With support from the University of Richmond

History News Network

History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. Join us to learn more about the past, now.

Amateur historians unearth Australian Spitfire in France

Amateur aviation historians have unearthed the wreckage of a Royal Australian Air Force Spitfire that crashed in northern France during the Second World War and the skeletal remains of its pilot.

The wreckage of the plane, which was shot down in action and crashed in May 1942 near the village of Hardifort, was dug up from beneath 16 feet of soil, local officials said.

The fighter was in pieces but the bones of its pilot - identified by tags as W.J. Smith of the RAAF, service number 400942 - were recovered....

Read entire article at Telegraph (UK)