Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 25, 2012 21:42:40 GMT 12
Tonight I watched the documentary Operation Hurricane on Prime, which saw Gynes Ramsbottom-Isherwood travel to Russia to retrace the steps and find the story of his ancestor, Wing Commander Henry Neville Gynes Ramsbottom-Isherwood.
The latter was a kiwi in the Royal Air Force who was sent to Murmansk in the Russian Arctic Circle to lead No. 151 Wing, consisting of squadrons of Hawker Hurricanes and RAF pilots who would both train the Russian Air Force in their flying tactics and also take part in the air battle there. For their efforts, W/C Ramsbottom-Isherwood and three RAF pilots were awarded the prestigious Order of Lenin, the highest military medal in the Soviet Union.
The documentary was fairly good but it laboured a bit, most of it seems to be scenes shot at Russian train stations combined with readings from old newspaper articles and a book written by one of the pilots; and I felt it was almost a mash-up of Great Railway Journeys Of The World and Who Do You Think You Are. But this didn't detract too much. There were some superb interviews with people who'd been in that theatre of war both onboard Royal Navy vessls in the Arctic Convoys and also an English pilot who flew with the Wing.
A few annoying things throughout, the presenter Gyne Ramsbottom-Isherwood insisted on calling the unit his ancestor lead "Wing 151" when it's correct title was No. 151 Wing, Royal Air Force. Also when reading from one news report which was also on screen it clearly stated the pilot was from Petone but he read it as Blenheim, probably a correction but there was no need to show the incorrect text on screen. And the inevitable one was every second time he mentioned the word Hurricane we saw a Russian fighter that was not a Hurricane, Migs, Yaks, Laggs or whatever, but not Hurricanes.
However there were some really super photos throughout and some fascinating footage of the squadron and the Russians at war in that area. I found it very interesting that where most Air Force armourers used a tractor to tow their bomb trolleys, the Russians in winter used reindeer towing bomb sleds. What a great idea for a snowy Hurricane diorama.
There were also several historians, British and Russians, interviewed, and that too was really interesting stuff. I had not realised how close the Germans were to Murmansk and how they had flattened 70% of the city. It was interesting to see the different pespectives on the history too, and the affect that the Communists had had on the history told within the USSR of their Allied help.
Overall an interesting documentary and one that brings a little know aspect of the war, and a kiwi's involvement, to the general public's notice, which can only be good. I'm glad I watched.
The latter was a kiwi in the Royal Air Force who was sent to Murmansk in the Russian Arctic Circle to lead No. 151 Wing, consisting of squadrons of Hawker Hurricanes and RAF pilots who would both train the Russian Air Force in their flying tactics and also take part in the air battle there. For their efforts, W/C Ramsbottom-Isherwood and three RAF pilots were awarded the prestigious Order of Lenin, the highest military medal in the Soviet Union.
The documentary was fairly good but it laboured a bit, most of it seems to be scenes shot at Russian train stations combined with readings from old newspaper articles and a book written by one of the pilots; and I felt it was almost a mash-up of Great Railway Journeys Of The World and Who Do You Think You Are. But this didn't detract too much. There were some superb interviews with people who'd been in that theatre of war both onboard Royal Navy vessls in the Arctic Convoys and also an English pilot who flew with the Wing.
A few annoying things throughout, the presenter Gyne Ramsbottom-Isherwood insisted on calling the unit his ancestor lead "Wing 151" when it's correct title was No. 151 Wing, Royal Air Force. Also when reading from one news report which was also on screen it clearly stated the pilot was from Petone but he read it as Blenheim, probably a correction but there was no need to show the incorrect text on screen. And the inevitable one was every second time he mentioned the word Hurricane we saw a Russian fighter that was not a Hurricane, Migs, Yaks, Laggs or whatever, but not Hurricanes.
However there were some really super photos throughout and some fascinating footage of the squadron and the Russians at war in that area. I found it very interesting that where most Air Force armourers used a tractor to tow their bomb trolleys, the Russians in winter used reindeer towing bomb sleds. What a great idea for a snowy Hurricane diorama.
There were also several historians, British and Russians, interviewed, and that too was really interesting stuff. I had not realised how close the Germans were to Murmansk and how they had flattened 70% of the city. It was interesting to see the different pespectives on the history too, and the affect that the Communists had had on the history told within the USSR of their Allied help.
Overall an interesting documentary and one that brings a little know aspect of the war, and a kiwi's involvement, to the general public's notice, which can only be good. I'm glad I watched.