Albert Reeks’ Royal Air Force Observer’s and Air Gunner’s Flying Log Book

Albert Reeks’ Royal Air Force Observer’s and Air Gunner’s Flying Log Book

Albert Reeks’ Observer’s and Air Gunner’s Flying Log Book from 20th May 1940 until 19th January 1949. During this time trained as a wireless operator and air gunner.

Trained at No. 4 Bombing and Gunnery School, 12 Operational Training Unit. Operational posting to 103 Squadron in August 1940. In May 1941 posted to Overseas Aircraft Delivery Flight followed by operational posting to 216 (Bomber Transport) Squadron in Egypt carrying out transport duties conveying freight, ammunition, petrol, passengers and collecting casualties. In April 1944 posted to India with a detachment from 216 Squadron carrying out supply dropping operations to India and Burma, in addition to normal freight and passenger duties. In June, returned to Egypt.

In December 1944 posted to Central Mediterranean Forces as Signals Briefing Officer with various units including 130 Staging Post (Pomigliano), 107 Staging Post (Hassani), No. 282 Wing, 216 Group, 205 Group, before returning to England in 1947. Released from the RAF on 1st September 1950.

Served at RAF Yatesbury, RAF West Freugh, RAF Benson, RAF Penrhos, RAF Newton, RAF Kemble, RAF Heliopolis, RAF El Khanka, RAF El Adem, Landing Ground 224 (Cairo West), RAF Khartoum, RAF Agartala, RAF Topcliffe, RAF Middleton St. George, RAF Watchfield, RAF Pitreavie.

Aircraft flown were Anson, Battle, Wellington, Bristol Bombay, Vickers Valentia, Hudson, C-47 Dakota.

With 103 Squadron he flew 18 night bombing operations. His target were Boulogne, Calais, Ostend, Rotterdam, Bremen, Gelsenkirchen, Bremerhaven, Wilhelmshaven, Hamburg, Lorient, Kiel, Brest (to attack the battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau), Berlin, Cologne and Mannheim. His pilots were Pilot Officer Thorougood, Squadron Leaders Tait and Blome-Jones and Sergeant Muggeridge.
When flying with 216 Squadron he flew 9 night and 22 day supply dropping operations in addition to his normal transport duties in the Middle East, Burma and India. Named targets included Leros Island, Bongyaung, Mokokchung, Thingai, Indaw, Tsemmy, Sakhai, Kohima, Meluri, Lake Indawgyi, Kidzematuma, Cheswezum, Wokha and Nerhema.

His pilots were Squadron Leader Archbell, Flying Officer Rustom, Sergeant Hersey, Pilot Officers Cody and Vickery.
During his time with 216 Squadron in the Middle East he was involved with a search for force landed Wellington which was found and the aircrew successfully recovered. Whilst transporting a repair crew to this aircraft he found and recovered the crew of a second Wellington which had also force landed. 7th and 13th July 1942))

On the 14th October 1942 the undercarriage of his aircraft collapsed on take-off. The aircraft caught fire and became a write off. No injuries.

The log book also contains a newspaper clipping regarding an operation to supply fuel to Fleet Air Arm Albacores, operating behind enemy lines, to attack a convoy heading to Tobruk on 9/10th July 1942.

Reeks has added a hand written list of the aircraft he flew, where, how many flying hours and radio type. This list is also typed. Also added is a list of his postings with duties and remarks.

Also included is a US Office of War Information booklet entitled “How to get along with the Kachins, Shans and Burmans”.

There is also a propaganda leaflet with cartoons written in Arabic entitled “The Story of King George and His Minister”.

Note: times given in the log book are all GMT even when overseas.

One booklet

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.

LReeksA649770v1

"The Story of King George and His Minister"
Once upon a time, there was a great king named George. From his small island, he controlled strange peoples and possessed warships and massive armies.
False Propaganda
And this King had a minister called Churchill, who was famous for lying and hypocrisy and for consuming alcohol (whiskey).
And when (the King and his minister) thought that time was smiling upon them, they grew bold and declared war on another peaceful people who had nothing before them but work and diligence.
Norway Dunkirk Greece Crete Island Malaya Singapore
However, this people demonstrated supreme strength, and they slaughtered King George's soldiers, casting them into the deep abysses of the sea.
Then the submarines and aircraft of this mighty people sank most of the ships of this arrogant king, whether they were warships or commercial vessels.
Food supplies on the island began to run dry and decrease until the King and his minister were forced to tighten (the belts of) their wide bellies. This was because food ration cards alone were not enough to quiet the hunger...
To London
In addition to this hardship, a significant number of kings and ministers from other kingdoms arrived, having lost their countries and peoples due to the war, and became guests of King George.
However, they grew tired of this life due to a lack of work and began to bicker among themselves, so King George decided to entertain them by performing a play in which they all participated.
“From Steadfastness to Steadfastness!!”
And thus all the King's guests participated in acting out this play; they crowned their heads with imaginary crowns, sat on alleged thrones, and believed that under their command were massive armies answering their every call.
And while they were thus occupied with their play, two other peoples of great power and might joined the enemies of King George.
Harsh blows began to rain down on the King's soldiers, and they started losing one country after another.
And suddenly, the King and his minister asked their guests to stop their theatrical performance and join them in this fierce war. However, the guests refused to comply with this insulting request.
So King George was forced, while in this critical predicament, to send his minister to his mischievous friend Roosevelt, who lived in the far lands of America.
However, this (man) Roosevelt had declared war, and his opponent's final blows began to descend upon him until he was no longer able to send even a single warship or a single one of his soldiers.
The King and his minister were left with only one means, which was to clothe themselves in the garb of the innocent. They fell to their knees and began chanting spiritual songs day and night.
However, the Almighty Lord knew their hypocrisy and lies, and the woes they brought upon the world."
And so what was bound to happen did happen; Roosevelt plundered all the wealth and lands of King George, leaving him with nothing but his island, and completely ignored his pleas for help.
The King's soldiers returned to their island in a state of extreme exhaustion and hunger from the effects of the blows that fell upon their heads. The King was forced to cease fighting, so he dismissed his minister, intending to lead a life of asceticism and renunciation in this world.
And with that, all the enslaved peoples became free. And here you see them, having breathed a sigh of relief, going to their jobs to earn their daily bread.
Churchill could not bear to see the world at peace, so he fell dead on the ground, and his impure soul departed, heading to hell.