No wing guns on the Roc - it was too heavy already! It does seem that this was a hack (target tug?) rather than an armed Roc but that's pure speculation on my part. They remain fascinating pics. Salute to the pilot who lost his life - like so many aircrew in WWII, losses in accidents exceeded combat casualties. Very, very sad...
Thanks Buff, I wasn't sure about wing guns, as it's not a type I have a lot of knowledge of. I think you're probably right about it being a unit 'hack', although possibly not a tug, as there's no sign of a winch mount or external 'windmill'. Whatever it was, it is, or was, as you point out, a sad loss, one of many losses 'to other causes'.
True enough about the lack of a winch, although it could have been knocked off during the accident or, alternatively, it was a local mod by the MU which may not have had the attributes of a factory-fitted target tug winch. For example, the Blackburn Sharks used as target tugs in the Far East by 4 AACU probably weren't fitted with extensive drogue machinery - a simple attachment point in the tail of the aircraft would have sufficed. Or it could just have been a hack...
Does "ROYAL NAVY 358" (from what I can make out) on the tail give us any way of track down the operational history of this plane down? Come on my British cousins!
Possibly, but I don't have anyrthing in the way of RN stuff to check, apart from some basic FAA reference material. Not an area of interest for me I'm afraid.
Does "ROYAL NAVY 358" (from what I can make out) on the tail give us any way of track down the operational history of this plane down? Come on my British cousins!