British Historians To Scour Victoria Station For Luftwaffe Dornier

It was one of the most famous aerial duels of World War II. RAF pilot Ray Holmes, desperately fighting the Battle of Britain, so he fought with the only weapon he had left -- his own Hurricane. He rammed the bomber, bringing it down over London on September 15th, 1940.

Holmes' heroism may have saved Buckingham Palace, thought by many to have been the Dornier's intended target.

Holmes survived the ramming, bailing out as his fighter plunged into London near the palace itself. Parts of the cockpit and engine were unearthed last year. But what about the bomber?

"It is an important piece of history and it is a challenge to find the plane. It is the most famous crash in World War II," said aviation historian Chris Bennett in an interview with the BBC. Bennett, who unearthed fragments of Holmes' fighter, is now on the hunt for that bomber.

If Bennett has his way, the dig for the Dornier will begin in September. That's about the time Britain will unveil a monument to the heroes of the crucial aerial battle. Network Rail promises, whatever happens, there won't be any disruption in train service to and from Victoria Station.

FMI: www.battleofbritain.net