FOUND! A WW2 Italian fighter Macchi C202 "Folgore" wreck in Sicily (VIDEO)

The ROV Hercules came across the remains of a downed aircraft in Sicily, Italy. 

The Wing Roundel on this Regia Aeronautica's aircraft is still visible after 70+ years at the bottom of the sea!

This fighter aircraft is a WW2 Italian fighter Macchi C.202 Folgore.

SOURCE

The lost Spitfires: Searching for the aircraft wrecks of the WW2 legends

www.aviationarchaeology.gr

WW2 Aviation enthusiasts in Greece, members of  www.aviationarchaeology.gr have initiated a search for the Spitfire wrecks lost between April 4th to August 7th, 1945.

Those three Supermarine Spitfires crashed in the area of Vari (see map below) and belonged to the 335 and 336 Fighter Squadrons of the Royal Hellenic Air Force (RHAF). 

According to official reports, two of them crashed at sea, while the details for the third aircraft do not specify the exact crash site.

The researchers were motivated from the reports presented in "Supermarine Spitfire losses in Greece 1942-1953", edited by respected researcher Manolis Bardanis and the official website of  the Hellenic Air Force. 

An initial assessment of the survey area

In November 1944 the Greek squadrons returned to liberated Greece, where they engaged in operations against the remaining German garrisons in the Aegean islands and Crete.

335 Fighter Squadron emblem

Nikos Karatzas, team leader of the project, said to WW2 Wrecks in Greece: 

"The detection of aircraft wreckage at sea is difficult and this is mainly due to the size of the Spitfire, as well as because of the absence of information or indications on the exact crash sites. 

The depth at the areas we are conducting our research ranges from 20 to 65 meters." 

Aviation Archaeology experts during a survey expedition

336 Fighter Squadron emblem

No 335 (Greek) Squadron

Formed on 10 October 1941 at Aqir airfield in Palestine.

Initially it was equipped with Hurricane Mk I aircraft. 

The squadron began operations over the Western Desert, where it operated continuously until late 1942, participating in convoy protection,

bomber escort and ground attack roles. 

It remained there on offensive operations until after the Battle of El Alamein when it moved into shipping protection duties along the Libyan coast.

In January 1944 it was re-equipped with the newer Spitfire Mk Vb and Vc aircraft. 

In September 335 Squadron moved to Italy, where it conducted operations over Albania and Yugoslavia. 

In November the squadron returned to its homeland, from where it attacked German forces in the Greek islands of the Aegean and Crete.

On 15 September, the squadron was moved along with its sister unit to the Italian theatre, from where it carried out operations primarily over occupied Yugoslavia.

The letter codes allocated to this squadron were the FG - possibly meaning "Free Greeks".

Operations Record Book with details on P/O Nikolopoulos sorties on 4.4.1945 and his crash. His body was found on the following day.

Official report related to the loss of P/O Georgios Nikolopoulos

No 336 (Greek) Squadron

The second Greek squadron was formed in the Western Desert on 25 February 1943.

From then until February 1944 the squadron was involved in shipping protection and air defense

duties along the Libyan coast. 

Together with 335 sq., both units moved to Italy in September 1944, from where they operated over Albania and Yugoslavia.

In November 1944, 336 returned to its homeland and carried out attacks against German forces in the  Greek islands of the Aegean and Crete.

The squadron moved to Thessaloniki in May 1945.

A Greek Spitfire

The research conducted by respected historian Manolis Bardanis

Greek Spitfires

The survey area

Pilots and ground crew of 336 Fighter Squadron

www.aviationarchaeology.gr

Members of Aviation Archaeology during a previous survey.
A German Bf109 wreck in Crete

Locating and identifying WW2 aircraft wrecks: The Kwajalein Missing in Action (MIA) Project

Flight deck of the PBM-3D which crashed at Kwajalein on February 16, 1944

Kwajalein Atoll is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island.

Dan Farnham speaks to WW2 Wrecks and pierekosmidis.blogspot.com about the Kwajalein Missing in Action (MIA) Project: 

"The Kwajalein MIA Project (KMP) is all-volunteer team which is made up of 28 members. 

Of that number, 22 of us live here on Kwajalein full-time. Six members live in the continental United States, and fulfill such critical roles as research, public relations, and assisting with fundraising. 

Of the 22 team members who live here at Kwajalein, 17 are divers. 

The rest comprise research and archeology advisors. 

We also have members on the team who are experts in aviation, unexploded ordnance (UXO), and side-scan sonar operations."

The Kwajalein Missing in Action (MIA) Project is dedicated to finding World War II aircraft lost in the Kwajalein Atoll lagoon between 1942-45. 

The goal of the Kwajalein MIA Project is to locate and identify WWII aircraft wrecks within the Kwajalein Atoll lagoon for maritime heritage discovery, preservation and education. 

The primary mission is to help facilitate the recovery of American MIA servicemen from WWII. 

The project will include education with emphasis on Operation Flintlock. 

Wreck sites are not disturbed in any way by the Kwajalein MIA Project team. 

No pieces of wreckage will be removed, moved or sand sifted to attempt to ascertain whether human remains are contained in the wreck or nearby. 

The dive team on this project is not trained or certified for recovery.

In late January 1944, a combined force of U.S. Marine and Army troops launched an amphibious assault on three islets in the Kwajalein Atoll, a ring-shaped coral formation in the Marshall Islands where the Japanese had established their outermost defensive perimeter in World War II. 

Kwajalein Island and the nearby islets of Roi and Namur were the first of the Marshall Islands to be captured by U.S. troops, and would allow the Pacific Fleet to advance its planned assault on the islands and its drive towards the Philippines and the Japanese home islands.

On January 30, 1944, after a massive air and naval bombardment lasting some two months, a U.S. Marine and Army amphibious assault force of 85,000 men and some 300 warships) approached the Marshall Islands. 

On February 1, the 7th Infantry (Army) Division landed on Kwajalein Island, while the 4th Marine Division landed on the twin islands of Roi and Namur, 45 miles to the north. 

A single Marine regiment captured Roi on that first day, while Namur fell by noon of the second day. 

The battle for Kwajalein would prove more difficult, as the 7th Infantry pounded the Japanese garrison there for three days until the island was declared secure on February 4.

Though greatly outnumbered from the start (by more than 40,000 on Kwajalein) the Japanese chose to fight until the bitter end. 

Japanese casualties on Roi and Namur numbered more than 3,500 killed and around 200 captured, with less than 200 Marines killed and some 500 more wounded. 

On Kwajalein, close to 5,000 Japanese defenders were killed and only a handful captured; the 7th Infantry counted 177 soldiers killed and 1,000 wounded.(SOURCE)

Wing section of the PBM-3D which crashed at Kwajalein
on February 16, 1944
PHOTO: Dan Farnham/Kwajalein MIA Project (KMP) 

Here is what Dan Farnham has to say about the Kwajalein MIA Project:

What is your current status? Any specific wrecks you are looking for right now?

We are a very active group. Currently, we are looking for the following planes:

1) OS2N-1 ‘Kingfisher’, shot down on 31 Jan. 1944 with the loss of the pilot, LT Forney Fuqua.

2) SOC-3A ‘Seagull’, shot down on 1 Feb. 1944, with the loss of the pilot, ENS William Sayers and US Army artillery spotter CPT George Tyson. 

3) PB2Y-3 ‘Coronado’, which crashed during landing on September 14, 1944 with the loss of Pharmacist’s Mate 1st Class Fred Matson. 

The plane broke in half behind the wing during the crash. 

Both halves of the plane floated on the surface of the lagoon for about half an hour before sinking. 

The back half of the plane was found in August 2015, and another piece from the front half of the plane was found in July 2016. 

Matson was in the forward bunking compartment at the time of the crash, and the remainder of the front half of the plane has not been found yet. 

4) SBD-5 ‘Dauntless’, shot down on December 4, 1943 with the loss of the pilot LT William Fitch and rear-gunner ARM1c John Linson. 

The plane had been taking part in a softening up attack on Kwajalein Atoll, prior to the invasion the following month.

5) SBD-5 ‘Dauntless’, which went down following a mid-air collision with two other SBD’s on 31 Jan. 1944. 

The collision resulted in the deaths of four of the six aircrew involved. One of those killed was a rear-gunner, ARM2c Phillip Barton, and he was declared missing-in-action.  

A U.S. Navy Martin PBM-5 Mariner in flight. U.S. Navy National Museum of Naval Aviation photo No. 2011.003.137.014

You've found several aircraft so far. Which story is the most striking and why?

We’ve found the following three planes so far:

1) F6F-3 ‘Hellcat’ fighter plane which crashed off Bigej Island on 1 Feb. 1944 after getting caught in the explosion of an ammunition dump on the island. 

The pilot, ENS John Clem, went in with his plane. Divers from our team found that wreck in October 2011. 

2) PB2Y-5R ‘Coronado’ which crashed while landing on February 12, 1945. 

That crash resulted in one of the flight crew, LT Harold Bowman, and one of the passengers, LCDR Samuel Givens, being listed as missing-in-action. 

The nose of this plane was found in 2011 and verified in October 2015. The rest of the plane had been salvaged and towed to Ebeye Island, where it was subsequently cut up and disposed of in the lagoon. 

Only the front of the plane forward of the wings was not recovered at the time, and this was the piece that divers finally discovered in 2011. 

3) PBM-3D ‘Mariner’ which crashed while landing on February 16, 1944 shortly after the conclusion of Operation Flintlock. 

The crash resulted in one of the pilots, LT(j.g.) Wilburne Piercy, being listed as missing-in-action. 

The wreck of this plane was found in 2009 by several former Kwajalein residents, one of whom is a member of our project. 

I don’t personally feel that any one wreck is more striking than another. Each one has its own story of tragedy and loss of life. 

And each one represents one or more servicemen who never made it home to their families. For the wrecks we’ve found, we’ve reported them to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), in the hope that a properly-trained underwater team can be sent in to excavate the wrecks and possibly recover the remains of the missing crewmen, so they can finally go home to their families. 

How important is it for you to bring closure to the families of the MIA?

I don’t think that “closure” is quite the right word. 

How can family members, especially those who are old enough to have been alive at the time these men died, ever really have full closure on a loss like what they endured. 

I prefer to describe it as “bringing answers” to the families. 

When their loved one died, all the families received was a telegram that said something along the lines of “we regret to inform you that (insert name here) has been declared missing in action in the Pacific.” 

They were rarely given any more details due to wartime secrecy, and they’ve had to go decades without knowing what really happened or where. 

One of the really rewarding aspects of our project is when we get to provide the families copies of the WWII action reports and deck logs that we find in the course of our research. 

Because that gives them answers as to what exactly happened and where, which is information they haven’t had before. 

ARM1c Linson- Linson is shown at left with his two brothers in late 1943. This photo was taken at Pearl Harbor, shortly before the USS Lexington sailed for the battles in the Gilbert and Marshall Islands.
Linson died along with his pilot, LT William Fitch, on December 4, 1943 when their SBD-5 Dauntless was shot down at Kwajalein Atoll.
Photo courtesy of the Linson family.

Why Kwajalein? Why did you choose this specific Pacific area?

Kwajalein was a natural choice for us, as most of us already live here. 

Left wing root of a F6F-3 ‘Hellcat’ off Bigej Island. The plane hit the water at over 250 knots and the debris field is spread over a wide area. This crash took the life of Ensign John Clem.

Most of us work as contractors at the US Army base here, so the lagoon is literally our back yard. 

Those of us on the team who are divers are already history buffs, so took our love of wreck diving and history, and focused it towards the search for plane wrecks that are believed to contain missing-in-action servicemen. 

    LT William Fitch aboard the USS Lexington in early 1943. Fitch died in the crash of his SBD-5 Dauntless at Kwajalein Atoll on December 4, 1943. Photo courtesy of the Fitch family.

Lt. Forney Fuqua, pilot of a OS2N-1 ‘Kingfisher’ scout plane, which was shot down at Kwajalein on January 1, 1944.
Fuqua went down with the plane, but his radioman, ARM3c Harrison Miller, survived and passed away in July 2014.

Vought Kingfisher from the USS New Mexico (BB-40) in flight somewhere over the Pacific.
This plane is believed to have been flown by LT Forney Fuqua and ARM3c Harrison Miller at the time the photo was taken.

            Tail section of the PB3Y-3 ‘Coronado’ which crashed at Kwajalein on September 14, 1944. 

The front half of the plane, believed to contain the remains of PhM1c Fred Matson, has not yet been found.

And since we live here already, we don’t have the overhead costs of things like lodging and air travel, therefore over 90% of the funds we raise for this go directly into search operations.

Nose section of the PB2Y-5R ‘Coronado’ which crashed at Kwajalein on February 12, 1945.
The nose section broke off in the crash and sank with LT Harold Bowman and LCDR Samuel Givens.
The remainder of the plane was towed to Ebeye where it was later cut up and dumped into the lagoon.

Further reading and resources

Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxBcTPE_tZnegWSAWiYATlA

Website 

www.kwajaleinmiaproject.us

Facebook page

https://www.facebook.com/kwajaleinmiaproject/

The Empire Heritage and the Sherman tanks graveyard

A Sherman tank
PHOTO: Steve Jones

The SS Empire Heritage, a cargo ship carrying oil, US-made Sherman tanks and half-tracks, was torpedoed by a German U-boat. Some 113 people were killed in the disaster.

At 05.51 hours on 8 Sep 1944, U-482 fired a torpedo spread at the convoy HX-305 north-northeast of Tory Island and heard a detonation and sinking noises. The same happened after firing a Gnat at 05.59 hours. 

Apparently both torpedoes hit the Empire Heritage. At 06.37 hours, the U-boat fired a Gnat at a stopped ship, which sank shortly after the hit. The stopped vessel was the rescue ship Pinto, which was rescuing the survivors of the torpedoed tanker when attacked.

The Empire Heritage (Master James Jamieson, OBE) was hit on the starboard side just abaft of the bridge and the stern. The ship settled by the stern and soon thereafter capsized before sinking. 

PHOTO: Cathy de Lara

The master, 49 crew members, eight gunners, one convoy signalman, one army storekeeper and 52 passengers (DBS) were lost. Two crew members already picked up by the Pinto were lost when she was sunk. 

25 crew members, three gunners, 20 passengers (DBS) and one signalman were picked up by HMS Northern Wave (FY 153) (T/Lt F.J.R. Storey, RNVR) and landed at Londonderry. SOURCE

Με «θάρος και υπομονή» από το αλβανικό μέτωπο

Ο Σταύρος και ο Σπύρος ήταν δύο αδέλφια από την Αθήνα που ξεκίνησαν για το μέτωπο στις 28 Οκτωβρίου 1940. 

Τα γράμματά τους βρέθηκαν πριν από λίγες βδομάδες στο Μοναστηράκι, στο εσωτερικό ενός παλιού βιβλίου. Καρφιτσωμένο πάνω-πάνω ήταν το πρώτο σημείωμα που έστειλαν στην οικογένειά τους από την Κόρινθο, την επομένη της κήρυξης του πολέμου. 

Ο Σταύρος και ο Σπύρος είχαν φτάσει καλά στον πρώτο σταθμό του ταξιδιού τους προς το μέτωπο και ζητούσαν από τους γονείς και τα αδέλφια τους «θάρος και υπομονή».

Τα λιγοστά γράμματα που διασώθηκαν μέσα στο παλιό βιβλίο δεν περιέχουν το τέλος της ιστορίας, ούτε τα ακριβή στοιχεία της οικογένειας που την έζησε. 

Ο Σταύρος και ο Σπύρος έφτασαν στο αλβανικό μέτωπο στο τέλος του Νοεμβρίου και παρ’ όλο που όσα είδαν τα μάτια τους «δεν μπορούν να αποδώσουν οι κινηματογραφικές παραγωγές 2 αιώνων!», όπως φαίνεται από τα χαρακτηριστικά αποσπάσματα που ακολουθούν, εκτός από «θάρος και υπομονή» τα δύο αδέλφια διατήρησαν και το χιούμορ τους. 

Εμείς διατηρήσαμε το συντακτικό και την ορθογραφία τους.

Κόρινθος 2-11-40

Εγώ και ο Σταύρος σας χαιρετάμε από την Κόρινθο όπου θα παραμείνουμε προς το παρόν. Εδώ ησυχία εξαιρέσει δύο βομβαρδισμών που έχουν γίνει κατά του Ισθμού ανεπιτυχώς.

ΤΤ. 912 17 Νοεμ. 1940

Ομάδα Διευθύνσεως 6ου Συντάγματος Πεζικού

Είμεθα καλά. Εχουμε μερικές μέρες που ταξιδεύουμε πορευόμενοι ανά τις πλαγιές και τα φαράγγια των βουνών φωτισμένα από τις αργυρές ακτίνες του φεγγαριού διακοπτόμενες που και που από καμιά δροσερή βροχούλα.

ΤΤ. 912 τη 1η Ιανουαρ. 1941

Αγαπητοί μου σας φιλώ.

Χρόνια πολλά κι ο καινούργιος χρόνος ευτυχισμένος και με την ειρήνην.

Χαιρετισμούς εις όλους

Σταύρος

Ο Σπύρος είναι καλά. Σήμερα είχα γράμμα του. Είναι κανά δυό ώρες πιο πέρα από μένα.

ΤΤ. 912 τη 11-1-41

Συνιστώ σε σας και σ’ όλους τους πίσω να μην απλοποιείτε τα πράγματα, να μη μεθάτε από ενθουσιασμό αλλά να κάνετε υπομονή και να βοηθάτε την υπόθεση όσο και όπως μπορείτε περισσότερο, και έτσι θα συμβάλετε στο γρήγορο ξεμπέρδεμα της δοκιμασίας που μας επεφύλαξε η ιστορία και το άδειο κεφάλι του Μουσσολίνι…

Από ψυχαγωγία πώς περνάτε; Πιστεύω ο Πάνος να βρίσκει καμμιά βραδυά εύκαιρη να πηγαίνετε στον κινηματογράφο ή στο Εθνικό. Αν ρωτάτε για μας, ποτέ, εάν ζήσωμεν, δεν θα πάω στον κινηματογράφο γιατί όσα είδαν τα μάτια μου μέχρι στιγμής δεν μπορούν να αποδώσουν οι κινηματογραφικές παραγωγές 2 αιώνων!...

Στείλτε μας ό,τι σας ζητάμε, ακόμη δε φάκελλα, κάρτες, σπίρτα, τα σπίρτα κρύψτε τα κάπου στο δέμα γιατί είναι περιζήτητα.

Σε κάποιο αλβανοχώρι που μας φιλοξένησαν 3 ημέρες ύπνο-φαΐ τους δυο μας και 3 άλλους ακόμη γνωρίσαμε στο φιλόξενο σπίτι μια μικρούλα 14 ετών-παιδί θαύμα. Εξυπνη, νόστιμη, αεικίνητη – χαρακτηριστικά που τα θαυμάσαμε όλοι, ο Σταύρος διέβλεπε επάνω της κάποια μετεμψύχωση αρχαίας καλλονής αλλά τι ατύχημα που ήταν Ελληνοπούλα και δεν μίλαγε ελληνικά! Ο Σταύρος το κανόνισε με τον πατέρα της όταν σιάξει η συγκοινωνία να σας τη στείλουμε στην Αθήνα να βοηθάει στο σπίτι και να μάθει την τέχνη για να ανοίξει... ατελιέ στα Τίρανα! Οχι αστεία!...

ΤΤ. 912 3η Μάρτη 1941

Χθες, όχι προχθές, είχαμε και στο δικό μας τομέα μια γιγαντιαία αερομαχία που Αγγλοέλληνες έριξαν πέντε αεροπλάνα φρατέλικα και απ’ ό,τι μάθαμε, εν συνόλω 35. Μεγάλη η κακοτυχία τους μα πρέπει να δείτε τους δικούς μας πώς τους επιτίθενται για να καταλάβετε. Υπήρξεν θεαματικό μα συγχρόνως συγκλονιστικό το κροτάλισμα των πολυβόλων και η δόνησις της ατμόσφαιρας... βλέποντας να πέφτουν αυτά τα ατσαλένια πουλιά και ανάμεσά τους τρία αλεξίπτωτα να αίρονται εις το κενόν.

ΤΤ. 912 τη 15 Μάρτη 1941

Εκείνο που με ευχαρίστησε περισσότερο είναι για την εκδρομήν σας στον Υμηττό που τόσο όλοι μας έχουμε αγαπήσει. Πάντα λοιπόν να μην παραλείπετε να ανεβαίνετε. Ελαβα και την επιθυμία σας να εξοντώσουμε το γρηγορότερο τα παλιοτόμαρα. Που θα πάνε...

ΤΤ. 912 τη 17 Μάρτη 1941

Παρακαλώ να μου στείλετε ένα στυλό διότι έχασα αυτό που είχα.

ΤΤ. 912 τη 20 Μάρτη 1941

Αυτοί οι ανόητοι εννοούν να μας ξεκουφάνουν με τις οβίδες τους, χαλάνε τον κόσμο, μ’ έχουν δυο φορές διακόψει και χάνω τον ειρμό της σκέψης μου. Ανοητότερους σκοπευτάς πυροβολικού δεν εγέννησε η φύσις.

ΠΗΓΗ