Spitfire Mk IX, 229 sqn

[The Joker]

Hello dear britmodellers,

As this time I''m bussy to make a Spitfire Mk IX of Tamiya. I had the idea to make it of one of the 229 Sqn which were based during the war @ Coltishall.

First I tell you why I want to build this Spit of 229 Sqn.

2,5 Years ago a farmer told to me that he found something on his land. So I walked with him to the barn, and he showed me a two stage supercharger of a Merlin 63 engine. He told me that he had founded some parts of aluminum and glass to, many years ago.

He told me the story about this part of the engine. On august 29 1944 there were about four Spitfires on a ranger mission to the Isle of Borkum. To do some straffing and bomb runs. On there way back they flew over a lake formly known as Suidersea. They found a barge there and they did there straffing run. But one of the spit's where hit by a local flakstation Eisbärr at Sondel.

One Spitfire went down in the Northern part of the Noord Oost Polder nearby Lemmer, and after 66 years the supercharger was found. This spitfire was flown by F/O Frank Renee Maylon Cook, from Melbourne, Australia. It belonged to the 229 Sqn at Coltishall. The squadron code of this A/C was 9R-Z, serialnumber MH907.

The pilot is burried at the Lemmer cementry. I picked up the idea to build this Spitfire as a honour to all those brave young men.

I had searched the internet also, but with no results of pictures or something others.

My question is; Are there some people of the Britmodelles who have more information about this squadron, or other information about this Spitfire, like pictures.

Because Coltishall airbase is closed now a days it is difficult to have some contact whith those people.

Many thanks,

A new member of Britmodeller from Holland

Hinry Roman

[Miggers]

Hello Hinry.

Spitfire Main gives this about her:

MH907 IX CBAF M63 39MU
26-9-43 405ARF 9-10-43 421S 23-10-43 3501SU 17-6-44 229S '9R-Z' 26-6-44
Shot down by flak attacking barges in Ijsselmeer 29-8-44 F/O F A M Cook
killed

This tells us that she was a Castle Brom built IX and as you quite rightly say,fitted with a Merlin 63.

Delivered to 39 Maintainance Unit on the 29th of September 1943,she served with 405,421,350 Squadrons

before going to 229.

There,as you've established,she was coded 9R*Z and flew with them for just over two months before

being shot down by flak and crashed, killing F/O Cook in the process.

Have a look here: http://forum.keypublishing.com/showthread.php?t=47677

Although not MH907(actually MA621),it does give you a look at how 229 painted their codes on.

[elger]

I've done some research into this aircraft. Have done so for several aircraft that crashed in or around south-west Friesland. Didn't find any photo of the aircraft, but did find some info on Cook:

http://www.basher82.nl/Data/Lemmer/cook.htm

This was in the local paper when he went missing:

Good luck!

[The Joker]

Hello Hinry.

Spitfire Main gives this about her:

MH907 IX CBAF M63 39MU

26-9-43 405ARF 9-10-43 421S 23-10-43 3501SU 17-6-44 229S '9R-Z' 26-6-44

Shot down by flak attacking barges in Ijsselmeer 29-8-44 F/O F A M Cook

killed

This tells us that she was a Castle Brom built IX and as you quite rightly say,fitted with a Merlin 63.

Delivered to 39 Maintainance Unit on the 29th of September 1943,she served with 405,421,350 Squadrons

before going to 229.

There,as you've established,she was coded 9R*Z and flew with them for just over two months before

being shot down by flak and crashed, killing F/O Cook in the process.

Have a look here: http://forum.keypublishing.com/showthread.php?t=47677

Although not MH907(actually MA621),it does give you a look at how 229 painted their codes on.

@ Miggers, I'll found the same pictures on google too, when I use the same link. Thanks for the help. But what I to know is; Are there books or other stuff wich related to 229 Sqn,. Here in the Netherlands every airbase such as Airbase Leeuwarden or Airbase Volkel does have it's own room of history. I do believe that Coltishall have had the same.

Coltishall is now a days closed, but what do they with stuff like photoarchieve. Is it been moved to another airbase or place. I'll hope that Britmodellers do have members or ex personal of RAF Coltishall too.

[Daniel Cox]

Hi Hinry,

Although I don't have any photos for you, I do have some links that may be of interest from the National Archives of Australia.

A705 166/8/816 Casualty Repatriation, Flying Officer Frank Rene Maylon 408971, Spitfire MH907, Polder Holland, 29 August 1944.

A9300 COOK F R M Flying Officer Frank Rene Maylon 408971, Personal File.

In the first one you will find a description of the loss and the man as well as the fact he was Acting "B" Flight Commander at the time of his death amongst other things.

I hope the links work.

Cheers,

Daniel.

[Miggers]

@ Miggers, I'll found the same pictures on google too, when I use the same link. Thanks for the help. But what I to know is; Are there books or other stuff wich related to 229 Sqn,. Here in the Netherlands every airbase such as Airbase Leeuwarden or Airbase Volkel does have it's own room of history. I do believe that Coltishall have had the same.

Coltishall is now a days closed, but what do they with stuff like photoarchieve. Is it been moved to another airbase or place. I'll hope that Britmodellers do have members or ex personal of RAF Coltishall too.

Here's a thought Hinry.

There's a chap just joined and doing a detailed build on the old Airfix Chipmunk:

http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234932824-airfix-chipmunk-t10/

He's an ex-RAF pilot that flew Jaguars.

In their latter years,the Jaguars were all based at Coltishall.

It just might be worth sending him a private message to see if he knows anything that might help you.

[Test Graham]

There's information on the operations of 229 Sq just after this period in the book Operation Big Ben, by Craig Cabell and Graham A. Thomas, published by Spellmount Limited 2004, ISBN 1-86227-251-4. As the title of the book implies, the operations were carried out against the V-2 launches from Holland.

Edited February 12, 2013 by Graham Boak

[tonyot]

If Colstishall did have a history room the stuff has either gone to the RAF Museum at Hendon or the Norwich Air Museum which is not far away, maybe you could try contacting them?

Cheers

Tony O

[Edgar]

I visited Coltishall, a few years ago, and they certainly had a room set aside for history; it included a cover, with original Gulf War artwork, from a Jaguar, hung on the wall.

There is a book, by Mick Jennings MBE, called "Royal Air Force Coltishall Fighter Station, A Station History," ISBN 978-1-906183-01-1, published by Old Forge Publishing at £25, though it has been available for less. Since it covers the station from 1938 to closure, most references are fairly fleeting, and 229 does not figure very much.

229's wartime ORB will, definitely, be in the National Archives, but they tend to be a bit hit-and-miss, so you can never be sure what will turn up; rarely does the entry include codes and serial no., but you never know.

Edgar