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Flight Lieutenant Brian Beattie
Born in 1921, Beattie joined the Royal Air Force on July 8th 1940. From the moment of signing up in the Recruitment Centre, Beattie was in no doubt that he wanted to join the RAF to be a pilot. Fortunately, amidst thousands of volunteers, things seemed to be panning out his way. 'I was next sent to No.1 Initial Training Wing for seven weeks,' Beattie recalls, 'and from there we were posted off to Elementary Flying Training (EFT), scattered all over the shop. Four of us for some reason were sent to Rhodesia.' Elementary Flying Training would be the student pilot's first introduction to the complexities of aviation and, for most, would be the first time of even setting foot inside an aircraft. 'After EFT we then moved on to RAF Kumalo, Bulawayo, to fly Oxfords,' Beattie goes on, 'we were now carrying out ITS and ATS which were our Intermediate and Advanced Training Squadrons. ITS was a conversion onto a more complex aircraft type whereas ATS now taught us navigation, bombing and air photography.' bHaving served at 489 Coastal Command flying torpedo carrying Hampdens, he later joined Des Curtis at 248 Sqn where he also flew the Tse-Tse firing Mosquito.
| Flight Lieutenant Brian Beattie - Signed Aviation Art Prints, Paintings and Drawings Pilot and Aircrew Signatures |
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Destination Amiens by Ivan Berryman. When De Havilland built the prototype DH.98 Mosquito (E-0234) they did so as an act of the purest faith in their design since the Air Ministry had already dismissed the companys proposal for their all-wood aircraft as impractical and unworkable. However, when E-0234 first flew on 25th November 1940, it demonstrated remarkably smooth handling characteristics and its speed, as expected, was outstanding. Here at last was a bomber which, in a straight line, could outfly even the Spitfire, giving rise to such nicknames as Wooden Wonder and, succicntly The Aeroplane. With such an aircraft, it was soon realised, many new possibilities were laid open to the RAF, among them the chance to initiate precision raids whereupon carefully selected isolated targets could be attacked with pinpoint accuracy. Just such a raid took place on 18th February 1944, involving 18 Mosquitoes of Nos 64 and 487 Squadrons in an operation on the jail at Amiens, France, where a large number of the French Resistance were being held for questioning by the Gestapo. It was thought unlikely that any of them would survive their ordeal at the hands of their inquisitors and it was considered more sensible to try to aid their escape by breaching the prison walls, even if it meant that some of the prisoners might be killed in the process. An accurate model of the jail and the nearby town was constructed and each pilot viewed the model from eye level to familiarise themselves with the view that they would get from a planned height of 50 feet. With this knowledge and some carefully selected reference points such as church spires and chimneys, the Mosquitoes, led by Group Captain Charles Pickard, were able to brush over the rooftops of the town and deliver their bombs with incredible accuracy, breaching the prison walls in four places. 258 prisoners escaped in the ensuing chaos and were quickly spirited away by other Resistance groups who were waiting outside. Sadly, a number of French prisoners were killed in the raid and added to the losses of that day was Group Captain Pickard himself who fell victim to marauding Focke Wulf 190s, but the raid had been a tremendous success and further precision attacks using the most superb Mosquito were carried out throughout 1944 and 1945, each one making its own significant contribution to the downward turn in the fortunes of Hitlers Reich. |
A Moment's Peace by Ivan Berryman. A de Havilland Mosquito patrols high above the clouds. This versatile all-wooden aircraft first flew on the 25th of November 1940. This aircraft was used in a wide variety of roles, including as a fighter-bomber and as a Pathfinder for bombers. |
Shining the Way (Mosquito) by Ivan Berryman. One of the artists most haunting paintings, a Mosquito B.IX of the Light Night Striking Force, PFF, banks away from the target zone having released a cluster of green Christmas tree marker flares to light the way for the second wave of approaching bombers. Frought with enormous difficulties and dangers, perhaps the most surprising aspect of the PFF is that it was made up almost entirely of volunteers and was widely regarded as the elite within Bomber Command. A fact made even more staggering by the slim chances of any aircrew completing the sixty sorties tour of operations that was asked of them. Nevertheless, the PFF was never short of volunteers and their dedication and courage is celebrated in this stunning print. |
Shell House Raiders by Ivan Berryman. Tucked in tight en route to Copenhagen, a wave of Mosquito FB VIs of 21 Sqn and their Mustang Mk.III escorts of 126 Sqn (including top Ace Agorastos John Plagis - 16 victories, on his last mission of the war) approach the Jutland Peninsula after a bumpy crossing of the North Sea on the morning of 21st March 1945. The Mosquitoes went on to carry out one of the most daring and successful raids of the Second World War on the German Gestapo headquarters in the centre of Copenhagen, inflicting irreparable damage to the Shellhus and killing more than 150 Gestapo personnel. |
| Flight Lieutenant Brian Beattie Aircraft details |
 Mosquito Manufacturer : De Havilland Built : 7781 | Mosquito Used as a night fighter, fighter bomber, bomber and Photo-reconnaissance, with a crew of two, Maximum speed was 425 mph, at 30,300 feet, 380mph at 17,000ft. and a ceiling of 36,000feet, maximum range 3,500 miles. the Mosquito was armed with four 20mm Hospano cannon in belly and four .303 inch browning machine guns in nose. Coastal strike aircraft had eight 3-inch Rockets under the wings, and one 57mm shell gun in belly. The Mossie at it was known made its first flight on 25th November 1940, and the mosquito made its first operational flight for the Royal Air Force as a reconnaissance unit based at Benson. In early 1942, a modified version (mark II) operated as a night fighter with 157 and 23 squadron's. In April 1943 the first De Haviland Mosquito saw service in the Far east and in 1944 The Mosquito was used at Coastal Command in its strike wings. Bomber Commands offensive against Germany saw many Mosquitos, used as photo Reconnaissance aircraft, Fighter Escorts, and Path Finders. The Mosquito stayed in service with the Royal Air Force until 1955. and a total of 7781 mosquito's were built. |
| Flight Lieutenant Brian Beattie Squadron details |
No.248 Sqn RAF Country : UK Disbanded 30th September 1946 Known Codes : , RK, DM, WR, | No.248 Sqn RAF Il faut en finir - It is necessary to make an end of it |
No.489 Sqn RNZAF Country : New Zealand Disbanded 1st August 1945 Known Codes : , P6, XA, | No.489 Sqn RNZAF Coastal Command Whakatanagata kia kaha - Quit ye like me, be strong |
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