1942 RAF plane found almost intact in desert

"An RAF fighter plane thought lost in the sands of time after its pilot crash landed in the desert during World War Two has been discovered in what has been described as the "aviation equivalent of Tutankhamun's Tomb". The almost perfectly preserved Kittyhawk P-40 is an aviation time capsule that has remained unseen and untouched since it came down in the Sahara in June 1942."

source :
World War II RAF Kittyhawk fighter plane found in the Sahara Desert in Egypt - Telegraph

 

Wow. Another one? Nice find Skipper.
Will Zahi Hawass claim it? Zahi Hawass - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Wow, all these WWII planes popping up everywhere; Who found it? They even found a F-Wulf In 1990 in some European wildness.

 

Until 2011 maybe, no he's at his local job center.

 

We have posted a thread on this forum. I don't remember the exact location but it must be around the Narva front . Using our search section will allowyou to find it.

 

Could be an interesting development in this case-
"A body has been found in the desert close to the spot where a pilot disappeared after crash-landing during the war.
The wreckage of the P40 Kittyhawk plane was found perfectly preserved earlier this year, 70 years after the accident, and now it seems that airman Dennis Copping's remains may have been recovered nearby.
The bones were located on some rocks four months ago, along with a piece of parachute, about three miles from where the plane landed in the Sahara desert in 1942.
A keychain fob with the number 61 on it was found near the remains, along with a metal button dated 1939.
But the pilot's relatives claim the Ministry of Defence said that the remains were not those of the lost airman.
It has since been established that the bones were never recovered or analysed, leaving open the possibility they may be those of Flight Sergeant Copping.
His nephew, William Pryor-Bennett, from Kinsale, County Cork, Ireland, has now urged for DNA tests to be carried out as soon as possible.
To that end, two British historians and a forensic anatomist have volunteered to travel to Egypt and recover the bones themselves.
Mr Pryor-Bennett, 62, said he is ‘appalled’ at the way the matter has been handled.
He said: 'The bones suspected to be those of my uncle are apparently still lying in the desert. They were found in June and should have been tested by now."
Dennis Copping: Body of war pilot who crash-landed in his plane in the Sahara may have been found | Mail Online

 

Let's hope the DNA will solve the mystery soon

 

Sad news...it appears the bones found nearby can't be used for DNA testing.

"The family of a lost Second World War pilot whose plane was discovered in the desert 70 years after crashing feel 'let down' when they were told human remains found close by weren't his.
Relatives of Dennis Copping have been holding out hope that bones located three miles from the perfectly-preserved RAF plane in the Sahara are those of the airman.
But after months of waiting and receiving mixed messages from the Ministry of Defence, they have now been told that it is not possible to extract DNA from the remains.
The news has been met with frustration by Flight Sergeant Copping's nephew, John Pryor-Bennett, who had been about to fly to Egypt to provide a comparative DNA sample.

But the apparent inability to take DNA from the bones has been met with doubt by four forensic pathologists who have become involved in the case.
They now plan to travel to Cairo and examine the bones for themselves to give Mr Pryor-Bennett and his family a definitive answer.
After the bones were found last year, the family was initially told by the MoD that they were far too old to have been those of the lost airman.
It then emerged that this ruling was based on a flippant remark made by a member of the Egyptian authorities and the remains hadn't been examined at all.
Mr Pryor-Bennett, 62, was then invited to supply a DNA sample only for the bones to now be written off.
He and the forensic pathologists are demanding to know how authentic the tests have been up until now and more details about the circumstances of the examinations.
Mr Pryor-Bennett, from Kinsale, Cork, Ireland, said: 'I am a little bit appalled about how all of this has been handled. All the information that I have received since these bones were discovered last June has been misleading and vague."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2321443/Mystery-WWII-airman-went-missing-desert-Family-devastated-told-bones-near-downed-craft-tested-DNA.html#ixzz2SkQ9tv3A

 

They should still be able to take a sample from the marrow...Interesting photo of the aircraft...the rocky terrain would noramlly preclude a belly landing...would expect a trail of debre behind it....would expect the aircraft to catch and disintergrate...

 

Beautiful, thanks guys I love to find news like that.

 

Hopefully this won't turn into another "Lady Be Good", with the remains of the aircraft stuck in a government depot slowly decaying while souvenir hunters take their pick.

 

Well, the end result is not another "Lady Be Good", but its almost as disgusting.

Aviation historians express anger over lost World War Two fighter plane given a 'hideous' makeover

 

Yeah that would be a lovely waste of time and money on their part if they leave it out there like that. They did something similar with a P-38 up in Alaska.......Freaking Alaska, that great let he snow, hail, and salt water erode it in a few months!

 

That assumes that they have not disposed of the body. Egypt over the past few years has not been stable and some elements not well disposed to the British.

 

Someone described that as a "badly-made Airfix kit".
Think they were being helluva generous meself.

 

They were being generous...They could have said it was a badly made Monogram kit.
Like my very first model kit from decades ago.