Jack Osborne

MWhittleGG1397166-160822-04.pdf

Title

Jack Osborne

Description

A review of Tim Barlow's research in to the life of his Great Uncle, Jack Osborne, who died on the night of 22/23 June 1943 in Lancaster 'LM325'. Tim Barlow travelled to Benningen, Holland where there is a memorial at the crash site. Geoffrey Whittle joined 101 Squadron two days after the loss of the Lancaster.

Date

2012-08

Language

Type

Format

One typewritten sheet

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.

Identifier

MWhittleGG1397166-160822-04

Transcription

Tim Barlow’s research into the life, and untimely death in action, of his great uncle, Jack Osborne, led him into areas rarely covered in other books about World War 11.

He reveals the lives and background of those crew members of Lancaster LM 325 who lost their lives on the night of 22/23 June 1943, as well as the impact the incident had on the sole surviving crew member. He chronicles the impact that their deaths had on family and friends that highlighted the fact that the majority of Bomber Command aircrew were not only young but came from a variety of backgrounds.

His journey took him to Holland and the village of Benningen where the aircraft finally crashed in a nearby field. There he met eye witnesses to the crash and saw the Memorial subsequently erected in honour of the crew on that fateful night. This part of his story illustrates the gratitude of the Dutch people to those who fought for freedom and paid the ultimate sacrifice.

For the student of WW11 the chapters on what happened after a death is confirmed makes interesting reading. The number of authorities and welfare organisations involved are numerous. And, the reader will be mindful that in Bomber Command alone 55000 aircrew lost their lives.

I joined 101 Squadron two days after Lancaster LM325 was lost and can confirm that Tim’s description of squadron life was very accurate. At the time of writing the future of 101 Squadron is in doubt, but whatever the outcome of the current review the Squadron Association will continue. Besides an Annual meeting and Memorial service at Ludford, members keep in touch via a quarterly newsletter. Whilst WW11 veterans can still be numbered in double figures, sadly numbers are reducing each year as they grow older


Geoffrey Whittle
August 2012

Collection

Citation

Geoffrey Whittle, “Jack Osborne,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed March 29, 2024, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/10589.

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