ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 225085
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | Saturday 16 January 1943 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  Supermarine Spitfire Mk IIa |
| Owner/operator: | 53 OTU RAF |
| Registration: | P8396 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Cross Barn, St Hilary, Cowbridge, Glamorgan, Wales -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | RAF Llandow, Glamorgan |
| RAF Llandow, Glamorgan |
Spitfire P8396 'Bermuda II' collided with Spitfire X4067 'Hissar II' piloted by Sgt G.A Kemp, while in formation over Cross Farm, St Hilary, Cowbridge, Glamorgan, on 16th January 1943. Pilot of Spitfire P8396 killed.
Pilot Officer Roger Nicholas Franklin, 20 (from South Africa) Service Number 127956, RAFVR- killed. Buried Llantwit Major Cemetery, Sec. C. Grave 37.
R.I.P.
Details:
"When my mummy has taken me out and I have wanted to use a public convenience she has had to pay a penny. So I thought if we did the same at home it would help your fund."
So wrote eight-year-old Patricia Boncey to Lord Beaverbrook, Minister of Aircraft Production, to accompany her postal order for 15 shillings.
"The aircraft, and the idea of buying one, seemed to hit the national psyche.
"Britain wanted to believe in something and the Spitfire, that combination of beauty and power, was the great saviour." Almost from the moment it took to the air in 1936, the Spitfire inspired movie star-style attention, overshadowing the tried and proven Hurricane. This ability to amaze and inspire was embodied by the fund movement, which obsessed much of Britain and beyond.
Funds were everywhere, with contributors being rewarded with badges. Donations ranging from pocket money pennies to king's ransoms eventually raised about £13m (£650m at modern values). But the story behind this generosity was one of crisis, improvisation and a pushy Canadian.
War is an expensive business and 1914-18, coupled with the Great Depression of the 1920s, had left Britain saddled with huge debts. The policy of avoiding war by making concessions to Hitler - known as appeasement - was in part prompted by a national bank balance firmly in the red.
But as the ambitions of Nazi Germany became clear, there was a scramble to rebuild the neglected armed forces. In early 1940 Lord Beaverbrook - the Anglo-Canadian media tycoon Max Aitken - came into government to speed up aircraft production. Beaverbrook pushed the idea of public appeals, for example to source raw materials and to encourage thrifty shopping, in a bid to help with the war effort. One of the favoured fund-raising options was the public display of crashed German aircraft.
The funds were designed to give people a sense of being part of the war effort
To encourage the idea every penny counted, a components price list was published, included a wing for £2,000, a gun at £200, down to a spark plug at 8 shillings, or a rivet at sixpence.
Imagination and dedication led to countless fund-raising ideas. Everyone could "do their bit".
A Kent farmer charged people sixpence "to see the only field in Kent without a German aircraft in it".
During an air raid, the manager of a London cinema pushed a wheelbarrow up and down the aisle, asking for donations: "The more you give, the less raids there will be". There were table-top sales, auctions and raffles.
The Wiltshire village of Market Lavington drew the outline of a Spitfire in the square and challenged residents to fill it with coins. The task was completed within days.
In Liverpool, it was reported a "lady of the night" left £3 at the police station "for the Spitfire Fund", this amount being the standard fine for soliciting!
Many countries donated enough for entire squadrons to bear their name, including No.74 (Trinidad), No.167 (Gold Coast) and No.114 (Hong Kong).
P8396 was a presentation Spitfire from donations from the islands of Bermuda and to make matters even more confusing she was number II! Bermuda I airframe P8507. P8396 entered RAF service going to 9 MU on the 2nd of May 1941, P8507 ‘Bermuda I’ going to 12 MU on the same day?
Bermuda II was assigned to No.74 squadron on the 9th of May and before she took to the air, she was transferred to 602 squadron two days later, on the 11th. She flew on her first patrol in the hands of P/O Rose on the 15th of June. During July she finally had a regular pilot, Sgt Scorer who flew on quite a number of Fighter Sweeps until the inevitable intake of the mark five’s. Her next assignment was with 71 ‘Eagle’ squadron, arriving on the 10th of August. Almost as soon as she arrived, she was adorned with the ‘Eagle’, the first patrol happened on the 17th in the hands of P/O Fessler. P/O Dunn on the 20th and finally her regular pilot, P/O J.J.J. Crowley took her on her first ‘Rhubarb’ on the 25th which turned into another straight after and a convoy patrol on the way home.
The squadron began to take delivery of the mark fives mid-September and Bermuda II was off again, this time to 401 squadron on the 19th of September with the intake of the five’s following her every move. By the 17th of December she arrived at 308 squadron on the 17th, another short stay of three days and she came to 306 squadron on the 20th. She finally came to her final posting with 53 OTU on the 7th of February 1942. She lasted almost twenty days before suffering cat B damage on landing in the hands of a ‘green’ pilot. After repair on station she carried out her training duties until an unfortunate coming together with X4067 during formation practice. The pilot of X4067, another gifted Spitfire ‘Hissar II’, Sgt G. A. Kemp was able to land safely without any further damage. As for Bermuda II, she fell to earth at Cross Barn near St Hilary, killing the South African born pilot.
Crew:
P/O Roger Nicholas Franklin 29yo 127956 RAFVR. Pilot. Killed.
Son of Richard James Franklin and of Gladys Susie Franklin (nee Allum) of Balgowan, Natal, South Africa.
Buried:
Llantwit Major Cemetery. Section C. Grave 37.
Wreckage:
All the wreckage was easily recovered. However, a farm worker discovered an engine panel which ended up at the South Wales Aviation Museum (SWAM) at the former WW2 airfield of RAF St Athan.
I donated relics I have found over the years of which are too valuable in regard to their historical meaning. When I called in to drop off the accompanying texts covering the incidents. Mr Gary Spoors the proprietor, asked if I could I.D. the port engine panel hanging on the wall. After asking where it was found and finding the serial number which gave me the clues to the Spitfire type, I easily concluded along with my notes that it came from the Spitfire in question!
Memorials:
CWGC Headstone & electronic memorial.
Additional Information:
Bermuda III was another MkII but with the 'B' wing she was P8649.
Sources:
1. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p007.html
2. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2717377/franklin,-roger-nicholas/
3. http://www.ggat.org.uk/timeline/pdf/Military%20Aircraft%20Crash%20Sites%20in%20Southeast%20Wales.pdf
4. http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?7775&styleid=3
5. http://www.americanairmuseum.com/aircraft/19727
6. http://www.rafcommands.com/archive/11345.php
www.allspitfirepilots.org
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 14-May-2019 19:59 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 25-May-2019 11:43 | stehlik49 | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location] |
| 17-Apr-2021 04:27 | angels one five | Updated [Aircraft type, Nature, Destination airport, Narrative] |
| 10-Jun-2022 02:25 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative] |
| 12-Feb-2024 06:09 | angels one five | Updated [Phase] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2024 Flight Safety Foundation