Browse Items (161 total)

  • Tags: Operation Exodus (1945)

PGrimesS1502.jpg
Sydney Grimes grew up near Southend and joined the RAF as a wireless operator in 1940. He flew a total of 41 operations - 24 operations with 106 Squadron and 17 operations with 617 Squadron. He then served on 9 Squadron at RAF Bardney for 2 months…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

PSmithNG1701.jpg
Norman George Smith grew up in Western Australia. After leaving school he became an assistant in a timber mill workshop before volunteering for the Australian Air Force at the age of eighteen. He flew operations as a pilot with 463 Squadron from…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

PSymondsKWP2103.jpg
Ken Symonds was in the Air Training Corps when the unit was visited by a flight engineer. This meeting further inspired him, along with his cousin to join the RAF in a ground trade with the expectation of moving on to become a flight engineer. …

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

AFosterIWE180221.mp3
Ivor Foster of Plymouth volunteered for the RAF as soon as he was of age. He was initially accepted for training to become a Pilot, navigator or bomb aimer but decided the length of time for the training was too long and chose to train as a gunner.…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

AGrayLW170301.mp3
Bill Gray was born and grew up in Australia and volunteered for the Air Force. After training, he flew 29 operations as an air gunner with 15 squadron from RAF Mildenhall. He returned to Australia after the war but contracted tuberculosis. He was…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

MWilsonRC1389401-170113-100001.pdf
Reg's account starting when he was shot down on an operation to Berlin. After Berlin he was transferred to Frankfurt for interrogation then by train to his camp. Camp life involved food, the preparation and acquisition of extra food by theft, trading…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

PMackayWJ1501.jpg
Jeff Mackay was born in 1922 in Ballarat, Australia and was working as a cadet engineer. He joined the Army but when the Japanese entered the war in 1941 decided to join the RAAF, and after boarding a ship he trained as a navigator in Canada and…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

APlenderleithJ151007.mp3
John Plenderleith was in the Air Training Corps before he volunteered to join the RAF. He was posted to 626 Squadron at Wickenby and when the crew were allocated their hut they were surprised to find it was still occupied with another crew’s…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

AFlintC160421.mp3
Charles Flint was in the Auxiliary Fire Service in London before he joined the RAF. He volunteered and began training as a wireless operator. Part of his training took place at RAF Bishops Court in Ireland where he was advised not to go out in…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

PColeC1601.jpg
Colin Cole was brought up and schooled at Twickenham, and worked for a time at W H Smith before joining the Royal Air Force. He trained as a wireless operator/air gunner at RAF Yatesbury and RAF Barrow in Furness. He then served with 617 Squadron,…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

AThomasPG180302.mp3
Peter was born in Nelson, Lancashire and had two brothers. He was sixteen when he left school in 1940 and got a job until joining the Royal Air Force in 1943. He went to London Air Crew Reception Centre before going to Initial Training Wing at RAF…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

AMcDonaldEA150713.mp3
Allan McDonald was born in Hull and worked as an apprentice electrician before joining the Air Force. He passed the exams to become aircrew and trained as an air gunner. During training, his aircraft crash landed and he was soaked in petrol. He flew…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

PHildrethJ1502.jpg
Jeff Hildreth was born in Huntwood, Derbyshire and studied Electrical Engineering at Worksop Technical College before joining the Air Training Corp, before eventually joining the Royal Air Force as a Wireless Operator.
He did his training at…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

ANicholsonA150922.mp3
Arthur Nicholson was working in a reserved occupation before he volunteered for aircrew training. After training as a flight engineer he was posted to 51 Squadron based at RAF Snaith. His first operation was to Essen. His aircraft was shot down on a…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

PDavisSL1501.jpg
Laurie Davis trained as a wireless operator and first went to RAF Silverstone where crews were formed. Because of his bright red hair, he was then known as ‘Red’. The crew worked on Wellingtons for a few weeks and then Stirlings at RAF Syerston.…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

AAllenG150917.mp3
Graham Allen joined the Royal Air Force aged 19. He trained as a mechanic and worked on inspection and recovery of Spitfire aircraft. He later volunteered to be a flight engineer, and flew a tour of operations with 106 Squadron. His first operation…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

SBrennanJ1210913v20004-00020003.jpg
First - over 400 times they led the way. Article about RAF Pathfinders. Crest and details about 35 Squadron. Also mentions 7, 83 and 156 Squadrons as nucleus of force in August 1942. Mentions some of their attacks and numbers of decorations awarded.…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

MKempMWD2221885-160506-01.jpg
Notes persona details and hours flown day and night on 115 Squadron at RAF Witchford. Lists operation to Kiel, Potsdam, Gelsenkirchen, Karmen, Bruchstrasse, Munster, Hamm and Heligoland. List sorties on Operation Manna at the Hague, Operation Exodus…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ;

BBrookMBrookMv1.pdf
Opens with some details of 625 Squadron and introduction with reasons for writing. Writes of beginning of the war when still at school and experiences before joining up. Mentions activities with Air Training Corps and being awarded an RAF bursary to…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

ACockbillDFA171008.mp3
Born in Newport, Denis volunteered for the Royal Air Force as he was tired of bombing, wishing to get his own back, he joined the Air Corps at 17. Wishing to train as a wireless operator because of his interest in radio technology, he officially…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

MJenkinsFC59301-150515-01.pdf
A biography of FC Jenkins. It covers his birth and marriage but concentrates on his RAF years. He took part in 58 operations and survived the war to continue in RAF service.

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

AArmstrongGR170720.mp3
George Rex Armstrong served in the RAF as a flight engineer. He was born in Belfast and grew up in Donaghadee. Decided to join the RAF because he wanted to follow his brother Ted, who flew forty operations with 617 Squadron. Mentions being in the…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

EBrittainJTBrittain[Mo]450514.jpg
Writes about return journey back to camp. Says they are going to France the next day to fly up to 24 prisoners of war back home. Mentioned that last time they did this they were stuck for two days in bad weather. Speculates that squadron will stay in…

Tags: ; ; ; ;

EBrittainJTBrittain[Mo]450527-0001.jpg
Starts with apology for not writing but has been constantly flying to France to repatriate allied prisoners of war. Mentions typhoid injection to prevent crews catching it from ex-prisoners. Writes that he believes they will stay in UK but rumours of…

Tags: ; ; ; ; ; ;

EBrittainJTBrittain[Mo]450518-0001.jpg
Writes that he has been flying 8 hours a day repatriation allied prisoners-of-war from Juvincourt near Reims in France. States that the civilian population is short of essentials and that anything can be had for a bar of soap, although as the…

Tags: ; ; ;

Output Formats

atom, dc-rdf, dcmes-xml, json, omeka-xml, rss2