Hi Guys
Iam not an aircraft modler but i do love what you guys do.
A great aunt recently died in Dorset in the UK and it would appear that she left me a fantastic Ltd Edition Print of of the attack on the Italian Fleet at Taranto by the Swordfish Torpedo Bombers of the Fleet Air Arm.
This print was comissioned by the Fleet Air Arm at Yovil they asked Commander David Williams a serving pilot in the Navy and an accomplished navel artist to paint the action which he did .
Iam now the proud owner of one of these Ltd Edition Prints signed by,
W.C.Sarra and J.Bowker of aircraft E4M.
I am a very happy guy.
Cheers Chris Tango 20

Great Chris and I'm jealous
Mal

Well, sorry to hear about great-Aunty, but good news about the print she left you. I'm still in the FAA, and Taranto remains one of the biggest events (in fact make that THE biggest event) in our calendar.

I have a 1/48 Swordfish in my stash, which will be built as a Taranto cab. Also, I was lucky enough to fly over the harbour a few years ago in an 820 Sea King. We were VERY tempted to make a few 'torpedo running' type radio calls, but thought they still might not see the funny side... Happy days! :-)

Chris: How fortunate to acquire that piece of art!

I lived in Taranto, Italy in 1975, not far from the actual scene of the battle. In fact, the rusted moorings for the fleet were still visible back then just of the beach from the Questura (Police Station) in the Mar Grande. Taranto was a very active naval base back then (mid '70's). The entrance to the harbor (Mar Piccolo) is guarded by the ancient Castello Aragonese and the passage across the channel from the old city to the new city is spanned by the Ponte Girevole (turning bridge).

I am sure that you know that Yamamoto studied the British attack on Taranto while preparing for the attack on Pearl Harbor