F/Lt James Edward Hogg 61241 (Skinny)

by Peter Knapman
(Somerton,Somerset.)

On March 15th 1942 it was a very foggy day with cloud down almost to ground level, we heard a plane approaching very low. I ran out of the house to see a Spitfire fly over my head, just missing the beech trees out side the house, and on down the valley side.

I heard him hit the trees at the bottom and then a double thump as he hit the rising ground at Lower Thorne Farm, Warleggan. It appears that a flight of 12 Spitfires had left Ibsley to support Hudsons attacking shipping in the channel.

The weather closed in and they became lost. Six managed to land safely at Exeter but the other six were lost over Bodmin Moor. Four of these crashed into the ground But only one pilot was killed. I was 8 years old at the time. Ft/Lt Hogg is buried at Ringwood Cemetery.

Thank you for sharing this memory of aircraft movements from Ibsley, New Forest airfield during WW2.

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