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Date: | Friday 31 May 1940 |
Time: | day |
Type: | Supermarine Spitfire Mk I |
Owner/operator: | 609 (West Riding) Sqn RAF |
Registration: | L1081 |
MSN: | 295 |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Location: | near Dunkerque, Pas de Calais, Hauts de France -
France
|
Phase: | Combat |
Nature: | Military |
Departure airport: | RAF Northolt, South Ruislip, Middlesex |
Destination airport: | |
Narrative:L1081: Spitfire Mk.Ia (c/no 295). First Flown 17-8-39. Delivered to 609 (West Riding) Sqaudron, RAF 19-8-39 as "PR-C". Written off (presumed destroyed) when Missing (failed to return) while escorting Boulton Paul Defiants over Dunkerque 31-5-40. Pilot missing, presumed dead. According to the official Air Ministry file into the incident (File AIR 8/701): "Spitfire L1081 failed to return from air operations over Dunkirk, France, 31 May 1940. Flying Officer J C Gilbert: missing presumed dead
Airborne from RAF Northolt, South Ruislip, Middlesex to escort a squadron of Boulton Paul Defiants over Dunkirk, Shot down in combat with a Bf-109 over Dunkirk. Pilot killed
Crew of Spitfire L1081:
Flying Officer John Charles Gilbert, RAF (AAF) 90327, age 27, posted 31/05/1940, as missing presumed killed. As no trace of F/O Gilbert was ever found, he is commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft L1000-L9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1978 p 5)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/701:
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502478 3.
https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1270799/gilbert,-john-charles/ 4.
http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/609_squadron.html#3105 5.
http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p002.html 6.
https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234909929-609-sqn-codes/&tab=comments#comment-928067 7.
http://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/raf-losses-may-1940-an-update.16940/page-16#post-202717 8.
http://www.cieldegloire.com/sq_raf_609.php Revision history:
Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
08-Aug-2013 00:47 |
JINX |
Added |
14-Aug-2013 17:45 |
Nepa |
Updated [Aircraft type, Operator] |
01-Sep-2019 20:26 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Time, Cn, Total fatalities, Other fatalities, Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |