He then went back to Yatesbury for an aircrew wireless operators course then on to Penrhos for an Air Observers and gunners course. From there John went to 10 OTU at Abingdon, while there he flew on one of the 1,000 bomber operations in a Whitley flying from Stanton Harcourt.
Having finished his course John was posted to 10 Squadron at RAF Leeming, still on the Whitley, the squadron converted to the Halifax, John flew in the Halifax II fitted with Merlin engines. The squadron then moved to RAF Melbourne, in Sept/Oct 1942 John’s crew were posted to Leeming to a new squadron No 408 (RCAF) as part of 6 Group.
On an operation to Hamburg 2/3 February 1943 John’s aircraft was badly damaged and the crew baled out, he recounts the difficulties of bailing out from an out of control aircraft. He landed in a tree and evaded capture for three days.
As a prisoner of war, he exchanged identities with a soldier. He was also on one of the long marches from January to April. ]]>
Stevenage Heritage Project]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Trevor Hardcastle]]> Pending OH transcription]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Wiltshire]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> 1940]]> 1942]]> 1943-02-02]]> 1943-02-03]]> 1945]]>
Nigel Moore]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Sally Coulter]]> Julie Williams]]> Carolyn Emery]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> 1946]]> Heavy Conversion Unit to work on Halifax. Fred carried out about 30 operations, including ones to Stuttgart and Chemnitz.
]]>
Susanne Pescott]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Sue Smith]]> Anne-Marie Watson]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Norfolk]]> Great Britain Miscellaneous Island Dependencies--Isle of Man]]> Germany]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> Germany--Chemnitz]]> 1943]]> 1944]]>
Gary Rushbrooke]]> Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> France]]> Great Britain]]> England--Suffolk]]> England--Yorkshire]]> 1943]]> 1944-06-05]]> 1944-06-06]]> Susanne Pescott]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Peter Schulze]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Second generation]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> India]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Berlin]]> France--Ver-Sur-Mer]]> France--Neufchâtel-en-Bray]]> 1941]]> 1943-12-29]]> 1944-06-05]]> 1944-06-06]]> 1945-10]]> Glen Turner]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> Pending OH summary]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Burma]]> Great Britain]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> Susanne Pescott]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Burma]]> Great Britain]]> India]]> England--Bedfordshire]]> England--Cornwall (County)]]> England--Yorkshire]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending OH summary]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> India]]> Atlantic Ocean--North Sea]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Helgoland]]> India--New Delhi]]> India--Bilāspur (Chhattīsgarh : District)]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> Susanne Pescott]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Ian Whapplington]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Sheffield]]> Germany]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Atlantic Ocean--English Channel]]> 1944-06]]> Susanne Pescott]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> CC BY-NC 4.0 International license]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Denmark]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Denmark--Copenhagen]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Munich]]> Germany--Nuremberg]]> Germany--Oberursel]]> Germany--Rostock]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1941]]> 1944]]> 1945-02-14]]> Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Cathie Hewitt]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> Lithuania]]> Atlantic Ocean--English Channel]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Lithuania--Šilutė]]> Len was then posted to various locations abroad, did a code and cipher course and was demobilised. He went back to his plumbing apprenticeship, got married, settled in Bath but wanted to get back to service life. He started back as an airman and went into the air traffic control branch serving at different stations in Great Britain and Germany until he retired in 1971. Len was into post war meetings and memorial visits.]]> Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Australian Air Force]]> Royal New Zealand Air Force]]> Royal Canadian Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> Germany]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Cheshire]]> England--Rutland]]> Sri Lanka]]> Singapore]]> 1945]]>
]]>
Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Poland]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Luckenwalde]]> Poland--Tychowo]]> 1944-09]]>
Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Carron Moss]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Austria]]> Great Britain]]> Austria--Vienna]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Wales--Anglesey]]> 1939]]> 1941]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> 1946]]>
The interview is incomplete and ends abruptly.]]>
Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Denmark]]> Great Britain]]> Sweden]]> Denmark--Copenhagen]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Sweden--Stockholm]]> 1945-02]]> 1945-03-21]]>
He tells of his experiences as ‘second dickey’ on trips to Essen and Kiel, before joining No. 76 Squadron at Linton-on-Ouse, flying Handley Page Halifaxes. He also spent time on 10 Squadron and was finally transferred to 608 Squadron based at Downham Market in Suffolk flying Mosquitos.
George tells of his trip to Malta, and flying Spitfires that were being renovated for the Greek Air Force.
George flew 30 operations flying Halifaxes and a further 14 flying the Mosquito.
After the war, George returned to his previous company, Pickfords, where he worked as a Branch Manager before retiring at the age of 60.
]]>
Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Vivienne Tincombe]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]>
Andrew Panton]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Sue Smith]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Civilian]]> Great Britain]]> Canada]]> Germany]]> England--Chatham (Kent)]]> England--Kent]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Scotland--Moray]]> Germany--Dortmund]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Germany--Peenemünde]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1943-08-17]]> 1943-08-18]]> Mick Jeffery]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Dan Ellin]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Chris Cann]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Northern Ireland]]> Northern Ireland--Belfast]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Chemnitz]]> Great Britain]]> Great Britain]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Pam Locker]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Carolyn Emery]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> France]]> Great Britain]]> India]]> North Africa]]> Asia--Mount Everest]]> England--Yorkshire]]> India--Mumbai]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> Andrew Sadler]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Hugh Donnelly]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Air Force. Transport Command]]> Canada]]> East Asia]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]>