ATAG_Lewis
Sep-14-2013, 09:38
A short story of Hawkhinge
Holidaying in Kent a couple years ago the missus and I decided to got to Hawkinge to see the grounds of the old airstrip...When we got there we stumbled on the 'Kent Battle of Britain museum' with 3 full scale model Hurrincanes in the grounds...The museum is pretty good and boasts the 'Most important collection of Battle of Britain artefacts on show in the country'..Well worth a visit if you are near.
As we looked around the museum the mangled wreck of a Hurricane caught my attention. It had been shot down by a 109 during the battle and was seen by many witnesses in the area to go vertically straight into a road in Brighton clipping a house as it went in. The pilot was killed but no one else injured. A funeral was held at the pilots local town and a burial with plot and marble headstone. At the time there were rumours that the remains of the pilot had not been put in the coffin and sand bags had been used for weight instead and that the crash site had simply been filled in over the wreck in order for the road to be used quickly again. Apparently this was quite common during the battle in the south of England.
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/ar0910-11_zpsf23784f6.jpg
The pilot was Dennis Noble. He was 20 years old
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/_69191306_dennisnoble10oct19391_zpsae9af75f.jpg
Eventually, in 1996, Sgt Noble's remains, along with his plane, were dug out thanks to Battle of Britain historian Keith Arnold.
The bones were sent back up to his home town to be buried in his grave and the wreckage sent to Hawkinge museum. His sister attended the funeral in 1996.
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/Burial-of-Pilot-Sgt-Dennis-Noble-in-199711_zpsc24a75d9.jpg
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/noble-press-report1_zps65442e6d.jpg
On reading the information about Sgt Noble I find out that his home town was Retford which is our neighbouring town so I planned that when we got home we would go and see his grave. When we got to the grave yard we realised that it was going to be quite a task to find his site as the grave yard was so huge. After an hour of no luck we went to the vicarage close by to talk to the vicar. He had no idea of the story or of the whereabouts of the BOB pilot in his graveyard and asked us to go and let him know if we had any success in finding it. So off we went again. We decided to have one last look before going and just as we were about to leave I chatted to an elderly woman carrying flowers who knew the story and where the grave was...We found it!
The grave has written on the front in the marble...
'One of the Few'
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/43-squadron-hurricane-p3179-grave-of-sgt-dennis-noble1_zps8cb5182d.jpg
http://www.kbobm.org/
Holidaying in Kent a couple years ago the missus and I decided to got to Hawkinge to see the grounds of the old airstrip...When we got there we stumbled on the 'Kent Battle of Britain museum' with 3 full scale model Hurrincanes in the grounds...The museum is pretty good and boasts the 'Most important collection of Battle of Britain artefacts on show in the country'..Well worth a visit if you are near.
As we looked around the museum the mangled wreck of a Hurricane caught my attention. It had been shot down by a 109 during the battle and was seen by many witnesses in the area to go vertically straight into a road in Brighton clipping a house as it went in. The pilot was killed but no one else injured. A funeral was held at the pilots local town and a burial with plot and marble headstone. At the time there were rumours that the remains of the pilot had not been put in the coffin and sand bags had been used for weight instead and that the crash site had simply been filled in over the wreck in order for the road to be used quickly again. Apparently this was quite common during the battle in the south of England.
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/ar0910-11_zpsf23784f6.jpg
The pilot was Dennis Noble. He was 20 years old
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/_69191306_dennisnoble10oct19391_zpsae9af75f.jpg
Eventually, in 1996, Sgt Noble's remains, along with his plane, were dug out thanks to Battle of Britain historian Keith Arnold.
The bones were sent back up to his home town to be buried in his grave and the wreckage sent to Hawkinge museum. His sister attended the funeral in 1996.
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/Burial-of-Pilot-Sgt-Dennis-Noble-in-199711_zpsc24a75d9.jpg
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/noble-press-report1_zps65442e6d.jpg
On reading the information about Sgt Noble I find out that his home town was Retford which is our neighbouring town so I planned that when we got home we would go and see his grave. When we got to the grave yard we realised that it was going to be quite a task to find his site as the grave yard was so huge. After an hour of no luck we went to the vicarage close by to talk to the vicar. He had no idea of the story or of the whereabouts of the BOB pilot in his graveyard and asked us to go and let him know if we had any success in finding it. So off we went again. We decided to have one last look before going and just as we were about to leave I chatted to an elderly woman carrying flowers who knew the story and where the grave was...We found it!
The grave has written on the front in the marble...
'One of the Few'
http://i487.photobucket.com/albums/rr232/FS_Lewis/43-squadron-hurricane-p3179-grave-of-sgt-dennis-noble1_zps8cb5182d.jpg
http://www.kbobm.org/