Date:	Friday 21 July 1944
Time:	19:30
Type:	Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vc
Owner/operator:	32 Sqn RAF
Registration:	MA345
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	near Knin -   Croatia
Phase:	Combat
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:
Destination airport:

Narrative:
32 Sqn flew two missions over Yugoslavia during the day, a DC-3 escort mission by six Spifires was flown in the morning, and a bombing mission by three Spitfires in the evening.

For the latter, Flt Lt Peter Quine, Plt Off N L Oddy and Wt Off A Oates took off at 1540 hrs from Foggia airfield, the squadron base, and landed at 1625 hrs at the forward airfield at Vis, from which they took off again at 1730 hrs. The intended target, a camouflaged camp at Bihac, was searched but not found, so a bridge at Bihac was bombed. Accurate and concentrated Flak (20 and 40mm) was ecountered and all bombs missed the target and fell in town. The British pilots then covered roads in the Bihac-Lapac-Knin-Drnis area. 10-12 vehicles were strafed, 5 were claimed as destroyed (flamers) and 5 as damaged.

At around 1930 hrs, heavy and accurate 20 and 40mm Flak was encountered over Knin. The Spitfire Vc MA345 of Flt Lt Peter Quine received a hit in the engine. He attempted to land near Knin but crashed. The wings came off and the aircraft then turned over. The two other pilots circled for some time but did not see Quine leave the aircraft. He did not survive. The two pilots landed at Vis at 2000 hrs.

ORB of 32 Sqn RAF, July 1944 (AIR 27/363-13 and AIR 27/363-14)
"A history of the Mediterranean Air War 1940-1945, vol 5 : From the Fall of Rome to the End of the War 1944-1945", by Christopher Shores, Giovanni Massimello, Russel Guest, Frank Olynyk, Winfried Bock and Andrew Thomas, ISBN 978-1-911621-97-3, page 178
http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p057.html
https://www.rafcommands.com/database/wardead/details.php?qnum=37158
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knin
http://www.maplandia.com/croatia/zadar-knin/knin/

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
14-Sep-2023 14:22	Laurent Rizzotti	Updated