IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> lat]]> Artwork]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Shropshire]]> Alexander Lamb]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Steve Christian]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Diary]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany--Bocholt]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Germany--Bremen]]> Netherlands--Rotterdam]]> Germany--Helgoland]]> Netherlands--Hague]]> Germany--Münster in Westfalen]]> Germany]]> Netherlands]]> 1945-03]]> 1945-04]]> 1945-05]]>
Chapter 1. Under Training.
Having been assessed in Birmingham Geoff sets off to London in August 1942 for training, at Lords. Initial training was at Bridlington then gunnery school at Andreas on the Isle of Man. After a short leave he was posted to an operational training unit at Chipping Warden followed by intensive training at Edge Hill. Finally he went to Feltwell for Escape and Evasion training before joining a Heavy Conversion Unit at Wratting Common then Waterbeach.

Chapter 2. Operations RAF Witchford. After seven days leave he commenced operational flying in a Lancaster. Their first target was Augsburg and he reports being waved off by WAAFs and airmen. On the next operation the navigator had a breakdown and refused to help. He continues with details of several operations.
Chapter 3. Return to Ops RAF Waterbeach. Initially this proved to be a very relaxing posting but after his recovery he was back on operations. After 30 operations he was posted to RAF Brackla, Nairn.

Chapter 4. Grounded. He was unhappy at Brackla which was remote and cold. Next was a transfer south to RAF Weeton where he learned about motor transport and learned to drive. He was then posted to RAF Halfpenny Green, followed by RAF Croughton and South Cerney. He then went to Hornchurch before being sent to Germany where he joined a micro film unit at Frankfurt. On completion of photographing relevant factory installations his unit headed south to Triberg in Bavaria.

Chapter 5. As Time Goes By. He reflects on his letter from the Secretary of State from Air, Bomber Command losses and life after the war. he discusses Labour minister John Strachey, a pre-war fascist then Communist Party , who belittled the work of Bomber Harris. and the refusal to allow a thanksgiving service to honour the ex-Prisoner of War Association at Coventry Cathedral.]]>
Geoff Payne]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> David Bloomfield]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Air Force. Training Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Birmingham]]> England--London]]> England--York]]> England--Halifax]]> England--Loughborough]]> England--Flamborough Head]]> England--Manchester]]> England--Blackpool]]> England--Fleetwood]]> Great Britain Miscellaneous Island Dependencies--Douglas (Isle of Man)]]> England--Banbury (Oxfordshire)]]> England--London]]> England--Bognor Regis]]> France--Lille]]> England--Cambridge]]> England--Coventry]]> England--Ely]]> Germany--Augsburg]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> France--Rouen]]> France--Vaires-sur-Marne]]> France--Normandy]]> France--Creil]]> France--Nucourt]]> France--Caen]]> France--L'Isle-Adam]]> France--Gironde Estuary]]> England--Falmouth]]> France--Somme]]> Germany--Rüsselsheim]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Sweden--Stockholm]]> Germany--Bremen]]> France--Le Havre]]> France--Calais]]> Germany--Neuss]]> Netherlands--Walcheren]]> Belgium--Antwerp]]> Germany--Emmerich]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Scotland--Nairn]]> England--Peterborough]]> England--Walsall]]> England--Hull]]> England--Wolverhampton]]> England--Dudley]]> England--Brackley]]> England--Cirencester]]> Germany--Cuxhaven]]> Germany--Bückeburg]]> Germany--Bremerhaven]]> Germany--Black Forest]]> Germany--Triberg]]> Germany--Rheinberg]]> Germany--Hannover]]> Poland--Szczecin]]> France--Châlons-en-Champagne]]> France--Pas-de-Calais]]> Poland]]> France]]> Germany]]> Belgium]]> Netherlands]]> Sweden]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> England--Gloucestershire]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Leicestershire]]> England--Northamptonshire]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Staffordshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> England--Sussex]]> England--Worcestershire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Warwickshire]]> England--Newmarket (Suffolk)]]>
Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Mike Connock]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Netherlands]]> Poland]]> United States]]> Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea]]> Atlantic Ocean--English Channel]]> Atlantic Ocean--North Sea]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Staffordshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> France--Calais]]> France--Falaise]]> France--Le Havre]]> France--Pas-de-Calais]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Bonn]]> Germany--Chemnitz]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Dessau (Dessau)]]> Germany--Dortmund]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Euskirchen Region]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Hanau]]> Germany--Hannover Region]]> Germany--Helgoland]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Germany--Magdeburg]]> Germany--Mannheim]]> Germany--Mücheln (Wettin)]]> Germany--Neuss]]> Germany--Nuremberg]]> Germany--Osterfeld]]> Germany--Pforzheim]]> Germany--Plauen]]> Germany--Rüsselsheim]]> Germany--Schwandorf (Landkreis)]]> Germany--Soest]]> Netherlands--Eindhoven]]> Netherlands--Rotterdam]]> Northern Ireland--Down (County)]]> Poland--Szczecin]]> Germany--Rheine]]> Germany--Leverkusen]]> Germany--Wangerooge Island]]> Germany--Urft Dam]]> Great Britain]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> 1946]]> 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]]> He describes individual operations in detail. He and his crew were transferred to Faldingworth where the condition of their aircraft was poor. These were quickly replaced with new aircraft. His crew were successful and survived their 30 operations never to meet up again.
He concludes his memoir with seven tailender tales.]]>
Bill Freeman]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Tricia Marshall]]> Pending text-based transcription. Under review]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> England--Brighton]]> England--Dewsbury]]> Canada]]> England--Stafford]]> Wales--Tredegar]]> England--Northampton]]> England--Grimsby]]> France--Rouen]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Karlsruhe]]> Denmark--Frederikshavn]]> France--Maintenon]]> France--Mailly-le-Camp]]> France--Rennes]]> France--Dieppe]]> France--Orléans]]> Germany--Dortmund]]> Germany--Aachen]]> France--Paris]]> England--Lincoln]]> France--Le Havre]]> Poland]]> France--Pas-de-Calais]]> France--Caen]]> France--Vierzon]]> France]]> Germany]]> Denmark]]> France--Reims]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> England--Northamptonshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Staffordshire]]> England--Sussex]]> 1943-04-05]]> 1944-03]]> 1944-04-10]]>
P Potter]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> David Bloomfield]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Wales--Carmarthenshire]]> #1 is call up papers
#2 is Conditions of Entry into the RAF
#3 is a ration card for sweets and cigarettes
#4 is a photograph of Ernest and his crew at RAF Silverstone. 'Ft Bill Bouskille, Don Boon, Ron Warren. Bk. Harry Horner, Bruce Maund and me.']]>
IBCC Digital Archive]]> Sue Smith]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Photograph]]> Royal Air Force]]>
Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Terry Hancock]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Germany--Helgoland]]> Germany--Hamm (North Rhine-Westphalia)]]> Germany--Krefeld]]> Germany--Potsdam]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Devon]]> England--Herefordshire]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Rutland]]> Northern Ireland--Down (County)]]> 1945-03-17]]> 1945-03-20]]> 1945-03-27]]> 1945-04-05]]> 1945-04-18]]> Dennis Moore]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Sue Smith]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Civilian]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> Germany--Weeze]]> England--London]]> England--Wallington Garden]]> Netherlands--Zandvoort]]> England--Croydon]]> England--Hartland]]> England--Lynton]]> England--Salcombe]]> England--Amersham]]> England--Newquay]]> England--Manchester]]> Scotland--Greenock]]> United States]]> New York (State)--New York]]> Canada]]> New Brunswick--Moncton]]> Maine--Portland]]> New Brunswick--Shediac]]> New Brunswick--Fredericton]]> Manitoba]]> Manitoba--Brandon]]> Manitoba--Winnipeg]]> Ontario--Toronto]]> Ontario--Hamilton]]> Ontario--London]]> Alberta--Medicine Hat]]> England--Harrogate]]> Scotland--Stranraer]]> France--Angers]]> Germany--Neuss]]> England--Carlisle]]> England--Morecambe]]> Pakistan--Karachi]]> Malta]]> Egypt--Cairo]]> Burma--Rangoon]]> India--Mumbai]]> China--Guangzhou]]> China--Hainan Sheng]]> China--Hong Kong]]> India--Darjeeling]]> England--Liverpool]]> England--Hastings]]> Kenya--Nairobi]]> Italy--Verona]]> Morocco--Marrakech]]> Northern Ireland--Belfast]]> Senegal--Dakar]]> Brazil--Natal]]> Argentina--Buenos Aires]]> Turkey--İzmir]]> Israel]]> Newfoundland and Labrador--Gander]]> Greenland]]> Iceland]]> Cyprus--Nicosia]]> Iraq--Baghdad]]> Bahrain]]> England--Blandford Forum]]> Germany--Hannover]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> England--Skellow]]> England--Worcester]]> England--Scarborough]]> England--Pershore]]> Arizona--Tucson]]> California--Vandenberg Air Force Base]]> England--Diss]]> England--Chelmsford]]> England--Basildon]]> England--St. Albans]]> England--Slough]]> England--Letchworth]]> England--Stevenage]]> France--Calais]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Wilhelmshaven]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> Germany--Essen]]> Netherlands--Walcheren]]> Germany--Solingen]]> Germany--Leipzig]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Dortmund]]> Germany--Munich]]> Germany--Wanne-Eickel]]> Germany--Gelsenkirchen]]> Germany--Bocholt]]> Germany--Salzgitter]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Germany--Potsdam]]> England--Coventry]]> England--London]]> Germany--Wuppertal]]> Germany--Saarbrücken]]> Québec--Montréal]]> India--Kolkata]]> Germany--Wesel (North Rhine-Westphalia)]]> Vietnam--Ho Chi Minh City]]> England--Southend-on-Sea]]> France--Boulogne-sur-Mer]]> Italy]]> France]]> Arizona]]> California]]> Maine]]> New York (State)]]> Egypt]]> Ontario]]> Québec]]> New Brunswick]]> Alberta]]> Newfoundland and Labrador]]> Germany]]> Brazil]]> Burma]]> China]]> Cyprus]]> India]]> Iraq]]> Kenya]]> Netherlands]]> Pakistan]]> Turkey]]> Great Britain]]> Vietnam]]> Senegal]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> England--Berkshire]]> England--Buckinghamshire]]> England--Cornwall (County)]]> England--Cumberland]]> England--Devon]]> England--Essex]]> England--Herefordshire]]> England--Kent]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Northumberland]]> England--Sussex]]> England--Worcestershire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Warwickshire]]> England--London]]> Atlantic Ocean--Kattegat (Baltic Sea)]]> 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]]> Czech Republic]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Netherlands]]> Norway]]> Poland]]> Czech Republic--Chomutov]]> England--Bedfordshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--London]]> England--Northamptonshire]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Bremen]]> Germany--Chemnitz]]> Germany--Dortmund-Ems Canal]]> Germany--Dresden]]> Germany--Harburg (Landkreis)]]> Germany--Homberg (Kassel)]]> Germany--Kaiserslautern]]> Germany--Sassnitz]]> Germany--Wilhelmshaven]]> Norway--Tønsberg]]> Poland--Police (Województwo Zachodniopomorskie)]]> Wales--Vale of Glamorgan]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Braunschweig]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> 1944-09-27]]> 1944-09-28]]> 1944-10-05]]> 1944-10-06]]> 1944-10-07]]> 1944-10-11]]> 1944-10-14]]> 1944-10-15]]> 1944-10-30]]> 1944-11-01]]> 1944-11-02]]> 1945-02-07]]> 1945-02-08]]> 1945-02-09]]> 1945-02-13]]> 1945-02-14]]> 1945-02-15]]> 1945-03-03]]> 1945-03-04]]> 1945-03-06]]> 1945-03-07]]> 1945-03-08]]> 1945-03-11]]> 1945-04-18]]> 1945-04-19]]> 1945-04-25]]> 1945-04-26]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Tricia Marshall]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Civilian]]> Royal Air Force]]> Zimbabwe]]> Zimbabwe--Harare]]> Zimbabwe--Bulawayo]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Bridgnorth]]> England--Staffordshire]]> England--Wolverhampton]]> England--Devon]]> England--Paignton]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Hull]]> England--Somerset]]> England--Castle Cary]]> 1940-06]]> 1940-07]]> 1940-08]]> 1940-09]]> 1940-10]]> 1940-11]]> 1940-12]]> 1941-01]]> 1941-02]]> 1941-03]]>
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]]>
Senior Admin Officer, RAF Bridgnorth]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Shropshire]]> Geoff Packham]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Angela Gaffney]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Log book and record book]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Acklington]]> England--Torquay]]> Canada]]> Alberta--Calgary]]> Alberta--De Winton]]> Alberta--Medicine Hat]]> England--Halifax]]> England--Grantham]]> England--Doncaster]]> Alberta]]> England--Devon]]> England--Northumberland]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> 1943]]> Ken Thomas]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Peter Bradbury]]> David Bloomfield]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Memoir]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> James Sheach]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> Andrew Sadler]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Carolyn Emery]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> France--Mimoyecques]]> Wales--Bridgend]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> Posted to 26 Operational Training Unit at RAF Wing, he was formed into a crew to fly Wellingtons as a rear gunner. On one training flight, an engine failed on take-off and the pilot managed to complete a circuit before carrying out a belly landing. As Bert had learned morse code as an air cadet, he was tasked to take over as the wireless operator if necessary, therefore, moved to the mid-upper turret to be closer.
In 1944 he was posted to RAF Waterbeach in Cambridgeshire, initially with 1678 Heavy Conversion Unit to convert to Lancasters, and then to 514 Squadron as operational crew. His first operation was on the 30th of May to Boulogne. He describes a number of operations over France and Germany. On the 12th of June during an operation to Gelsenkirchen, they were hit by anti-aircraft fire putting their instruments out of action. They were diverted to RAF Woodbridge for an emergency landing.
Bert describes the differences in performance between the Mark II and Mark III Lancasters, and what happened during the day of operations. He completed his thirty operations in September 1944 and, after a period of leave, was posted to RAF Manby as an instructor with No. 1 Empire Air Armament School. He explains how he felt about the bombing of Germany, the loss of friends, and how the war was a great leveller of persons. He was demobilised in 1947. ]]>
David Kavanagh]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Nick Cornwell-Smith]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> France]]> Great Britain]]> Germany]]> Poland]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> England--Tyne and Wear]]> France--Abbeville]]> France--Boulogne-sur-Mer]]> Germany--Homberg (Kassel)]]> Poland--Szczecin]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1944-03-15]]> 1944-03-19]]> 1944-05-30]]> 1944-06-12]]> 1944-06-21]]> 1944-07-20]]> 1944-07-25]]> 1944-08-29]]> 1944-09-06]]>
Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Hugh Donnelly]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Air Force. Balloon Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Shropshire]]> Wales--Pwllheli]]> 1942]]> David Kavanagh]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Sue Smith]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> 1943]]> 1944-12]]> 1945]]> Gemma Clapton]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England]]> France]]> Spain]]> England--Northamptonshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Essen]]> Pyrenees]]> Netherlands]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1942]]> Nigel Moore]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Egypt]]> France]]> Great Britain]]> Italy]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> Northern Ireland--Down (County)]]> Great Britain]]> Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Bethany Ellin]]> Heather Hughes]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Bochum]]> Germany]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Atlantic Ocean--Irish Sea]]> England--Orford Ness]]>