Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> lat]]> Artwork]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> On the left and right - RAF bases and operations carried out from them.
On the right - a map on northern Europe and United Kingdom showing routes to targets in France, Italy, Germany and Poland. At the bottom - labelled '5 Group Bomber Command 1942-1944'.
In the background fighter and other jet aircraft.]]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Map]]> Photograph]]> Text]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> France]]> France--Saint-Nazaire]]> Netherlands]]> Netherlands--Ameland Island]]> Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea]]> Germany]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Germany--Rostock]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Kassel]]> Germany--Saarlouis]]> Germany--Bremen]]> Germany--Wilhelmshaven]]> Germany--Karlsruhe]]> Germany--Wismar]]> France--Le Creusot]]> Italy]]> Italy--Genoa]]> Italy--Milan]]> Germany--Berlin]]> France--Clermont-Ferrand]]> Germany--Schweinfurt]]> Germany--Augsburg]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> Germany--Nuremberg]]> France--Paris]]> Poland]]> Poland--Gdańsk]]> Germany--Braunschweig]]> Germany--Munich]]> France--Toulouse]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1943-10-22]]> 1943-10-23]]> 1944]]> 1944-03-30]]> 1944-03-31]]> 1944-04-06]]> 1944-04-05]]>
A Leedham]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Steve Baldwin]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Civilian]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Kingston upon Thames]]> England--Surrey]]> 1942-06]]> 1942-09-12]]> Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Mike Connock]]> Cara Walmsley]]> eng]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Text]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Belgium]]> Canada]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Italy]]> Poland]]> Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea]]> Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay]]> Atlantic Ocean--Kiel Bay]]> Belgium--Brussels]]> England--Buckinghamshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Northamptonshire]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> France--Lille]]> France--Royan]]> Germany--Dortmund-Ems Canal]]> Germany--Euskirchen]]> Germany--Giessen (Hesse)]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Homberg (Kassel)]]> Germany--Leipzig]]> Germany--Merseburg]]> Germany--Mittelland Canal]]> Germany--Munich]]> Germany--Siegen]]> Germany--Wesel (North Rhine-Westphalia)]]> Italy--Pomigliano d'Arco]]> Manitoba--Portage la Prairie]]> Poland--Gdynia]]> Poland--Police (Województwo Zachodniopomorskie)]]> Scotland--Wigtownshire]]> Germany--Urft Dam]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Manitoba]]> 1943]]> 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]]> Canada]]> Czech Republic]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Italy]]> England--Gloucestershire]]> England--Kent]]> England--Leicestershire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Staffordshire]]> England--Wiltshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Flensburg]]> Italy--Bari]]> Ontario--Kingston]]> Czech Republic--Plzeň]]> Ontario]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> 1946]]> 1948]]> 1949]]> 1950]]> 1951]]> 1945-04-16]]> 1945-04-17]]> 1945-04-23]]> 1945-08-28]]> 1945-09-29]]> 1945-10-01]]> He flew a total of 16 operations (14 night, 2 day), the final operation is recorded as “SHOT DOWN - FAILED TO RETURN”, but he survived and became a prisoner of war. Targets in Belgium, France and Germany were: Aunay, Beauvoir, Caen, Calmont, Chalindrey, Courtrai, Creil, Etampes, Forêt de Cerisy, La Pernelle, Maizy, Nevers, Saumur, Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Thiverney and Wesseling. His pilot on operations was Flight Lieutenant Adams.

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]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Belgium]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Atlantic Ocean--North Sea]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Wiltshire]]> Scotland--Dumfries and Galloway]]> Belgium--Kortrijk]]> France--Aisne]]> France--Caen]]> France--Calmont]]> France--Chalindrey]]> France--Creil]]> France--Étampes (Essonne)]]> France--La Pernelle]]> France--Nevers]]> France--Saumur]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> Germany--Wesseling]]> France--Manche]]> France--Calvados]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1944-06-01]]> 1944-06-02]]> 1944-06-05]]> 1944-06-06]]> 1944-06-07]]> 1944-06-08]]> 1944-06-09]]> 1944-06-10]]> 1944-06-12]]> 1944-06-13]]> 1944-06-14]]> 1944-06-15]]> 1944-06-16]]> 1944-06-17]]> 1944-06-21]]> 1944-06-22]]> 1944-07-04]]> 1944-07-05]]> 1944-07-12]]> 1944-07-13]]> 1944-07-15]]> 1944-07-16]]> 1944-07-18]]> 1944-07-19]]> 1944-07-20]]> 1944-07-21]]> 1944-07-24]]> 1944-07-25]]>

This item is available only at the University of Lincoln.]]>
Brian Wright]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> KR: Well, Alf was born in Carlisle in what is now Cumbria and his parents ran a public house which at that time was in the State Management System which was a system that was unique to Carlisle that was introduced in an attempt to cut down on drunkenness that apparently was quite rife in the area at that time. When he left school he got a job on the railway which was simply oiling the locomotives, the steam locomotives and then he moved on to become a fireman on the locomotives. At that point he and a friend saw an advert that they were wanting people to join up for the war effort and one of the options was the RAF so they, they both decided to apply for the RAF. And at that time he wasn’t quite old enough but by the time he’d got accepted and gone through the basic training I think he was of the required age. He trained as a radio operator and on completion of that he had to go into the process of finding a crew. Now, I’m not sure of the place where he trained but that I think can be, can be found. I can find that out at a later date if it’s, if it’s required. Following the training the system was that they were put into a hangar and told to wander around and introduce themselves to different people, crew members and try and sort themselves out into a group of seven to crew a Lancaster. And at the end of this process Alf and a friend who had trained with him hadn’t found a crew, hadn’t found a pilot and were eventually introduced to two New Zealanders. One was a tall six foot three person who didn’t look like a pilot at all. The other one looked the part. He was a typical Biggles. And these two looked at each and thought well I don’t like the look of yours so they decided they would spin a coin. They spun the coin and Alf lost the toss and so he got the one that didn’t look the part. And once they got posted to their squadrons and so on they started the operations and unfortunately the one that won the toss went down on the seventh raid and all the crew in that aircraft were killed and Alf went on to complete thirty four successful missions. And at the moment he’s ninety three year old and unfortunately he isn’t very well but he’s still here and he’s just celebrated his thirty second wedding anniversary to his second wife and they’re really happy together even though he is at the moment unwell.
BW: So, the pilot that he crewed up was a New Zealander called Doug Hawker.
KR: Douglas Hawker. Yeah. And he was from Christchurch. His family were farmers. His father was a farm manager and he was brought up on a farm and again very patriotic out there. When they saw what was happening in Europe they felt that they had a duty to volunteer to come across here and help the cause. That’s how he came to first of all train to fly aircraft which happened to be a Tiger Moth and eventually on to a twin engine. And then eventually on to four engines and then finally on to, on to Lancasters.
BW: Were the rest of the crew New Zealanders or were they all English?
KR: The rest of the crew were all English. One was Jack. Jack the navigator. He had been an accountant prior to, prior to the war and the engineer, he had worked in agriculture. I’m not sure about what the, what the gunners and the bomb aimer did prior to the war.
BW: Did he, did Alf relate to you what it was like on the squadron at the time? What the facilities were like or their social life was like? I mean you mention he did ultimately quite an extensive tour over the minimum thirty ops required. But there must have been times when they of course weren’t flying. Did he mention anything about a social life at all or what did he do?
KR: Well, yes. They were fortunate in respect that one of the crew had a little Austin Ruby car. So they used to pile in to that I think and take off to the various places where there was a pub or even dances going on. And at that time the only person who was married was Doug. He was the oldest of the crew. I think he was twenty five when he qualified as a pilot whereas the others were certainly a few years younger than him. And one of the other crew had a motorbike and I think they used to from time to time beg lifts to go out and socialise using the motorbike or the car.
BW: But they all got on really well as a crew. They were all good friends and so forth.
KR: They got on excellently well with the crew but I did notice having gone to several of the squadron reunions at East Kirkby that Alf didn’t appear to know any, very many people around about him. Any of the other squadron members. But I did actually ask him on one occasion why this was and he said, ‘Well, we didn’t make friends because we didn’t know how long the people in the same billet were going to survive. And there were two crews in each billet and he said sometimes you went out on operations, you came back, you thought well they’re late back but sometimes they turned up. And then on other occasions when you woke up in the morning there were ground crew in there and they were opening up the lockers and taking their personal belongings out. So they didn’t, they didn’t tend to make close friends other than within their own crew.
BW: And they flew all the time on Lancasters at this time. You mentioned they’d done some training on Halifax and Stirling prior to that. Did he mention anything about experiencing a difference or a preference between the aircraft at all? Was there anything that struck him as particularly good or bad about being on a Lanc?
KR: I think the main, the main problem was how easy it was and how difficult it was to escape from these things. For some members of the crew it was slightly or much easier than others and I think that was always at the back of, the back of their mind. But they did become very attached to the Lancaster because some of the damage that was caused on the raids he said it was a miracle how they got back with all the parts that had been blown off it and so on. And on one occasion, on one raid he himself was personally very lucky because a shell came through the fuselage of the aircraft and took all the radio gear out in front of him. So on that occasion he was, you know he had a lucky, a very lucky escape. And they became very attached to one particular aircraft that they did most of their missions on. Twenty eight missions they did with the same aircraft, got it back every time obviously. And then they had a three raids in close succession. They had been out on short, on short trips and had a bit of a rest and then they were out again the next night and Doug who by this time had become the flight lieutenant and was in charge of planning the crews he decided to give his own crew a bit of a rest and he put in another crew on to their aircraft. And that crew lost the aircraft. It didn’t come back. And I think they’d become very attached to one particular aircraft and I think it caused a little bit of a little bit, a little bit of a concern when they had to go out on a different aircraft but they managed to do several more trips after that safely.
BW: Were any of them superstitious in that respect? I mean, you mention some of them getting quite attached to a particular aircraft. Did any of them or did Alf relate any superstitions or things like girlfriend’s gifts or whatever that they would take on a mission for luck with the, or did they just sort of get on with it?
KR: They, I don’t, I don’t know whether he had any lucky charms or anything but I do know that he used his tin helmet for other reasons than putting on his head. Because he said when there was a lot of flak about he decided to sit on it because he was keen to preserve his manhood because if he lost that he may as well lose his head anyway.
BW: Innovative use of equipment. Did he mention what the aircraft was? What it, whether it was the registration number. Did it have a nickname? Was it O-Oscar or something like that?
[recording paused]
BW: So their particular aircraft was a Lancaster Mark 3, Registration ND. That’s November December 527 LE. Oh, they nicknamed it Leo which is I suppose unusual in a way because most, that just obviously relates to how the code letters on the aircraft appear but most of them were given girl’s names. So they had a boy’s name on an aircraft or referred to as an aircraft was I suppose unique.
KR: No. As far as I know they didn’t. They didn’t give it any names. But I would be surprised if they didn’t because I know that Doug the pilot he, he was married before he came over and his wife was called Margie. So that would have been maybe an obvious, obvious name for it. I know he used to write to her frequently because he mentions in his book, he even numbers the letters and I think the last one was ninety eight.
BW: And so at this time this is, this is 1944 when they’re on, when they’re on the tour and flying from East Kirkby. Did they mention any memorable raids? I see Doug has written a book called, “With Luck to Spare,” which I’m sure he details the raids in there. Was Alf quite open about his experiences on the raids and if so what? What sort of things happened?
KR: Yes. He’s told several, he told me several stories and details about various raids and so on. Probably the most memorable one was the third one when they were on a long raid. They were, they were going out to Berlin and it wasn’t a good night. There was a lot of cloud about and on the way out they were attacked by night fighters. But just shortly after take-off they realised that there was a problem with the radio communication on the aircraft because Doug was getting a lot of static in the headphones and they did a test to see whose, who was causing it. It turned out to be the rear gunner so Doug told him to switch it off and only speak to him if they came under any attack which unfortunately they did and the rear gunner was trying to warn Doug and there was no response. And then he suddenly realised he hadn’t switched the radio on so he’s frantically screaming down the radio to break to starboard or port. Doug immediately does this and unfortunately overreacts in the emergency and loses control of the aircraft. They fall down through a layer of cold air and the cockpit freezes over, or condensation anyway and he can’t see out. All the instruments are spinning around. He doesn’t really know where he is or which way up he is. Eventually he decides he’d better try and pull it out so he pulls back on the stick and he keeps pulling and pulling and suddenly gets to the point where he realises he’s losing airspeed. So he checks with the engineer, checks with the navigator to see if they have any answers. The engineer comes back and says everything’s ok. The navigator tells him he doesn’t know because his alternators and so on are spinning around. So he, the decision is made. He’s got to put the nose down to put the airspeed up otherwise they’ll fall out the sky. So he sticks the nose down and it builds up and eventually he gets the things on a level keel and they carry on and complete the bombing raid. When they get back the aircrew discover that all the ammunition out of, out of the guns, the magazines are lying on the bottom of the aircraft and when the engineers check the engines and so on they discover that some of the glycol has drained out of the, out of the tanks and the only way that that could have happened was that that aircraft had flown upside down. And it had a full bomb load on.
BW: So upside down.
KR: And that was, that was the nose.
BW: Upside down over Berlin with a full bomb load on.
KR: That was a bit of an hairy experience for your third trip out and I often wonder just how much confidence that gave the crew at that stage in the flying. But he got them, he got it sorted out and he got them back safe.
BW: And were there other ops that were memorable too?
KR: I’ll do that one first.
BW: So yeah. Just describing any memorable, any other memorable raids or incidents. You mention about formation flying or unusual bits of flying.
KR: Yeah. Doug, during the early raids they were always informed that they had to fly straight and level and not to deviate from the, from the flight plan. And as they were flying along, because Doug was in a situation where he could see what was happening around about them he was watching and seeing aircraft going down at various points of the raid and he came to the conclusion that these aircraft weren’t taking any sort of avoiding action. They were suddenly flying along level and suddenly they were blowing up and going down. And he came to the conclusion that maybe the rear gunner whose, part of his job was to inform the pilot if there was a fighter coming on to the back of them wasn’t sending the information through. So he did a little bit of an experiment. He started to climb up behind the aircraft in front of him to see how close he could get before there was any reaction and he got very very close. He could actually see the rear gunner quite clearly sitting in the turret and he wasn’t making any sort of movement or reaction to the fact that he was coming up behind him. So he decided that there was probably a blind spot on the turret and they couldn’t see. So from that point onwards he told the crew that they would be in for a bumpy ride because he wasn’t going to fly straight and level. He was going to bank one way, bank the other. He was going to change his angles and his course slightly and then come back on to the course. And while he was doing that he wanted the rear gunner to just check all around. And he felt that that was one of the reasons why they managed to survive on some of the raids that in particular there was a lot of night fighter activity on. One of the, one of the raids that Alf had apparently had to play quite a large part in saving the aircraft was on a flight to Stuttgart. They were going to bomb an aircraft factory there and on the way back a night fighter got on their tail and there was so much cloud about they couldn’t get a clear vision on it. And so they had to rely on the radar system which was known as the Fishpond and was operated by the radio operator and he was, Alf was constantly tracking this aircraft and Doug was constantly trying to shake him off by spinning the aircraft and then pulling it back up again and it was, I think it went on for quite a while. They were beginning to get a little bit worried that they weren’t going to be able to shake this thing off in time but eventually they managed to. They managed to shake him off.
BW: And was the Stuttgart raid do you think their longest mission? At this time of the war the bombing force are proportionately flying more in to France. Did, did Alf make a distinction between the sort of experiences he had flying over France as opposed to Germany or other parts? Were there —
KR: Well, the French, the French missions towards the end they were, they were obviously much easier. There were far less aircraft lost on them. It was really the longer ones that were the problem. Particularly on one mission that they did which was a particularly long one and they were flying with the largest bomb that they carried. The tallboy.
BW: The tallboy. Yeah.
KR: The tallboy. And on that particular occasion when they, when they were lining up to take off they were taxiing from each side of the runway to the take off point and they had tankers out there refuelling them right up until the last moment so that they would have enough fuel on board to give them a chance to get there and back. And that was going out to Berlin and to do that they had to fly out to Milan and then come back in which, it was a bit of surprise to hear.
BW: Yeah. And so overall they managed to complete thirty four operations.
KR: Yeah.
BW: What sort of time in the war did they finish? Was it towards May or April 1945 or was it or was it at the end of ’44. Does he recall that?
KR: It was 1945 when they, when they finished actually on active bombing. But then as far as Alf was concerned he went on to be an instructor, a radio operator instructor and he went, he went out and I’m almost certain it was to Ceylon where he went out to, to train radio operators on aircrew.
BW: How did he get the nickname Digger? Where did that come from?
KR: I think it went, it went back to the, to the time when he was a fireman on the railways digging the —
BW: Digging the mines.
KR: Digging the coal out of the, out of the –
BW: Tender.
KR: Tender. And feeding the fire. I think that’s, that’s where he got the nickname, Digger.
BW: It’s usually an Aussie nickname is that. So he decided to stay on in the RAF after his tour had finished and did he remain as an instructor until being demobbed or did he continue in the Air Force for a period after that?
KR: No. I think, I think once he had finished with the work of instructor he was demobbed. And after, after being demobbed he needed to find somewhere to live because he wanted to get married and one answer was to go like his father had been back in to the pub trade and so he started to apply for public houses over Cumbria. Around Cumbria. And he eventually got, got a pub near to Penrith out in the, the countryside.
Other: Kirkoswald.
KR: Yeah. In a village, Kirkoswald and at that time there wasn’t a Post Office and now it’s fairly common that, you know we’ve got pubs and Post Offices cropping up all over the place. Combined village shop and a Post Office. So Alf decided that during closing time he would be a postman. So he actually did two jobs. He was the landlord of a pub and he was also a postman. He was also a keen haaf netter. Haaf netting is a method of catching salmon as they’re coming up the —
Other: Solway Firth.
KR: Solway Firth into the River Eden and —
BW: And was that a legitimate job?
KR: Oh yes. It’s a legitimate job. Yeah. They have a licence to do it.
BW: Right.
KR: And they can only do it for a certain period of time each year so he was involved in that and in more recent times he was a keen bowler in bowling. Green bowling not indoor. And was responsible for the, for the bowling green in several villages in Cumbria.
BW: Right.
KR: So he’s had quite an active, active life. He certainly hasn’t [pause] he certainly hasn’t sat around.
BW: And he’d had, he’d had a period of time after the war where he was single but eventually he got married and I think you said earlier his, he was married to his first wife, Peg.
KR: Peggy.
Other: Peggy.
BW: Peggy. And had two daughters. But he’s since married again. So he had did you say thirty six years?
KR: Thirty six years with his first wife.
BW: First wife.
KR: And then I’m not quite sure a period of time. What period of time he was on his own but it can’t have been too long. And he and a friend went off on holiday together and it was a holiday romance and I think it was mainly based on the fact that he was a good dancer because his present wife likes dancing and they are still actually members of a jazz club in Carlisle. I think he is quite annoyed that he can’t get to the jazz club now that he's not so well. So yeah, I remember going to, having met him at the gym when he was over eighty then one other member of the gym had a golden wedding and the over fifties group were invited and I was absolutely amazed that how well Alf and Doreen could jive. He was over eighty and she must have been quite close to eighty at the time. So quite an active, active person.
BW: And you mentioned previously that you’d taken him down to London to see the Hyde Park Memorial. What did he think about that? How did he feel Bomber Command veterans have been treated prior to the memorial and what did he think of it? Of the Memorial afterwards?
KR: Like a lot of Bomber Command veterans I think they were, they were very disappointed that it had taken so long for them to be recognised for the work and the service that they all did and the number of losses and so on during the war. But when he, but when he saw the Memorial you know I think he was very touched by it because, and I think everybody who sees that Memorial must be touched by it because I think it’s, you know it’s a fantastic Memorial to them that has come eventually. However, I think he and a lot of veterans are disappointed that they didn’t actually get a medal. Instead of which they were given a bar which even to somebody like me I personally think it’s a disgrace. The thing itself. I mean I’ve heard that they’re advertised on the internet for like, for a matter of a few pounds or similar. Whether they’re the actual ones or whether they’re, I can’t imagine why anybody would want to fake them. But, yeah that was one thing that has disappointed him. He’s still, he’s still disappointed to some degree in that he didn’t get a medal which I think all aircrew were given for general service over Europe.
BW: Yeah. The Aircrew Europe Star.
KR: Yeah. Now, there were only two members of their crew who received that and that was the pilot and the navigator and the rest of the crew didn’t receive it.
BW: Oh.
KR: And I know there’s been representation made on Alf’s behalf by a nephew of his to try and find out why and the only reason that he was given was that he hadn’t served long enough. The amount of time. But it seems a bit odd that they all served the same amount of time. They were all on the Lancasters. They were all trained together as a crew.
BW: If they’d all served a full tour and in that, in their case seemed to have done the thirty four and not been replaced which did happen with some crews you would expect there would be enough. I’d personally have to look at the qualifying criteria to see whether there’s any indication but his logbook or his service record would be something that his family could refer to. They could send away for that and that would give more detail. But in general he’s pleased that there’s been some albeit belated recognition.
KR: Oh yes. Oh yeah. He was certainly very impressed with the Memorial in London. Yeah.
BW: Good. Thank you very much for your time, Ken. Much appreciated. Thank you for the experiences and recollections of Alf Dawson.
KR: Well, I hope it was of some value to you. ]]>
eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]>
]]> Keith Ganney]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Tricia Marshall]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> England--Scarborough]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Canada]]> Manitoba]]> Russia (Federation)--Kaliningrad (Kaliningradskai︠a︡ oblastʹ)]]> Germany--Bremen]]> Germany--Munich]]> Germany--Nuremberg]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Dortmund-Ems Canal]]> Norway--Trondheim]]> Germany--Siegen]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany]]> Norway]]> Russia (Federation)]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Walter Scott]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Tricia Marshall]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Poetry]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> OC 630 Squadron]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> David Bloomfield]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Correspondence]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--West Midlands]]> England--Birmingham]]> England--Warwickshire]]> 1944-07-24]]> 1944-07-25]]>
Covers joining the RAF at age 19 and training at Blackpool, Yatesbury as radio operator and subsequently at Martlesham and Bridgnorth. Crewing up at RAF Upper Heyford while on OTU flying Wellington. This was followed by four engine training on Stirling then Lancaster before posting to 630 Squadron at RAF East Kirkby. Describes operations mentioning types of target, losses, attack by Ju-88. Continues with account of daylight operation to Caen and later Paris. Describes operation to Stuttgart in July 1944 when they were attacked by night fighter and badly damaged as well as he being injured. After aborting the operation fire forced them to bale out. Continues with account of his injuries, capture, transfer to and experiences at POW hospital near Nancy. Describes liberation by American forces and being flown back to England and then to RAF Hospital. Concludes with account of 15 month hospital treatment, discharge from the RAF, membership of the Guinea Pig Club and trying to trace members of his crew in the mid 1980s. At the end photographs of Arthur Woolf, of him in hospital and of the French family who helped him after he was shot down and injured.]]>
A S Woolf]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Babs Nichols]]> eng]]> Text]]> Photograph]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> United States Army]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Blackpool]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> Scotland--Dumfries and Galloway]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Germany]]> Germany--Cologne]]> France]]> France--Caen]]> France--Paris]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> France]]> France--Nancy]]> France--Verdun]]> England--Berkshire]]> England--Reading]]> France--Meurthe-et-Moselle]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1944-07-24]]> 1944-07-25]]> 1941]]> 1944-11]]>
OC 630 Squadron]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> David Bloomfield]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Correspondence]]> Civilian]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--West Midlands]]> England--Erdington]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Warwickshire]]> 1944-07-25]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Alan Pinchbeck]]> eng]]> Text]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--West Midlands]]> England--Birmingham]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Blackpool]]> England--Wiltshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> England--London]]> England--Shropshire]]> Scotland--Dumfries and Galloway]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Warwickshire]]> 1941-10-13]]> 1942-08-02]]> 1943-03-22]]> 1943-08-30]]> 1943-08-31]]> 1943-11-08]]> 1943-11-09]]> 1944-05-09]]> 1946-01-16]]> 1941-10-13]]> 1941-10-14]]> 1941-12-22]]> 1941-12-30]]> 1942-04-23]]> 1942-08-13]]> 1942-08-26]]> 1943-03-16]]> 1943-03-22]]> 1943-04-10]]> 1943-06-09]]> 1943-08-30]]> 1943-11-02]]> 1944-02-23]]> 1944-05-22]]> 1944-07-25]]> 1944-04]]> 1944-05]]> W Morris]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Sue Smith]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Northamptonshire]]> England--Kettering]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--London]]> England--Manchester]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Scarborough]]> United States]]> Massachusetts--Boston]]> Canada]]> New Brunswick--Moncton]]> Alberta--Innisfail]]> Ontario--Trenton]]> Ontario--Picton]]> Ontario--Hamilton]]> Germany]]> Germany--Helgoland]]> France]]> France--Normandy]]> Germany--Wilhelmshaven]]> Massachusetts]]> Ontario]]> New Brunswick]]> Alberta]]> England--Lancashire]]> 1941]]> 1942-02-12]]> 1943-03]]> 1943-09]]> 1944-06-05]]> 1944-10-05]]> 1944-08-18]]> #1 is 617 squadron memorial at RAF Woodhall Spa.
#2 is 44 squadron memorial at RAF Waddington.
#3 and 4 is a plaque at 'The Wild Life' pub at Skellingthorpe.
#5 is a memorial at East Kirkby.
#6 is a close up of the East Kirby memorial.
#7 and 8 are the memorial at RAF Skellingthorpe with and without a group of children from Manser Primary School.
#9 is a poem 'Old Airfield' on a stone at East Kirkby.
#10 and 11 is a memorial at Skellingthorpe Village Hall.
#12 is a memorial at RAF Wickenby.
#13 and 14 is a memorial clock and plaque at the parish church, Waddington.
#15 is a memorial to 101 squadron at Ludford Magna.
#16 is the grave of Pilot Officer JM Cave
#17 and 18 are the memorial to 9 squadron at Bardney.
#19 is a memorial to 460 squadron at RAF Binbrook.
#20, 21 and 22 are a parade of 50 and 61 old comrades at RAF Skellingthorpe.
#23 is 625 squadron memorial at RAF Kirmington.
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IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]>
Jane Spencer]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending text-based transcription. Allocated]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Personal research]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Air Force. Fighter Command]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Germany--Bremen]]> Germany--Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate)]]> Germany--Nuremberg]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Scotland--Moray]]> Wales--Glamorgan]]> 1939]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> The Family of JHP Dwyer]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Personal research]]> Text. Service material]]> Text. Correspondence]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Map]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany]]> Germany--Schweinfurt]]> Germany--Böblingen]]> Germany--Schmallenberg]]> France]]> France--Toul Region]]> Germany--Rottenburg am Neckar]]> Germany--Miltenberg]]> Germany--Busenberg (Rhineland-Palatinate)]]> France--Strasbourg]]> France--Montluçon Region]]> Germany--Fulda]]> Germany--Eschelbronn]]> Germany--Rastatt]]> France--Forbach Region]]> Germany--Mühlhausen (Thuringia)]]> France--Langres]]> France--Saint-Dizier (Haute-Marne)]]> 1944-04-26]]> 1944-04-27]]> Served at RAF Dumfries, RAF North Luffenham, RAF Swinderby, RAF Syerston, RAF East Kirkby, RAF Woodhall Spa. Aircraft flown were Tiger Moth, Anson, Botha, Wellington, Lancaster. Carried out a total of 39 operations. One night propaganda leaflet drop with 29 OTU, 11 night operations with 106 Squadron, 11 night operations with 630 Squadron, 9 day and 7 night operations with 617 Squadron. Targets included Paris, Berlin, Nuremberg, München Gladbach, Munich, Kassel, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Hannover, Dusseldorf, Toulouse, Saumur Tunnel, Le Havre, Boulogne, Watten, St Omer, Wizernes, Rilly la Montagne, Siracourt, Etaples, Brest. His pilot on operations was Flying Officer Cheney.

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]]> Nick Cornwell-Smith]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Rutland]]> Scotland--Dumfries and Galloway]]> Germany]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Germany--Hannover]]> Germany--Kassel]]> Germany--Mönchengladbach]]> Germany--Munich]]> Germany--Nuremberg]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> France]]> France--Boulogne-sur-Mer]]> France--Brest]]> France--Etaples]]> France--Le Havre]]> France--Marne]]> France--Paris]]> France--Saumur]]> France--Saint-Omer (Pas-de-Calais)]]> France--Siracourt]]> France--Toulouse]]> France--Watten]]> Atlantic Ocean--English Channel]]> 1943-07-01]]> 1943-07-02]]> 1943-08-23]]> 1943-08-24]]> 1943-08-27]]> 1943-08-28]]> 1943-08-30]]> 1943-08-31]]> 1943-09-03]]> 1943-09-04]]> 1943-09-06]]> 1943-09-07]]> 1943-10-03]]> 1943-10-04]]> 1943-10-05]]> 1943-10-07]]> 1943-10-08]]> 1943-10-18]]> 1943-10-19]]> 1943-10-22]]> 1943-10-23]]> 1943-11-04]]> 1943-11-05]]> 1943-11-23]]> 1943-11-24]]> 1943-11-26]]> 1943-11-27]]> 1943-12-02]]> 1943-12-03]]> 1943-12-16]]> 1943-12-17]]> 1943-12-20]]> 1943-12-21]]> 1943-12-24]]> 1943-12-25]]> 1943-12-29]]> 1943-12-30]]> 1944-01-01]]> 1944-01-02]]> 1944-01-03]]> 1944-01-20]]> 1944-01-21]]> 1944-01-28]]> 1944-01-29]]> 1944-04-05]]> 1944-04-06]]> 1944-04-10]]> 1944-04-11]]> 1944-06-05]]> 1944-06-06]]> 1944-06-08]]> 1944-06-09]]> 1944-06-14]]> 1944-06-15]]> 1944-06-19]]> 1944-06-22]]> 1944-06-24]]> 1944-07-17]]> 1944-07-20]]> 1944-07-21]]> 1944-07-25]]> 1944-07-31]]> 1944-08-01]]> 1944-08-04]]> 1944-08-05]]> 1944-08-06]]>
Claire Bennett]]> 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]]> Canada]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending OH transcription]]> eng]]> Text]]> Physical object]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> 1944]]>