Date:	Wednesday 29 May 1940
Time:	day
Type:	Supermarine Spitfire Ia
Owner/operator:	610 (County of Chester) Sqn RAF
Registration:	N3177
MSN:	420
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	near Dunkerque, Pas de Calais, Hauts de France -   France
Phase:	Combat
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Gravesend, Kent
Destination airport:

Narrative:
N3177: Spitfire Mk.Ia (c/no. 420). First Flown 15-11-39. Delivered to the RAF at 8 MU 20-11-39. First issued to 610 (County of Chester) Squadron, RAF 28-3-40 as "DW-T". Written off (presumed destroyed) when Failed To Return from combat operations 29-5-40; pilot killed. Flying Hours 73.10.

Airborne from RAF Gravesend, Kent for a combat air patrol over the Dunkirk-Calais sector. Shot down by a Bf-109, and pilot killed. Pilot was the Commanding Officer of 610 (County of Chester) Squadron, RAF.

Crew of Spitfire N3177:
Squadron Leader (Pilot) Alexander Lumsden Franks, RAF 26053, A F C, age 32, killed in action 29/05/1940

The body of Squadron Leader Franks was washed ashore at Memmert, one of the Friesian Islands on the Dutch coast, hence he was buried at the Sage War Cemetery, Niedersachsen, Germany

1. Royal Air Force Aircraft N1000-N9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1977 p 18)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/671: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502254
3. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2073739/franks,-alexander-lumsden/
4. http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/610_squadron.html#2905
5. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p003.html
6. http://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/raf-losses-may-1940-an-update.16940/page-15#post-201535
7. Air Battle for Dunkirk: 26 May - 3 June 1940 By Norman Franks
8. https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/in-your-area/sacrifice-brave-pilots-remembered-9508809
9. https://allspitfirepilots.org/aircraft/N3177

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
28-Aug-2019 23:20	Dr. John Smith	Added
17-Sep-2019 20:15	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Operator]