SelwynWilliams

I have recovered a lot of instruments etc from an underwater wreck of a Tomahawk AH845 lost 8th November 1941. It has many parts marked 75 Mohawk then others marked 81 Tomahawk and even fishtail engine exhaust stubs marked 87 for Kittyhawk. The instrument panel is just like the one on top with the same holes and the clock is a 12 3 6 9 clock unlike the later clocks. The rudder pedals are marked in French to release the parking breaks, French fuses. The fuselage fuel gauge seems to have an overlay going up to 47 gallons, there is a strip screwed on to the top of the instrument panel saying "SAFE APPROACH SPEED 150/160 K.P.H." I presume the gauge is in litres and that the instrument showing the speed is in KPH as this plane was bound for France then diverted to Britain and the RAF before being assigned to 400 RCAF in England. Have you got a better photo of the above instrument panel? I have what looks like another panel and this may be the one that sat underneath the top one.I will investigate this. How do I load photos on here?

I found the wreck of AH845 and I am about to display the artefacts we recovered, among them the port engine exhaust stubs that are marked 87 20 010 L meaning its a 87 Kittyhawk set of (L) port stubs and they are fish tail type.

Mitrailleuse d'interior and d'exterior for inner and outer wing guns were on this P40 plane. The instrument panel I recovered has rewritten tabs above where some instruments were.

I found a WW2 Tomahawk off Chesil Beach in 1980. It was one of 140 Tomahawk Mk Is built for the French but France fell before they could be delivered so were diverted to the RAF. The original Mark Is only had two wing machine guns, no self sealing tanks and no bullet proof shield behind the pilot so I was a little confused when self sealing tanks and bullet proof shield were what I found on the wreck until I realised the Mk Is might have been upgraded to Mk II's specifications or were upgraded original French specifications. This French model had twin machine guns 0.3 in each wing and two 0.50 nose guns. Several items such as electrical items had French markings and descriptions but there were also AM (Air Ministry) switches and an ICI extinguisher. This P40 was given to 400 squadron RCAF. So an American built aircraft ordered by France diverted to the RAF and flown by a Canadian Squadron found by an English/Welshman. I am putting on a display of recovered artefacts in the Old Town Hall in Weymouth to celebrate 100 years of the RAF and would love a large model of a P40 B or C to display for a weekend or so.