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siv m
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An epr
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Above

The P-51 looking gorgeous in

the autumn skies
over Norfolk. keyjarrod cotter

makes two!

Maurice Hammonds second P-51 restoration

recently took to the skies. Jarrod Cotter
tells the story of its resurrection

NOTHER major
milestone was reached
by well-known warbird
restorer and pilot Maurice
Hammond on July 26, 2008,
when his second North American
P-51D Mustang Marinell took
to the skies for its first postrestoration air test. It joins Janie,
which Maurice completed to
airworthiness in July 2001.
Maurices collection is based
on the site of the former

Capt Bradford Stevens stands in front of Marinell

circa summer 1944. 339th fighter group association

WARBIRDS P-51D MUSTANG

Clockwise from left

Myer Winkelman on the wing

of a 504th FS P-51D Mustang.
339th fighter group association

...he has been

able to pay a
tremendous
tribute to
lost US airmen
by getting this
combat veteran
P-51 back in the
air after
64 years.

Lt Myer Winkelman connects

his g-suit as he readies for
a sortie.
339th fighter group association
Maurice Hammond flies
Marinell in the skies over
East Anglia in tribute to Lt
Myer Winkelman almost 64
years to the day since he was
shot down over France.
keyjarrod cotter
Gun camera shot of
Capt Bradford Stevens victory of
a Bf 109 on September 12, 1944.
339th fighter group association

Hardwick airfield in Norfolk,

which used to be the home of
the Eighth Air Forces 93rd
Bombardment Group and its
Consolidated B-24 Liberators.
Today the land, near Topcroft,
is a working farm known,
appropriately enough, as
Airfield Farm. There is still
plenty of evidence of the former
bomber bases wartime activity,
including a group of Nissen
huts which house the 93rd
Bomb Group Museum.
The aircraft (see the panel
for details of Maurices fleet)
are housed in a specially
constructed hangar on the
airfields former domestic site,

with a 900-yard (820m) grass

farm strip immediately in front.
It is thanks to landowner David
Woodrow that the site has been
preserved and public access is
encouraged on museum open
days. It is also most appropriate
that Maurice has been allowed
to base his aircraft on a former
USAAF airfield.

Marinell
takes flight
Inglewood, California-built
P-51D-5-NA 44-13521 flew
with the 339th Fighter Groups
504th Fighter Squadron from
Fowlmere, Cambridgeshire. It
was taken on charge on June

WARBIRDS P-51D MUSTANG

Maurice and Janie too

Maurice Hammond has a long background in engineering. He trained as a
toolmaker and worked for other companies before setting up on his own,
establishing Eye Tech Engineering Ltd, based in Eye, Suffolk, in 1985.
The company specialises in precision computerised numeric control (CNC)
small parts and conventional machining aircraft restoration. Eye Tech has
all the tool-room equipment needed to work on historic aircraft parts. The
company has rebuilt numerous Packard Merlins as well as other models
including a Merlin III.
Maurice learnt to fly at Ipswich in 1988, and in 1992 ventured into warbirds
with the purchase of his T-6, which took him just under two years to restore.
When he finished the restoration of Janie, Maurice was determined to get 353rd
Fighter Group ace Major Bill Price over from the US so he can see the warbird
looking resplendent in the paint scheme of his wartime fighter. This ambition
was achieved in some style over the weekend of
August 20/21, 2005 (see FlyPast November 2005 for the story).
Maurice is fortunate in the amount of support he gets from his family. Wife
Diane and daughters Emma and Leah can often be found at the hangar when
Maurice is there. Youngest daughter Leah has followed in her dads footsteps
and is now the UKs youngest female warbird pilot.

The cockpit has been returned to stock

condition. leah hammond

30, 1944, and served with the

unit for just 45 days. Usually
the mount of Capt Bradford V
Stevens, it was being flown by
2nd Lt Myer Winkelman when it
was shot down on a mission over
France on August 13.
Maurice acquired the substantial
wreckage from storage in France
in summer 1998 and has spent
the last four years restoring the
fighter to airworthy condition.
This is his second from-theground-up restoration and it
has been to the same exacting
standards as Janie.
The completed fuselage was
moved from Maurices workshop

in Suffolk out to Hardwick on

September 15, 2007. The wing
section joined it on March 20,
2008 and was fitted the following
day. Before the sun had set
Marinell was standing on her own
undercarriage for the first time
since setting off from Fowlmere
in August 1944.
The engine was lowered into
place on March 22 and work
continued at such a pace that by
mid-May the systems had been
fitted. The first ground run of its
Packard V-1650-7 Merlin took
place on June 21.
The first air test was successfully
completed on July 26 others
followed and by the fourth, on
August 17, most of the general
handling checks had been
carried out. This latter flight
also included a timed climb to
10,000ft (3,050m) and a velocity
to never exceed (VNE) dive,
both necessary requirements.
Testing to complete the few
remaining checks continued and
Marinell got its Permit to Fly on
September 10.

The Lads
from Fowlmere
The 339th was one of the last
fighter groups assigned to the
Eighth Air Force, beginning
operations on April 30, 1944

WARBIRDS P-51D MUSTANG

The superb standard of

workmanship of the P-51s
restoration is clearly evident
here as Maurice soars above
the clouds. keyjarrod cotter
Far Left
Early engine run at Hardwick
on June 22, 2008. chris abrey

(the first groups

commenced in
late 1942/early 1943).
Based at Fowlmere, very close
to Duxford, Cambs, the 339th
comprised the 503rd, 504th
and 505th Fighter Squadrons.
The Group flew its last combat
mission on April 21, 1945, just
short of a year since its first. CO
was Col John B Henry until
April 14, 1945. Lt Col William

C Clark took over from him.

The 339th established
numerous records within the
Mighty Eighth during its
near year of operations. They
included: Most enemy aircraft
destroyed (air and ground)

WARBIRDS P-51D MUSTANG

Both of Maurices P-51Ds in the air together.

Nearest the camera is Rob Davies at the
controls of Janie, with Maurice behind flying
Marinell. richard paver
Far Left & Left

Badges of the 339th FG (far

left) and the 504th FS (left).
pete west key 2008

by a group in
its first year of
combat 692
and Most enemy
aircraft destroyed
(ground) by a group in
its first year of combat 453.
It was also credited with being
the first group to destroy 100plus enemy aircraft on a single
mission (April 10, 1945) 105.
It was heavily involved in
the D-Day landings of early

June 1944 and a

Distinguished Unit
Citation was awarded
to the 339th that
September. Its personnel
gained the nickname The
Lads from Fowlmere.

Marinells pilots
in combat
On a bomber escort mission
a month before the arrival of
Marinell, the 504ths Capt

Bradford Stevens
shot down two
Focke-Wulf Fw
190s. His combat
report stated:
On May 30 1944 I
was leading a Flight of four
P-51s on an escort mission to
Oschersleben. Near the target
25 plus Fw 190s attacked the
bombers on the opposite side
from my flight, as they made
their pass and dived I followed

one of the
Fw 190s catching
him at 5,000ft.
I fired a short
burst at 30 degrees
deflection, range was
300 yards. I observed hits and
the enemy aircraft [e/a] flew
straight. Then I closed to 150
yards, no deflection. I then fired
a long burst, observed hits and
on the third burst the e/a started
burning, with large pieces

Marinell wears the accurate red and white

chequerboard markings of the 339th FG.
keyjarrod cotter

WARBIRDS P-51D MUSTANG

Faithfully re-created nose-art on Marinell.

keyjarrod cotter

flying off it, no chute seen.

After turning around I spotted
another Fw 190, chasing it
down to 500ft and fired at 20
degree deflection, 200 yards and
observed hits, again the e/a flew
straight and at zero altitude. I

fired again, no deflection, 200

yards with observed hits. I closed
to 150 yards fired two more bursts
and the e/a started to burn as I
fired another long burst. The e/a
hit the ground and exploded, no
chute seen.
Capt Stevens scored other aerial
victories along the way, which
a few months later included a
Messerschmitt Bf 109:
On an escort mission September
12, 1944, I saw two Me 109s
attacking a B-17 that had pulled
out of the formation. I attacked
the second one and fired a short
burst at a 30-degree deflection
at a range of 200 yards. I pulled

The Chequers at Fowlmere

In the village of Fowlmere there is a pub restaurant
that dates back to the 1600s and is named partly
in honour of the 339th FG. The first aviation
connections with The Chequers came when Duxford
was established in 1917 and aircrew began to
frequent it during World War One.
Twenty years later the pilots of 19 Squadron,
based at Duxford and later Fowlmere, used the pub
regularly. Then from 1944 personnel of the 339th FG
arrived and used the hostelry.
Members of the 339th Fighter Group Association
re-visited The Chequers in 1986, and former CO Col
John Henry presented the landlord with a tankard
and certificate for the pubs logistic support.
When it came time to replace the old pub sign, it was decided that the new one would
mark the aviation connections. The current sign has the blue and white chequers of 19
Squadron RAF on one side, and the red and white of the 339th on the other.

through leading a little more and

observed some strikes.
The e/a then went into violent
evasive actions. I held my fire until
the Me 109 rolled out of a fast
roll, and then started firing again.
The e/a then dropped 20-degree
flaps and started to turn, I was able
to turn inside the Me 109 after
dropping 20-degree flaps.
The Me 109 then pulled into a
steep climb and I fired a short burst,
at the top of the climb he kicked it
over into a steep wing over. I fired
a short burst hitting the Me 109
in the cockpit. I evidently hit the
pilot as the e/a went into a spin and
crashed into the ground.
On August 6, 1944 Lt Myer
Winkelman of the 504th FS also
shot down a Bf 109:
I was flying No.4 position in
Major Routts flight when an Me
109 passed under my nose. We
started after him and he split
Maurice Hammonds Warbirds
Type

Serial No

Regn

Name

Auster AOP.V

TJ565

G-AMVD

Boeing PT-13D Kaydet

42-16931

N4712V

NA P-51D Mustang

44-13521

G-MRLL

Marinell

NA P-51D Mustang

414419

G-MSTG

Janie

NA T-6D Texan

42-84555

G-ELMH

Fools Rush In

formation with Lt Wood and

returned to the base.

August 13, 1944

Sd and started rolling down.

Two planes rolled over me
cutting me out of my flight.
I started after the Me 109 going
straight down. The e/a stopped
rolling and pulled straight up. I
nearly ran over him when I pulled
up. I put down 20-degree flaps
and got on his tail.

We were at 20,000ft and I

followed him to about 2,000ft
shooting all the way. When he
levelled off at 2,000ft I started
shooting again and his wheels
came down. I had to lower about
30 degree flaps to prevent running
over him again. His canopy flew
off and he baled out. I then joined

On the morning of August

13, Capt Stevens carried out a
bombing and strafing mission
against railway targets in France
probably in Marinell. On this
sortie the 339th claimed three
locos destroyed and six damaged,
20 boxcars destroyed and 80
damaged, a roundhouse and a
turntable damaged, an oil car
destroyed, a factory damaged plus
much damage to railroad tracks.
He had taken off at 08:33 and
landed back at Fowlmere at
11:30. His report concluded that
heavy, intense and accurate flak
had been observed.
In the afternoon of the same
day Lt Winkelman set out on
a dive bomb and area sweep

One of two substantial fuselage sections of

Marinell as bought from storage in France. The
wreckage also included much of the wing section
and numerous other large parts. maurice hammond
Top Left

Faithfully replicated data panel and four victory

markings that were applied to the P-51.

Marinell rebuild

The tail fin before restoration with 521 of the original serial
number visible. maurice hammond

Restoration of the fuselage making

good progress in October 2005.

The wing section pictured during December 2007.

WARBIRDS
Marinell
rebuild P-51D

MUSTANG

Undercarriage going in.

mission to Beauvais, France,

flying Marinell. He was shot
down at approximately 18:30 in
the area of Feuquires.
In his report to the 339ths
Operations Officer, Maj Bill C
Routt stated:
2nd Lt Winkelman was flying
on my wing on a dive-bombing
mission. He was in formation
with me when I started down
on the target with 4-5 second

The 339th Fighter Group memorial at Fowlmere.

keyjarrod cotter

Guns fitted and wing painted.

delay on the bombs. I pulled out

between 1,500 and 2,000ft and
broke to the right. Lt Winkelman
was not with me when I pulled
back up to 6,000ft. 1st Lt Hunter
leading my second element
pulled up onto my wing. He said
later that he thought he had seen
silver parts flying through the air
over the bomb bursts.
Lt Winkelman was last seen at
18:30 in the vicinity of Feuquires,
France.
It is thought most likely that
the cause was anti-aircraft fire.
However, the Missing Aircrew
Report (MACR) lists the reasons
for the aircrafts loss as unknown.
Other items from the MACR
include: Craft: Mustang (B Star
5Q). Officer: Winkelman, Myer
R ASN 0-688887. Killed in
action and buried at the French
soldiers cemetery, Marisell in
Beauvais, grave No.319.

Inside the hangar at Hardwick the fuselage is seen being lowered onto
the wing at Easter 2008.

Maurices passion for historic

aircraft is unmistakable, and with
the help and support of his family
and team of dedicated volunteers
he had sincerely hoped that
Marinell could return to Fowlmere
for the anniversary of the loss of
Myer Winkelman this year. But
due to various circumstances this
just wasnt possible.
Perhaps next year Marinell can
finally make it home after 65
years, though sadly, as for so many
its pilot never will...

With many thanks to Maurice and

Diane Hammond, plus their daughter
Leah, who flew the T-6 camera ship for
the photo shoot. Thanks also to Stephen
C Ananian of the 339th FG Association
for help with photos and Wade Meyers
for information from the MACR.
Appreciation to Abigail Gavin and
Harjit Sohotey at Olympus UK for the
loan of the brand new E-520 used for
the photo shoot. The 93rd BG Museum
has an open day on the third Sunday
of each month from May to October.
www.93rd-bg-museum.org.uk

May 4, 2008, and the engine has been fitted. all chris abrey unless noted

ST
JU .10
4

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