I think we need some fun and games on here. So time to start the Air Quiz. First Question: Who or what were Frobisher, Fiona and Fingal? ....
DH Albatross' (Albatrosseseseses?). Less than 10 built in late 30s but built using same wood "sandwich" used in the Mossie. Configured as mail planes or passenger planes. I think they saw war service but most pranged and anything left was scrapped. There were others with "F" names as well. Four engined jobbies too, reckon they would have sounded cool. Wonder if they were put into "uniform".
Three of the passenger versions that flew in airline hands? There were only a couple of mail planes I think so since you've given three names I've put two and two together and no doubt come up with 54! Sooo much more interesting trawling through my brain than trawling through my email account for the news items I need to put in my e-mag!
Yep, they were three of the five Albatrosses used by BOAC: Frobisher Destroyed by enemy action Whitchurch 20.12.40 Falcon Scrapped 9.43 Fortuna Crashed nr Shannon 6.7.43 Fingal Crashed Pucklechurch 6.10.40 Fiona Scrapped 9.43 Your go, Andy
Ooh, pretty plane, Morse! Okay, um, shouldn't have answered question if had to come with one myself... I am the Spirit of Britain First and I had a particular claim to fame that was rather embarrassing to others. Who/What am I and what was this claim to fame?
I seem to remember that it developed for Lord Rothermere the newspaper magnate and was faster then the fighters thenin service.
Well, the initially receieved B-17Cs but these had problems with pressurization and the fact that the guns kept freezing. However, to the fair to the Americans, they hadn't been willingto send them over anyway because they thought they weren't combat ready
So the USAAF and Boeing were well involved with the getting the B17 operational with the RAF, even before America entered the war. And its interesting how much whole projects can stand or fall on small peripheral details, in this case the oxygen supply and deicing arrangements. 35000 feet is as high as a modern airliner flies, no wonder the windscreens were freezing on the inside.
We all know that the USA provided a lot material before they entered the war but it is interesting to see actual evidence of such co-operation. The RAF had rather high expectations of the aircraft (no pun intended)
With no physical proof, I would say that this cooperation was only the tip of the iceberg. America/Roosevelt knew they would eventually be drawn into the war and it was going to be a global conflict. War with Japan was inevitable however their aim was around late 42/ Early 43. They needed allies as well and they needed Britain and Russia to stay in the race. Britain was the key, because if it fell, Germany would have only been fighting on one front in Europe and could possibly have defeated the Soviets and taken control of mainland Europe.
It was passed onto me by a member of another forum (no, not THAT one :becky A brief history of the RAF B17s: http://home.att.net/~jbaugher2/b17_6.html and a picture of AN523
