ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 21938
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| Date: | Monday 15 July 1940 |
| Time: | 15:00 |
| Type: |  Hawker Hurricane Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 615 (County of Surrey) Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | L1584 |
| MSN: | KW-G |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | English Channel, off Dover, Kent, England -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Kenley, Whyteleafe, Surrey |
Hawker Hurricane L1584 (KW-G) 615 (County of Surrey) Squadron, RAF: Written off (destroyed) when lost (Failed To Return) from combat operations. Pilot missing believed killed. According to the official Air Ministry file into the incident (File AIR 81/1119): "Hurricane L1584 crashed at sea off Dover, 15 July 1940. Pilot Officer M R Mudie: report of death"
At about 1500 hours, Ju 87 Stuka dive-bombers of IV/LG 1, escorted by Bf 109s of III/JG 3 and II/JG 51, were despatched to attack the convoy codenamed BOOTY off Eastbourne. They were intercepted by Hurricanes from Nos. 151 and 615 Squadrons along with Spitfires from No. 610 Squadron. One Stuka and one Bf 109 were shot down. Another Bf 109 was badly damaged and crash-landed at Wissant. A Hurricane was also lost. During the attack, the vessel SS Island Queen (779 tons) was sunk and several other ships were damaged.
The aerial battle was witnessed by BBC radio reporter Charles Gardner standing on the cliffs of Dover. He gave a live running commentary that was later to become famous. The Operational Record Book of No.615 Squadron for this day recorded the following:
"At 15:00 hours, Red section were patrolling over a convoy near Dover, when the convoy was attacked by 40 Ju 87s which were escorted by Me 109s. Pilot Officer M.R.Mudie (Red 3) was shot down, and jumped by parachute. Red 1 and 2 put several bursts into the Ju 87s but were unable to observe results as they were being attacked."
For 24 year old Michael Mudie had stood little chance in evading the Schwarms of Me109s on his tail, and no less than four Jagdflieger claimed a share in the destruction of his Hurricane (L1584 KW-G). These victorious German pilots included Oberfeldwebel Trebing of JG3, Walter Krieger of JG51 along with two of his better-known unit comrades by the names of Oberleutnant Josef Priller and Hauptmann Horst Tietzen.
Unaware of his error in misidentifying the shot down aircraft, The BBC's Charles Gardner did nevertheless state in his commentary recording that: "It's impossible to tell which are our machines and which are the Germans!". Keeping his attention upon the battle still on-going he observed: "I am looking out to sea now. I can see the little white dot of a parachute as the German pilot is floating down towards the spot where his machine crashed with such a big fountain of water about two minutes ago!
Tragically however the "German" under the parachute was in fact a severely wounded Pilot Officer Michael Mudie, and after commentating further on the air battle, things quietened down briefly for Gardner to remark: "No damage done, except to the Germans, who lost one machine and the German pilot, who is still on the end of his parachute. I can see no boat going out to pick him up, so he'll probably have a long swim ashore!"
P/O M.R. Mudie died of injuries. Baled out , badly wounded, was rescued from the sea by a Navy MTB (Motor Torpedo Boat) and admitted to Dover Hospital. On arrival at the hospital his wounds were recorded as burns and a gunshot wound to the face. Mudie died the next day, aged 24.
Crew of Hurricane L1584:
Pilot Officer Michael Robert Mudie (Pilot) RAF 42073, aged 24; died of wounds 15/07/1940, buried in Esher Cemetery, East Molesey, Surrey
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft L1000-L9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1978 p 10)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/1119): https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502931
3. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2434512/mudie,-michael-robert/
4. http://www.doverwarmemorialproject.org.uk/Information/Articles/Incidents/Flames.htm
5. https://battleofbritain1940.com/entry/sunday-14-july-1940/
6. http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Mudie.htm
7. https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/news-report--air-battle-off-dover/zby9f4j
8. http://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/remembering-today-15-7-40-pilot-officer-michael-robert-mudie-42073-royal-air-force-615-sqdn.61877/
9. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/27857275
9.
Media:
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 01-Aug-2008 23:37 | Anon. | Added |
| 06-Jan-2012 07:23 | Nepa | Updated [Aircraft type, Location, Nature, Destination airport, Narrative] |
| 06-Jan-2012 07:25 | Nepa | Updated [Operator] |
| 03-Feb-2013 03:02 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 09-Aug-2013 01:08 | JINX | Updated [Operator, Location] |
| 08-May-2015 19:41 | Angel dot comma | Updated [Operator, Destination airport] |
| 30-Oct-2018 04:49 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
| 15-Oct-2019 19:21 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Registration, Cn, Operator, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Damage, Narrative] |
| 16-Oct-2019 04:39 | juza7 | Updated [Operator] |
| 29-Apr-2023 15:29 | Nepa | Updated [[Operator]] |
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