Dambusters raid 16th – 17th May 1943 The raid on the dams in the Ruhr valley was carried out on the night of 16th May 1943 by Royal Air Force No. 617 Squadron, the Lancaster bombers returning in the early morning of the 17th. The Möhne and Edersee Dams had been breached, using the “bouncing… Read More »
P51 Mustang The all American hero, (not quite) Sir Henry Self was responsible for Royal Air Force’s production and research and development. One of his jobs was to organize the manufacturing and supply of American fighter aircraft for the RAF. The problem was, at the time none of the U.S. aircraft then in production could… Read More »
15 TON FLYING FORTRESS was the caption with the picture in the Seattle Daily Times, taken of the new Boeing Model 299 on the 16th of July 1935. The caption soon caught the attention of Boeing who quickly registered the name for their Model 299. It became one of the best known names for an aircraft… Read More »
Scottish Schooner to American civil war Ironclad CSS Atlanta started life as an iron hulled, schooner, also powered by steam of about 700 tons, named Fingal. Built in Clydebank, Scotland she was launched early in 1861. For a short time she sailed to and from ports in Scotland until she was purchased by a Mr Bulloch in September… Read More »
The German atomic bomb project was the research project undertaken by German physicists, with the goal of using the radioactive substance uranium for the ultimate power. Leo Szilard, Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr greatly boosted the British and American efforts in nuclear weapons research after becoming aware of the German atomic bomb project. The Manhattan Project… Read More »
The Heinkel He 49 was a fabric covered metal construction Biplane powered by a liquid cooled BMW VI engine producing 750 horsepower, giving it a top speed of 199 mph. The first prototype flew in November 1932, the He 49a. This was followed by two more prototypes the He 49b and He 49c. With the He49c having fairings on… Read More »
Saturday the 5th of March is the 80th anniversary of the first flight of the prototype Spitfire from Southampton Airport, in 1936. A Spitfire will be taking off from the airport to mark the anniversary. The Spitfire will fly close to the resting place of its Chief Designer R J Mitchell, at St. Mary’s Church,… Read More »
On 28 March 1915, the SS Brussels was off the coast of the Netherlands when captain Fryatt came into contact with the German U-boat U33. He was ordered to stop, but realising the U-boat was about to torpedo his ship, he ordered full steam ahead and then tried to ram U-33, which then crash dived. For this action, Fryatt… Read More »
HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse had arrived in Singapore on the 2nd of December 1941. After receiving news of a Japanese convoy heading towards Malaya, the Prince of Wales, Repulse, and four destroyers Electra, Express, Vampire and Tenedos, sailed from Singapore at 17.10 on 8th December. Churchill had publicly announced that the Prince of Wales and Repulse were being sent to Singapore. Admiral Yamamoto then reinforced his Air Groups with… Read More »