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Dornier Do 17


Fritz

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The Dornier Do 17 has been little mentioned in the past decades, whereas the Ju 88 and He 111 are the most frequently described bombers of WW2.  Unfortunately the only surviving example worldwide is the wreck that was found on the Goodwin Sands off the southeast coast of England. It lay on the seabed covered with sand for nearly 70 years until it could be raised and recovered some years back, and now undergoing conservation at RAF Cosford. The condition is such, that it can be no longer restored for normal display, but has undergone conservation for several years to stabilise the aluminium and other materials. It will therefore be displayed in future in it's wrecked condition. This operation cost more than a halb a million pounds, but was considered worthwhile to preserve an important heritage and reminder of the Battle of Britain, where this was one of the three principal bombers used at the time.

The Do 17 was sometimes know as the Flying Pencil due to it's long elegant fuselage, however, by 1940 generally outdated, it proved to be insufficient in it's role and was replaced after 1941 by the Ju88. The bomb load carried was limited and the armament insufficient.

 

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An airfield in Northern France during the Summer of 1940

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Yes, I remember reading of the flying pencil. I always liked the HE-219 as well. 

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I do like to see aircraft displayed in their 'as found' condition. The Halifax that was raised from a Norwegian fijord which is displayed at Hendon in London springs to mind. It does beg the question though should wrecks be moved from their original resting places to museums to maintain their integrity & for the public to see. B17F Swamp Ghost now resides in the USA having been recovered from Papua New Guinea. Would it have been the better option to have left her in the place she lay for all those years for a dedicated trekker to see for themselves. The stuff of dreams really. 

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Good question, I do like he idea of being able to go see an aircraft in a museum, but also like the idea of going somewhere new and going to historical sites. I remember reading about a P-38 that was recovered from a glacier, which had a lot of publicity. I do feel that history should be preserved in some fashion, and the P-38 story counts, but I do not agree with disturbing war grave sites. I have read numerous stories about warships in the pacific being torn apart for their scrap metal value. 

 

http://p38assn.org/glaciergirl/recovery.htm

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Glacier Girl is the classic warbird recovery story that is the stuff of legend in regards to finding, recovering and putting such an iconic rare breed of a WW2  aircraft back in the air. I take my hat off to those involved and those who backed what was such a risky venture. 

If you are a warbird hack like me, especially WW2 aircraft wrecks these three titles are truly excellent reads 👌

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