Flight of Gladiator II unknown and Flight Lieutenant C B Hull on 1940-05-27
On 1940-05-27, Pilot C B Hull (Flight Lieutenant, RAF) with servicenumber 37285 flew a Gladiator II with serial unknown for this duty: Patrol. His mission was not completed. Circumstances of the aircraft loss: At 08:00 things started to heating up when 11 Ju87Rs from I/STG 1, escorted by three Bf110s from I/ZG 76, appeared over Bod? and began dive-bombing radio masts at Bod?sj?en, only 800 yards from the landing ground. Lieutenant Tony Lydekker took off at once, but Flight Lieutenant Caesar B. Hull and a fitter were forced to leave his Gladiator (N5635) for a few minutes and shelter from the bombing. With the initial attack over they managed to get the fighter started and Hull took off, at once catching Feldwebel Kurt Zube's Stuka at the bottom of its dive. He caused it to fall in a gentle dive into the sea, where two Bf110s circled the wreckage. Zube and his gunner were picked up safely by German troops. As Hull completed his attack, another Ju87 went past and shot up his aircraft, smashing the windscreen. At the same moment he was attacked from behind by one of the escorts, flown by Leutnant Helmut Lent, and the Gladiator was hard hit. Hull managed to get back to the airfield at 200 feet, but was then attacked again by the Bf110 and crashed at Bod?halv?ya, wounded in the head and knee. N5635 has been identified by serial number found on the wreckage. Lent logged his victory at 08:20 (Helmut Lent shot down another 263 Squadron Gladiator on 2 June when Pilot Officer J. L. Wilkie in N5914 was killed east of Rombaksfjorden). This aircraft was a part of squadron no. 263. The location for the map is Bod?halv?ya, Norway. Circumstances at the end of this mission for Hull: he was wounded. There is no commemoration location known.
There are several possibilities in investigating the flight records on Back to Normandy. All the flights are plotted on maps, sorted day by day, by squadron, by type aircraft, by year or month, by location and much more! Don't miss this!!!
If you have any information that you want to share, please add your comment at the bottom of this record. Or send your information to www.backtonormandy.org/support.html Your photos and your information are very welcome! The young do care and with your help we keep up the good work.