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"Czech Defector and The Berlin Hurricane"

Posted by Mick on Fri Jan 04, 2002 02:33:54 PM

'Ere Ya Go Paul....letter from Flypast.

A photo in the Dec 2001 Flypast has prompted me to write to you as it seems to answer a long-time question of mine.
Many years ago when I was chairman of the North East Aircraft Museum, I was told by a member of the Sunderland Flying Club that he had been researching the history of Usworth Airfield. The story goes the Hurricane pilot, who was a Czech, defected in his aircraft to Germany.
The Germans put him to work as a mole inside a POW camp to inform on any escape attempts. It seems that he was found out and the Germans had to get him out quickly before he was lynched. After the war ended, the story went on, he was arrested and tried by his own countrymen, found guilty and executed.
For a long time now I have been researching aircrashes in the north of England, and in that process 55 OTU's tenure at Usworth was part of this. An entry in 55 OTU's log was as follows "Hurricane W9147 crashed in the sea off Sunderland on Sept 18th, 1941, the pilot 787344 Sgt A. Preucil (Czech) missing." This seemed to tie in with the story I had been told.
I tried to find out if the story was true, but had been unsuccessful - until the photo in Flypast poops up showing W9147 in the Berlin Museum, obviously having suffered a crash landing.
Preucil was involved in a previous incident when flying Hurricane V7608. He mis-handled the fuel system, causing the engine to cut, and crash landed the aircraft at Houghton-le-Spring, Durham, on July 27th 1941.
Now whether he got what in RAF parlance is a "good bollocking", I do not know, but perhaps this is part of the reason he became bitter and decided to defect.
I would be grateful to know if anyone knows anything that may prove or dis-prove the story.

Jim Rutland
Houghton-le Spring, Durham.

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Interesting story.
I wonder if Our Man In Germany would know anything Tony ?

Cheers
Mick








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