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Basil Stapleton
| Squadron Leader Basil Stapleton DFC (deceased) Born in South Africa, Basil Gerald Stapleton joined the RAF in Jan 1939, being posted to 603 Sqn flying Spitfires. He first saw action off Scotland, sharing in the destruction of two bombers, before the Squadron was posted south to Hornchurch during the height of the Battle of Britain. By Nov 1940 his tally had risen to 6 and 2 shared victories and 8 probables. In March 1942 he was posted to 257 Sqn as flight commander. In August 1944 he commanded 247 Sqn flying Typhoons, taking part in the Arnhem operations. In December 1944, whilst attacking a train, debris hit his aircraft forcing him to land behind enemy lines where he was taken prisoner of war. Stapme Stapleton had scored 6 victories, plus 2 shared, 5 probable and 2 damaged. Sadly, we have learned that Basil Stapleton passed away on 13th April 2010. |
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Evening Patrol by Gerald Coulson. During the early part of World War II the coastline of Britain was constantly under threat, particularly the busy shipping lanes of the North Sea. As well as carrying out bombing raids on strategic coastal targets and ports such as Luftflotte 5s attack on the north-east in August 1940, allied shipping was regularly attacked at sea as the Luftwaffe tried to disrupt supplies. The RAF played a vital part in protecting these supplies, escorting fishing fleets and shipping convoys, as well as long range patrols over the sea, seeking enemy activity and intercepting high altitude reconnaissance aircraft. These patrols were often long and arduous with pilots running the gauntlet of, if shot down, ditching into the sea. Often pilots would survive being hit and baling out, only to succumb to the freezing and hostile waters of the North Sea. Often fighter squadrons being rested during the Battle of Britain, would be moved to northern locations such as Acklington and Leconfield, and carry out coastal and sea patrols before returning to the more intense fighting in the south. Flying over the Humber Estuary as the sun is setting, pilots of 610 Sqn return their MKII Spitfires to Leconfield after a convoy patrol late in 1940. |
Typhoons Over the Rhine by Nicolas Trudgian. Flying low level at high speed through intense ground fire was all part of the daily task of the pilots of the Typhoon ground attack squadrons. Armed with rockets, 1000lb bombs and four 20mm cannon, this formidable fighter played a leading role in the Allied advance through occupied Europe. Leading up to, and following the Normandy landings through to the end of hostilities, the Typhoon, flown by determined hard hitting pilots, became the scourge of the German Panzer Divisions, and wrought havoc with enemy road and rail communications. Targets along the Rhine, over one of Germanys arteries of supply and communication and last line of defence, were given special attention by the Typhoon squadrons. Barges carrying vital supplies, munition trains on railroads hugging the river bank, and the ever present movement of troops and armour toward the battlefront were constantly attacked from the air. Led by Squadron Leader B. G. Stapme Stapleton, Mk1B Typhoons of 247 Squadron, 2nd Tactical Air Force, based at Eindhoven in Holland, make a low-level attack on enemy river transport on the Rhine in November 1944. Twisting and turning to avoid ground fires as best they can, the Typhoon pilots power their way through the valley with cannons blazing, pressing home their attack by strafing every German military target in their path. The supply cargo aboard the freight train is unlikely to reach its destination today! Published 1999. |
Stapme's Final Attack by Nicolas Trudgian On December 23rd 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge, Squadron Leader Basil 'Stapme' Stapleton was flying his Hawker Typhoon of No.247 Squadron on an offensive patrol from his base at Eindhoven. Behind enemy lines, he spotted a train and pressed home a determined attack with rockets and cannon fire. Unluckily, as the boiler of the locomotive violently exploded, shrapnel damaged his aircraft and Stapme had to make a crash-landing, spending the rest of the war as a prisoner. |
Wings of Glory by Robert Taylor. Robert Taylors spellbinding painting, Wings of Glory, paying tribute to Mitchells immortal fighter, features the MkX1X Spitfire of the RAFs Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Powered by the Rolls-Royce Griffin engine providing maximum speed of 450mph and a 44,000 feet operating ceiling, this lovingly restored aircraft thrills generations of aviation enthusiasts with her spectacular aerobatics at Europes summer air shows. This most beautiful of fighters gives a virtuoso performance, high among the clouds, alone in her magical element, she dances an aerial ballet like no other could. |
September Victory by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) Spitfires pass above a downed Me110 as they return to base at Biggin Hill in September 1940, the most intense and crucial phase of the Battle of Britain. |
Their Finest Hour by Nicolas Trudgian. Situated on the south eastern tip of Kent, RAF Hawkinge was the most forward airfield in Fighter Command. It was not surprising therefore that when Reichmarshal Goering began his fierce attacks on airfields - part of his softening up campaign in preparation for Hitlers Adler Tag (Eagle Day) - Hawkinge would be among the first in his sights. The Luftwaffe were putting up massive raids - over 1700 aircraft crossed the coast on August 16th - and RAF bases in the south-east were taking a pounding. Hawkinge, a satellite of Biggin Hill sector station, and vital to front line defences, lay right in the path of the raiding Luftwaffe hordes. When on August 12th it was bombed for the first time, its effect was only to harden the resolve of its pilots and groundstaff. MkI Spitfires of No.610 County of Chester Squadron are seen scrambling out of RAF Hawkinge in late August 1940. refuelled and re-armed, with scarlet patches covering the gunports, all serviceable aircraft roar off the grass strip and head back to the fray. With aerial battles raging all the way from 2000 to 20,000 feet, within minutes they will be back in the action. Ground crews in the foreground work frantically to get more Spitfires airworthy. In the background Hurricanes from No.32 Squadron are at readiness, and will be called into action as the primitive radar picks up the next incoming raid. |
Channel Combat by Adrian Rigby. This scene depicts a Spitfire of No.609 Squadron being bounced by Messerschmitt 109s over the Needles on the Isle of Wight, using the typical Luftwaffe tactic of flying out of the sun. This particular aircraft was flown during August 1940 by one of the great aces of the Battle of Britain, Flight Lieutenant John Dundas, who shot down twelve enemy aircraft. His greatest achievement was shooting downing Major Helmut Wick, the German ace on 29th November. Sadly Dundas was shot down and killed the following day by Wicks wingman, Lieutenant Pflanz, who also lost his life. A dramatic end for a great pilot, Dundas was a typical example of the calibre of man defending Britain at that time. |
Into the Fray by Richard Taylor. Squadron Leader Douglas Bader leads the Hurricanes of 242 Squadron in an aggressive diving attack upon a large force of Heinkel 111s approaching the Kent coast, whilst Spitfires from 66 Squadron tangle with the escorting Bf109s of JG52. It is September 1940, and the climax of the Battle of Britain. Throughout those critical months in 1940, the RAF engaged opposing pilots of the Luftwaffe time and time again and this atmospheric new painting depicts one such frantic engagement as one of the most legendary fighter Aces of the war, Douglas Bader leads his unit into battle. |
Hornchurch Scramble by Robert Taylor. On August 12th, 1940 the Luftwaffe turned their full attention to the RAF's forward fighter bases and radar stations with the intent to obliterate them once and for all. The outcome of the Battle of Britain hung in the balance. It was late in the afternoon of Sunday, 18 August 1940. The previous week had seen the hardest days of fighting in the Battle of Britain as the young pilots of the RAF Fighter Command had engaged in deadly duels with the Luftwaffe. Bystanders gazed cautiously upwards at the weaving contrails in the clear blue skies over southern England as they anxiously awaited the outcome. For just a moment, all was at peace: A gentle breeze floated across the airfield at RAF Hornchurch as the exhausted young pilots of 54 Squadron could rest for a few brief minutes and reflect on their own previous two encounters with the enemy that day. The Luftwaffe had thrown everything at them in the past few days, but today had been the toughest of them all. And then the calm was shattered by the shrill tones of the alarm, the Luftwaffe had launched another huge raid of over 300 aircraft across the Channel, and it looked like Hornchurch was the target. Hornchurch Scramble, portrays the moment as 54 Squadron's commanding officer, Squadron Leader James Leathart, taxis out at Hornchurch to prepare for take-off. Quickly following, the aircraft of New Zealander Colin Gray is guided out from dispersal by his ground crew. Gray would claim 3 Bf110s in the encounter and would eventually become the top scoring New Zealand Ace of the war. |
Closing the Gap by Robert Taylor. As Typhoon Mk1b fighter-bombers of 247 Squadron exit the target area near Falaise at full throttle, the havoc wreaked in their wake bears witness to the devastation of their powerful rockets. Fuel and ammunition from the retreating German column explode with shattering detonations, the savagery of the attack demoralising the enemy into stunned oblivion. The Typhoons will hurtle back to base to re-arm and hastily re-fuel, ready for yet another withering strike on the encircled Wehrmacht columns. This stunning rendition from the the worlds premier aviation artist pays tribute to the brave young RAF fighter pilots of the twenty squadrons of rocket-firing Hawker Typhoons who flew those perilous ground attacks during the Battle of Normandy. |
The Greatest Day by Robert Taylor. Sunday 15 September 1940 and Luftwaffe supremo Hermann Goering believed victory over the RAF was at hand. Today, he decreed, would be the day that his 'glorious' Luftwaffe would finally break the back of Fighter Command's stubborn resistance. Or so he believed. In response to a massed formation of enemy aircraft detected heading for London, Air Vice Marshal Keith Park commanding 11 Group scrambled his squadrons. He also requested that 12 Group bring Douglas Bader's 'Big Wing' down from Duxford. Every available pilot and machine was committed. Prime Minister Winston Churchill turned to Park and asked "What other reserves have we" "There are none", Park replied. Bader now had five squadrons racing south, meeting what remained of the enemy on the outskirts of London. With a successful morning behind them the RAF fighters raced back to re-fuel and re-arm. Just after 14.00 hrs another enemy battle group was observed and this time the formations were even larger. Bader's Wing was scrambled once more. |
Spitfire Country by Nicolas Trudgian. A typical scene from a bright August morning in that momentous summer of 1940. Having climbed into the dawn sky at daybreak, the Spitfires of No 603 Squadron have already been in action, and with more heavy raids on the plotters table, they scurry back to Biggin Hill to re-arm and refuel. A Messerschmitt Me109, shot down during the previous days fighting, lies discarded in a hay field, its lucky pilot having escaped with his life. Meanwhile, the beautiful Kent countryside comes awake as it prepares for the toils of another glorious summers day. |
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