World War II machine guns are restored in Athlone

Machine guns recovered from a World War II Spitfire plane, which crash landed in Donegal in 1941, were restored by the Ordnance Company at Custume Barracks, Athlone in recent months and were last week test fired at Carna as part of a BBC documentary exploring the crash and the story of the pilot who crash landed in a bog in Donegal 70 years ago. The wreckage of the Spitfire fighter plane was recovered from Moneydarragh, Moville, Co. Donegal, in June this year. The one-day dig was the first licensed excavation of a World War II aircraft in Ireland and involved both Irish and British aviation archaeologists. An Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team from Custume Barracks was present throughout the day to ensure that all weapons and ammunition were safe to remove from the bog. A total of six Browning .303 machine guns were recovered from the plane and these were brought to Custume Barracks where they were refurbished to a condition where one of the weapons fired on September 1 this year. Armourers from the Ordnance Company of the 4th Logistics Support Battalion (LSB) carried out painstaking, meticulous and methodical work on the weapons to bring them to this point. The aircraft, which was piloted by American Roland 'Bud' Wolfe, crash landed in Donegal on November 30, 1941. Wolfe was attached to the RAF base at Eglinton, which is now the City of Derry Airport. He flew with the British before the US entered the war, which resulted in him being stripped of his US citizenship. Wolfe was apprehended after the crash by a member of the Local Defence Forces and was handed over to Gardai before being interned at the Curragh Camp in Kildare with other British and German servicemen. Two weeks after he crashed Wolfe simply walked out of the Curragh Camp and returned to the RAF base in Eglinton. However, his escape caused a diplomatic row between the Irish and British governments and he was sent back to the camp, where he remained for two years before escaping again in 1943. At this stage the US had entered the war and Wolfe joined the US Air Force. He later served as a pilot in the Korean and Vietnam wars. He passed away in 1994. The excavation of his aircraft earlier this year resulted in the recovery of part of the fuselage, six Browning .303 machine guns, two magazines, hydraulic controls, .303 rounds, a propeller, tyres, landing gear, seat belts and the engine. Wolfe's leather flying helmet, log book and cockpit controls were also recovered. On the day of the dig all heavy excavating equipment had to sit on bag mats, which are effectively big railway sleepers, to spread its 20 tonne weight. The EOD team was concerned about the six machine guns, with all weapons discovered loaded and cocked and covered in peat. A total of six .303 ball and 573 armoured piercing rounds were also recovered. There would have been eight machine guns on the aircraft but two were recovered at the time of the crash. The armourers present at the excavation in June were tasked with unloading the 70-year-old weapons, while also doing their utmost to preserve these archaeological finds. The weapons were unloaded on site, which could only be done by removing the Top Cover Axis Pin and lifting off the Top Cover. The ammunition that was on the feed tray was then removed. All of the weapons recovered in Donegal were returned to Custume Barracks where they were refurbished. The process was similar for all weapons and involved: stripping the weapons; general cleaning; application of a preserver; detailed cleaning; weapon inspection; weapon gauging and assembly. The weapons were found to be in a remarkably good condition and one in particular was in such good condition that it was possible it would fire. In order to enable the weapon to fire a small amount of repair was required. The ejector/extractor guide plate sheared off on impact with the bog and needed to be spot welded back into position. This machine gun was test fired using modern ammunition at Carna Range on September 1 last. Single shots fired all registered on target, but when bursts of five rounds were fired an average of only three rounds per burst registered on the target. An attempt to fire some of the ammunition recovered with the aircraft was then made, with the armoured piercing round failing but the ball round firing. The excavation, the restoration of the weapons and the test firing, as well as the story of Bud Wolfe is to be the subject of a BBC documentary presented by Dan Snow, which is due to be aired next year. Last week the BBC crew visited Athlone for filming, where they first met with Officer Commanding the 4th Western Brigade Col Ger Aherne, before filming and conducting interviews in the Ordnance workshops area in Custume Barracks. The crew then filmed the machine gun being test fired at the range in Carna.