Browse Items (214 total)
Sort by:
Interview with Alfred Huberman
Alfred Huberman volunteered for the RAF when he was eighteen and trained as an air gunner. He describes the training and emphasises how physically hard it was. He flew 31 operations from RAF Elsham Wolds in Lancasters. These included operations over…
Interview with Arthur Poore
Arthur joined the Royal Air Force at the age of nineteen when war started in 1939. Arthur completed a navigation course, which lasted six weeks. When the School of Navigation in Cheshire was expanded, Arthur became staff pilot, flying from mid…
Interview with Douglas Robinson
Douglas was in the Local Defence Volunteers before joining the Royal Air Force as a pilot. After Babbacombe, he did initial training at Scarborough and then in Rhodesia. Initial flight training in Harare on Tiger Moths was followed by service…
Robert Anderson's memoir
Robert Anderson describes his training in Tasmania and Canada, and his tour of operations to targets in France and Germany with 106 Squadron.
Leonard Cheshire and Rosemary Lapham
On the left Leonard Cheshire wearing white overcoat holding glasses. On the right Rosemary Lapham in a dark coat smiling towards him. In the background a marquee.
Bomber Command people
Top left. Head and shoulders photograph of Ivor Jones, in uniform, captioned 'Sq Ldr Ivor Jones 1941 Linton on Ouse', ''The Colonel' had been previously Indian Army'.
Bottom left. Photograph of Mary Brown, civilian clothes, seated in a field of…
Bottom left. Photograph of Mary Brown, civilian clothes, seated in a field of…
Interview with David Jackson
David Jackson tells of his father, Norman Jackson VC, born in Ealing, London in 1919 and who worked in an engineering company when the war broke out. After initially trying to join the navy, he then joined the RAF and classified as a fitter on…
Interview with Ted Stocker. Two
Edward Ernest Stocker (Ted) began his service with the RAF as a flight engineer on Halifaxes. He came to the attention of his Commanding Officer on his second operation, having warned before departure that they were carrying insufficient fuel to make…
Interview with Mary Stopes-Roe
Discusses her father’s designs work and remembers both skipping stones on a river during holidays with her father and catapulting marbles over a washtub in their garden. She goes on to discuss the Eder Möhne and Sorpe operation, the bouncing bomb…
Letter to Leonard Cheshire from J H Barnes
Congratulatory letter on Air Ministry headed paper, which goes on to praise Leonard Cheshire for insisting on continuing hazardous situations and dropping a rank to continue on operations. Suggests that Cheshire is greatly admired in the Air Ministry…
Letter to Leonard Cheshire from William Feeling
Congratulatory letter written on House of Commons paper on award of Victoria Cross and relates views of others he has met, a missed meeting and inviting him for a meal.
Railway tunnel and bridge, Saumur, operation narrative
Relates that in response to request from the Army a planned operation was cancelled at late notice and replaced by operation against the railway tunnel at Saumur. As accurate bombing was required it was decided to use the recently available 12,000…
Crew list for Saumur tunnel operation
Provides date - night 8/9 June 1944, target- railway tunnel and bridge, Saumur, zero hour - 0200. Leader and marker no 1 - Wing Commander Cheshire flying Mosquito. Lists pilot and navigator of two other markers flying Mosquito. Lists 25 other crews…
Postgram from 5 Group Headquarters to Officer Commanding 617 Squadron
Message is a copy of Headquarters Bomber Command signal congratulating crews that their attacks on Le Havre and Boulogne succeeded in virtually destroying German naval assets in those harbours.
Crew list for operation against submarine pens in Le Havre
Specifies date - 14/15 June 1944, target and zero hour 2235 hours. Lists crews with Wing Commander Cheshire leading along with two other markers flying Mosquito and 22 crews flying Lancaster all armed with one Tallboy bomb.
E-boats and E-boat shelters, Le Havre, narrative
Account of operation against sheltered E-boats in Le Havre harbour. Tasks to assist Navy in their fight against E-boats who were operating against allied invasion forces. States pens would be invulnerable even to 12,000 lb bombs therefore, bombs…
Crew list for Boulogne E-boats operation
States date 15/16 June 1944, target, zero hour 2235. Shows Wing Commander Cheshire leader and marker in Mosquito and 22 crews flying Lancaster all armed with Tallboy bombs.
Constructional works Watten - narrative
Explains that the enemy had brought much vaunted secret weapons into action including V2 missile. Five launching platforms were known to exits and 617 as a precision bombing squadron to destroy these sites. First target allotted was at Watten to the…
Crew list for Watten operation
States date 19 June 1944, Target constructional works Watten, zero hour 1915/1931. Lists leader/marker Wing Commander Cheshire and marker 2, Squadron Leader Shannon in Mosquito with 18 crews flying Lancaster all armed with Tallboy bombs.
Crew list for Wizernes operation
Date 24 June 1944, target, zero hour 1750 hours. Lists leader and marker no 2 crews in Mosquito and sixteen crews in Lancaster all armed with Tallboy bombs.
Crew list for Siracourt operation
Date 25 June 1944, target, zero hour 0905 hours.Lists leader and marker 1 in P51, two more markers in Mosquito and 17 crews in Lancaster carrying tallboy bombs.
Attack on Creil area dumps, 5/5 July 1944. narrative
Notes that despite allied bombing, V-1 campaign against London and South East continues. Notes decision to attack V-1 storage sites. 617 Squadron were to join 5 Group attack and use using 12,000 bombs to collapse roof of caves in which bombs were…
Crew list for operation against Creil area dumps
Date: 4/5 July 1944, target, zero hour 0130 hours. Lists leader and marker 1, Wing Commander Cheshire flying P-51. Marker 2 in Mosquito and 17 Lancaster carrying one tallboy bomb each.
Attack on constructional works Mimoyecques, narrative
Reports that this was the fourth constructional works target for the squadron. One P-51, one Mosquito and 17 Lancasters were detailed. States it was another difficult target and describes marking efforts. Reports difficultly in finding aiming point…
Gnome Rhone works, Limoges
Inclined aerial photograph showing a line of buildings with flare bloom on bottom edge and a smaller one top centre, On the reverse '139 Neg 1, Rhone Gnome Wks Limoges, 8.2.44, 617, W/C Cheshire DSO, DFC, W/C Cheshire marking target, mirror camera'.