Couple’s Routine Dog Walk Uncovers Secrets of a Lost WW2 Fighter Plane Wreckage
Holden and Hartley made sure to give the Cleethorpes Coastguard their photos in order to ensure the wreck and site of discovery was correctly documented. That is, after inspecting the historic find with mouths proverbially agape for a solid 30 minutes.
“It is good to know it can now be logged properly,” said Holden. “It’s just not what you would ever expect to find.”
FacebookHartley and Holden were merely walking their dog, Bonnie, when they encountered the historic artifact.
The RAF Museum in London explained that the aircraft’s crew miraculously survived the crash landing without injuries. Presumably, the fact that its engines failed so soon after take-off gave the pilots a fighting chance — as their altitude wasn’t yet fatally high.
Ian Thirsk, Head of Collections at London’s RAF Museum, confirmed the plane’s serial number to be JM333.
RAF North Coates was established after World War I, with a runway just a few hundred feet from the ocean. The base was a major hub for the Royal Air Force during WWII, with flying patrols regularly attacking German U-Boats and armament shipping vessels in the North Sea.
The base was operated by RAF Coastal Command, which initially deployed Bristol Blenheims before opting to standardize the Bristol Beaufighters. With around 6,000 Beaufighters built during WWII, it’s believed there are only five complete units remaining in the world.
FacebookThe Bristol Beaufighter was called the “whispering death” by its WW2 enemies, due to its rather silent engines and tremendous speeds of over 300 mph.
As for RAF North Coates and those who fought from its base, 509 airmen deployed there lost their lives during the war, and 95 others were decorated for bravery. It later became a Cold War hub for Bloodhound anti-aircraft missiles, but closed in the 1990s when it returned to private ownership.
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