Recently dug plane part id help please

[JD666]

Hi guys, Ive recently been digging a few parts from a crashed Wellington and have dug a part that I wonder if any of you good folks could identify,bit of a long shot but you never know, It is considerably thicker than any of the other fuselage parts coming up,appears to have been cylindrical when it was whole..Landing gear part maybe?? anyways heres a pic,and a pic of it with some other parts for scale purposes....

[NickW]

Ah! Looks like a collection of what's commonly known in the Aviation Archaeology world as "cornflakes" - afraid pieces this small and with this level of destruction are almost impossible to id - However, the two pieces - right of center, top and middle do look like possible fragments of geodetic framework sections. The thicker piece is cast alloy and though not definite, is likely to come from part of an engine or engine ancilliary.

[JD666]

Thanks Nick,yes sadly the cornflakes lol are spread over a very wide area, the cast alloy part came from an area with a lot round it,next visit I think I will concentrate on that area

[NickW]

Do you know the history of the aircraft? Did it dive in or crash land - pieces like this would suggest the former. A bit of detecting does no harm, apart from making it more difficult for the likes of me to find the impact point, but please be aware that anything more ambitious recovery wise will need a licence.

[JD666]

I dont think there will be much larger than these pieces to recover Nick, The story of the plane is well known in the immediate area of the site,the pieces are spread over at least 3 fields,two of which have been detected many times over the years (only 3 times by myself so far) the third field has a no detecting policy by the landowner,it came in hard and on fire,there are lots of pieces of what appear to be burnt magnesium

[NickW]

Wellingtons seemed to have had a habit of spreading themselves over a large area, rather than diving straight in – It just means that the interesting finds could be just about anywhere – but with an awful lot of “cornflakes” in between! So keep searching! Try the ditches and hedgerows as farmers have a habit of chucking bits there out of the way – Good luck!

Burnt magnesium? Do you mean white/blue powdery remains or "Daz" in our parlance! This is just what happens to aluminium after 60 odd years of burial - or sooner with firefighting and agricultural chemicals added too

[JD666]

Ahhh thats what itll be then, yes funny crumbly stuff,gives off a loud signal.Many thanks for all the advice,I will be popping back up there shortly so will keep you appraised of anything else that appears,I can remember where I found just about ever piece so will start off there again