Peter Olver, DFC
Wing Commander, Spitfire P7309
On the morning of October 25th 1940 during the final and decisive weeks of the Battle of Britain, Spitfires of 603 Squadron were scrambled from Hornchurch to intercept a raid of enemy aircraft over Hastings. Flying with the Squadron on his first operational sortie and with just ten hours experience on Spitfires was 23 year old Pilot Officer Peter Olver.
603 Squadron closed with the enemy and Olver engaged a number of Messerschmitt 109s in combat. During the ensuing battle, Olver’s Spitfire was badly damaged and although he was wounded, Olver was able to bail out of his aircraft which then crashed at Brede, Sussex.
After recovering from slight injuries, Olver returned to combat duties with 66 Squadron at Biggin Hill where he was promoted Flight Commander.
In 1942 Olver volunteered for the Middle East and was subsequently given command of 238 and 213 Squadrons in the Western Desert. During this period he had numerous combat victories and was awarded the DFC
On June 11th 1943, Olver led a patrol of Spitfires into combat with a force of enemy aircraft attacking the American landings in Sicily. In the battle that followed he shot down two ME 109s but while pressing home an attack on a Ju 88 was hit by return fire that set his fuel tanks alight. Wounded and burned he bailed out of his blazing Spitfire and was captured. Following hospital treatment, Olver was sent to Germany where he was interned at the Hammerstein and Kassel PoW camps before finally being sent to Stalag Luft III.
Peter Olver returned to England on VE Day, retiring from the RAF in 1947 with the rank of Wing Commander.
Peter Olver’s Spitfire - P7309
Spitfire P7309 was a Mk II aircraft built by Vickers at Castle Bromwich. It was fitted with a Rolls-Royce Merlin XII, V12 1,050 HP engine. Top speed was 367 MPH. Armament comprised eight Browning .303 machine guns.
The aircraft first entered RAF service with 24 Maintenance Unit on 3rd August 1940 where it was readied for front line service. On September 5th, at the height of the Battle of Britain, P7309 went into active service with 266 Squadron, later transferring to 603 Squadron on October 17th.
Following the combat on October 25th, P7309 crashed at Brede, Sussex at 10:20a.m. It is from one of the fragments of the Spitfire’s Merlin engine, later recovered from the crash site by aviation archaeologists, that the centrepieces of these cufflinks are made.
603 Squadron closed with the enemy and Olver engaged a number of Messerschmitt 109s in combat. During the ensuing battle, Olver’s Spitfire was badly damaged and although he was wounded, Olver was able to bail out of his aircraft which then crashed at Brede, Sussex.
After recovering from slight injuries, Olver returned to combat duties with 66 Squadron at Biggin Hill where he was promoted Flight Commander.
In 1942 Olver volunteered for the Middle East and was subsequently given command of 238 and 213 Squadrons in the Western Desert. During this period he had numerous combat victories and was awarded the DFC
On June 11th 1943, Olver led a patrol of Spitfires into combat with a force of enemy aircraft attacking the American landings in Sicily. In the battle that followed he shot down two ME 109s but while pressing home an attack on a Ju 88 was hit by return fire that set his fuel tanks alight. Wounded and burned he bailed out of his blazing Spitfire and was captured. Following hospital treatment, Olver was sent to Germany where he was interned at the Hammerstein and Kassel PoW camps before finally being sent to Stalag Luft III.
Peter Olver returned to England on VE Day, retiring from the RAF in 1947 with the rank of Wing Commander.
Peter Olver’s Spitfire - P7309
Spitfire P7309 was a Mk II aircraft built by Vickers at Castle Bromwich. It was fitted with a Rolls-Royce Merlin XII, V12 1,050 HP engine. Top speed was 367 MPH. Armament comprised eight Browning .303 machine guns.
The aircraft first entered RAF service with 24 Maintenance Unit on 3rd August 1940 where it was readied for front line service. On September 5th, at the height of the Battle of Britain, P7309 went into active service with 266 Squadron, later transferring to 603 Squadron on October 17th.
Following the combat on October 25th, P7309 crashed at Brede, Sussex at 10:20a.m. It is from one of the fragments of the Spitfire’s Merlin engine, later recovered from the crash site by aviation archaeologists, that the centrepieces of these cufflinks are made.
