ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 229993
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| Date: | Wednesday 17 July 1940 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  Supermarine Spitfire Mk Ia |
| Owner/operator: | 64 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | P9507 |
| MSN: | 649 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Welbury Farm, Hempstead Lane, Hailsham, East Sussex, England -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Kenley, Whyteleafe, Surrey |
P9507: Spitfire Ia (c/no 649) First Flown 21-4-40. Delivered to the RAF at 12 MU 25-4-40. Issued 19-5-40 to 64 Squadron 3-7-40 as "SH-P". Shot down by Bf109 and force-landed at Hailsham, Sussex. Pilot - Flying Officer Taylor injured 17-7-40. Aircraft relegated to ground instructional airframe 2119M 22-10-40
According to the official Air Ministry file into the incident (File AIR 81/1131): "Spitfire P9507 damaged in air combat operations, 17 July 1940. Flying Officer D M Taylor: injured
Spitfire P9507, which arguably became the 14th victim to succumb to the aggressive tactics of Leutnant Helmut Wick of 3/JG 2. This Spitfire was flown by P/O Donald Murray Taylor on one of several patrols conducted by his 64 Squadron on the 17th of July 1940, many of which were part of the RAF’s efforts to protect coastal traffic through the Channel. Gaining local air superiority over the Channel and interrupting Britain’s coastal shipping was the initial primary target of Goering’s Luftwaffe after the fall of France in June 1940, a prelude to any potential of Britain’s invasion that may have followed.
Near Beachy Head, Wick and his wingmen, Franz Fiby, pounced on Murray’s a/c, which was acting as weaver for the rest of the squadron on patrol. Murray was probably unaware of the attack until Wick’s gunfire smashed into the aircraft, wounding him in the head, body and both right limbs, as well as seriously damaging the a/c. Murray managed to bring his faltering a/c into a field on Welbury Farm on the outskirts of Hailsham, a small market town a few miles north of Beachy Head. Donald Murray was lifted from the wrecked plane and taken to Princess Alice Hospital in nearby Eastbourne. His injuries were such that he was able to return to operations with 64 Squadron on the 3rd of September 1940 and he remained in the RAF until after the end of hostilities in 1945.
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft P1000-P9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1978)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/1131: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502943
3. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p009.html
4. https://imodeler.com/2017/12/spitfire-p9507-crashed-17-july-1940/
5. https://www.key.aero/forum/historic-aviation/144744-mystery-of-spitfire-p9507?goto=newpost
6. http://bbm.org.uk/airmen/TaylorDM.htm
7. https://www.luftwaffe.cz/wick.html
8. http://www.rafcommands.com/archive/04482.php
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 16-Oct-2019 15:57 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 27-Oct-2019 22:24 | Anon. | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Operator] |
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