In the early afternoon the pilots of 238 Squadron were patroling
Dorset when they were 'bounced' by JG2 led by Major Helmut
Wick. Four Hurricanes fell; P/O Considine baled out near Shapwick,
Sergeant Jeka baled out over Sturminster Marshall, P/O Rohacek
crash landed at Tarrant Hinton and Sgt Pearson crash landed
at Tarrant Monkton - all locations within a few miles of each
other.
The crash site of Sergeant Jeka's Hurricane, V7535, at Manor
Farm, Sturminster Marshall, had been known of and searched
for since the 1980s but had never been located. Witnesses
said that the aircraft had dived absolutely vertically into
the ground at tremendous speed and disappeared, but were vague
as to exactly where it had fallen.
Jozef Jeka survived the war, finally commanding 306 Squadron.
He later became a test pilot in America where he became the
first Polish pilot to fly at Mach 2, but he died in a Lockheed
U2 crash.
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Sergeant Jozef Jeka who managed to bale out of V7535
after being shot down at over 20,000 feet. (Photo -
ww2images.com)
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Determined to located the wreck Gareth Jones visited
the farm nine times with up to eight detectorists searching
on each occasion. Eventually determination won through
but no more than a dozen fragments were found near the
surface.
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The depth of the hole can be estimated by the scale
of the team here, yet still only small fragments had
been revealed.
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The centre section with cockpit, armour plate and
radio were compressed into a ball of wreckage that was
excavated by hand.
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The control column, lifted from the wreckage of the
cockpit after 66 years.
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Last item out of the hole - the Merlin engine from
a depth of 18 feet.
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The Merlin engine after cleaning.
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A rocker cover with paint still in place and Rolls
Royce clearly visible.
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The spade grip control column after washing.
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The main identification lable with the Hurricane's
RAF serial number V7535.
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