Deep within the New Forest, a legend persists – not of mythical beasts, but of a buried secret: a "Dragon." This isn't a tale from folklore, but a tangible piece of Second World War history, stemming from a clandestine operation nearly 80 years ago.

The "Dragon" in question was a captured German Focke Achgelis Fa 223 helicopter, the first of its kind to fly over the English Channel.

It landed under a veil of utmost secrecy at Beaulieu Airfield, home to the Airborne Forces Experimental Establishment (AFEE). Despite the war in Europe having concluded the previous May, a publicity blackout shrouded the helicopter's arrival from Le Havre.

This twin-rotor aircraft was a marvel of its time, the world's first truly practical helicopter, even as the AFEE's Rotary Wing Flight had been testing early American Sikorsky prototypes.

The Dragon could be used in various roles – such as antisubmarine work, troop carrier as well as air-sea rescue operations.

Only three serviceable Fa 223s remained at the war's end. One was scuttled by the Germans, while the Allies captured the other two.

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The Americans claimed one, shipping it to the United States aboard the aircraft carrier USS Reaper alongside German jets and rockets.

The second helicopter was slated for destruction due to lack of space. However, British intervention saved the prototype, numbered V14.

This particular aircraft came with a seasoned crew: Luftwaffe pilot Lieutenant Helmut Gerstenhauer, one of Germany's most experienced helicopter officers, engineer H Zelewski, and mechanic F Will, who were effectively press-ganged into flying the Fa 223 from Le Havre to Beaulieu.

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Upon arrival, a series of test flights commenced.

Tragically, during one such sortie, the Dragon crashed from a height of 65 feet, leaving it a wreck on the Beaulieu grounds.

The V14 is said to be buried in a farmer’s field somewhere near the old airfield.

Flying the Fa 223, with its two 40ft rotors powered by a supercharged BMW engine, demanded considerable skill.

Before it crashed it had undergone 170 hours of testing and later reports suggested engine mountings were to blame.

Every 25 hours, tensioned steel hawsers securing the engine needed tightening with a special tool which was not on board V14 when it flew to Beaulieu. 

Lieutenant Gerstenhauer, who had flown the V14 on perilous missions in and out of the Berlin region during the Russian advance and amassed the most flying time of all Fa 223s, had reportedly warned AFEE technicians about this potential danger.

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His advice, however, was allegedly ignored, possibly due to suspicion surrounding his motives.

The Beaulieu crash meant British experts learned little directly from this specific German helicopter.

However, like a phoenix, the Dragon's design rose again in postwar Czechoslovakia, where it was reassembled from spare parts, ensuring its technological legacy lived on.

The mystery of V14's final resting place in the New Forest, however, remains.