Browse Items (235 total)
Sort by:
Interview with Ray Parke. One
Ray Parke worked on the railway before joining the RAF in 1943. Remembers flying forty operations as a flight engineer with 218 Squadron by the time he was twenty. Tells about operations on Essen and the Ruhr. Discusses the Dresden operation, giving…
Interview with Arthur Pocklington
Arthur Pocklington grew up in Hull and was hoping to join the RAF as aircrew but failed the medical. He trained as a mechanic servicing the radar equipment on the aircraft. He served at RAF Scampton, RAF Dunholme Lodge and RAF Strubby before being…
Interview with Gwynne Price
Gwynne Price was living a rural lifestyle until he volunteered for the RAF. His dream was to train as an RAF pilot but since there was a surplus of pilots he chose to train instead as a flight engineer. On operations Gwyn observed the surreal feeling…
Interview with Harry Rossiter
Harry Rossiter grew up in East London but his family moved to Essex, which gave Harry a “ringside view” of the Battle of Britain. He volunteered as a bicycle messenger and tried to join the Royal Navy as a telegraphist. He was encouraged to join…
Interview with Francis Neville Selwood
Francis Neville Selwood of Invercargill, New Zealand was fascinated with aeroplanes in his youth and lived near an airfield where he could go and watch the aircraft. He was keen to volunteer as a pilot but an early rugby injury made that impossible.…
Interview with Norman Shakesby
Norman Shakesby was a radar mechanic on 405 and 582 Squadrons. Born in 1924, he was studying languages at The City School in Lincoln at the outbreak of the Second World War. His language teachers were quickly called up to act as interpreters, so on…
Interview with Peter Steward
Peter Steward was born in 1933 and talks of not seeing his father during the war due to his father's service in the RAF. His uncles and cousins also served. After leaving school at 15, Peter worked at the Woolwich Arsenal factory and joined the RAF…
Interview with Frank Tilley
Frank Tilley was a flight engineer with 617 Squadron. He took part in the operation to sink the Tirpitz. He explains his flights and briefings before the operation at RAF Woodhall Spa, RAF Milltown and RAF Lossiemouth. On their return from sinking…
Interview with Kenneth William Trueman
Kenneth William Trueman volunteered for the RAF and was called up in 1941. After training in South Africa, he served as a navigator with 640 Squadron and speaks of his preference for the Gee navigation aid rather than H2S. His operations included…
Interview with Henry Wolfe Wagner. One
Henry Wolfe Wagner was born in Ireland. The family moved to England when he was young and settled near Reading. Henry attended Reading University for two years joining the University Air Squadron. He then volunteered for the RAF and began training as…
Interview with Norman Edward Wilkins
Norman Wilkins was born in West Norwood. At the age of 14 he joined the Air Training Corps and became a member of Brighton and Hove Air Cadets 176 Squadron. He then joined the University Air Squadron at Oxford, with fees being paid by the Royal Air…
If you can't take a joke...
A detailed account of Ken Thomas's life from his early years at school, through his ground crew technical training followed by his aircrew training, operational tour, short post war service and his civilian career, he revised the account in 2005.
David and the RAF
![[1]DAVID AND THE RAF2 (2).pdf](https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/square_thumbnails/1213/11929/[1]DAVID AND THE RAF2 [2].jpg "[1]DAVID AND THE RAF2 (2).pdf")
Account of Wing Commander David Donaldson's RAF career from his early interest in flying and joining the Royal Air Force volunteer reserve in 1934, call up in 1939 and operational tours on 149 Squadron, 57 Squadron, flight commander 156 Squadron…
David Philip Storey's operations
A memoir of David Storey's service from 27 May 1943 to April 1944. He describes his 32 completed operations as a navigator on Halifaxes and including details of incidents and aircraft losses.
This item was provided, in digital form, by a…
This item was provided, in digital form, by a…
David Donaldson's pilot's flying log book. One
Pilots flying log book for David W Donaldson. This is a newly bound compilation of 3 log books covering the period from 12 March 1938 to 19 September 1945. Detailing his flying training, operations flown, Instructor duties and special duties flying.…
Covers of Miniature Lattice Chart Book
A chart book containing Gee charts
Wexford-Brighton
Gee chain chart for South Western Chain Sheet 1
Belfast-Rugby
Gee chain chart Sheet 6 covering west England, Wales and East Ireland
Oxford-St Quentin
Gee chain chart, sheet 3 covering the English Channel, North France, Belgium.
Middlesborough-Den Helder
Gee chain chart, sheet 1 covering East England and West Netherlands
Fishguard-Le Havre
Gee chain chart, sheet 1 covering the south of England and Wales and the very north of France.
North Sea
Gee chain covering the Southern North Sea, East Britain, South Norway and Denmark.
North Atlantic
Gee chain chart covering west of Scotland, North of Ireland and the North Atlantic
The Awful End of Astro
An explanation of the end of astro-navigation on board bomber aircraft in addition to GEE navigation. Navigators were required to carry sextants and take three astro readings every hour. One night the wrong astro-projector settings were supplied and…
We're On Tonight
A description of what happened before and during and operation. The battle order was posted, the crew checked over their aircraft, the bomb load was planned, the crew received their briefing, dinner was eaten (bacon and eggs), they dressed,…