I found this small photograph yesterday in a box of house clearance dross. (It always pays to look through these boxes). It is clearly a Spitfire of 610 Squadron with the DW squadron code and the aircraft letter D . Due to losses there was more than one Spitfire with the DW-D code during the war. No serial number is visible so can anyone please tell me which aircraft this is? The photograph clearly appears to have been taken in winter so a Battle of Britain landing accident seems unlikely.
I have the following 610 Squadron Spitfires that bore the serial DW-D. I am sure that there would probably have been others. L1010, L1037, P9503, R9159, AB249. I am sure that some of these can be ruled out for not being the same mark of Spitfire as the one in the photograph.
According to the relevant Air Britain publication Spitfire V AB249 served as follows....... 310 Squadron / 315 Squadron / 306 Squadron / 41 OTU / 58 OTU / 61 OTU. Fate - Crashed on take-off from Rednal, Tedmore, Salop 15 May 1945. ........................................... 15 May 1945 58 OTU Spitfire V AB249 Sgt T A Spence (5955) a Norwegian pilot was injured on 15th May 1945 in Spitfire AB249 when he failed to take off correctly at Rednal and crashed in a field after pulling the aircraft off the ground to avoid a railway line. Spitfire I L1010 - Fate see link - http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=137912 Spitfire Ia L1037 - Fate see link - http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=22117 Spitfire I R9503 - Fate see link - http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=160053
Peter, thank you for the update and for the links to the aviation website. It is not a site that I was aware of but it looks to be very informative. With regard to AB249 would it still have had 610 Squadron markings in 1945 if it was attached to the 58 OTU? I am not even sure that the Spitfire in my photograph is a Mk V. I found the Serials and numbers on a 610 Squadron website. Simon.
