Claire Bennett]]> This Interview was recorded by Aviation Heritage Lincolnshire.]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> Pending OH summary]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> Atlantic Ocean--North Sea]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> 1943]]> 1945]]> Claire Bennett]]> This Interview was recorded by Aviation Heritage Lincolnshire.]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> Pending OH summary]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> India]]> England--Bedfordshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> India--Delhi]]> Scotland--Orkney]]> 1940]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1945]]> Julian Maslin]]> This Interview was recorded by Aviation Heritage Lincolnshire.]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> Pending OH summary]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> Norway]]> Atlantic Ocean]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Norway--Tromsø]]> Scotland--Moray]]> 1942]]> 1944-08]]> 1944-11-12]]> 1945]]> Jeff Williams]]> This Interview was recorded by Aviation Heritage Lincolnshire.]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> Pending OH summary. Allocated C Campbell]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> 1992]]> 1993]]>
This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available. ]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> Photograph]]> 1945]]>

Training started at No. 2 Air Gunnery School, followed by 5 Operational Training Unit based in Canada.

Served at RAF Dalcross, RCAF Boundary Bay, RCAF Abbotsford.

Aircraft flown were Anson, B24 Liberator.

Training only and no operations.
]]>
Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Nick Cornwell-Smith]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> Scotland--Inverness]]> Canada]]> British Columbia]]> British Columbia--Abbotsford]]> British Columbia--Tsawwassen]]> 1944]]> 1945]]>
Centre, a group of seven airmen standing under the fuselage of a Lancaster, wearing Mae Wests, annotated from left 'Jack Crawford, Doug Looms, Dave Cook, Tom Dykins, Bert Jackson, Paul Thompson (the family do not think this is Paul - but I'm not so sure - Ed) Stan Jones', labelled 'The Crew in the last days';
Top right, a close up of Jack's head annotated 'Jack Crawford R.I.P';
Bottom left; head and should portrait of a WAAF, annotated 'Edna's passport photograph';
Right centre, an airman wearing flying helmet with goggles, annotated 'Paul Thompson DFC R.I.P';
Bottom right an airman wearing a Mae West annotated 'Dave Cook R.I.P'.

This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available. ]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Canadian Air Force]]> Royal New Zealand Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> 1944]]> 1945]]>
On the last page the times of departure and arrival are recorded.]]> British Army]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> British Army]]> Egypt]]> Egypt--Cairo]]> Austria]]> Austria--Villach]]> Austria--Spittal an der Drau]]> Austria--Lienz]]> Europe--Brenner Pass]]> Austria--Innsbruck]]> Germany]]> Germany--Ulm]]> Germany--Karlsruhe]]> Germany--Darmstadt]]> Germany--Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate)]]> Germany--Trier]]> Luxembourg]]> France]]> France--Sedan]]> France--Charleville-Mézières]]> France--Le Cateau]]> France--Arras]]> France--Saint-Omer (Pas-de-Calais)]]> France--Calais]]> 1945]]> Having completed their training in the spring of 1944 they crossed to Britain on the New Amsterdam. Due to the quantity of chocolate Rex had consumed on the crossing the medical staff thought that he had an appendicitis and he was admitted to a hospital in Glasgow on arrival at Gourock. The hospital was initially empty so Rex was treated very well but shortly after his arrival the wounded from the D Day invasion started to arrive and Rex was found fit enough to join 223 Squadron at RAF Oulton which were flying the B-24. Rex was not too impressed with the aircraft as they were war weary veterans cast off from the 8th US Army Air Force. Although Rex was trained as a Wireless operator / air gunner he flew all his operations as a wireless operator. Rex remembers that his main duties were to listen out for weather diversions he also remembers that there was a piece of equipment that he had that showed aircraft close to them which was very unreliable, probably Fishpond. In August 1944 223 Squadron became part of 100 Group flying radio countermeasures, jamming the German radar and communications frequencies. Rex relates how the squadron aircraft would sometimes leave the main force bomber stream and head for another potential target dropping Window to divide the fighter defences.
Rex flew 20 operations with his crew and related that on one operation to Berlin they were getting short of fuel so diverted to the crash runway at RAF Manston and the groundcrew told them that they only had enough fuel for two minutes of flight. In February 1945 he developed bronchitis and was grounded by the medical staff. On the next operation that crew were shot down over Germany and all the flight deck crew died the navigator and one of the beam gunners managed to bale out. Rex relates that if he had been on the operation he would have died. He was told by the surviving beam gunner that the second beam gunner never wore his parachute harness on operations and was last seen trying to find his harness.
While he was recuperating his late captain’s brother came to visit the squadron he was flying the C47 transporting equipment to Europe and Rex manage to get himself two flights to Brussels. On his return to flying duties Rex only flew two more operations before the European war ended in May. He comments that his captain for those two flights was a Lord Briscoe.
Rex relates that on one of his leave periods he was walking out in the country and a low flying V-1 passed overhead and the engine stopped and it landed and exploded in a field close by.
Rex did not return to Canada until December 1945 crossing in the Queen Elizabeth. He returned to Toronto married the girl that he was writing to during his time in Great Britain. He worked for a small company manufactured high voltage lighting equipment as a salesman until he retired.
]]>
Dan Ellin]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Trevor Hardcastle]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Canadian Air Force]]> Bahamas]]> Canada]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Bahamas--Nassau]]> England--Kent]]> England--Norfolk]]> Germany--Berlin]]> 1945]]>
Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> 1945]]> Served at Hamble Flying School, RAF Netheravon, RAF Penrhos, RAF Waddington, RAF Seighford, RAF Chipping Warden. Aircraft flown were AVRO 631 Cadet, Hawker Hart, Hawker Hind, Hawker Audax, Avro Tutor, Airspeed Oxford.
No operational flying recorded.]]>
Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Nick Cornwell-Smith]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Hampshire]]> England--Northamptonshire]]> England--Staffordshire]]> England--Wiltshire]]> Wales--Gwynedd]]> 1936]]> 1937]]> 1945]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany]]> Germany--Oberhausen (Düsseldorf)]]> Germany--Kleve (North Rhine-Westphalia)]]> Germany--Bochum]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Wilhelmshaven]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Gelsenkirchen]]> Germany--Jülich]]> Germany--Münster in Westfalen]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Hagen (Arnsberg)]]> Germany--Osnabrück]]> Germany--Ludwigshafen am Rhein]]> Germany--Hannover]]> Germany--Hanau]]> Germany--Saarbrücken]]> Germany--Dülmen]]> Germany--Magdeburg]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> Germany--Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate)]]> Germany--Wanne-Eickel]]> Germany--Gelsenkirchen]]> Germany--Worms]]> Germany--Mainz]]> Germany--Heide (Schleswig-Holstein)]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Dortmund]]> Germany--Wuppertal]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1944]]> 1945]]>
Additional information relating to this item was kindly provided by the donor.

This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available.]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> 1944]]> 1945]]>

Additional information relating to this item has kindly been provided by the donor.

This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available. ]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> 1944]]> 1945]]>

This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available.]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> 1944]]> 1945]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Worcestershire]]> 1944]]> 1945]]>
Additional information relating to this item was kindly provided by the donor.]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> 1945]]>

This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available. ]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> 1944]]> 1945]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Mike Connock]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Belgium]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Netherlands]]> Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea]]> Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay]]> Atlantic Ocean--English Channel]]> Atlantic Ocean--Kattegat (Baltic Sea)]]> Atlantic Ocean--North Sea]]> Belgium--Kortrijk]]> England--Buckinghamshire]]> England--Cumbria]]> England--Rutland]]> England--Suffolk]]> England--Wiltshire]]> France--Abbeville]]> France--Abbeville Region]]> France--Amiens]]> France--Cherbourg]]> France--Gironde]]> France--Laon]]> Germany--Helgoland]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Netherlands--West Frisian Islands]]> Wales--Bridgend]]> 1943-12-20]]> 1943-12-20]]> 1944-01-03]]> 1944-01-04]]> 1944-01-05]]> 1944-01-14]]> 1944-01-15]]> 1944-01-21]]> 1944-01-22]]> 1944-01-25]]> 1944-01-26]]> 1944-01-27]]> 1944-01-28]]> 1944-01-30]]> 1944-01-31]]> 1944-02-11]]> 1944-02-12]]> 1944-02-15]]> 1944-02-16]]> 1944-02-19]]> 1944-02-20]]> 1944-02-21]]> 1944-02-22]]> 1944-02-23]]> 1944-02-25]]> 1944-03-04]]> 1944-03-05]]> 1944-03-16]]> 1944-03-17]]> 1944-03-18]]> 1944-03-19]]> 1944-03-20]]> 1944-03-23]]> 1944-03-24]]> 1944-03-25]]> 1944-03-26]]> 1944-03-31]]> 1944-04-01]]> 1944-04-05]]> 1944-04-06]]> 1944-04-09]]> 1944-04-10]]> 1944-04-11]]> 1944-04-12]]> 1944-04-13]]> 1944-04-19]]> 1944-04-20]]> 1944-04-22]]> 1944-04-23]]> 1944-04-24]]> 1944-05-07]]> 1944-05-08]]> 1944-05-09]]> 1945]]> William Homewood]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending text-based transcription]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> United States Army Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> South Africa]]> Germany]]> Germany--Oberhausen (Düsseldorf)]]> Germany--Kleve (North Rhine-Westphalia)]]> Germany--Bochum]]> Germany--Wilhelmshaven]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Gelsenkirchen]]> Germany--Jülich]]> Germany--Münster in Westfalen]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Hagen (Arnsberg)]]> Germany--Osnabrück]]> Germany--Oppau]]> Germany--Hannover]]> Germany--Hanau]]> Germany--Saarbrücken]]> Germany--Magdeburg]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> Germany--Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate)]]> Germany--Wanne-Eickel]]> Germany--Worms]]> Germany--Kamen]]> Germany--Heide (Schleswig-Holstein)]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Dortmund]]> Germany--Wuppertal]]> Netherlands]]> Netherlands--Nijmegen]]> Germany--Helgoland]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Dülmen]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Oscar Verhoeven]]> Photograph]]> Wehrmacht]]> Wehrmacht. Luftwaffe]]> Germany]]> Germany--Friesland]]> Germany--Borkum]]> 1945]]> Records a total of 45 operations (42 night, 3 day) with 9 and 97 Squadron. Targets in Germany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands are: Berlin, Leipzig, Frankfurt, Stettin, Brunswick, Magdeburg, Stuttgart, Schweinfurt, Augsburg, Marignane, Munich, Clermont Ferrand, Toulouse, Louailles, Annecy, Amiens, Maisy, St. Pierre du Mont, Argentan, Rennes, Poitiers, Greil (Saint-Leu-d'Esserent), Culmont Chalindrey, Nevers, Courtrai, Donges, Givors, Brest, Deelen Airfield, Bordeaux, Darmstadt and Konigsberg.
His pilot on all operations was F/O Lasham.

This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available.]]>
Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> David Leitch]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Belgium]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Netherlands]]> South Africa]]> Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay]]> Belgium--Kortrijk]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Durham (County)]]> England--Huntingdonshire]]> England--Leicestershire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Rutland]]> France--Amiens]]> France--Annecy]]> France--Argentan]]> France--Bordeaux (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)]]> France--Brest]]> France--Calvados]]> France--Clermont-Ferrand]]> France--Donges]]> France--Givors]]> France--Haute-Marne]]> France--Marignane]]> France--Nevers]]> France--Oise]]> France--Poitiers]]> France--Rennes]]> France--Sablé-sur-Sarthe]]> France--Toulouse]]> Germany--Augsburg]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Braunschweig]]> Germany--Darmstadt]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Russia (Federation)--Kaliningrad (Kaliningradskai︠a︡ oblastʹ)]]> Germany--Leipzig]]> Germany--Magdeburg]]> Germany--Munich]]> Germany--Schweinfurt]]> Poland--Szczecin]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> Great Britain Miscellaneous Island Dependencies--Isle of Man]]> Netherlands--Gelderland]]> Scotland--Perth]]> South Africa--Port Elizabeth]]> 1942]]> 1943-12-02]]> 1943-12-03]]> 1943-12-16]]> 1943-12-17]]> 1943-12-20]]> 1943-12-23]]> 1944-01-05]]> 1944-01-14]]> 1944-01-21]]> 1944-01-22]]> 1944-01-27]]> 1944-01-28]]> 1944-02-15]]> 1944-02-16]]> 1944-02-19]]> 1944-02-20]]> 1944-02-24]]> 1944-02-25]]> 1944-02-26]]> 1944-03-01]]> 1944-03-02]]> 1944-03-09]]> 1944-03-10]]> 1944-03-15]]> 1944-03-16]]> 1944-04-22]]> 1944-04-23]]> 1944-04-24]]> 1944-04-25]]> 1944-04-26]]> 1944-04-27]]> 1944-04-29]]> 1944-04-30]]> 1944-05-01]]> 1944-05-02]]> 1944-05-06]]> 1944-05-07]]> 1944-05-09]]> 1944-05-10]]> 1944-05-19]]> 1944-05-20]]> 1944-05-31]]> 1944-06-01]]> 1944-06-06]]> 1944-06-07]]> 1944-06-08]]> 1944-06-09]]> 1944-06-12]]> 1944-06-13]]> 1944-07-04]]> 1944-07-05]]> 1944-07-12]]> 1944-07-13]]> 1944-07-15]]> 1944-07-16]]> 1944-07-20]]> 1944-07-21]]> 1944-07-24]]> 1944-07-25]]> 1944-07-26]]> 1944-08-11]]> 1944-08-12]]> 1944-08-13]]> 1944-08-14]]> 1944-08-15]]> 1944-08-16]]> 1944-08-17]]> 1944-08-18]]> 1944-08-25]]> 1944-08-26]]> 1944-08-27]]> 1945]]> 1946]]> 1949]]> 1950]]> 1951]]> 1952]]> 1953]]> 1954]]>
Geoff Blamires]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Map. Navigation chart and navigation log]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Italy]]> Italy--Naples]]> 1945]]> Geoff Blamores]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Map. Navigation chart and navigation log]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Italy]]> Italy--Naples]]> 1945]]>