Full medal write up
A aluminum 25 x 18cm access panel from Junkers 88, possibly from the cockpit. Panel is painted the standard green/grey, with four round bakelite spring loaded catches. To the unpainted reverse are the catches themselves and the following is engraved:
'Warminster Sept 1940 Part of Window set of Junkers 88 brought down on the Imber Road'.
Colour of plate and the round bakelite spring loaded catches match similar panels from surviving Junkers 88’s.
Research shows that this panel was from a Junkers Ju88A-1 (WkNr 3188 - L1+XC) of Stab II./LG1 (Lehrgeschwader 1) which was shot down by spitfires of Blue Section, 152 Squadron (F/O P.G.St G. O’Brian, P/O E.S. Marrs, and Sgt K.C. Holland) during a daring lone sortie to bomb the aircraft factory at Speke, 17 September 1940. One engine was disabled by the spitfires and the Junkers belly-landed at Ladywell Barn, Imber, near Warminster, 2.00 p.m.
Of the crew, Lt Otto Heinrich was killed, the pilot, Major Heinz Cramer, who was the Gruppen kommandeur was captured unhurt, Oberfw Paul Stützel and BS Fw Friedrich Schultz were both captured wounded. Major Heinz Cramer was awarded the Knights Cross the day after his capture (in absence). With a couple of other prisoners, he escaped from his POW camp via a tunnl but was soon after captured. Joining the Bundeswhehr in 1956, he retired as a Brigadier General in 1966.
See: https://chippenham1939-1945.weebly.com/the-end-of-a-junkers-17091940.html
This Junkers 88 was shot down during the second day of the Luftwaffe’s strategic bombing campaign, aimed at destroying infrastructure, armaments manufacturing etc during the height of the Battle of Britain.
Details of 152 Squadron, which was at the time based at RAF Warmwell, Dorset, can be found on this excellent website:
http://www.152hyderabad.co.uk/html/operations_record_book.html
‘A Battle of Britain Spitfire Squadron: The Men and Machines of 152 Squadron’ by Danny Burt has a number of pages dedicated to this combat, including photos of the Cramer, the Ju 88 and one of the damaged spitfires.
Condition of the plate is excellent with most of the paint remaining and catches still spring. Engraving is somewhat faint due to the reverse suffering from some mild age corrosion but the latter is very mild and the whole plate is solid. Plate appears to have originally been in almost an ‘L’ shape but has been flattened somewhat. Sold with some research, including combat reports (digital) for the downing of this Junkers 88.
A fine identified Battle of Britain relic.