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Aviation Archaeology
The Aviation Archaeology Web Page
Recent excavations Click here to read about some of the more recent aircraft excavations in Europe.
The Time Team Spitfire Channel 4's award winning programme recovers a Spitfire.
Missing pilots Click here to find out how some World War Two aircrew, lost for over 50 years, have been found.
Visit this site's sponsor The Air Research Publications, aviation book catalogue.
ANSA The Normandy (France) Aviation Archaeology Group. Click here to read about some Normandy excavations (Not up dated since 1999)..
The Belgian Aviation Archaeology Group Click here to read about some of the more recent aircraft excavations in Belgium. A great site kept up-to-date.
An American Aviation Archaeology page. A must
for the enthusiast. Includes the UK crash of the month and offers sources of information on
USAAF losses.
Visit the KG55 Photo Archive.
Great site with news of digs in Europe.
Zeppelin Archaeology? - Yes - it's here. (Thanks Guy!)
Recoveries from East Anglia. (Thanks Jeff!)
What is Aviation Archaeology?
Archaeology: ‘The scientific study of human life and activities’
From this it is clear that aviation archaeology is the study of material remains of the history of aviation. This can take many forms from the restoration of old aircraft to collecting Laker Airways sick bags, however, the purpose of this site to provide information on the recovery of the remains of crashed World War Two aircraft.
History of Aviation Archaeology
Quite when or who dug up the first crashed aircraft in the name of Archaeology is lost in the mists of time. Of course the wreckage of most crashed aircraft was cleared superficially at the time of the crash, so the recoveries of the early 1960s were probably the first. Individuals such as the late Peter Foote and small groups like the London Air Museum, the Wealden Group, and the Brenzette Group were among the first. Between them these groups recovered most of the ‘obvious’ wrecks in the Southeast of England.
Born out of this first wave came people such as Steve Vizard and further small groups and associations, most of which have now ceased to exist. In the early 1980s the pickings were rich and it was still possible to stumble across the remains of aircraft that had remained relatively untouched since the RAF recovery teams left the site in the 1940s.
In the 1990s there is another new wave of enthusiasts keen to recover aircraft remains, but these are getting harder to find as most of the well known sites have been excavated and less and less eye witnesses remain to lead one to a crash site. Recoveries have now become more ambitious, from under roads and from back gardens, or are ‘re-digs’ of aircraft previously visited by earlier generations. The ‘old hands’ of Aviation Archaeology have become the eye witnesses themselves!
The Law
After the recovery of several unexploded bombs and of human remains by the early archaeologists, the Ministry of Defence instituted a scheme of ‘Licences’ which they would grant upon a request from a recovery group. This scheme, although good in theory, was fatally flawed. Because there never has been a list of crashed aircraft it was impossible to know what lay where and licences were granted for anything - including aircraft which had never existed. As time progressed the requirements for a licence became stricter as ever more detail was requested and permission to recover aircraft often turned down by the MoD. If anyone still went ahead and recovered a wreck, having been refused permission, there was nothing the MoD could do anyway. So long as the permission of the land owner had been obtained, no law had been broken. To counter this the Protection of Military Remains Act was passed. This prevented anyone interfering with any military remains without MoD permission. In fact this meant that you would not be able to dig up a piece of aircraft from your own back yard without a licence. The law has been used twice in recent years, in each case against the same man, and the prosecution has failed on both occasions.
How do I become involved?
Depending upon where you live there may be a recovery group in your area. Most organised groups are situated north of London and are represented by the British Aviation Archaeological Council who can be contacted via: Mr R J Collis 8 Holly Road Oulton Broad Suffolk NR32 3NH England
If you live in Southeast England there are no active groups, only individuals who form lose affiliations from time to time, and who are mostly from the ‘Golden Days of Digging’. They form a strange, but hugely knowledgeable, underground network.
Museums
Several museums exist that are based around recovered aircraft, those that are known are listed here: Kent Battle of Britain Museum, Hawkinge Airfield, Hawkinge, Kent. Tangmere Aviation Museum, Tangmere Airfield, Nr Chichester, Sussex. Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum, Flixton, Suffolk. Shoreham Aviation Museum, Shoreham Airfield, Sussex. Essex Aviation Group Museum, Duxford Airfield, Cambridge. Brenzette Aviation Museum, Brenzette, Kent.
Books
Recent excavations Click here to read about some of the more recent aircraft excavations in Europe.
Missing pilots Click here to find out how some World War Two aircrew, lost for over 50 years, have been found.
E-Mail your comments or notes on your excavations to the Aviation Archaeology Page
Visit this site's sponsor The Air Research Publications aviation book catalogue.
This website is a member of The
Aero Ring, a linked list of aviation websites. To visit other sites in the
ring, click on one of these links. |
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