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Bombay No. 216 Squadron RAF based in Egypt beginning in September that year received the first Bombay aircraft Although it was outclassed as a bomber for the European theatre, it saw some service with British-based 271 Squadron ferrying supplies to the British Expeditionary Force in France in 1940 In June 1940, French pilot Jean-Francois Demozay borrowed an abandoned Bombay to ferry himself and 15 troops from France to England, after which he became an ace with the RAF When the war with Italy began in June 1940, in the absence of more modern aircraft, 216 Squadron's Bombays were used as night bombers as well as in their principal role as transport aircraft The aircraft flew bombing sorties against targets in the Western Desert, including Benghazi and Tobruk, and against Italian Somaliland, until the buildup of Vickers Wellington bombers in Egypt allowed the Bombays to concentrate on transport operations Bombay's ferried supplies and evacuated the wounded during the Siege of Tobrukb while on 2 May 1941, Bombays of No. 216 Squadron RAF evacuated the Greek Royal Family from Crete to Egypt Later that month, Bombays played an important role in ferrying troops during the Anglo-Iraqi War Five Bombays were used by the fledgling SAS in their first official operation in the Middle East, a raid on five forward German aerodromes on 17 November 1941. Lieutenant General William Gott, the highest ranking British officer killed in the war, died when the Bombay in which he was being carried was shot down in the Western Desert on 7 August 1942. Bombays evacuated over 2,000 wounded during the Sicily campaign in 1943, and one crew was credited with carrying 6,000 casualties from Sicily and Italy before the type was finally withdrawn from use in 1944 |
| David Pentland Bombay Aviation Art Prints, Paintings and Drawings Aviation Art |
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| Text for the above items : |
Hand of Fate by David Pentland. South of Alexandria, Egypt, 7th August 1942. When a pair of Me109Fs from JG27 unexpectedly encountered a lumbering Bristol Bombay and downed it, they were unaware of the full significance of their action. It was only on their return to base that Emil Clade and Bernd Schneider heard that Lt. General Strafer Gott the formidable new commander of the 8th Army had perished on the fallen transport. His death opened the way for his replacement, General Montgomery. |
| Bombay Pilot and aircrew signature details |
| Bombay Squadron details |
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