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Bisley flown by WC Hugh Malcolm V.C.


Sydhuey

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I have recently acquired a photo album of 18 Sqn aircraft in North Africa and Italy and there are a few Bisley photo's in it , what was the code letter of Hugh Malcolm's Bisley on his V.C. mission ? 

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Thanks, I have pics of "A", "T" and I believe "C", Interesting how I have read the name Bisley was dropped and Blenheim V used , but the hand written text under the photo's they are called Bisleys, and I have seen 18 Sqn ops records and they refer to Blenheim IV's and Bisley's . not Blenheim V's.  

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I have the CA kit and that ones been on my list to do for a while ever since I visited 18 Sqn. at Odiham where they have a history room with some information on the subject.- from what you can tell, do your photos look as you would expect 18 Sqn to look at the time?-desert scheme, red code letters, azure undersides?

 

best regards

 

nick

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G'day Nick ,

                 Comparing the photo's to Sqn History Ops records, the Sqn went thru an on again off again attempt to Convert to Boston's from Jan 43 to transition to Boston's in Mar 43 till the final conversion to all Boston's in Apr 43. ( in this period sqn had Bisleys , several Blenheim IV's, A-20B's borrowed from 47th Bg and Boston III's)

The Bisley photo's are generally of Desert scheme with red codes but the schemes are different aircraft to aircraft, I have pics of "A" BA803 and "T" BA797 (desert scheme black code letters)but at least one aircraft "C" BB148 or "G" BA792 (lower code cut off in photo) may be in DG/DE with grey code letter , the time period appears to be Dec42/Mar 43 at the end of Bisley ops as I can date 2 photo's to the 29th of Mar 43 (last Bisley ops), Smoke plume of "F" EH318 crashing and killing crew on take off (F/Sgt Mayne, Sgt Kirk , Sgt O'Neil) and "A" RH312 returning from last mission with crew (  S/L McCurdy, P/O James, F/S Parish) . Photo's from what I think is the first Bisley period Mid Nov 42 till 04 Dec 42 when most of the Sqn written off the aircraft were in a fairly sharp desert scheme (the aircraft were fresh from the UK in Mid Nov), the second Bisley period late Dec 42 til mid Mar 43 were with replacement Bisley's from other units in a hotch botch of schemes and markings

Hope that helps.

Edited by Sydhuey
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