Back In The Cockpit - With Robots, Czechs & Secret Codes

Well, hullo there!

Dear me, has it really been three months since my last post?  I suppose there's no getting away from the fact that I've had something of an impromptu blogging break, but here I am - like the proverbial bad penny - turning up again and I must say it's already beginning to feel like I've never been away.  Let's hope I can sustain that feeling, get back to a post every once in a while and not become stuck in another rut!



So, what has caught my vintage eye (I actually have two you know) in the last few weeks?  Read on to find out!

Secret German WW2 code machine found on eBay

In my local seaside town, no less, came the discovery at the end of May of a part of the hugely important and super-rare coding machine used by the Germans in the Second World War - the Lorenz encryptor, bigger and even more complex brother of the famous Enigma machines.  Discovered, in of all places, eBay!  Misidentified as a telegraph keyboard, and up for auction at a mere £9.50, it was only sheer luck that the National Museum of Computing at Bletchley Park came across it - sitting in the seller's garage under a pile of junk!  Surely this must rank as one of the ultimate eBay "finds"?!  Well done to those eagle-eyed museum chaps for spotting this important part of computing and Second World War history, even if it is incomplete.  Proof, if proof were needed, that there are still treasures to be found on that site - and on that note, while we're all searching around for that next bargain, keep an eye out for the Lorenz's motor, which is still yet to be found.

Secret WW2 wireless station in Norwich gets heritage protection

In related news a Second World War messaging post, one of 30 set up at the behest of Churchill in the face of the expected invasion of Britain in 1940, has been given listed status following its rediscovery in a disused Norfolk country house in 2012.  One of only twelve so far discovered, it was sadly damaged by fire in 2014 but with this latest news and the encouraging noises being made by Historic England (previously English Heritage) one hopes that it can be restored and opened to the public as a museum detailing that pivotal point in our nations history and the important part these "In Stations" and there civilian operators would have played had the worst happened.

Czech World War Two pilot flies Spitfire once again



One man doing his best among hundreds to ensure the worst did not happen was Czech fighter pilot Emil Bocek, who trained as a teenage ground mechanic in 1940 before going on to earn his wings and fly Spitfires in combat from 1944.  Later rising to the rank of General and now aged 93, he returned to Biggin Hill last month to fly a dual-control Spitfire over the skies of South London - the first time he's taken the controls of that wonderful aircraft in 70 years.  Dobré pro vás, General Bocek!

Work begins on Eric robot resurrection

Work continues apace on the reconstruction of Eric, the world's first functioning robot (as previously reported here).  It sounds as though both the Science Museum and the chap building the replica are unsure of just how things will turn out, so it sounds like the plans that have been found are either incomplete or not detailed enough.  Nevertheless I look forward to hearing of Eric's reawakening, in what will no doubt be the closest form to the original that the existing information will allow.

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War hero's plane to fly at RNAS Culdrose Air Day after being restored by his grandsons 

This last article is an absolute pip, just the kind of feel-good vintage news story I enjoy featuring on the blog.  In this four-year centenary of the First World War there have been - and no doubt will continue to be - many such stories of descendants of Great War combatants uncovering fascinating accounts or honouring their relatives in some way (and rightly so!).  This story of two brothers recreating the very aeroplane their grandfather flew in the Royal Naval Air Service during the Gallipoli campaign is a particularly stirring example and I'm delighted to see them make a success of it in time for a local air display.  A more perfect way of honouring their grandfather's memory and providing an important glimpse into his life and exploits in the RNAS I couldn't imagine.  Well done chaps!

That's me done for this post, then, but I sincerely hope and intend it not to be my last for another three months!  I'm looking forward immensely to getting back into this blogging racket and with stories like these to choose from I certainly shouldn't be short of inspiration.  Until next time folks, tinkerty-tonk!

WW2 plane to be restored to glory in Concorde hangar

 WW2 plane to be restored to glory in Concorde hangar

Yet another worthy - if slightly convoluted - aircraft restoration project is the subject of this interesting article from the B.B.C, featuring a transatlantic variant of a now-rare World War Two British bomber.

The Bristol Blenheim can trace its origins back to 1935 and a Daily Mail-sponsored specification for a high-speed business aircraft.  The Bristol Aeroplane Company responded with the Type 142, which first flew on the 12th April 1935.  Not only did it meet the requirements of Daily Mail owner Lord Rothermere as the fastest civilian aeroplane in Europe, it was also found to be considerably faster than any fighter 'plane then in service with the Royal Air Force!  As a result the RAF quickly moved to have Bristol create a fighter-bomber version, which became the Blenheim MkI.

Blenheims consequently formed part of the backbone of both Fighter and Bomber Command in the early years of the war, although even by 1939 they were outclassed by newer fighters like the Spitfire and Messerschmitt 109.  Nevertheless they performed many vital, if now largely forgotten, roles in the first three years of the conflict.  Blenheims were the first British aircraft to cross the German coast following the declaration of war.  They formed part of the Free French Air Force after the fall of France.  During the Battle of Britain they undertook bombing and reconnaissance raids on German airfields, often sustaining high casualties.  When the Blitz began, Blenheims fitted with radar became night-fighters to battle the German bombers.  The aircraft eventually served in several theatres of war including North Africa and the Middle & Far East, over time evolving into new designs including the Beaufort torpedo-bomber and the Beaufighter.  It was also the basis for the aircraft featured here - the Bolingbroke.

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RCAF Bristol Bolingbroke

The Bolingbroke was merely a variant of the Blenheim rather than an evolution - in fact the original Bolingbroke MkI was almost identical to the Blenheim MkIV.  The alterations to the Blenheim design by this stage had attracted the attention of the Royal Canadian Air Force, who were looking for a new aircraft to undertake the maritime patrol role.  Fairchild Canada was awarded the license to build under contract in Quebec and so the Bolingbroke was born.  From 1940-44 Bolingbrokes provided patrol bomber service on the Atlantic & Pacific coasts and were later mainstays of the the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan.

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Bolingbroke wreck in a Manitoba scrapyard, 2006

After the cessation of hostilities the RAF scrapped its entire fleet of Blenheims.  The RCAF took a slightly different tack, as mentioned, and sold their surplus airframes for scrap - with local farmers taking advantage of the valuable aluminium, fuel and other parts (or, as in this case, for target practice!).  As it turns out this was something of a blessing in disguise for, while there are only 2 or 3 extant examples of original Blenheims left in the world, there are currently thirteen Bolingbrokes - in Belgium, the USA, UK, and Canada - four of which (including this one) are undergoing restoration either to original or Blenheim specification.

The difficulty in restoring such a rare aeroplane is made apparent in the article, but I have no doubt the team at the Bristol Aero Collection will do a good thorough job in bringing Bolingbroke 9048 back to fighting trim.  In the same hanger where Concorde was constructed, no less!  It's splendid to see yet more dedication from aviation enthusiasts and museum volunteers, as well as the sporting assistance of Rolls-Royce; I'm sure 9048 will sit proudly alongside Concorde and the other exhibits at the Collection as a testament to the men who flew Blenheims and Bolingbrokes.

WWII toy aeroplane bought in Bristol fetches £10,000

WWII toy aeroplane bought in Bristol fetches £10,000

From the West Country comes this story featuring a dashing tinplate toy which, thanks to its rarity value, has recently made £10,000 at auction.  It's certainly a splendid model, but I'd rather pay 9/6 for it myself...

One of only 3 known to exist in the particular camouflage paintwork, this model monoplane has a potentially bittersweet story attached to it.  Its mint condition, including its original box marked with the name of the Bristol shop that sold it (and which still exists today as a sporting goods store), proves that it has had little use and so enhances its value.  However the accompanying newspaper in which the toy was wrapped features an ominous headline - a bombing raid on Bristol - that possibly hints at why the model had never been played with.

The story behind this little tinplate may never be fully known but it adds in its own small way to the history of Bristol and the family business from where it was bought.  It sounds as though it is taking pride of place in some collector's display; let's hope its past history is just as appreciated and, more importantly, remembered.

Harry Dolman's Flying Flea housed in Bristol's M-Shed

Harry Dolman's Flying Flea housed in Bristol's M-Shed

An amusing footnote in the history of aviation gets a mention in this article from the B.B.C. now, as an example of one of the odder aircraft ever to fly is put on display in a museum at Bristol - itself a well-known location in early British aeronautics.

We may look back now at the "Flying Flea" and laugh but in the 1930s powered flight, while barely 30 years old, was big business and already looked upon as having a great future.  However that vision of the future often took the form of every man and his dog buzzing about the skies in little aeroplanes much as people did (and do) in cars and on motorbikes.  "Flying for the masses", with the aeroplane becoming as ubiquitous as the motor car, was still considered a viable possibility - hence the proliferation of aircraft like this Pou-du-Ciel.

Alas numerous stumbling blocks meant we never got to see "skyways" filled with Joe Public in his little aeroplane (probably for the best!) and now the likes of the Flea remain as static museum pieces, a tantalising glimpse into pre-war attitudes to flying and a vision of a future that never was.