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Post by halohead69 on Nov 6, 2014 23:24:25 GMT 12
Hi, My name is Nikki. i have just started getting into my famliy tree. I have been trying to found as much infomation I can on my grandfather who was a pilot in the 485 Squadron. His name was Royce Harry de Tourret from New Zealand. I have found some information but always keen on more. I love to no which plane he flew if possible for a start. Can anyone tell me how I found this out please. thank you. Nikki
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Post by suthg on Nov 7, 2014 6:33:28 GMT 12
You will get a very learned and detailed response soon. Welcome along Nikki, the folk here are very helpful! Do you have any photos of him in uniform or in a group or beside a plane? We would love to see anything you have!
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Post by baz62 on Nov 7, 2014 9:51:00 GMT 12
I love to no which plane he flew if possible for a start. Can anyone tell me how I found this out please. thank you. Nikki Well it would have been the Spitfire and there is a book about New Zealand and the Spitfire whose name escapes me but has lots of information about 485 Squadron and the men who served. Also some of the 485 squadron Spitfires are still flying or in Museums so it would be fantastic if he flew any of them.
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Post by baronbeeza on Nov 7, 2014 9:57:34 GMT 12
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 7, 2014 12:57:30 GMT 12
Welcome Nikki. Does anyone in your family have his Flying Logbook? That is a sort of diary that all pilots and aircrew keep that records all their flights, and other details such as the individual aircraft used, duties carried out, etc, against the date. That would reveal a lot about his service. You can also get a copy of his service records from the NZDF Personnel Archives. See here www.nzdf.mil.nz/personnel-records/nzdf-archives/accessing-military-service-records.htmIf you can get hold of either of those documents we here can certainly help decipher the contents if needed. As Baz says he will have flown the Supermarine Spitfire, and this is shown in Baronbeeza's link. No. 485 (NZ) Squadron only ever flew Spitfires for it's whole war except a very short period on the Hawker Tempest, which only a small handful of the pilots who served on that unit flew with the squadron. As for books, there is: - No. 485 Squadron Royal New Zealand Air Force: An illustrated history of the New Zealand Spitfire Squadron - by Kevin W. Wells, 1984 - Spitfire - The New Zealand Story - by Gerard S. Morris - No. 485 (NZ) Squadron 1941-1945 - by Paul Sortehaug and Malcolm Laird, 2006 Ventura Publications Plus plenty of auto/biographies by 485 pilots such as Spitfire Strikes by Johnnie Houlton, The Road To Biggin Hill by Vincent orange (about Johnny Checketts), or Wine, Women and Song by Hamish Brown (biographical diary on his father Doug Brown), and even a ground crew autobiography Support Of The Few by Joe Roddis.
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Post by apteryx on Nov 7, 2014 16:48:46 GMT 12
Hi Nikki As Dave says, you'll get some helpful suggestions from people on this forum. Your grandfather's service personnel file will be very useful for you. The Imperial War Museum in the UK holds some footage from a 'gun camera' in your grandfather's Spitfire: www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1060033941Combat Film No 11616. Flying Officer de Tourret of 485 Squadron on 1/9/1944 at 1630, flying Spitfire. Target: ground target The description of this type of film is: Very brief filmed records of aerial combat and air-to-ground attacks by RAF fighter pilots. Captions identify pilot name, squadron, date and time of attack, aircraft type, and target. (Personnel named are not visible I see you've been active on Ancestry so are well on the way to learning about your grandfather's life outside the RNZAF. Best wishes with your searching.
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Post by McFly on Nov 10, 2014 18:10:59 GMT 12
Negative Number: MUS1201118 Group. Pilots of Number 485 Squadron in front of a Spitfire at Royal Air Force Station Selsey. L-R: Back; unknown Adjutant's assistant, D. Clarke, L.S.M. White, J.F.P. Yeatman, A.B. Stead, H.W.B. Patterson, L.S. Black (Flight Commander), J.B. Niven (Commanding Officer), O.L. Hardy (Flight Comander), F. Transom, S.F. Kearins, D.X. O'Halloran, Roberts, K.J. Macdonald, C. McInnes, M.A. Collett. Front; E.G. Atkins, A.J. Downer, W.A. Newenham, R.H. De Tourret, J.A. Houlton, J.N. King (Adjutant), D.G. Taylor, Robinson, L.M. Ralph, M.C. Mayston, R.M. Clarke. Year of Image: April 1944 (Photo: Air Force Museum Official)
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Post by halohead69 on Nov 11, 2014 21:18:57 GMT 12
Hi McFly,
How does one go about getting a good print off the photo you posted yesterday?
Cheers Nikki
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Post by McFly on Nov 14, 2014 17:45:02 GMT 12
Hi McFly, How does one go about getting a good print off the photo you posted yesterday? Cheers Nikki Hi Nikki, If you contact Matthew O'Sullivan - matthew.o'sullivan@nzdf.mil.nz (Keeper of Photographs) at the Air Force Museum (www.airforcemuseum.co.nz) he should be able to supply a high res digital copy of this photograph (Quote Negative Number - MUS1201118) and may even have other photos of your Grandfather in the collection?. Photos for private use incur a cost, unfortunately, so he'll also supply a price list and order form for you.
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kc
Leading Aircraftman
Posts: 9
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Post by kc on Nov 18, 2014 2:38:09 GMT 12
Hi Nikki, You can also download operations records from the UK National Archives in PDF format (you'll want the record of events rather than the summary) www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/raf-operations-record-books.htmIt costs GBP 3.30 for each period you download, but it will contain details of all the missions and the planes he flew, and also the people he flew with. Good luck with your research
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Post by McFly on Jun 26, 2021 15:52:17 GMT 12
Excellent colourisation by Daniel Rarity (Rarity Color) of this photo of F/O Royce de Tourret (right) and F/O Maurice Mayston walking away from their Spitfires after returning from a mission over Normandy, shortly after D-Day. (Air Force Museum Collection [MUS9507315] & Colourised by Daniel Rarity)
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