Can you help a Spitfire recovery?

Crowd-funding appeal started with aim of bringing MkVb AD377 up from its Norfolk resting-place

Spitfire V AD377 in its watery resting-place near Ludham.
Spitfire V AD377 in its watery resting-place near Ludham. VIA DAVID DANIELLS

A crowd-funding appeal has been launched as the next stage of a project to recover Supermarine Spitfire Vb AD377 from the location where it crashed in Norfolk during the Second World War.

On 1 April 1942, the Castle Bromwich-built AD377 — serving with No 19 Squadron — was on approach to its base at RAF Ludham, Norfolk when it suffered an engine failure at 300ft following an attempted go-around. The pilot, the Czech-born Fg Off Rudolf Borovec, was left with no option but to put the Spitfire down as best he could. The aircraft slewed into one of the Norfolk Broads, specifically Hickling Broad, the impact tearing off the port wing, the engine and its bearers. Rudolf exited the aeroplane and took to his dinghy, paddling ashore and returning to Ludham airfield on foot. AD377 was immediately declared a write-off by the No 19 Squadron engineering officer and, it is believed, left to sink into the mud and silt due to the inaccessibility and nature of the site.

Now, after 80 years, following extensive research a North Yorkshire group believes it has pinpointed the site and is raising funds to conduct a professional survey in order to establish the extent of any remains. The accident report and associated paperwork indicate that, apart from the tail, the wreck should be complete, albeit in three pieces.

For anyone interested in knowing more or supporting the project, details can be found at www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/the-lady-in-the-lake-a-sunken-spitfire. It also has a presence on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. The group can be contacted at spitfiread377@gmail.com.