X-Nico

4 unusual facts about Bristol Beaufighter


German submarine U-418

U-418 was sunk on 1 June 1943 by rockets from a British Bristol Beaufighter of 236 Squadron in the western Bay of Biscay.

German submarine U-563

U-563 was attacked by a Bristol Beaufighter on 22 March 1943 which caused only slight damage.

Motor Torpedo Boat PT-121

No sooner had the boats turned to leave than they were attacked by four other P-40s of 78 Squadron and a Beaufighter heavy fighter of 30 Squadron RAAF.

Shoreham Airport

During the Second World War the airfield operated a variety of military aircraft including Westland Lysanders that were later replaced by Supermarine Spitfires, Hawker Hurricanes, Boulton Paul Defiants and a pair of Bristol Beaufighters.


Luigi Gorrini

Flying this nimble biplane, Gorrini scored his first victory on on 16 April 1941, over Derna, in Cyrenaica, Libya, shooting down a Bristol Beaufighter and damaging another.

RAF Crosby-on-Eden

The station was handed over to RAF Coastal Command, hosting 17 OTU during August 1942 for training long-range fighter crews on Bristol Beaufort and Bristol Beaufighter conversion squadrons, as well as air firing and night flying.


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