Flt Lt Colin Bell DFC BEM, now a strong 104 years of age, was our guest of honour as he laid a memorial stone to Mosquito crews at The International Bomber Command Centre near Lincoln.
Colin flew 50 operations over Germany in 1944-45; 13 of them over Berlin at a time when, as the capital of the Reich, the City was a cauldron of anti-aircraft defences, including the latest radar-guided heavy guns.
He was a pilot in 608 Squadron, a unit reformed in August 1944 at RAF Downham Market as a Mosquito “Pathfinder” squadron, tasked to execute daring night strikes. He says of the ‘Wooden Wonder’, “I was in love with the Mosquito from the moment I first flew it. There wasn’t a better aircraft. It could outfly all German night fighters, until the arrival of the German jet-powered Me 262 towards the end of the War. The Mosquito responded instantly to inputs on the controls. When compared to the Spitfire, the Mosquito had two Merlin engines, so if I had to choose between the two aircraft, as the Americans say, ‘no contest’.”
With no guns in order to optimise its low weight, the Mosquito version flown by Colin was a hugely effective bomber, carrying four 500lbs bombs. Bell not only flew his bomber into the jaws of the enemy, he flew almost exclusively solo missions. “I only did formation flying once”, he says. “In formation, there was no flexibility! You had to stay on the same course as the rest – and that increased the risk. On your own, you can dodge and weave the lethal flak.”
There could be no better person to lay a commemorative stone at this event, organised and arranged by The People’s Mosquito, who count Colin as one of their Ambassadors for the project – building a De Havilland Mosquito here in the UK. Working from the manufacturers original drawings, the aircraft will fly once again to recognise and honour the significant and versatile role played by the type and all those men and women associated with its operations.
After the ceremony, a Vintage Tea Party was held for all our guests, complete with period cars parking outside the marquee, period dress and music by the excellent singer, Lili la Scala, making sure it was a real 40’s theme.
Our sincere thanks go to Dawn and Zoe for their dedication in organising this event, the staff at The IBCC who went above and beyond to accommodate us, and all others that made the day so special. It was wonderful to honour our heroes, while helping raise valuable funds for the project.
A final word of thanks of course, to Colin. His sparkly personality and sharp wit would fool anyone into thinking he was not a day over 80!
A selection of images from the day, follow. All images courtesy of D.R.Dawson Photography
As a boy We lived 400 yards from de Havilland Hatfield and I remember the sound and sight of that first aircraft and those Merlins at 11 years old, and of many production models later.
Many of my family worked on the aircraft and after my RAF service I became a DH engineer myself for 16 years.I have memories of the raid and loss of life when a lone Ju88 bombed the 98 shop. It was said the pilot had been a pre-war deH student, later shot down. The MRO shop (Mosquito Repair Organisation) later became the assembly hangar when I was there for the deH Blue Streak ICBM.
I worked myself on the Comet 4, DH110, DH121, DH125 and Maritime Comet (first Nimrod) before working with Canadair on the Lockheed C5 and the GD F111, but the Mosquito was my inspiration to spend over 50 years in aviation.
At 94 I will not see your aircraft airborne as I am now in assisted care, but I wish you every success in preserving this historic aircraft. David Haines C.Eng.,M.R.Ae.S.
Great afternoon, and a real privilege to meet Colin. The tributes he read for Mosquito crews and a friend of his, another pilot who was killed in action, were very moving. A wonderful tea laid on by the IBCC, and great entertainment from Lili. I thoroughly enjoyed it hope it helps the project progress.