Arthur Bailey]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending text-based transcription]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Correspondence]]> Royal Air Force]]> Civilian]]> Great Britain]]> England--Shropshire]]> 1940-02-01]]>
Initial training at Electrical and Wireless School before posted to 64 Squadron in November 1937. Operational posting in November 1939 to 115 Squadron. In July 1940 posted to 20 Operational Training Unit until June 1942 when posted back to operations in 156 Squadron.
He did not return from his last operation on 27/28 August 1942.

Served at RAF Cranwell, RAF Martlesham Heath, RAF Marham, RAF Lossiemouth, RAF Kinloss.

Aircraft flown were Valencia, Wallace, Hawker Demon, Harrow, Wellington, Anson, Lysander.

Flew 26 operations (10 day and 16 night) with 115 Squadron. These included anti-shipping sweeps in the North Sea including hunting for the Scharnhorst and bombing to Borkum, Bremen, Bergen, Kristiansand, Stavanger, the Ruhr, Gembloux, Namur, Furnes, Roulers, Monheim, Oldenburg, Munster and Frankfurt. His pilots were Flying Officers Gibbes and Wood.
With 20 Operational Training Unit he flew 2 night operations to Cologne and Caen, piloted by Warrant Officer Fortier.
On posting to 156 Squadron he flew 6 night operations to Bremen, Wilhelmshaven, Duisburg , Osnabruck, Mainz and Kassel. His pilots were Sergeant Thompson, Flight Sergeant Mackenzie, Squadron Leader Collier and Flight Sergeant Savage.

On a number of occasions his aircraft was involved in forced or crash landings on return to the United Kingdom. These occurred on 18 May 1940, 1 July 1940 and 26 June 1942. He did not return from his last operation on 27/28 August 1942 and was presumed killed in action.

]]> Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Nick Cornwell-Smith]]> Pending review]]> Review Oct 2024]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Suffolk]]> Scotland--Moray]]> Atlantic Ocean--North Sea]]> Germany]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Germany--Borkum]]> Germany--Bremen]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Germany--Kassel]]> Germany--Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate)]]> Germany--Monheim (North Rhine-Westphalia)]]> Germany--Münster in Westfalen]]> Germany--Oldenburg]]> Germany--Osnabrück]]> Germany--Wilhelmshaven]]> Belgium]]> Belgium--Gembloux]]> Belgium--Namur]]> Belgium--Roeselare (West Flanders)]]> Belgium--Veurne]]> France]]> France--Caen]]> Norway]]> Norway--Bergen]]> Norway--Kristiansand]]> Norway--Stavanger]]> Europe--Frisian Islands]]> 1937]]> 1938]]> 1939-12-01]]> 1939-12-24]]> 1940-01-03]]> 1940-01-23]]> 1940-02-01]]> 1940-03-09]]> 1940-03-15]]> 1940-03-23]]> 1940-03-24]]> 1940-04-07]]> 1940-04-09]]> 1940-04-10]]> 1940-04-14]]> 1940-04-30]]> 1940-05-01]]> 1940-05-17]]> 1940-05-18]]> 1940-05-20]]> 1940-05-21]]> 1940-05-22]]> 1940-05-23]]> 1940-05-27]]> 1940-05-28]]> 1940-05-30]]> 1940-05-31]]> 1940-06-01]]> 1940-06-02]]> 1940-06-03]]> 1940-06-04]]> 1940-06-08]]> 1940-06-09]]> 1940-06-17]]> 1940-06-18]]> 1940-06-21]]> 1940-06-22]]> 1940-06-24]]> 1940-06-25]]> 1940-06-26]]> 1940-06-27]]> 1940-06-30]]> 1940-07-01]]> 1941]]> 1942-05-30]]> 1942-05-31]]> 1942-06-01]]> 1942-06-02]]> 1942-06-25]]> 1942-06-26]]> 1942-07-08]]> 1942-07-09]]> 1942-08-06]]> 1942-08-09]]> 1942-08-10]]> 1942-08-11]]> 1942-08-12]]> 1942-08-27]]> 1942-08-28]]> #1 Jack writes that he has leave at the weekend.
#2 Jack complains that he has had no letters all week. He has not moved from Croydon. Their pay has still not been sorted but Jack thinks he has been slightly overpaid.]]> Jack Dwyer]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending text-based transcription]]> Dwyer, John Henry Patrick. Mail from Croydon]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Correspondence]]> Royal Air Force]]> Civilian]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> 1940-02-01]]> Chapter 3 - first bomber tour. Describes move to 115 Squadron initially flying in Harrow and then converting to Wellington. Goes on to describe his 26 operations in some detail. Mentions being shot at by Me 110, covers losses in some operations, forced landings, wounded crew members. Posted to OTU after 26 operations.
Chapter 4 - rested from operations. Spend nearly two years flying routine training on 20 OTU at RAF Lossiemouth. Participated in two more operations while at Lossiemouth to Cologne for which a detailed description is provided. Second was to Essen , also with derailed description.
Chapter 5 -second tour. Posted to 156 Squadron still with Wellington in June 1942. Describes his subsequent six operations including the 34th on 27 August 1942 when his aircraft was shot down by Me 110 flown by Hauptmann Wolfgang Thimmig. Notes that crew were buried in the Reichswald Forrest war cemetery at Kleve (photograph included). List the other members of the crew: Flt Sgt Michael Gordon Savage (930778), pilot age 20, from Eastbourne in Sussex
Sgt Gilbert Hebblethwaite (657350), 2nd pilot age 24, from Crosland Moor,
Huddersfield
P/O Peter Hayes RNZAF (404484), observer age 20, from Sydney, New South Wales
P/O Jack Leewarden (132751) WOp/AG age 25, from Hampstead Heath, London
Sgt Frederick Valentine Herbert Shepherd (629714), rear gunner.
Appendix A - Hauptmann Wolfgang Thimmig - provided biographic details and service history of the Luftwaffe night fighter pilot.]]> S Bond]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending text-based transcription]]> eng]]> Text]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Fighter Command]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Wehrmacht]]> Wehrmacht. Luftwaffe]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> England--Hillingdon]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Norfolk]]> Netherlands]]> Netherlands--Ameland Island]]> Germany]]> Germany--Borkum]]> Atlantic Ocean--North Sea]]> Germany--Bremen]]> Norway]]> Norway--Bergen]]> Norway--Kristiansand]]> Norway--Stavanger]]> England--Colchester]]> England--Essex]]> Belgium]]> Belgium--Gembloux]]> France]]> France--Dunkerque]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Koblenz]]> Germany--Münster in Westfalen]]> Germany--Mannheim]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Scotland--Moray]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Wilhelmshaven]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> Germany--Osnabrück]]> Germany--Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate)]]> Germany--Kassel]]> Germany--Gronau (North Rhine-Westphalia)--Epe]]> Germany--Kleve (North Rhine-Westphalia)]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Europe--Frisian Islands]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1937]]> 1937-09]]> 1937-11-30]]> 1938-05]]> 1938-06]]> 1938-10-18]]> 1938-12-14]]> 1939-06]]> 1939-05-09]]> 1939-12-01]]> 1939-12-24]]> 1940-01-03]]> 1940-01-23]]> 1940-02-01]]> 1940-03-09]]> 1940-03-15]]> 1940-03-23]]> 1940-04-07]]> 1940-04-09]]> 1940-04-10]]> 1940-04-14]]> 1940-04-30]]> 1940-05-17]]> 1940-05-20]]> 1940-05-22]]> 1940-05-27]]> 1940-05-30]]> 1940-06-01]]> 1940-06-03]]> 1940-06-17]]> 1940-06-21]]> 1940-06-24]]> 1940-06-26]]> 1940-06-30]]> 1942-02-02]]> 1942-04-28]]> 1942-05-30]]> 1942-06-01]]> 1942-06-25]]> 1942-07-08]]> 1942-08-06]]> 1942-08-09]]> 1942-08-11]]> 1942-08-27]]> 1941-06-17]]> 1941-06-18]]> 1942-05-30]]> 1942-05-31]]> 1942-06-06]]> 1943-06-11]]> 1944-11]]> 1945-02]]> 1945-05-08]]>