These photographs originate from the private albums of ww2 SAAF pilot Michael Welchman. It was kindly made available by him. I scanned and placed the photographs on this web site in order to share these gems to enthusiasts and the wider public. Please respect the copy rights of these photographs and contact me to obtain the necessary permission if you want to duplicate some of this material in other web sites or printed matter.
Thanks
Tinus le Roux
August 2012
Edit: many captions provided by Yuri Maree...thanks Yuri!
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3. Michael sitting on his bedding pack.
4. Peeking through a German flare parachute.
5. Hurricane Mk II with the "WR" identification code for SAAF No. 40 squadron. Mike flew most sorties with the Hurricane but also did a few with the sluggish Tomahawk.
6. Hurricane mk II with exhaust glare suppressor plates fixed
7. a Curtiss P-40 Tomahawk of 40 squadron. The Tomahawk was not a preferred aircraft by squadron members
8. Hurricane.
9. Hurricane.
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11. Hurricane Mk II cockpit
12. Hurricane Mk II cockpit
13. Hurricane
13aa Hurricanes taking off
13a
14. Tomahawk
15. Tomahawk
16. Pic of the Tomahawk that Michael flew where the U/C collapsed while landing.
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18. Murray Gardner made this accident upon his first flight in a Tomahawk. He swung from the strip and hit a truck killing the driver. Murray was the newly appointed squadron OC at that time.
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20. 40 Sqdn Hurricanes with the gremlin logo's painted on the engine cowls at El Fridan. Jack Orpen was the artist.
21 Going up North: From Kenia Michael flew to Egypt with Bombay transports
22 Douglas Boston bomber, used by the SAAF to great effect in the western desert
23 Hurricane
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35 Michael took these pictures that were painted on their squadron aircraft.
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37a I'm 99% sure it's a Spitfire Mk 5b flown by Wing Commander Ian R Gleed, leader of 244 Wing RAF in Tunisia. You can just make out the tops of the I and R on the fuselage. Also the wing commander's pennant in front of the cockpit (small triangle). Wing Commanders had the privilege of putting their initials on their planes, his was IR-G. the outlined letters were a feature of 601 Squadron (code UF) whom he mainly flew with. see the attached photo at bottom. This photo would have been taken around April 1943 and the location is CASTEL BENITO areodrome in Tripoli, Libya. (info Yuri Maree..thx Yuri)
Gleed
Gleed's AC
37b
37c
37d SAAF No. 1 squadron Spitfire of Lt. Lipawsky, top pic taken in the morning, bottom pic taken in afternoon. Lipawsky was injured ahd had a long spell in hospital after this incident. Lippy eventually became the 1 squadron commander 1944/45.
39 Typical well dispersed squadron camp area in the WD. During June/July 1942 the forward detachment of 40 sqdn experienced regular bombing but with negligible damage effects mainly due to the vast dispersal of tents, equipment and aircraft. The reconnaissance units usually operated from LG's closest to the bomb line and were quite vulnerable to enemy activity.
40 El Fridan
41 Flooding at Burg-El-Arab, 15 December 1941
42 Michael and Denis's tent being washed down at Bur-El-Arab. Italian POW/batman featuring in this pic
43 Typical well dispersed squadron camp area in the WD. During June/July 1942 the forward detachment of 40 sqdn experienced regular bombing but with negligible damage effects mainly due to the vast dispersal of tents, equipment and aircraft. The reconnaissance units usually operated from LG's closest to the bomb line and were quite vulnerable to enemy activity.
44 Marble Arch built by the Italians in occupied Libya. No.40 squadron was stationed here for a quite a while at the end of 1942
45 Marble Arch built by the Italians in occupied Libya. No.40 squadron was stationed here for a quite a while at the end of 1942
46 Somewhere near the Alamein line 1942.
47 Pulling stuck vehicle out with locomotive at Wadi Natrum.
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49 Typical well dispersed squadron camp area in the WD. During June/July 1942 the forward detachment of 40 sqdn experienced regular bombing but with negligible damage effects mainly due to the vast dispersal of tents, equipment and aircraft. The reconnaissance units usually operated from LG's closest to the bomb line and were quite vulnerable to enemy activity. Tunisia somewhere, judging by the terrain.
50 70 OTU Ismailia
51 70 OTU Ismailia
52 Artillery co-op course
53 On a leasure trip to Palestine (Israel) L.t.R. Dudley Cobbledick, Johannes "Gamat" Gouws, Dennis Waugh
54 On a leasure trip to Palestine (Israel) L.t.R. Dudley Cobbledick, Johannes "Gamat" Gouws, Dennis Waugh
55 Michael's friend and tent mate: Dennis Waugh, badly wounded near Tobruk in July 1942 but recovered and eventually killed in action during his second tour.
56 Dennis Waugh shared this tent with Michael
57 Artillery co-op course; Dennis Waugh with head set doing the spotting and target laying work
58 Dennis Waugh
59 According to Michael their Italian POW batman had absolutely no desire to escape! He made all the "furniture" displayed in the photo
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63 Officer's mess tent: Jack Webb reading, Barry Acutt standing looking left.
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69 Dudley killed not very long after this pic was taken
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74 Gouws became a POW at Luft Stalag III and was murdered by the Gestapo when he was caught after " The "Great Escape" 1944
75 Going for a swim. In this little group: Nicol KIA,, Flekser POW, Waugh KIA, Heald KIFA
76 Jack Heald killed soon after this pic was taken, Denis Acutt, family of the Acutt property group in Durban.
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79 Ross McDonald, joker of the sqdn, stayed friends with Michael long after the war.
80 Jannie Blaauw became 7 sqdn OC and also OC of 2 sqdn Korea 1951
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85 Arrival and distribution of squadron post.
86 a Squadron member using the "desert lily"
87 Cobbledick in middle with various ground staff
88 Jack Webb very popular member of the sqdn, DFC recipient, 3 times walk back to sqdn, KIA when he force landed in a minefield
89 Jack Webb
90 Jack Webb, KIA. According to Michael these pics were taken 1 day before his death
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93 Jack Orpen
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95 Popular officer of the sqdn, member of the ground staff, intelligence
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100 Pilots at an occupied German aerodrome waiting for the squadron transport to arrive.
101 Their LG being bombed. According to Mike this bomb caused no damage to the truck except for a small dent at the back!
102 Bomb crater at LG
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107 Squadron arrives in Ismailia; day visit to Port Said
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113 Jack Orpen, the creator and painter of the" gremlin" characters. "Gremlins" were the imaginary creatures that caused failures in the aircraft. Here Jack poses in a German flare parachute.
114 Squadron arrives in Ismailia; day visit to Port Said
115 Natie Flekser posing with a Lewis AA gun
116 On a steamer in the Nile; Dennis Waugh, Kleynhans and Natie Flekser
117 Going up north from South Africa: Mombasa railway station Kenia.
118 German aircraft left intact at captured enemy LG's. Staff were warned to be careful for booby traps on captured enemy equipment
119 Jack Webb, Goldy Scott (army) and Barry Acutt Sailing on the Nile
120 Barry Acutt, Goldy Scott and Michae
121 Jack Webb, E Sturgeon and Barry Acutt
123 Abandoned Axis aircraft
124 Abandoned Axis aircraft
125 Abandoned Axis aircraft
126 Abandoned Axis aircraft
127 Abandoned Axis aircraft
128 Abandoned Axis aircraft
129 Macchi Mc 202 Folgore (Italian high-performance fighter)
130 Macchi Mc 202 Folgore (Italian high-performance fighter)
131 Heinkel He 111
132 Captured Stuka Ju-87, possibly the one owned by RAF 260 Squadron
133 Castel Benito airfield in tripoli, Libya after the 8th Army and RAF captured it
134 Castel Benito airfield in tripoli, Libya after the 8th Army and RAF captured it
135 Castel Benito airfield in tripoli, Libya after the 8th Army and RAF captured it
136 A captured FIAT G.50 note the RAF roundel painted on.(Italian fighter)
137 A captured FIAT G.50 note the RAF roundel painted on.(Italian fighter)
138 A captured FIAT G.50 note the RAF roundel painted on.(Italian fighter)
139 Caproni Ca.164 light communications plane
140 Fiat CR.42
141 SM.79
142 Macchi C.200 Saetta (very similar looking to the Fiat G.50, but woth distinctive differences)
143 Castel Benito airfield
144 German teller mines.
145 Castel Benito airfield
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148 Wrecked Junkers Ju 52 transport
149 Captured Italian tank.
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152 Boston
153 Boston
154 Boston
155 Vickers Wellington
156 Martin Baltimore, also used by SAAF
157 Martin Baltimore, also used by SAAF
158 A visitor Halifax bomber having a wheel repair.
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160 A visitor Halifax bomber having a wheel repair.
161 Visitor Wellington bomber.
162 Vickers Vildebeest (pre-war torpedo and attack plane, obsolete by the time desert war broke out)
163 Vickers Vildebeest (pre-war torpedo and attack plane, obsolete by the time desert war broke out)
164 Lysander reconnaissance aircraft, briefly flown by Mike during training at No.70 OTU
165 A 112 Squadron RAF Kittyhawk at Castel Benito airfield.
166 Catalina amphibian
167 Catalina amphibian
168 Lockheed Loadstar, also used by the SAAF as a shuttle transport.
169 Lockheed Loadstar, also used by the SAAF as a shuttle transport.
170 Lockheed P-38 Lightning
171 Lockheed P-38 Lightning
172 De Havilland Mosquito
173 De Havilland Mosquito SAAF 60 squadron
174 Lockheed P-38 Lightning
175 Bristol Beaufighter
176 Catalina amphibian
177 Westland Lysander
178 Martin Maryland bomber visitor as also used by the SAAF bomber squadrons
179 Bardia, Libya see attached colour photo...amazing hey)
180 possibly Mersa Matruh (everywhere else, buildings were destroyed)
181
182 Sollum, just inside Egypt on the border with Libya.
183 Sollum, just inside Egypt on the border with Libya.
184 Sollum, just inside Egypt on the border with Libya.
185 Sollum, just inside Egypt on the border with Libya.
186 Mersa Matruh, Egypt
187
188 German and Italian POEs
189 German and Italian POEs
190 British 25-pounder artillery
191 Dead Italians
192 8th Army M3 Grant tanks, with a M4 Sherman at right
193 8th Army infantry with a dead German soldier
194 German and Italian POWs
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197 M3 Grant tank (btw, Mongomery rode around in one of these at times, it's in the Imperial War Museum in London today)
198 British Crusader tank
199 Captured German film
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