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Interview with Alexander Lamb. Two
Alexander Lamb left school in Edinburgh and became a messenger for the War Department. He then took a clerical post with the Department before reaching the age to volunteer for the RAF. He trained as an air gunner and was posted to RAF Mildenhall…
Interview with Horace Robertson
Horace Robertson was working with his father as a shoe repairer in Edinburgh before he joined the RAF. He trained as an electrician and his first posting was at RAF Finningley where he worked on Hampdens. He was then posted to a salvage unit and…
Interview with Eric Wilkin
Erik Wilkin worked on the railways before he joined the RAF. Initially he wanted to be a pilot but it would be a significant wait for training. He trained as an air gunner and was posted to 115 Squadron. On one occasion his aircraft made an emergency…
Interview with Oscar Goodall
Oscar was born in Australia. His father was a machine gunner - he was wounded seven times and died from his wounds two months before Oscar was born. His example influenced him to join the Royal Air Force. As an Air Cadet Corps member, he went to the…
Interview with Bill Ballantyne
Bill Ballantyne was in his first year at Cambridge University and a member of the Air Squadron when war was declared out in 1939. Upon joining the air force, he was posted to South Africa, where he trained as a pilot on Tiger Moths. He joined 267…
Interview with Clive Coombes
Clive Coombes grew up on Royal Air Force stations, eventually joining and serving for 37 years before retiring in 2014. During this time, he served across the globe, including in Australia and Germany, as a ground branch officer. Clive outlines his…
Rascal’s flying log book for aircrew mascot
![LRascal-Mascot[Ser#-DoB]v1.pdf](https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/square_thumbnails/781/9437/LRascal-Mascot[Ser -DoB]v1.jpg "LRascal-Mascot[Ser#-DoB]v1.pdf")
Aircrew Mascots flying log book for Flight Sergeant Rascal, covering the period from 17 November 1942 to 29 March 1945 (pages not all in chronological order). Detailing his flying caeer during training and operations. He was stationed at RAF Kinloss,…
Flight Lieutenant Freddie Spencer DFC
A biography of Freddie Spencer. Details his training and operations with 106 Squadron and 630 Squadron.
P/O Rupert Harwood
A document with photographs of Rupert Harwood, his wife and two daughters, Janet & Shirley. It refers to him being killed in action over Ussy sur Marne on 19 July 1944 whilst flying with 619 Squadron on Lancaster PB245. On the reverse "7 and 20 This…
Interview with George Anderson
George Anderson was born in County Durham and worked in a grocery shop before he joined the Royal Air Force in 1943. He flew operations as a wireless operator at the end of the war, with 101 Squadron from RAF Ludford Magna. In 1959 George and his…
Interview with James Calman
Jim was born in New Zealand but grew up in Australia. He enlisted in Woolloomooloo under the Empire Air Training Scheme. He was sent to the Initial Training School in Somers and then went to the Elementary Flying Training School on Tiger Moths at the…
Interview with Ian Denver
Ian Denver grew up in Australia and joined the Royal Australian Air Force as soon as he was old enough. After training he completed 60 operations with 625 Squadron and 156 Squadron. He met and married his wife, Pat who was an intelligence officer at…
Interview with John Eppel
John Eppel grew up in Australia and joined the Royal Australian Air Force. After training, he completed 30 operations as a navigator with 550 Squadron. He describes initial training in Australia and the journey by sea via the United States, then…
Interview with Ken Macdonald
Ken has been in the Air Training Corps and enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force in 1942. He went to No. 2 Initial Training School at Bradfield Park and then to Marborough where he chose to be a wireless operator/air gunner. They flew on Wackett…
Interview with Ronald Rodgers
Ronald Rodgers joined the Royal Australian Air Force aged seventeen, having previously been in the Air Training Corps. He trained as an air gunner and was posted to 460 Squadron at RAF Binbrook but did not fly operationally. On discharge in 1946 Roy…
VE Day Lancaster crash
Account of Jeff Brown witnessing Lancaster NN806 crash on take-off on VE Day. Includes a photograph of 13 air and ground crew of 576 Squadron, under their aircraft, including Jeff Brown.
Interview with Peter Scoley
Peter Scoley was born on a farm which became RAF Metheringham during the war. After the war Peter and his wife were fundamental in creating a museum on the site.
Peter spent most of his life in and around farming near RAF Metheringham, which he…
Peter spent most of his life in and around farming near RAF Metheringham, which he…
Interview with Douglas Stanley Smith
Douglas Smith grew up in New Zealand and on leaving school he joined the Post Office. He joined the Air Force and he flew Tiger Moth, and Gypsy Moth aircraft at New Plymouth. On one of his flights there was a warning note in the cockpit not to do…
Interview with Harrison Stanley Cammish
Harrison Cammish was born in Scarborough in 1923, and when he was fourteen, he became an apprentice carpenter and joiner, and when war broke out, he joined the Air Training Corps, and the Home Guard, who gave him a rifle and forty rounds of…
Interview with Raymond Meggett
Raymond Meggett grew up on a farm in Lincolnshire near Scampton, where RAF personnel stayed during the war. His parents told him about some of these men, and sometimes kept in touch with them. He recalls tales of the other farmers, civilian and RAF.…
JF Neilson's memoir
Growing Up -The Hard Way WAR -1939
He joined the Local Defence Volunteers at first then realised he did not want to become infantry. He did mount road blocks and fire watches. He applied to join the RAF and was accepted. Training was at Blackpool,…
He joined the Local Defence Volunteers at first then realised he did not want to become infantry. He did mount road blocks and fire watches. He applied to join the RAF and was accepted. Training was at Blackpool,…
British Aircraft Recognition
Notes kept by JH Bird during his training.
Italian Aircraft Notes
Notes kept by JH Bird during his training. The notes include photographs of various Italian aircraft but no details.
Letter to Mrs Cahir from Jim Cahir
Letter from Flight Sergeant Jim Cahir to his mother and brothers. He writes about the mail he has received from friends and family and how long it took to arrive, that he received various newspapers, about the weather, his social activities,…
Letter to Mrs Cahir from Jim Cahir
Letter from Warrant Officer Cahir to his mother and brothers. He writes about his capture in Germany after his aircraft was shot down on December 20th 1943 and subsequent capture. He goes on to describe the conditions he was kept in at Stalag IVB…