Dunkirk Operation Dynamo Evacuation Beaches

Discussion in '1940' started by Drew5233, Oct 18, 2010.

  1. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    If we go further to the west we arrive at the port of Dunkirk. Behind Dunkirk we have some beaches again. On these beaches, between the port of Dunkirk and the port of Calais, we can find some more aircraft wrecks.

    In #536 I explained that two Spitfires are known to have made a “wheels down” landing on the Dunkirk beaches. P/O Davies’ Spitfire N3295 was one of them, and here we have the other one. N3103 (another Mk1a Spitfire) was damaged by a Bf109 and was force-landed on a Dunkirk area beach on May 25th 1940. P/0 Gribble, 54th squadron, returned safe to the UK by ship via Dover.

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  2. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    We have been searching for the exact location of this Spitfire in #155. Now I have found it. The “tower” in the background of the first two pictures is the Phare de Walde:

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    The Phare de Walde is visible on Google Maps, if you zoom to the limit:

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  3. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    On the same beach we can find another Spitfire. P/O Peter Cazenove was flying the 92 Sqn Spitfire P9374 on May 24th when he had to fight against some German aircraft. “Exactly what happened to P9374 we cannot be absolutely certain, although it is reasonable to assume that Cazenove’s Spitfire took hits from the Dornier gunners, probably disabling the engine. It only took a single round in the wrong place to cripple the fuel supply, wreck the oil pressure or to knock out the cooling system. Certainly, it would appear that nothing major from a structural point of view had affected the Spitfire and it could clearly still fly under control – although Cazenove had obviously decided a return across the Channel or back to Hornchurch was out of the question. Below him lay a wide, flat and open expanse of sand with the tide far out. Fortunately, this was a little to the south of the evacuation beaches, and thus he had a clear landing site to head for. Wheels up, he skidded across the beach throwing up a great arc of sand and water as his windmilling propellor kissed the surface, bending under impact as the radiator and oil cooler scoops dug into the wet surface. The Spitfire finally came to a halt not far away from the Phare de Walde light tower. Before he climbed out of the cockpit, Cazenove had time to radio to Tony Bartley who was circling protectively overhead: “Tell mother I’m OK. I will be back in a few days”. Turning for home, Bartley watched his friend head out across the beach for the sand dunes that mark the coast just north of Calais where he would ultimately be taken prisoner of war.” (from Spitfire I | Spitfire I P9374 )

    The picture below shows P9374 shortly after its landing. Notice the Phare de Walde in the distance.

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  4. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    The Spitfire stayed there for more than 40 years. During the 1980’s it was dug up as can be seen in these pictures:

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    And today, P9374 flies again!

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  5. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    Our walk isn’t over yet. If we go further west, we arrive at the port of Calais. At the other side of this port, we find the little village of Sangatte. This was the crash site of another Spitfire: N3200 (identification code QV-).

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  6. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    N3200’s contemporary report stated “Missing from sweep presumed shot down by Bf109s nr Calais 27-5-40”.

    No. 19 Squadron Leader Geoffrey Dalton Stephenson flew this aircraft on May 27th. He was shot down in combat and forced landed on the beach at Sangatte. S/Ldr. Stephenson was captured and taken POW.

    More information about this Spitfire on this website: Stephenson

    N3200 has also been dug up recently. Restoration is in progress…

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  7. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    The pictures below show three other Spitfire wrecks, and two Hurricanes. All these pictures may have been taken around Dunkirk. Unfortunately I couldn’t identify any of them. The RAF lost more than 60 Spitfires during Operation Dynamo, and only a couple of weeks later the Battle of Britain started. Lots of British aircraft crashed during that conflict as well. More photographs are needed…

    Spits:

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    Hurricanes:

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    Jan
     
  8. morrisc8

    morrisc8 Under the Bed

    photo ship 1.jpg photo ship 3.jpg photo ship 4 .jpg photos of the French ship Adroit and in the background Floride ?.
    Keith

    Some more photos of the French ship Adroit from my collection, on the back of the photos i think he thinks its a british ship. Photos taken in May 1941, you can see one funnel is missing and part of the bridge. My German is not good. Any one know what became of the ship,did the germans scrap it before the end of the war.
    Keith
     
    Last edited: Oct 12, 2020
  9. Lofty1

    Lofty1 Senior Member

    The caption makes one wonder what Austins did with this one.
    Sad to think it made it home after that lot, and got turned into a COOP mobile shop or the like.
    regards lofty
     

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  10. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    The caption makes one wonder what Austins did with this one.
    Sad to think it made it home after that lot, and got turned into a COOP mobile shop or the like.
    regards lofty

    Nice story! :rolleyes:

    Jan
     
  11. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    I may have found another ship identification... (or twelve to be precise... :D )

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    Pictures of these tugboats in the Bassin de Commerce can be found in almost every Wehrmacht souvenir album. The names of these tugs remained a mystery... I had found pictures that identified Turgot and Vauban, but there are many more tugs...

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    I have now found on this site that Vauban and Turgot were "inland tug" boats. And there are more of these "inland tugs" in that list: Chalampe, Colmar, D'Alembert, Hagenau, Loire, Luvois, Mazarin, Münster, Pasteur, Richelieu, Sully, Turgot, Vauban and Vergennes. 14 in total. I think I can see at least 12 chimneys in the first picture. I think I have found the names of these tugs, what do you think? :)

    Jan
     
  12. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    I just discovered on this website that these tugs were owned by two french shipping companies (Office National de la Navigation, or ONN, and Compagnie Générale pour la Navigation, or CGN). They were normally used on the river Rhine, but due to the political situation in Germany the owners brought them back to France. They were all berthed close to each other in the Bassin de Commerce in Dunkirk. History would prove that this was a fatal decision...
     
  13. JCB

    JCB Senior Member

    Couple of beached Dunkirk little ships on ebay D at the mo , shame I can't read the steam trawler name but pleasure boat looks like Princess- Ely ?
     

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  14. Rich Payne

    Rich Payne Rivet Counter Patron 1940 Obsessive

    Couple of beached Dunkirk little ships on ebay D at the mo , shame I can't read the steam trawler name but pleasure boat looks like Princess- Ely ?

    I reckon it's the "Princess Lily" - abandoned 31st May with Engine trouble.

    Forum Marinearchiv | Duenkirchen
     
  15. morrisc8

    morrisc8 Under the Bed

    beach 1940 R.jpg beach with barge R.jpg LIFEBOAT 1941 DUNKIRK.jpg A few more that just came in the post. First photo has seafront with the Phare Hotel in the background.
    Keith
     
    Last edited: Oct 12, 2020
    DameDeDunkerque likes this.
  16. morrisc8

    morrisc8 Under the Bed

    dunkirk beach 1940 veh humber  r.jpg One more of the beach with a humber in the sand.
    Keith
     
    Last edited: Oct 12, 2020
  17. rewdco

    rewdco Senior Member

    wish I could see the census number on the back of that humber shooting brake....I know mine was in France at the time, I'd love to find a picture of it.

    Hi Alex,

    Here's a shooting brake in German service:

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    Jan
     
  18. CL1

    CL1 116th LAA and 92nd (Loyals) LAA,Royal Artillery

  19. Welbourn

    Welbourn Member

    Good Morning - I know it's a longshot but a friend of mine is currently restoring a 1928 small pleasure cruiser called 'Dodo'. - He has no definitive proof but has been told that the 'Dodo' made two trips to Dunkirk during the evacuation. Can anyone shed any light on this for me??
    Thanks
     
    HayleyBuzz likes this.
  20. BrayDunes

    BrayDunes Junior Member

    Hi there,

    I am looking for some information/assistance. My grandfather and great uncle were 503 coy RASC and evacuated from the Dunkirk beaches. My grandfather always maintained they were taken off at Bray Dunes. My grandfather Noel was a Sgt. and his brother Reg was a private at the time. My grandfather said that when they arrived at Bray Dunes, they became separated because Reg saw a destroyer and decided he was going to swin out to it. My grandfather couldn't swim and said he came home on a swedish (possibly any neutral Scandanavian) fishing vessel with the captain cursing that he didn't want to be caught by the Germans because the boat was neutral. My grandfather was told to hide down below with the fish so the Germans wouldn't see British on board. The destroyer, according to my grandfather, was sunk we he was on his way home.

    The 503 war diaries confirm that the company was evacuated from Bray Dunes on May 30/31.

    The pictures and information of the lorrie piers at Bray Dunes are particularly interesting to me as it is likely that since these were constructed the days my grandfather was evacuated and that he couldn't swim, he likely used this pier to board the boat.

    I am also searching for any ships that may have been in the area of Bray Dunes on May 30/31 to possibly determine which ship my grandfather came home on, as well as which destroyers were sunk that day?

    Any information or resources would be great!
     
    Recce_Mitch likes this.

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