Letter to Mrs Brennan from Wing Commander commanding 626 Squadron
Title
Letter to Mrs Brennan from Wing Commander commanding 626 Squadron
Description
Letter to William's sister following up the telegram informing the next of kin that he was missing.
Creator
Date
1944-10-06
Temporal Coverage
Language
Format
One typewritten letter
Publisher
Rights
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
Identifier
EOC626SqnRAFBrennanW441005
Transcription
[crest]
Royal Air Force Station,
Wickenby. Lincoln.
5th October, 1944.
Ref: 626S/S.1401/53/P.1
Dear Mrs Brennan,
I deeply regretted having to send you the telegram this morning to inform you that your brother Sergeant William Norman was missing from air operations against the enemy last night.
The aircraft in which he was flying as Mid Upper Gunner was detailed to take part in a raid and yesterday evening, the aircraft took off from its base in this country but unfortunately it failed to return. I regret to say that we have had no news of either the aircraft or the crew since take-off. It sometimes happens that the crew are able to escape with their lives and are subsequently reported safe even as Prisoners of War. While not wishing to raise your hopes too high, we are hoping that we will eventually receive good news of them. As soon as any news is received you will be notified. In this connection I might add that it usually takes the International Red Cross Committee at least six weeks to obtain any news.
I should like to explain that the request in the telegram notifying you of the casualty to your brother was included with the object of avoiding his chances of escape being prejudice by undue publicity in case he was still at large. This is not to say that any information about him is available but is a precaution adopted in the case of all personnel reported missing.
Your brother had already completed many trips against the enemy. On every occasion he had shown that same spirit of determination which was so characteristic of his crew. It was indeed a sad blow to learn that he was missing. On behalf of the Officers and Men of my Squadron I should like to take this opportunity of extending to you, our most heartfelt sympathies during this anxious time of waiting for news.
Yours sincerely
G.T. Rodney
Wing Commander, Commanding
[underlined] No. 626 Squadron. R.A.F. [/underlined]
Mrs W. Brennan,
Elven Bungalow,
Seaton Village,
[underlined] New Seaham, CO. DURHAM. [/underlined]
Royal Air Force Station,
Wickenby. Lincoln.
5th October, 1944.
Ref: 626S/S.1401/53/P.1
Dear Mrs Brennan,
I deeply regretted having to send you the telegram this morning to inform you that your brother Sergeant William Norman was missing from air operations against the enemy last night.
The aircraft in which he was flying as Mid Upper Gunner was detailed to take part in a raid and yesterday evening, the aircraft took off from its base in this country but unfortunately it failed to return. I regret to say that we have had no news of either the aircraft or the crew since take-off. It sometimes happens that the crew are able to escape with their lives and are subsequently reported safe even as Prisoners of War. While not wishing to raise your hopes too high, we are hoping that we will eventually receive good news of them. As soon as any news is received you will be notified. In this connection I might add that it usually takes the International Red Cross Committee at least six weeks to obtain any news.
I should like to explain that the request in the telegram notifying you of the casualty to your brother was included with the object of avoiding his chances of escape being prejudice by undue publicity in case he was still at large. This is not to say that any information about him is available but is a precaution adopted in the case of all personnel reported missing.
Your brother had already completed many trips against the enemy. On every occasion he had shown that same spirit of determination which was so characteristic of his crew. It was indeed a sad blow to learn that he was missing. On behalf of the Officers and Men of my Squadron I should like to take this opportunity of extending to you, our most heartfelt sympathies during this anxious time of waiting for news.
Yours sincerely
G.T. Rodney
Wing Commander, Commanding
[underlined] No. 626 Squadron. R.A.F. [/underlined]
Mrs W. Brennan,
Elven Bungalow,
Seaton Village,
[underlined] New Seaham, CO. DURHAM. [/underlined]
Collection
Citation
OC 626 Squadron, “Letter to Mrs Brennan from Wing Commander commanding 626 Squadron,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed June 14, 2025, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/collections/document/42380.