poem

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poem

Postby firebird » Sat Jul 28, 2012 10:29 pm

Does anyone know the origin of this poem sounds to me like another squadron taking the mickey out of the 102
Fle Fle Oh Driffield
You didn't have to tell us
Honours lie soundly on our heads
You must be frightfully jealous


But then you came in rather late
Still it must be galling
To have your thunder stolen away
We sympathise - it's appalling

Rumours reach us of your navigation
Spread by that lying jade
Of your ''Drivers'' hitting the wrong constellation,
Over Hunland - where a landing was made


And there are tales of indiscriminate bombing
On mackerel in the great North Sea
But we are nice and accept all these stories
With a large pinch of S.Y.L.T.


But were BIG and we wish you the best of luck
And when your next job is'' on''
Remember we'll always help you out
Lots of love 10 and 51
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Re: poem

Postby Neilw » Sun Jul 29, 2012 9:26 am

Interesting one - where did you find it? possibly relates to the Operation on SYLT - Hornum Seaplane base 19/20 March 1940 which is when 102 were at Driffield. Note that it is signed 10 and 51, and I see that 51 were the only Squadron to lose an aircraft on the Operation - Whitley N1405.

Neil
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Re: poem

Postby firebird » Sun Jul 29, 2012 12:20 pm

Hi Neil
You are spot on ,I went back to the record,and found references to the Hornum raid on the 19th just before the poem was posted,it was composed in reply to a message from another squadron,which I found,it read


CONGRATULATIONS TO ! CRACK 'EM AND CO! (THE HEROES AND LEADERS OF SYLT) FROM AN ADMIRING DRIFFIELD.

It was tucked in between the crews combat reports,where I was looking for any reference to my cousin.
Regards John
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Re: poem

Postby Neilw » Sun Jul 29, 2012 12:40 pm

Thanks John - at the National Archives?

Neil
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Re: poem

Postby firebird » Sun Jul 29, 2012 1:01 pm

Yes I downloaded Air 27 about 302 pages,makes really interesting reading to a newcomer,there are a couple of photos as well,one of a bomber which type I dont know,and what looks like a wing with no covering on it,but the quality is poor
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Re: poem

Postby Dave LEITHEAD » Sat Aug 04, 2012 2:20 pm

Hi John,
Have a look at page 20 of Chris Goss's book "It's Suicide But It's Fun" where you will see a picture of the Port Wing of a Whitley Bomber with the covering stripped off by lightning at 2000 feet. P/O's Long and Gray landed the aircraft successfully and were each awarded the DFC.
Regarding the unidentified bomber, if it was a WW2 102 Squadron aircraft it could be a Handley Page Heyford II or III.
Click the link below to have a look at a profile of one, or see Page 7 et seq of Chris Goss's book for a few photos.

http://www.rafweb.org/SqnMark101-102.htm

Hope this helps,
Cheers,
Dave Leithead
(researching F/Lt Thomas Leithead DFM)
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Re: poem

Postby firebird » Sat Aug 04, 2012 7:30 pm

Hi Dave
Thanks for the help, as yet I have not seen a copy of It's suicide but it's fun I will have to get one,I have only recently discovered my link's, through my cousin to 102 Squadron,I have just looked at the picture of the stripped wing and it is the port wing,the photo was entered into the file after a raid on the Deutschland on 24/11/39 does that tie in with the lightning strike?
Regards John
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Re: poem

Postby Dave LEITHEAD » Mon Aug 06, 2012 12:05 am

Hi John,
Thanks for emailing your 2 photos to me ..... I've passed them on to Chris Harper.
For the information of other Forum members, one of John's 2 photos is confirmed as the one on Page 20 of Chris Goss's book and shows the lightning damage to the port wing. John's other photo shows, I believe, the lightning damage to the starboard wing of the same Whitley bomber which is identified on Page 164 of Chris Goss's book as Whitley N1377 DY-P. The date was 27th November 1939.
Mystery solved?
Cheers,
Dave.
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Re: poem

Postby Neilw » Mon Mar 04, 2013 11:35 am

A little bit of holiday reading allows me to add a little more to this story - apparently after the operation 10 and 51 Squadron were featured in the press and it was reported that the CO of 10 squadron had led the raid, when in fact the flight commander (S.L J c MacDonald) of 102 was the first over the target and had in fact bomber first.

As a result of this press article 102 went up to the officers mess at Dishforth early on the morning of 22nd March and left leaflets under the plates stressing 102's involvement - 10 and 51 then did a leaflet raid of their own on Driffield.

Neil
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