Trevor Sidney Wade
Sqn Ldr Trevor Sidney "Wimpy" Wade, (27 January 1920 – 3 April 1951) was a Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter ace, one of The Few and later a test pilot. He was killed test flying the Hawker P.1081 prototype fighter. Early life Wade was born on 27 January 1920 in Wandsworth, London. He was educated at Yardley Court and Tonbridge School. In April 1938, aged 18, he joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as an Airman u/t (under training) and learned to fly at No. 19 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School, Gatwick. He was called to full-time service at the outbreak of war and was commissioned as a Pilot Officer (on probation) on 30 April 1940. Fighter pilot A month later Wade was posted to No. 92 Squadron, part of No. 10 Group RAF and then based at Croydon Airport. On his first day (26 May) he borrowed Tony Bartley's Spitfire to get more flying hours on type, performing a low level roll immediately after takeoff. His nickname "Wimpy" was borrowed from the American cartoo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Wandsworth
Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan The London Plan is the statutory spatial development strategy for the Greater London area in the United Kingdom that is written by the Mayor of London and published by the Greater London Authority. The regional planning document was first pu ... as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Toponymy Wandsworth takes its name from the River Wandle, which enters the River Thames, Thames at Wandsworth. Wandsworth appears in Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Wandesorde'' and ''Wendelesorde''. This means 'enclosure of (a man named) Waendel', whose name is also lent to the River Wandle. To distinguish it from the London Borough of Wandsworth, and historically from the Wandsworth District (Metropolis), Wandsworth District of the Metropolis and the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, which all covered larger areas, it is al ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tony Bartley
Anthony Charles Bartley, (28 March 1919 – 18 April 2001) was a British film and television executive, and fighter pilot. As a Royal Air Force (RAF) Spitfire pilot, Bartley was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions during the Battle of Britain, during which he became a fighter ace. Early life Bartley was born in Dacca, India, on 28 March 1919, the son of an Irish barrister, Sir Charles Bartley, a Calcutta High Court judge. Bartley attended Stowe School, a boarding independent school for boys in the civil parish of Stowe, in Buckinghamshire. RAF career In 1938, Bartley learned to fly. He was commissioned as an acting pilot officer in the Royal Air Force on 18 April 1939; this rank was made permanent, albeit on probation, on 21 October 1939. He flew with No. 92 Squadron through the Battle of France, seeing action over Dunkirk, and then during Battle of Britain, and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) in October 1940, by which time he had ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Edinburgh Airport
Edinburgh Airport is an airport located in the Ingliston area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was the busiest airport in Scotland in 2019, handling over 14.7 million passengers. It was also the sixth-busiest airport in the United Kingdom by total passengers in 2019. It is located west of the city centre, just off the M8 and M9 motorways. It is owned and operated by Global Infrastructure Partners, who are also a minority shareholder of Gatwick Airport. The airport has one runway and one passenger terminal, and employs about 2,500 people. History Early years Turnhouse Aerodrome was the most northerly British air defence base in World War I used by the Royal Flying Corps. The small base opened in 1916 and it was used to house the 603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadron from 1925, which consisted of DH 9As, Westland Wapitis, Hawker Harts, and Hawker Hind light bombers. All the aircraft used a grass air strip. In 1918 the Royal Air Force was formed and the airfield was named ''R ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gravesend Airport
Gravesend Airport, located south-east of Gravesend town centre, Kent and west of Rochester. It was operated from 1932 until 1956. It was initially a civil airfield, and became a Royal Air Force station known as RAF Gravesend during the Second World War, when it was under the control of RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain. It was the first RAF station to operate the North American Mustang III. The airport returned to civilian use at the conclusion of the Second World War, although it remained under the ownership of the Air Ministry until its closure in 1956. It is notable that a decision had to be made in 1954, by the Air Ministry, as to whether this civil airport should be retained and substantially enlarged, or the extensions east of Thong Lane be released for residential development. Kent County Council had made it clear that the land west of Thong Lane, was identified as a Civil Airport. Additionally, Kent County Council also informed the Air Ministry, that it wou ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bf110
The Messerschmitt Bf 110, often known unofficially as the Me 110,Because it was built before ''Bayerische Flugzeugwerke'' became Messerschmitt AG in July 1938, the Bf 110 was never officially given the designation Me 110. is a twin-engine (Destroyer, heavy fighter), fighter-bomber (''Jagdbomber'' or ''Jabo''), and night fighter (''Nachtjäger'') developed in Nazi Germany in the 1930s and used by the Luftwaffe during World War II. Hermann Göring was a proponent of the Bf 110, believing its heavy armament, speed, and range would make the Bf 110 the Luftwaffe’s premier offensive fighter. Early variants were armed with two MG FF 20 mm cannon, four 7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 17 machine guns, and one 7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 15 machine gun for defence (later variants would replace the MG FFs with MG 151s and the rear gunner station would be armed with the twin-barreled MG 81Z). Development work on an improved type to replace the Bf 110 - the Messerschmitt Me 210 - began befo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lewes
Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of the Lewes local government district and the seat of East Sussex County Council at East Sussex County Hall. A traditional market town and centre of communications, in 1264 it was the site of the Battle of Lewes. The town's landmarks include Lewes Castle, Lewes Priory, Bull House (the former home of Thomas Paine), Southover Grange and public gardens, and a 16th-century timber-framed Wealden hall house known as Anne of Cleves House. Other notable features of the area include the Glyndebourne festival, the Lewes Bonfire celebrations and the Lewes Pound. Etymology The place-name 'Lewes' is first attested in an Anglo-Saxon charter circa 961 AD, where it appears as ''Læwe''. It appears as ''Lewes'' in the Domesday Book of 1086. The additio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Hardest Day
The Hardest DayBungay 2000, p. 231. was a World War II, Second World War air battle fought on 18 August 1940 during the Battle of Britain between the Germany, German Luftwaffe and United Kingdom, British Royal Air Force (RAF). On that day, the Luftwaffe made an all-out effort to destroy RAF Fighter Command. The air battles that took place on that day were amongst the largest aerial engagements in history to that time. Both sides suffered heavy losses. In the air, the British shot down twice as many Luftwaffe aircraft as they lost. However, many RAF aircraft were destroyed on the ground, equalising the total losses of both sides. Further large and costly aerial battles took place after 18 August, but both sides lost more aircraft combined on this day than at any other point during the campaign, including 15 September, the Battle of Britain Day, generally considered the climax of the fighting. For this reason, Sunday 18 August 1940 became known as "the Hardest Day" in Britain. By J ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Battle Of Britain Day
Battle of Britain Day, 15 September 1940, is the day on which a large-scale aerial battle in the Battle of Britain took place.Mason 1969, p. 386.Price 1990, p. 128. In June 1940, the ''Wehrmacht'' had conquered most of Western Europe and Scandinavia. At that time, the only major power standing in the way of a German-dominated Europe was the British Empire and the Commonwealth, given the non-aggression pact between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. After having several peace offers rejected by the British, Adolf Hitler ordered the ''Luftwaffe'' to destroy the RAF in order to gain air superiority or air supremacy as a prelude to launching Operation Sea Lion, an amphibious assault by the ''Wehrmacht'' onto the British mainland. In July 1940, the ''Luftwaffe'' started by closing the English Channel to merchant shipping. In August, Operation Adlerangriff (Eagle Attack) was launched against RAF airfields in southern England. By the first week of September, the ''Luftwaffe'' had ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War and was still in service at the end of World War II in 1945. It was one of the most advanced fighters when it first appeared, with an all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, and retractable landing gear. It was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine. It was called the Me 109 by Allied aircrew and some German aces, even though this was not the official German designation. It was designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser who worked at Bayerische Flugzeugwerke during the early to mid-1930s. It was conceived as an interceptor, although later models were developed to fulfill multiple tasks, serving as bomber escort, fighter-bomber, day-, night-, all-weather fighter, ground-attack aircraft, and reconnaissance ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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He 111
The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a "wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after the First World War prohibiting bombers, it was presented solely as a civil airliner, although from conception the design was intended to provide the nascent Luftwaffe with a heavy bomber. Perhaps the best-recognised German bomber of World War II due to the distinctive, extensively glazed " greenhouse" nose of the later versions, the Heinkel He 111 was the most numerous Luftwaffe bomber during the early stages of the war. It fared well until it met serious fighter opposition during the Battle of Britain, when its defensive armament was found to be inadequate. As the war progressed, the He 111 was used in a wide variety of roles on every front in the European theatre. It was used as a strategic bomber during the Battle of Britain, a torpedo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Do 17
The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber produced by Dornier Flugzeugwerke for the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Designed in the early 1930s as a ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") intended to be fast enough to outrun opposing aircraft, the lightly built craft had a twin tail and "shoulder wing". Sometimes referred to as the ''Fliegender Bleistift'' ("flying pencil"), it was popular among its crews due to its handling, especially at low altitude, which made the Do 17 harder to hit than other German bombers. The Do 17 made its combat debut in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War, operating in the Condor Legion in various roles. Along with the Heinkel He 111 it was the main bomber type of the German air arm in 1939–1940. The Dornier was used throughout the early war, and saw action in significant numbers in every major campaign theatre as a front line aircraft until the end of 1941, when its effectiveness and usage was curtailed as its bomb load and range were limited ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ju 88
The Junkers Ju 88 is a German World War II ''Luftwaffe'' twin-engined multirole combat aircraft. Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (JFM) designed the plane in the mid-1930s as a so-called ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that would be too fast for fighters of its era to intercept. It suffered from technical problems during its development and early operational periods but became one of the most versatile combat aircraft of the war. Like a number of other ''Luftwaffe'' bombers, it served as a bomber, dive bomber, night fighter, torpedo bomber, reconnaissance aircraft, heavy fighter and at the end of the war, as a flying bomb. Despite a protracted development, it became one of the ''Luftwaffe''s most important aircraft. The assembly line ran constantly from 1936 to 1945 and more than 15,000 Ju 88s were built in dozens of variants, more than any other twin-engine German aircraft of the period. Throughout production the basic structure of the aircraft remained unchanged.Angelucci an ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |