Description
On a glorious spring morning in 1944, just a mere seven weeks before the monumental D-Day landings, a lone German aircraft made its dramatic entrance from the clouds over the Isle of Wight. It executed an audacious low circle over the northern part of the island, somehow managing to dodge a hailstorm of anti-aircraft fire before winging it across the Solent towards the Hampshire coast. There, it finally met its fate, taken down by a pair of RAF fighters and yet more anti-aircraft fire.
The German plane, a Junkers 188, crash-landed in a field near Exbury House, which was then the operational base for HMS Mastodon—an important naval headquarters deeply entrenched in the top-secret planning for the impending invasion of Europe. Tragically, none of the crew aboard that ill-fated aircraft survived.
In the wake of the crash, a host of questions emerged. What on earth was this Luftwaffe aircraft doing flying solo across the Channel in broad daylight, heading straight for an area brimming with D-Day preparations? Why did it linger suspiciously over the Isle of Wight? When under attack, why did it appear to take hardly any defensive measures? And why on Earth did it fire off flares, almost as if to announce its presence?
But perhaps the most perplexing question of all: how were seven German airmen found among the wreckage when a Junkers 188 was only supposed to carry a crew of four?
These questions sparked an enthralling mystery, one that had many scratching their heads back then. And years later, the author of this book embarked on a mission to unravel it all…
The text is supported by a wealth of historic photographs which have been enhanced and colorised using the latest technology. They look stunning and bring the past to life in a way that was never before possible.
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