At 16.25hrs, on 15th December, 1943, Spitfire IX, BS288, caught fire over East Grinstead, forcing the pilot, Flight Sergeant E. L. Hampson (138274), to abandon the aircraft and take to his parachute. The Spitfire plummeted into the ground at Forest Row.
S/L Norman Fowlow spent most of 1943 with the Canadian Wing at Kenley, and took command of 403 squadron RCAF, ...
On 4th September 1943, Squadron Leader Frank Edward "Bitsy" Grant brought down his first FW190 after taking command of 403 squadron, but following that engagement, failed to rejoin his squadron. He was posted as "missing" and subsequently found to have been killed in action.
On 27th July, 1943, George Clinton Keefer, who had been in command of 412 squadron RCAF for about 6 weeks, was leading them on a late afternoon sweep 15 miles over France, when the engine of his Spitfire, packed up.
On the 80th anniversary of 'The Hardest Day,' The Royal Air Force Association, together with members of the local community, gathered at St. Luke's churchyard, Whyteleafe, to remember the RAF personnel killed at RAF Kenley on 18th August, 1940.
The Luftwaffe's attack on RAF Kenley, on 18th August, 1940, was a risky venture, depending on pin-point accuracy and timing. Here is how Fighter Command countered the raids.
These press clippings from the collection of F/Sgt. "Pat" Glover, mark a moment of celebration for No.615 Squadron, when two of their pilots were invested with the Distinguished Flying Cross at Buckingham Palace, but someone was missing.
Art is significant, recalling and interpreting every possible aspect of life in many ways. Photos more recently have provided vivid ...
On 11th December, 1919, an Airco DH.4A, owned and operated by 'Air Transport and Travel Ltd.' crashed in an open field near the Guards' Depot at Caterham.
On the 4th November, 1940, a lone enemy bomber attacked Caterham on the Hill dropping several bombs which damaged shops and ...
On 29th September, 1944, five men perished in Avro Anson NK607, as it hit a tree in thick cloud and crashed in woods, somewhere within the grounds of an Army Ordnance Depot, near Dean Lane, Merstham, about three miles from RAF Kenley.
Did you know the war-time classic “Reach for the Sky” was filmed on location at Kenley airfield in 1955? Let’s take ...
It is well-known that during World War II many women took on jobs previously done by men, however, what is ...
At 2.31am, on 27th August, 1940, a burning, crewless Heinkel He111 hit the ground, ploughed it's way across Queen's Park, Caterham, and into the rear garden of 21 Manor Rd, where it exploded, partially destroying the bungalow.
Here are a few of the events which took place in the run-up to V.E. Day in 1945.
On the 80th anniversary of RAF Kenley's 'Hardest Day,' here is a poetic tribute to 'The Few,' from Freddy Jones, who served at Kenley post-war.
