I've seen the future and it's orange

Regular readers will know I am not a fan of the infernal combustion engine. Which is why I photographed the car currently standing on our drive. It doesn't use an internal combustion engine. This little orange number goes from 0 to 60mph in under 4 seconds, its energy consumption is the equivalent to 135mpg, and it is electric powered. It is a Tesla Roadster, and it is the brain-child of a Silicon Valley start-up backed by A-list names including Sergey Brin and Larry Page. There is a waiting list for the Roadster which goes on sale in the States next year, and George Clooney and Matt Damon are among the names down for the $98,000 car of the future.

Once you are on the road two things strike you. It is very fast, and it is very quiet. In fact it is so quiet that there have been problems with pedestrians stepping in front of it because they couldn't hear a car coming. The Tesla Roadster comes from a Californian company, and will go on sale on the West Coast - if you look carefully this UK registered pre-production model is left-hand drive, wrong side for us. But the development and building of the car takes place at Hethel, a mile and a half from our house here in rural Norfolk, and one of our family is working on the technology in it.

The only downsides I can see are the 245 miles range per battery charge and the absence of a CD autochanger. Now that would cause problems on our annual one thousand mile pilgrimage to Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer.

None of which will stop the Tesla becoming the de rigeur Hollywood fashion accessory of 2008. Electric cars are the big thing there, as today's Guardian report on the current screenwriter's strike confirms - The police are threatening to hand out tickets for "contributing to noise pollution" if the pickets continue to hold up their "honk" signs to passing motorists - "There are a lot of Priuses honking," says Andy McElfresh, another Jay Leno writer, "a lot of non-writing Priuses".

And creative people going on strike takes us back to when market forces and music collided.
Interesting background here on the Tesla name. Any copyrighted material on these pages is included as "fair use", for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s). Report broken links, missing images and other errors to - overgrownpath at hotmail dot co dot uk

Memories of the USAAF 389th Bomb Group at Hethel, the Green Dragons

It is sixty years since the end of the war, but deep in rural Norfolk residents claim that more than memories are still active. Legend tells how a crew member of a USAAF Liberator badly wounded on a mission flying from Hethel was transferred to the nearby military hospital at Morley, where sadly he died. Local residents recount of how, at night, the spirit of the airman still walks between the hospital (the site today for Wymondham College) and the old base at Hethel.

In the war Hethel was the base of USAAF 389th Bomb Group, today it is the high-tech headquarters of Lotus cars . The 389th Bomb Group called itself the Green Dragons after the Green Dragon pub in Wymondham which was the local for the crews, and today the pub still remains virtually unaltered. The Green Dragon name has been perpetuated into the twenty-first century by the USAF 564th Missile Squadron which was originally assigned to the 389th Bomb Group at Hethel, and drew all its heritage and history from the old Bomb Squadron.


Wartime memories are kept alive today at the unique Hethel Chapel Museum on the old base, which houses the 389th Memorial Exhibition maintained by volunteers. It is fitting that the Chapel at Hethel has survived, as it provides strong links with the courageous crews who flew from the base. Deep in the tranquil Norfolk countryside a memorial stone in Hethel churchyard tells the chilling story of 389th Bomb Group's achievements, and losses.

June 1943 to May 1945

Total missions 321
Aircraft missing in action 116
Personnel missing and killed in action 588
Other operational losses 37
Total bomb tonnage 17548

The Chapel was founded by the base’s charismatic pastor Pappy Beck, whose exploits included ignoring regulations and flying with the crews on their hazardous bombing missions deep into Germany . The building,which also served as a gymnasium, was decorated by one of the ground crew who usually painted the famous decorative ‘nose art’ on the Liberator bombers that flew from the base. One of the most striking features of the Chapel, which remains today, is the painted Crucifixion mural seen at the foot of this story (image courtesy of Ralph Baird’s web site); a remarkable work of art painted in remarkable circumstances. Other murals include a map of Europe painted to help the transplanted American aircrews understand the geography of the continent which was their temporary home.


The Chapel Museum is open from May to September on the fourth Sunday of the month. As well as the murals there is a display of documents, a model of the base, and various relics of equipment. To find the Old Chapel leave the A11 at Wymondham following the signs for Lotus Cars. Turn left into Potash Lane, continue past the Lotus factory (which is on the main airfield site), to the end of the road. Turn right into the farm entrance, and follow the signs to the Chapel.

Aircrew of the 389th subscribed to a plaque for the base's Protestant chaplain, Captain Earl O Widen, who died as a result of overwork. The chaplain not only worked under tremendous pressure at Hethel, but also ministered to local people in Wymondham after their own minister died. The plaque can be seen in the United Reform Church on Fairland Green in Wymondham. Local parishioners also donated a plaque which was put in Captain Widen's home church, Bethlehem Parish Church in Minneapolis


Bomber photos from Cloud 9 photos with many thanks