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Cool! What's the story? Seems to be a nice diverse selection you've got in that photo, sir...

Last gasp of the Flying bomb

Even though the launch sites were overrun, flying bombs continued to hit England, if in reduced numbers.

Back in early July, a small number of flying bombs attacks were performed on Manchester and Gloucester. Allied leadership was baffled as to where these attacks were coming from, since the range of the V-1 was roughly known, and there was no place near enough for the Germans to set up launch sites that could reach these targets.

In fact, the Germans were launching the flying bombs from specially modified Heinkel He-111 bombers, operating from airfields in the Netherlands. Work on this scheme predated the beginning of the flying bomb blitz, and involved removing the He-111's bomb racks and a fuel tank, and installing launching gear and provisions for carrying a V-1 nestled under the left wing. The modified bombers were given the designation "He-111H-22".

This proved to be a risky business, since the flying bomb was very heavy and could be lethally tricky to launch. 1,200 V-1s were launched in this fashion, with the loss of 77 bombers. Twelve bombers were lost on two missions alone simply due to the premature detonation of the V-1's warhead after the He-111 left the runway.

Air launch was abandoned in mid-January 1945, due to the high attrition and the advance of Allied forces. However, the Germans were not quite done with this game, having developed a new version of the V-1 with a range of 400 kilometers (250 miles) by reducing the size of the warhead and increasing the size of the fuel tank.

They launched about 275 of these long-range flying bombs against Britain from the Netherlands in March 1945. British defenses were able to adjust to these last-gasp attacks, and the looming defeat of the Reich ended the campaign for good at the end of March. V-2 rocket attacks against England, which had begun the previous September, also slowly fizzled out.

quite a fitting build for where i live as a row of cottages round the corner from where i lived was taken out by one of these v1's

it was long believed in fact some believe to this day that v1's that landed in northern uk were accidentaly over fueled believing that they were meant for london

the one at our villiage is the most northerly v1 to be reccorded

undoubtedly launched by a heinkel launch platform

Doodlebug bomb attack remembered

Six people died in the V1 rocket attack 60 years ago

The survivors of a flying bomb attack on a village during World War Two were due to take part in a service on Christmas Eve to remember those killed.

Six people died when the V1 rocket - also known as a doodlebug - landed on Chapel Street, in Tottington, near Bury, Greater Manchester, 60 years ago.

The German rocket destroyed a row of cottages and was one of 15 bombs to fall near Manchester on that day.

The service will be held at memorial gardens built where the bomb landed.

30ft deep crater

Colin MacDonald, who was aged 14 at the time, said he felt lucky to be alive.

He said: "I just woke up with a tremendous bang and the ceiling coming in on top of the bed. There was a mad scramble to get out.

"We didn't know what happened. We thought it might be a gas explosion. None of us thought it would be a bomb or a flying bomb.

"Then we got out and all the backs of the houses were down and there was a crater, 30ft deep, and all the windows were out. There was glass from kerb to kerb."

The attack was the second worst of the day. The worst was in Abbey Hills Road, in Oldham, where a V1 landed on a row of cottages, killing 27 people and seriously injuring 49.

In total, 45 rockets were launched by the Nazis on that day, 31 of which reached the UK.

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at some point i will post photo's of the landing site , it is now the villiages memmorial garden !! and an open air concert is held there every summer !!

Look forward to it - very moving history. The build, sir: is that the Airfix, Italeri (both?) you have?

Patrick

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Look forward to it - very moving history. The build, sir: is that the Airfix, Italeri (both?) you have?

Patrick

i have a hassegawa , matchbox , and airfix he 111 but the airfix seems the most suitable as it is a h20 with the correct top turret the gondolla is difrent but i have a replacement part , a v1 is another seperate kit and bits of scratchbuilding for mounting

technicaly the italieri kit wasn't a bomber it was an aircraft manufactured from 2x he111 with an extra central engine

and was a glider tug used for launching the behemoth messerschmitt gigant glider the glider was so large it could carry tanks , trucks, troops etc !!

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yeah i knew it existed !! but i received around 500 1/72 kits from a deceased modeller i intend to build as many as i can

selling others im not as keen on on ebay so others can have fun !! as i realise even if i live into my eighties ( if lucky enough ) and if i keep all my faculties ( again if lucky enough ) i doubt i will build them all

and that's before going out and spending on new kits !!

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nice, "broken dreams box, i love it

cheers

theres more in now i pooled with another couple of boxes the guys stash i inherrited had multiple models on the go when he died and would also buy kits for scratchbuilds and conversions

the box i have in the photo is a 1/72 revell liberator complete but missing fuselage halves ( gutted cos the liberators a favourite ( i loved the accademy 1/72 zodiac nose art series i built leo and aries ( gorgeous nose art )

there is also a gigant glider missing fuselage halves and an fw condor that is ditto !!

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the site of the V1 bombsite 24- 25 december 1944 v1 was launched by a 1/KG35 HE111

here whitehead memorial gardens is on the right the small wall after the blue truck would have been the fronts of the cottages

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stream looking towards the church that the people killed would have been attanding for midnight mass ( st annes ) the backs of the houses would have roughly followed the line of the stream

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looking towards the church from the other side of the memmorial gardens..

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a simple memmorial used as a bandstand for a charrity musical event every summer

DSC_0047.jpg

the deddication plaque ...

DSC_0050.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...

Very cool video of the He 111. Looks like the beginning was taking from the Wings of the Luftwaffe series.

Not sure what you meant or saw as the large and unusual object carried under the center but I did spy that earlier in the clip it showed the He 111 fitted with RATO tanks. Perhaps that is what you are referring too? Likewise, it was quite nice seeing both the V-1 launch as well as the radio controlled Hs 293A.

Greg

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