hurricane of the Shuttleworth collection. and the largest formation of Spitfires anywhere in the world…  A grand finale, Spitfires starting up, 16 in total. After taking off they flew out to form a group, while we watched the show of the Hurricane’s, a Gloster Gladiator and the Olympic Casa Jungmann.. after they finished their show we watched a group of spots coming in from the right of the airfield..

Greatly impressed by the sound of 16 Rolls Royce Merlin engines (I actually got goosebumps on my arms) I watched the formation closing in. The only other sound I heard was the sound of dozens of shutters from camera’s around me clicking in high-speed mode. While the formation turned to the left for a breakup in two groups the public applauded, everybody seemed to realize that we witnessed a very rare site.

After the show we spoke with the pilot of the Dutch Spitfire who participated in the formation. He stated that he has seen, and done a lot of special things as a pilot, but this was absolutely one of the highlights in his career.

On the airfield of Duxford a lot of devoted people work hard to restore, display and fly a great number of special aircraft. Every time we visit and walk through the hangars we are amazed about this. From pilots to the safety people, everybody is doing his bit to preserve the Heritage Britain is proud of, in remembrance of the many who fell for our freedom.

Well done!

Visit our photo report of this special show.

More information about Duxford and Imperial War Museum? find it at aviationmuseum.eu

Written by Pacific Aircraft (www.warplanes.com), producing the finest collection of hand made and hand painted Aircraft, Ships, and Space Craft models for over 20 years.

Viewing Iwo Jima today might make one wonder what the fuss was all about. The island isn’t pretty, its volcanic origin causes it to reek of sulfur, and there is hardly any vegetation. In addition, dangerous live ordnance still can be found in various places across the island. There is no potable water, so at present no one lives there, except for personnel at a Japanese Naval Base. In fact, one needs special permission from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to visit the island.

US forces were losing fighters (F4-Us and P-51s) and bombers (B-24s and B-29s) due to their not having an emergency landing strip after a bombing run against the Japanese mainland, and those losses were devastating, both for experienced personnel and the equipment. Iwo Jima – called Chichi Jima (“ Sulfur Island ”) by the Japanese – was in a good location to provide that service. The problem was that a force of Japanese soldiers manned it. Unbeknownst to American war planners, it was a rather large force (some 22,000), and they had dug a vast network of tunnels all over the island. With the armament in their possession, they presented a formidable obstacle. In addition, Lt. General Tadamichi Kuribayashi had been ordered by Japan ‘s Prime Minister Hideki Tojo to defend Iwo Jima to the last man.

It was because of the network of tunnels that intelligence underestimated to a large extent the number of men defending Iwo Jima . Nevertheless, a force of some 70,000 Marines landed on several of the beaches under withering fire. One of the most memorable difficulties was in trying to dig foxholes for cover: You couldn’t dig a foxhole in dry sand that kept collapsing on you, and the shovels were no good against the obsidian rock on the other beachheads. Thus for want of cover, an inordinate number of men were lost just in the initial assault.

Progress was slow and costly, and it wasn’t until they discovered the network of tunnels that they understood some strange incidents. After they cleared caves with grenades and flame-throwers, they’d move on, only to be attacked from the rear – from a hole they thought was clear. One night, a physician, dead on his feet in a “clear” zone after working all day to patch up wounded Marines heard foreign voices as he drifted off to sleep. He awoke and began digging through the sand, and encountered support beams of the tunnels below. It was then that the Americans realized what was happening, and adapted their strategy to account for the tunnels.

The Japanese knew every square inch of the island and were skilled at moving at night to silently kill sleeping Marines. US command had estimated three days to take Iwo Jima , but due to the miscalculated strength of the opposition, the entire operation took a full thirty-six days for an island that measured four miles by two miles. The battle could be measured into two distinct struggles: The North end, and the South end where Mt Suribachi stood. Both struggles were extremely difficult, and together they became the costliest encounter in the entire history of the US Marines.

The Marines killed some 21,000 Japanese troops in thirty-six days of fighting, but this one battle cost around 26,000 US casualties, a full one-third of all the casualties in the Pacific Theater in all of forty-three months of fighting. Still, the mission was accomplished: Now the US had a serviceable airstrip in close proximity to the Japanese mainland, as well as an emergency landing strip for battle-damaged aircraft. In fact, the first bomber to set down in an emergency, the B-29 Dinah Might , did so before the battle was over, as soon as the Marines cleared an airstrip and while being fired on by the Japanese. It had been low on fuel, and was refueled and serviced and immediately took off again, headed for home to report for its next mission.

As soon as Iwo Jima fell to the US Marines, the bombing campaign began to see the benefit of its capture. Strategically, the operating range and payloads were increased greatly, and tonnage dropped on Imperial Japan increased significantly. However, the greatest reward for the sacrifices made was its use as an emergency landing strip. Over 2,000 B-29s made emergency landings on Iwo Jima, saving the lives of almost 25,000 crew personnel who otherwise would have crashed in the sea with little if any hope of rescue.

This Article brought to you by
Pacific Aircraft (www.warplanes.com), producing the world’s finest collection of hand-made model aircraft, ships, plaques and artifacts for over 20 years.

Photo: M. van Leeuwen (Duxford 2007)

A bit of a mystery shrouds the death of Baron Manfred Von Richthofen (the “Red Baron”) over the Morlancourt Ridge, near the Somme River, on April 21, 1918. Some accounts have him crashing to the ground, others say that while he was shot through the torso, he maintained enough control and presence of mind to land his Fokker Dr I before he died of his wounds. Whatever the exact circumstances, he was hit with a .303 caliber round, which confirms that he was killed by a British Empire troop – whether Australian, British, or Canadian – although the identity of the shooter remains in question to this day.

Officially, credit for the Richthofen kill went to RAF Captain Arthur Brown, who was pursuing him at the time. Later analysis tends to credit an Australian machine gunner on the ground, primarily because of the route traveled by the round. It was determined that it went from low in his right side and slightly behind him, then went up and forward from there, but the most telling fact was that it was found still in Richthofen’s clothing. Had the shot come from Brown’s machine gun, it would not have still been there, since the planes were in close proximity to each other.

Thus both the angle of the wound and the diminished velocity of the bullet indicate that the shot came from the ground, most likely one Sergeant Cedric Popkin of the Australian 24th Machine Gun Company.

Richthofen was born on May 2, 1892. He went into the German army and completed his cavalry cadet training in 1911, but soon after the outbreak of the Great War, he became bored and decided he wanted to fly. He secured a transfer in 1915 and started flight training in October, completing his first solo flight on October 10. Taking the liberty of mounting a machine gun on his Albatros B II reconnaissance plane, he essentially created his own fighter. It wasn’t long before he shot down a French reconnaissance plane, although it wasn’t credited to him.

During one of his many exploits, on November 23, 1916, he shot down and killed Major Lanoe George Hawker, who at the time was the best of the British pilots, one whom Richthofen considered very “big game.” By this time, of course, the Allies were concentrating intensely on going after him. He was causing entirely too much damage and had to be stopped.

With 20 kills in April of 1917, Richthofen brought his total to an unprecedented 52. By this time he had become a fearless as well as a ruthless killer, even shooting Allied pilots trying to escape from their downed planes. This was quite a change from earlier, when he once sent a box of cigars to a British opponent who survived.

Then in July of that year, he took a round that grazed and partially splintered his skull and, because it never healed properly, caused discomfort in the form of severe headaches for the rest of his life. After a period of treatment and recuperation, he returned to the squadron, but he wasn’t at his peak for several weeks.

By September of that year, he had managed to recover somewhat, and raised his kill count to 60. By then he was flying the distinctive red triple-wing Fokker Dr I that he is remembered for today. At the time of his death, he had achieved 80 kills, the highest number for World War I of any country, and in fact Baron Manfred Von Richthofen’s air battle record still stands.

This Article brought to you by

Pacific Aircraft (www.warplanes.com), producing the world’s finest collection of hand-made model aircraft, ships, plaques and artifacts for over 20 years.