Introduction

Hello all, please allow me to introduce myself:

I was born on an RAF base 58 years ago to two serving RAF personnel. Until I was in my eartly teens I had only ever lived in military housing. Even after my father retired as a Flt Lt, he was president of his local aircrew association...short of a W.D. Stamp on my butt, I'm the product of military aviation through and through.

(My father's very plane is now in the RAF museum at RAF Cosford http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/collections/handley-page-hastings/) and it is his uniform that is on show in the museum at RAF Henlow

I have always had an interest in military aviation and in my adult life I lived and worked abroad in the europe, middle east, australia and papua new guinea. In PNG I used to research WW2 wrecks and organise expeditions to locate and document them. I learned to SCUBA dive, and extended my interest to underwater wrecks in PNG, Solomon Islands and Truk Lagoon. Samples of my photos form this period can be seen at

http://flickr.com/philbowles.

My bookshelf is full of military history, mostly to do with aviation and often to do with crash location/recovery.

I then became a police detective in Special Branch at New Scotland Yard. My last job was a senior civil servant for a government investigation agency, specialising in the internet.

I recently decided to retire early and I have just bought a property in Lower Normandy, France - coincidentally only 5km from the memorial of Flt Lt Terrence Jarvis RCAF. (near Ceauce, Orne(61))

Given my interests and that I will have a lot of time on my hands, I plan to become involved with WW2 aviation archaeology and I intend to join the Normandie.Maine 39-45 group. My investigative background and reasonable grasp of French (currently about a 5 on 0-10 scale, hoping to make it a 7 or 8 over the next year) should allow me to ferret out the sort of face-to-face info that cannot be found in libraries or on the net. While I realise I'm a lot further south than most of the action, I do have a car and a motorbike with a GPS that fits both...

Apart from my own use of the site, I'd be happy to be considered as a resource "on the ground" by other members, and once I am settled and have converted barns to B&B or Gite, I may even be able to offer accomodation too (dont hold your breaths or book ahead on that one though!) I expect to be fully relocated by October ish.

I look forward to interacting with you all
[hr]
As you all seem to be PR analysis gurus, I'd though i'd give you the co-ordinates of my new place in France.

ID be happy to hear from anyone who has anything on stuff within say 50mi of the area:

48°28'28.17"N
0°35'38.94"W

Phil

 

Welcome Phil.
I do not know whether there will be any joint research we can do, but I am sure someone in the Group will find something.
My father Jack Collins DFC and Bar commanded 245 Squadron Hawker Typhoons until he was shot down in August 1944. He is now buried in Ranville Cemetery.
Good luck
Mike Collins

 

Thanks for the welcome Mike. One of my fathers friends flew typhoons (and was shot down) over the netherlands in WW2 his name was Douglas Villiers Oram, not sure what squadron he was in.

Sadly, he and my father are both now gone, so I dont have a lot of info on him - if you ever come across any...

Phil

 

Allan,

Thanks for the welcome, once Im actually "on the ground" (late sept / oct probably) I may well take a run up there.

Phil