Personnel

Personnel

Guy Gibson taking his oath to rejoin the Boy Scout movement together with Group Captain E Colbeck-Welch, Wing Commander S P Richards, Flight Lieutenant K Davison and Lieutenant F Carruthers; a report of an operation by Wing Commander C M Wight-Boycott with Flight Officer A Sanders as his observer and two reports of an operation by John 'Cat's Eyes' Cunningham who was flying with Flight Lieutenant CF F Rawnsley as observer.

Five newspaper cuttings in an album

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DAM-BUSTER'S PROMISE

"On my honour, I promise to do my best to do my duty to God and the King, to help other people at all times . . .

Wing Commander Guy ("Dam-busting") Gibson, V.C., D.S.O. and bar, D.F.C. and bag, took this oath when he rejoined the Boy Scout movement this week as a Rover Scout with the 1st Tovil (Kent) Troop.

Wing Commander Gibson was a Scout in his schooldays, and recently asked if he could "re-affirm his Scout promise.

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After the ceremony he said, "I'm afraid the only thing I took in my first Scout membership was my cooking test. But the Scouts taught me the decent things of life – resourcefulness, courage, and devotion to duty.

The Nazis have their Youth Movement, which teaches them the foulest things in life."

Also enrolled with Wing Commander Gibson were four of his comrades, Group Captain E. Colbeck-Welch, D.F.C., Wing Commander S.P. Richards, A.F.C., Flight Lieutenant K. Davidson, and Lieutenant F. Carruthers, R.A., liaison officer at the station.

FOOTNOTE. – After the Ceremony Wing Commander Gibson auctioned a bottle of Rhine wine in Maidstone for the Wings for Victory Week and raised £800.

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Beaufighter Accounted For Four Bombers In London Raid

A new night-fighting record was set up last night by a squadron-commander of a Beaufighter squadron of Fighter Command, who destroyed four bombers in the raid on the London area and S.E England states the Air Ministry news service.

Wing-Commander C.M. Wight-Boycott leading the Beaufighter squadron intercepted a Dornier 217 on the first raid of the night and saw it hit the ground.

A member of the squadron said this morning: "The enemy were 'jinking' all over the sky in attempts to evade us. They were obviously jittery before they even knew we were there. The first bomber the wing commander attacked hit the road with a tremendous explosion, and his last success of the night set another bomber on fire from end to end."

He saw four of the crew bale out. Altogether it was a wonderful show and constituted a record for night fighting.

Wing-Commander Wight-Boycott's observer last night was F.-O. E.A. Saunders. Wing -Commander Wight-Boycott, who is 32, has commanded his present squadron since September last year. He has flown operationally Blenheims, Hurricanes and Defiants, as well as Beaufighters.

THE MAN WHO GOT FOUR
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WING-COMMANDER C.M. Wight-Boycott, commander of a night-fighter squadron, who shot down four of the ten German raiders destroyed in Sunday night's raids on London.

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'Cat-Eyes' Cunningham Bags His Seventeenth Night Nazi

CRASH AFTER 3 BURSTS

WING-COMMANDER JOHN (“Cat’s-Eyes”) CUNNINGHAM, DSO and bar, DFC and bar, bagged his 17th night victim when he shot down an F.W.190 which had been trying to raid Britain last night. [inserted] (11-3-43.) [/inserted]

Five enemy aircraft were destroyed during small-scale attacks, mainly over East Anglian coastal districts.

Two of the five were chased out to sea by night fighters and shot down near Dunkirk.

One, an Me. 110, which had been trying to dodge its pursuer for nearly half an hour, had almost reached the French coast when it was sent down into the sea in flames.

The other was bagged by Wing Commander Cunningham, who, as usual, was flying with Flight-Lieut. C.F. Rawnsley, DFC, DFM and bar, as his observer.

Wing Commander Cunningham climbed and dived as the F.W. 190 tried to shake him off.

Then two short bursts sent pieces flying off the German aircraft, and, after a third burst, it crashed on fire on the French coast.

Croydon-born 26-ear-old Cunningham and Rawnsley, aged 36, are Britain’s leading night-fighter team.

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Night fighter ace “Cat’s Eyes” Wing-Commander John Cunningham, double D.S.O. and double D.F.C., has been given his fifth award – a second bar to the D.S.O. His bag is twenty-eight aircraft.

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“CAT’S EYES”

His Squadron Got Two

Two of the four FW 190’s destroyed in raids over this country in the night were shot down by night fighters of a squadron commanded by Wing-Comdr. John (“Cat’s Eyes”) Cunningham, double D.F.C. and double D.S.O., Fighter Command’s leading night fighter.

The first was destroyed by a squadron-leader who shot down a Dornier 217 only a few nights ago. It was seen to explode in the air after the R.A.F. night fighters had closed to 100 yards before opening fire.

“I had to dive hard to avoid being hit by the burning debris,” said the pilot. “My plane was struck by small pieces of the aircraft.”

The second F.W.190 was chased by a night fighter who saw it silhouetted against the moonlit water. “It blew up in flames,” said the pilot, “I saw it fall into the sea while it was still burning.”