[MCBR]

In June 1942, Flight Sergeant Dennis Copping, a 24-year-old British pilot of the 260 Squadron of the RAF Volunteer Reserves, was tasked with flying a P-40 Kittyhawk (serial code ET574) to a neighboring British airbase for undercarriage repairs. Tragically, after taking off on June 28 and heading west, Copping and his aircraft were reported missing, marking his last known sighting.

Nearly 70 years later, in April 2012, the well-preserved remains of the P-40 were discovered by workers of a Polish oil company in the desert. The aircraft, minimally damaged due to the arid conditions, was still loaded with live ammunition. Authorities quickly linked the Kittyhawk to Dennis Copping. Despite the discovery of the aircraft, Copping himself was not found at the site, leading to speculation that he survived the crash but was lost in the desert, far from any inhabited area.

Near the wreckage, authorities found a makeshift camp with the plane's battery and radio, suggesting Copping's attempts to call for help. However, the radio was damaged in the crash.

[rabenson]

That is cool

[Insideoutbodies]

remarkable ammo is in perfect shape

[slash4321]

That's so sad that he survived the crash, yet succumbed to the intense heat of the desert and dehydration. I think I would have prefered to die (potentially) instantly in the crash.

Great story

[Blewvane]

Maybe he passed out when the aircraft hit the ground and cooked inside the cockpit for a day before climbing out and dying from dehydration.

[Hunted]

great find

The RAF Museum at Hendon, north London, has been made aware of the discovery and plans are underway to recover the aircraft and display it in the future.

glad they are going to take it back the UK

[KandaPanda]

wow! that's amazing!!!

[zombie-rot420]

Pretty fuckin cool

[Sharon]

Wow, that is an amazing discovery

Very unfortunate he survived such a crash yet the desert took his life. He had no chance being isolated there

[chris50stang]

that does suck