The title of this blog comes from a Gaelic expression -"putting on the poor mouth"-which means to exaggerate the direness of one's situation in order to gain time or favour from creditors.
12 November 2007
De Havilland Mosquito
American newsreel footage from WWII
Footage from an air display in the 1990's. There will be no further footage. The last airworthy Mosquito crashed at an airshow about 10 years ago.
8 comments:
Anonymous
said...
Thanks for that, very moving stuff.There is excellent footage in the film 611 Squadron but it is marred by the number of airframes they destroyed for effect. My father-in-law had the chance to fly over Germany in one immediately after the war but declined out of caution - he was a Met Officer and older than most. I would have gone, I can tell you. A.
Aileni, not to be picky but it was 633 Squadron. From memory I believe everything that we saw 'destroyed' in the film were replicas. I think they had three original Mossies that they used for the flying sequence. I remember seeing them at Biggin Hill when I were a lad.
It's a shame he never took the chance to fly in a mossie Aileni. My dad would give his left nut (and right one too) to get another chance to fly in onw. Not that it will happen now.
You are right Richard it was 633 squadron. I would love to have seen the mossies myself. Sadly the only ones left are in museums
My dad lives close to an Air Field that puts on fantastic shows every year. He could watch it from his roof but he chooses to go in person and pay admission....I suspect its more to sample the 'Sausages Around The World' exhibit and chase it down with International beer.
Ah now EWBL I think you have the answer. There must be times when When Lone Star and Bratwurst are not enough... and the air show provides the necessary variety!
I was winging it on the Sqdn number. I would have had to go downstairs and look up Cliff Robertson refs... oh, bugger! Why didn't I Wiki it? You see, I'm still a beginner - still a book person at heart.Last time I saw a Mozi was at Staverton around 1965. They had two, I think. Claim to fame - I flew in the last Sunderland ever built. A.
8 comments:
Thanks for that, very moving stuff.There is excellent footage in the film 611 Squadron but it is marred by the number of airframes they destroyed for effect.
My father-in-law had the chance to fly over Germany in one immediately after the war but declined out of caution - he was a Met Officer and older than most.
I would have gone, I can tell you.
A.
Aileni, not to be picky but it was 633 Squadron. From memory I believe everything that we saw 'destroyed' in the film were replicas. I think they had three original Mossies that they used for the flying sequence. I remember seeing them at Biggin Hill when I were a lad.
It's a shame he never took the chance to fly in a mossie Aileni. My dad would give his left nut (and right one too) to get another chance to fly in onw. Not that it will happen now.
You are right Richard it was 633 squadron. I would love to have seen the mossies myself. Sadly the only ones left are in museums
My dad lives close to an Air Field that puts on fantastic shows every year. He could watch it from his roof but he chooses to go in person and pay admission....I suspect its more to sample the 'Sausages Around The World' exhibit and chase it down with International beer.
He's a Renaissance man!
Ah now EWBL I think you have the answer. There must be times when When Lone Star and Bratwurst are not enough... and the air show provides the necessary variety!
I was winging it on the Sqdn number. I would have had to go downstairs and look up Cliff Robertson refs... oh, bugger! Why didn't I Wiki it?
You see, I'm still a beginner - still a book person at heart.Last time I saw a Mozi was at Staverton around 1965. They had two, I think.
Claim to fame - I flew in the last Sunderland ever built.
A.
Wow Aileni! the Sunderland must have been a great trip
Aileni, A Sunderland....that's flying aright..... I once took a five hour flight in a Varsity, that was bloody cold!
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