The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire is to provide a flypast by a Hurricane fighter between 4pm and 4.20pm today, Sunday, July 16 - weather conditions permitting.
This is part of a new North Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Festival embracing our local aviation heritage from the early 20th century, taking place at Skydive Hibaldstow.
There were WW2 fighters at the airfields in Hibaldstow and Kirton Lindsey, while local bomber stations included Elsham and Kirmington, where Humberside Airport is today.
Agree Nige....but can I add the caveat:
ReplyDeleteElsham - Kirton Lindsey and Scampton...were initially fighter stations - they were formed in October, 1916 for Royal Flying Corps airfields to counter German Zeppelin flights in this part of North Lincs that was called, at the time, the 'Zeppelin Corridor'.
Apart from London, the Humber region was the main target for Zeppelins...and many more over-flew the area on their way (or intention) to bomb towns in the East Midland and North England..
(Both the German Imperial Navy and the their army used airships to attack Britain...it was the first time that strategic bombing came to the Home Front...Scunthorpe was bombed on 31st Jan 1916...by Zeppelin L13.
The German airships were, at that time, called ' Baby Killers' as everyone felt volunerable. But in reality, with the introduction of specialised ammunition and with the introduction of more sophisticated aeroplanes, the German Zeppelins were routed from September 1916, costing more German casualties and economic costs compared with those inflicted on the UK.
The airshipmen (in a different Zep) who bombed Scunthorpe, were brought down in flames and killed in October, 1916. L13 was one of the few original airships that survived...it was transferred to a transport role, being scrapped in 1918....
ps...Although the Hawker Hurricane proved to be an important fighter in the early stages of the war..i.e. the Battle of Britain...and later, as an excellent fighter/bomber in the war...i.e. attacking German tanks/artillary in North Africa ...it is regarded as a transitional design between a biplane/ and a monoplane of the mid 1930's....some even describe its design as a biplane with only one wing..and unlike the Spitfire, it was constructed from wood.
Re above...Google and then compare the design of the Hawker Hurricane with the Hawker Fury..
ReplyDeletePs the term 'Dogfights' - i.e. aircraft attacking each other, was coined in WW1.
When the aircraft attacked each other, often taking evasive actions, such as rolls, diving and tight turns, their engines were often starved of fuel and would constantly cut out and splutter.....from the ground, the spluttering and banging from engine restarts sounded like dogs having a fight......hence the consequential term, 'dogfights'....
I'm off again, Nige...
ReplyDeleteWe often think as the Hurricane and the Spitfire as the only decisive fighters of the Battle of Britain. Hurricanes account for 60 percent of the German aircraft brought down.
But in historical reality, there were several other types of RAF aircraf that were operational, especially, in the early weeks of the Battle - started ?5th July, 1940.
Such other aircraft included the Fairy Battle, the Bristol Blenheim - twin-engine medium bomber, and even a squadron of biplanes, Gloster (Sea) Gladiators of the Fleet Air Arm attacked the German aerial invasion. It was quickly realised that such aircraft were very volunerable and quickly withdrawn.
One decisive factor of the Battle of Britain was actually reenacted by an RAF Bomber Command squadron.
Hitler had boasted that Berlin would never be bombed....but when an air-raid was made on Berlin in the summer of Berlin, Hitler vented his anger and changed the target of the aerial attacks from RAF airfields to London......this gave the RAF valuable to to replace and reequip squadrons with Spitfires/Hurricanes, as well as replacement pilots....