The Delap Collection

Updated 02/14/2004

Photos provided by Chris and Chip Delap

Jack Delap (at right) completed a combat tour as bombardier with the original Kinsinger crew of the 711th Squadron from December 1943, and then returned to Rattlesden for a second tour of duty.  The following photographs, kindly provided by Delap's sons, give a special insight into life at Rattlesden, and were taken sometime after August, 1944.  The photographs were recently discovered as three rolls of negatives.

Many of the personnel and locations shown in this collection remain unidentified.  E-mail with any additional  information you might be able to provide.

Updated 2/14/2004 to add 14 additional photos from the 3rd roll of film (go to update)

For more on Rattlesden, see Rattlesden - Then and Now, and the Bigelow Collection


Jack Delap's bunk


 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

Headquarters
Post Office - Communal Site No. 1

Officers' Combat Mess
Officers' Combat Mess

Inside Officer's Mess
Officers' Dry Cleaning




Major (or Lt. Col.?) Francis Bonham
at Cambridge

Third Roll:  These photos also include unidentified personnel, as well as some scenes from unknown locations off the base.  The final photographs of aircraft clearly show the addition of squadron and aircraft call letters to the underside of the left-hand wing -- known to have taken place throughout the Eight Air Force in mid-May, 1945.

 

 

 


IR-P or IR-R, as yet unidentified, possibly 43-39244.
Carries the nose art script "We've Had It!" believed to be a post-war annotation.

IJ-Q: 710th Sqdn, 43-38622 making a landing at Rattlesden

IJ-L: 710th Sqdn, 43-39189 landing at Rattlesden
Two unidentified aircraft landing at Rattlesden

 

Materials on this page are the property of the contributors,
and may be distributed or republished only by their explicit consent
For more information, contact the Webmaster.