Aviation Research Group Orkney Shetland - Mystery Aircraft in Scapa Flow

Any Ideas as to which aircraft these have come from ?? These are bits of Aircraft found in Scapa Flow.

Mystery Items from unknown aircraft found in Scapa Flow

Merlin Engine ?

photo Andy Cuthbertson

This one is a bit of a mystery. This Merlin engine was recovered by the Royal Navy from Scapa Flow and given to Lyness Museum on Hoy but to date no records have been found to prove from which aircraft this could have come!

photo Andy Cuthbertson

We had at first thought this could be from the Barracuda II which was lost in Scapa Flow but these were built with Merlin 32 engines with a four bladed propellor!

Clam divers have reported an aircraft off the Barrel of Butter in the middle of Scapa Flow and items seen seem to indicate a Spitfire/Seafire. Could this be one and the same aircraft ?

photo Andy Cuthbertson

The Orcadian 6th March 1986

Six torprdoes found in Flow

Six torpedoes, Five aircraft machine guns, one aircraft engine and numerous metallic objects were recovered in Scapa Flow last week. These finds were made by HMS Gavinton and HMS Bilderston of Third Countermeasures Squadron in conjunction with the Royal Maritime Auxilliary Service craft Kinloss which has a heavy weight lifting capacity.

The ships quickly located numerous large objects on their sonar and by sending divers down the items were identified and in many cases deemed worthy of lifting. An aircraft frame complete with a 12 cylinder Rolls Royce Merlin engine and machine guns were recovered by Bilderston but unfortunatly the frame had disintegrated too much for a successful lift by Kinloss.

These aircraft parts have been donated to the Lyness World War II museum. Two British Torpedoes were recovered by Gavinton on the first day of the week long exercise.

The recovery mission was prompted after an exercise last autumn when NATO forces exercised war roles ranging from the defence of shore installations against terrorist attacksto the assembly and protection of a convoy.

During Exercise Ocean Safari ships of the Third Mine Countermeasure Squadron (MCS3) conducted minehunting operations to establish the presence of 'enemy' mines in the Flow and thus provide a safe anchorage for the convoy. As well as finding the mines the ships also discovered a large amount of metallic debris that made their taskmore difficult.

Last weeks mission was to clear the metallic debris will ease future minehunting tasks in Scapa Flow.

Control of these Naval operations was conducted from the RNXS Port Headquarters at Scapa where Lieutenant Commander Phil Sparkes of Hatston Park, Kirkwall and his team provided a base for communications, planning and logistic support.

RYSA LITTLE AIRCRAFT (Martinet MS630?)

Another mystery is this propellor picked up at the northern end of Gutter Sound by divers led by Mike Armatage on the dive boat ''Sharon Rose''. We think this may have come from Martinet MS630,coded T8M, a target tug from 771 sqn, which was lost after striking the mast of a drifter 14/8/1944 killing the crew of two,though there is little damage to the blades. These were P/O Keith Foster RN & L/A David Ronald Griffiths RN. Both crew were recovered and are buried in St Olaf's Kirkwall. This needs looking into further

photo Andy Cuthbertson A Miles Martinet Photo: Charles E.Brown.

Undercarriage ram recovered from Scapa Flow by fishing boat.

Photo: Kevin Heath.

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