4
25
415
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1908/36266/BPerryWRPPerryWRPv2.2.pdf
2d9a332b2c7e70c15dc51d7c6351a683
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Perry, Pete
W R P Perry
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-07-19
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Perry, WRP
Description
An account of the resource
Sixty-nine items and an album sub collection with twenty-four pages of photographs.
The collection concerns Flight Lieutenant WR Pete Perry DFC (1923 - 2006, 1317696, 146323 Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, photographs, correspondence, memoirs and documents. He flew operations as a pilot with 106 Squadron.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Helen Verity and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Me - William Roy Peter Perry DFC
Pete Perry's memoir
Description
An account of the resource
Memoir starts by describing early life and education in Tunbridge Wells before moving to Cornwall. Writes about beginning of the war. Volunteered for aircrew in Plymouth (which had been bombed the day before) shortly after his 18th birthday. Continues with account of early induction and training in the RAF. Journeys across the Atlantic to Canada where he continues his pilot training. Describes activities in Canada and return to the United Kingdom. Describes advance flying training at Ossington, and operational training and other activities at North Luffenham. Continues with heavy conversion unit on Manchester and Lancaster before posting to 106 Squadron at RAF Syerston. Goes on to describe activities and operations while on the squadron including a long description of operation to Turin. Awarded DFC at end of first tour. Mentions operations over Berlin when hit by anti-aircraft fire which set engine on fire. Goes on to describe activities as an instructor at 5 Lancaster Finishing School before going to 227 Squadron at RAF Balderton as an instructor. He eventually returned to 106 Squadron for a second tour in March 1945 where he did a further three operations before the end of the war. Mentions Tiger Force, Cook's tour and bring troops back from Italy. Concludes with life in transport command after the war. After demob in January 1947 became a civilian air traffic controller.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
W R P Perry
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1941-03-26
1941-04
1942
1943
1944
1945
1945-03
1957-01
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Kent
England--Tunbridge Wells
England--Cornwall (County)
England--Devon
England--Plymouth
England--Oxfordshire
England--Oxford
England--London
England--Yorkshire
England--Scarborough
England--Warwickshire
Canada
Alberta--Calgary
England--Lincolnshire
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Rutland
Germany
Germany--Krefeld
Germany--Gelsenkirchen
Germany--Cologne
Italy
Italy--Turin
Germany--Berlin
Germany--Bochum
Alberta
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Civilian
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Air Force. Transport Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Memoir
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Thirty-two page printed document
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending text-based transcription. Allocated
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
BPerryWRPPerryWRPv2
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
106 Squadron
1654 HCU
227 Squadron
29 OTU
5 Group
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
B-17
civil defence
Cook’s tour
crewing up
Distinguished Flying Cross
Flying Training School
Heavy Conversion Unit
Home Guard
Initial Training Wing
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
Manchester
Operation Dodge (1945)
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Ansty
RAF Balderton
RAF hospital Rauceby
RAF Metheringham
RAF North Luffenham
RAF Ossington
RAF Syerston
RAF Wigsley
RAF Woolfox Lodge
Stirling
Tiger force
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
York
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1908/36264/SPerryWRP1317696v70007.1.pdf
85ed7f9870c6b6edafb95b8e11ebe0e0
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Perry, Pete
W R P Perry
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-07-19
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Perry, WRP
Description
An account of the resource
Sixty-nine items and an album sub collection with twenty-four pages of photographs.
The collection concerns Flight Lieutenant WR Pete Perry DFC (1923 - 2006, 1317696, 146323 Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, photographs, correspondence, memoirs and documents. He flew operations as a pilot with 106 Squadron.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Helen Verity and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[inserted] W.R.P. PERRY. DFC. AIRCRAFT FLOWN. [/inserted]
[underlined] Registered Numbers & Sqdn letters (& fate) of Manchester & Lancasters flown. [/underlined]
[underlined] 1654 HCU Wigsley May – June '43 [/underlined] (Training).
Manchester L7492 ?
Lancaster R5483 Lost Jan. '44 622 Sqdn.
R5690 Scrapped Oct. '46.
R5730 Crashed March '45 1656 HCU.
R5514 Scrapped Nov. '46.
W4260 Crashed Aug. '43 1654 HCU.
ED591 Crashed July '43 1654 HCU
W4303 ?
L7575 Mid-air break-up Oct. '43. 1654 HCU.
R5734 Missing March '44. 61 Sqdn.
ED704 ?
[underlined] 106 Sqdn, Syerston & Metheringham, June '43 – February '44. [/underlined] (1st Tour).
Lancaster R5614 [symbol] 'Z' (Carried 8000 lb 'cookie'. Crashed Syerston, Aug '43.
ED303 [symbol] 'J' Lost. July '43.
ED358 [symbol] 'T' Lost. Oct. '43.
ED819 'U' Lost. Sep. '43.
ED593 [symbol] 'Y' (Became 'C' at 5LFS & then moved to 1656 HCU.
ED801 'N' Crashed March '45 1653 HCU.
DV182 [symbol] 'S' Lost Sep. '43.
JA976 'P' Lost Apr. '44 405 Sqdn.
DV229 [symbol] 'Z' Lost Jun. '44 463 Sqdn.
JA876 'R' soc Nov. '47. (soc – struck off charge).
W4897 'X' soc Jan. '44.
DV344 'S' soc (Berlin) Jan. '44. 61 Sqdn.
JB534 [symbol] 'O' Burnt out Feb. '44.
JB593 'T' Lost Aug. '44.
ND339 [symbol] 'Z' Lost July '44.
ME630 'P' Lost Feb. '44.
[symbol] Flew on ops.
[page break]
[underlined] No 5 LFS (Lancaster Finishing School), Syerston, Notts. Feb. – Nov. '44. [/underlined] (Instructor).
Lancaster. R5912 'S' ?
W4113 'Q' ?
L7540 'U' soc Apr '44.
R4i22 [sic] 'R' ?
W4383 'H' Crashed May '44.
ED368 'N' Crashed Jun. '45.
W4899 'K' ?
ED758 'G' Lost (Berlin) '44.
W4797 'B' Crashed Apr. '44.
L7583 'T' soc Nov. '46.
R5658 'F' soc May. '47.
R5865 'J' ?
W4258 'R' Crashed May '44.
W4103 'E' Crashed Apr. '44.
R5668 'O' ?
R5910 'X' ?
W4940 'P' ?
L7580 'U' soc Nov. '45.
ND663 'Y' ?
R5726 'A' Crashed Apr. '44.
L7578 'C' Burnt May '44.
JB178 'E' Lost July '44. 49 Sqdn.
W4794 'C' Crashed (Carnaby) May '44.
ED802 'D' ?
R5854 'V' ?
ED944 'Q' ?
ED869 'A' ?
JB137 'B' soc Oct. '46.
R5757 'A' soc Jan '47.
DV310 'H' ?
W5008 'F' Lost.
W4328 'T' soc. Jan.'47.
W4941 'M' Crashed Oct. '44.
W4882 'N' soc Sep. '45.
W5004 'E' soc Jan. '47.
[page break]
Lancaster. LM308 'F' Crashed Jan.45.
ED866 'C' Crashed Nov. 48.
DV175 'B' soc Oct. 46.
W4358 'D' ?
DV362 'Q' soc Sep. '46.
ED727 'S' soc Nov. '46.
JB125 'E' Crashed, Syerston, Jan. '45.
R5910 'X' ?
LL742 'R' ?
DV277 'V' soc Nov. '46.
ED940 'Z' soc Nov. '47.
[underlined] 227 Sqdn, Balderton, Notts. (Sqdn Instructor). Nov. '44 – March '45. [/underlined]
Lancaster. PD342 'E' Crashed. Jul. '45.
PB646 'P' Lost Dec. '44.
PD348 'B' Crashed Feb. '45.
PD349 'G' soc Sep. '47.
LM259 'U' Lost. Dec. '44.
PD345 'F' soc. Nov. '46.
PD344 'D' Lost Oct. '44.
PB805 'M' Crashed. Sep. '45.
PB620 'Z' Lost Apr. '45.
PB610 'O' Crashed, Balderton, Mar. '45.
PB690 'Y' Lost Feb. '45.
PB731 'L' soc Mar. '47.
PB644 'R' Lost Mar. '45.
NG170 'S' Lost, Ladbersch, Mar. '45.
PB651 'H' soc Oct. '46.
PB666 'J' Lost Feb. '45.
ME372 'U' Lost, Hamburg, Mar. '45.
NW802 'K' soc Aug. '46.
RA518 'C' soc Jun. '47.
PB645 'A' soc Nov. '46.
ME454 'Y' Lost, Wurtzburg, Mar. '45.
[page break]
[underlined] 227 Sqdn (cont) [/underlined]
Lancaster. SW247 'W' soc Oct. '46.
RA546 'J' Lost, Lutzkendorf, Mar. '45.
NX566 'S' soc Mar '48.
ND992 'Y' Crashed Aug. '45.
RF178 'V' soc Sep. '46.
RD332 'N' soc Jan. '47.
[underlined] 106 Sqdn, Metheringham, Lincs. (2nd Tour) April – October '45. [/underlined]
Lancaster. RE130 'H' soc Aug. '46
RF236 [symbol] 'V' soc Jan. '47.
PA310 'A' soc Nov. '46.
PB618 'G' Crashed Jun. '45.
RF235 [symbol] 'Y' Crashed May. '45.
NG397 'T' soc Jan.'47.
LM211 'Z' soc Feb. '49.
LM690 'P' soc May '47.
RF265 'O' soc Jul. '47.
NN719 'Q' soc Mar. '48.
PB677/G 'Z' soc Aug. '47.
ND933 'X' soc Jan. '47.
ND690 'D' soc Nov. '45.
PB682 'O' Crashed Oct. '45.
ND616 'J' Crashed Jul. '45.
ME369 'F' Crashed Feb. '46.
RF194 'T' soc May. '47.
PB583 'B' soc May '47.
PB305 'R' soc Jul. '49.
PB676 'E' soc Apr. '46.
PB622 'N' Crashed Feb. '46.
ME727 'Y' ?
PB124 'Q' soc Nov. '46.
[symbol] Flew on ops.
[page break]
Total hours on types of aircraft flown from E.F.T.S., Nov. '41 to Transport Command final flight Sep. '46.
[underlined] [a] Type. [b] Day. [c] Night. [d] Total. [/underlined]
(a) Lancaster Mks. I & III. (b) 459:00 (c) 413:15 (d) 872:15
(a) York. C. Mks. I (b) 295:35 (c) 105:00 (d) 400:35
(a) Stirling. Mks. IV (b) 6:20 (c) – (d) 6:20
(a) Manchester. Mks. II (b) 7:05 (c) – (d) 7:05
(a) Wellington. Mks. III (b) 48:55 (c) 51:05 (d) 100:00
(a) Oxford. (b) 192:35 (c) 27:45 (d) 220: 0 [sic]
(a) Dakota. (b) 1:50 (c) – (d) 1:50
(a) Tiger Moth. Mks. DH82/82c [underlined] (b) 77:00 (c) 1:45 (d) 78:45 [/underlined]
Total [underlined] (b) 1088:20 (c) 598:50 (d) 1687:10 [/underlined]
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
List one Manchester and 10 Lancasters at RAF Wigsley May - June 1943. On 106 Squadron at RAF Syerston and RAF Metheringham between June 1943 and February 1944, lists 16 Lancasters. At No 5 Lancaster Finishing School between February and November 1944 at RAF Syerston, lists 46 Lancasters. At 227 Squadron RAF Balderton November 1944 to March 1945, lists 27 Lancasters. On 106 Squadron, second tour at RAF Metheringham between April and October 1945, lists 23 Lancasters. Then gives total hours flown on Lancaster, York, Stirling, Manchester, Wellington, Oxford, C-47 and Tiger Moth.
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-05
1943-06
1944-02
1944-11
1945-03
1945-04
1945-10
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Lincolnshire
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Personal research
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Five page typewritten document
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SPerryWRP1317696v70007
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Title
A name given to the resource
Registered numbers and squadron letters (& fate) of Manchester & Lancasters flown
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Sue Smith
106 Squadron
1653 HCU
1654 HCU
1656 HCU
227 Squadron
C-47
Heavy Conversion Unit
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
Manchester
Oxford
RAF Balderton
RAF Metheringham
RAF Syerston
RAF Wigsley
Stirling
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
York
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2126/36209/PPerryWRP17050021.1.jpg
a5161c75391a90fc2ecc78064c22332a
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Perry, Pete. Photo album
Description
An account of the resource
Album with twenty-two pages containing photographs of places in the middle and far east, places in Canada, colleagues, aircraft and aircrews,
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-07-19
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Perry, WRP
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
People, aircraft and places
Description
An account of the resource
Top left - distant line of Tiger Moths parked on snow covered airfield.
Top centre - Two airmen wearing khaki uniform and side caps standing on a path.
Top right - view across square. Ibrahim Al Lakani, El-Montaza, Heliopolis.
Middle left - and airmen wearing flying suit, helmet and goggles, standing in snow outside a hut with Tiger Moths in the backgroud.
Bottom left - three airmen, the one on left wearing flying suit, the next battledress and flying boots and the one on the right a tunic and flying boots. All are sitting on a bench outside a hut with windows.
Bottom right - six airmen wearing a variety of uniform. The man in the centre wears flying helmet and goggles and is holding a small dog, The man on the right also wearing helmet and goggles.
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Egypt
Egypt--Cairo
Canada
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Civilian
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Photograph
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Six b/w photographs mounted on an album page
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
PPerryWRP17050021
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Mike Stilgoe
aircrew
animal
Tiger Moth
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1780/36177/LDidcoteWG574095v1.1.pdf
cc2d34efdc71c8d457df3d7ff8c4159a
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Didcote, William George
W G Didcote
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2021-01-20
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Didcote, WG
Description
An account of the resource
Three items. The collection concerns Squadron Leader William George Didcote OBE (b. 1922, 574095 Royal Air Force) and contains his log book and two photographs. He flew operations as a navigator with 115 Squadron.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Timothy Victor Wilks and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
W G Didcote’s South African Air Force observer’s or air gunner’s log book
Description
An account of the resource
South African Air Force observer’s or air gunner’s log book for W G Didcote, covering the period from 15 December 1942 to 9 November 1945. Detailing his flying training, operations flown, instructor duties and duties with 90, 186, 218 and 83 Squadrons. He was stationed at SAAF Oudtshoorn, SAAF Port Alfred, RAF Millom, RAF Silverstone, RAF Wratting Common, RAF Waterbeach, RAF Witchford, RAF Chedburgh, RAF Manby, RAF Tuddenham, RAF Stradishall and RAF Coningsby. Aircraft flown in were Tutor, Botha, Anson, Oxford, Tiger Moth, Wellington, Stirling and Lancaster. He flew a total of 32 operations with 115 Squadron. His pilots on operations were Flight Sergeant Carter, Flight Sergeant Gibson, Pilot Officer Rowe-Evans, and Pilot Officer Atkin. Targets were Berlin, Leipzig, Stuttgart, Nuremberg, Laon, Aachen, Rouen, Cologne, Dusseldorf, Essen, Friedrichshafen, Chambly, Cap Gris-Nez, Courtrai, Le Mans, Duisburg, Dortmund, Trappes, Ouistreham, Lisieux, Paris, Dreux, Nantes, Le Havre, Valenciennes, L’Hey, Watten, Vaires and Nucourt. He also flew one Operation Exodus flight and one Operation Dodge flight.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1942
1943
1944-02-15
1944-02-16
1944-02-19
1944-02-20
1944-02-21
1944-03-15
1944-03-16
1944-03-30
1944-03-31
1944-04-10
1944-04-11
1944-04-12
1944-04-18
1944-04-19
1944-04-20
1944-04-21
1944-04-22
1944-04-23
1944-04-26
1944-04-27
1944-04-28
1944-05-01
1944-05-02
1944-05-09
1944-05-10
1944-05-11
1944-05-19
1944-05-20
1944-05-21
1944-05-22
1944-05-23
1944-05-27
1944-05-28
1944-05-31
1944-06-01
1944-06-05
1944-06-06
1944-06-07
1944-06-08
1944-06-09
1944-06-10
1944-06-11
1944-06-14
1944-06-15
1944-06-16
1944-06-23
1944-06-24
1944-07-05
1944-07-06
1944-07-07
1944-07-08
1944-07-10
1944-07-12
1945
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Belgium
France
Germany
Great Britain
South Africa
Atlantic Ocean--English Channel
Belgium--Kortrijk
England--Cambridgeshire
England--Cumbria
England--Lincolnshire
England--Northamptonshire
England--Suffolk
France--Audinghen
France--Caen Region
France--Dreux
France--Laon
France--Le Havre
France--Le Mans
France--Lisieux
France--Nantes
France--Nucourt
France--Paris
France--Paris Region
France--Rouen
France--Valenciennes
France--Vaires-sur-Marne
France--Versailles Region
France--Watten
Germany--Aachen
Germany--Berlin
Germany--Cologne
Germany--Dortmund
Germany--Duisburg
Germany--Düsseldorf
Germany--Essen
Germany--Friedrichshafen
Germany--Leipzig
Germany--Nuremberg
Germany--Stuttgart
South Africa--Oudtshoorn
South Africa--Port Alfred
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
France--Ouistreham
France--Cap Gris Nez
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Mike Connock
Cara Walmsley
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LDidcoteWG574095v1
115 Squadron
1651 HCU
1653 HCU
1678 HCU
17 OTU
186 Squadron
218 Squadron
83 Squadron
90 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Anson
bombing
bombing of Nuremberg (30 / 31 March 1944)
bombing of the Le Havre E-boat pens (14/15 June 1944)
bombing of the Normandy coastal batteries (5/6 June 1944)
Botha
Heavy Conversion Unit
Lancaster
Lancaster Mk 1
Lancaster Mk 2
Lancaster Mk 3
Me 110
navigator
Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944)
Operation Dodge (1945)
Operation Exodus (1945)
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
RAF Chedburgh
RAF Coningsby
RAF Manby
RAF Millom
RAF Silverstone
RAF Stradishall
RAF Tuddenham
RAF Waterbeach
RAF Witchford
RAF Wratting Common
Stirling
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1545/36135/LKennedyJL19210211v1.1.pdf
3f86ab857a9f2e2281142d6e63a322d1
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Kennedy, J L
Kennedy, John Lyle
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-10-01
Rights
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Kennedy, JL
Description
An account of the resource
Two items. The collection concerns Flight Lieutenant John Lyle Kennedy DFC and DSO (1921 - 1998, Royal Air Force) and contains his log book and pilot's notes for Wellington. He flew operations as a pilot with 192 Squadron.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Campbell Kennedy and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
John L Kennedy’s pilots flying log book
Description
An account of the resource
Pilots flying log book for John L Kennedy, covering the period from 2 February 1942 to 30 November 1945. Detailing his flying training, operations flown and instructor duties. He was stationed at RAF Induna, RAF Kumalo, RAF Perth, RAF South Cerney, RAF Wing, RAF Feltwell, RAF Foulsham, RAF Lossiemouth and RAF Lulsgate Bottom. Aircraft flown in were Tiger Moth, Oxford, Wellington, Halifax, Mosquito, Martinet, Harvard, Fairchild, Anson, Master, Lancaster and C-47 Dakota. He flew total of 34 operations with 192 Squadron. Operations flown are listed as Special Duty operations, carrying out radar countermeasures but targets are not named.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1942
1943
1944
1945
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
Zimbabwe
England--Buckinghamshire
England--Gloucestershire
England--Norfolk
England--Somerset
Scotland--Moray
Scotland--Perthshire
Zimbabwe--Bulawayo
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Mike Connock
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LKennedyJL19210211v1
1660 HCU
192 Squadron
20 OTU
26 OTU
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Anson
bombing
C-47
Flying Training School
Halifax
Harvard
Heavy Conversion Unit
Initial Training Wing
Lancaster
Martinet
Mosquito
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
radar
RAF Feltwell
RAF Foulsham
RAF Lossiemouth
RAF South Cerney
RAF Torquay
RAF Wing
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1517/36128/LFlintJ121331v1.1.pdf
2efeafd165ebbc9cb52372ae426a7ba7
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Flint, J
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-06-17
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Flint, J
Description
An account of the resource
Two items. The collection concerns Wing Commander J Flint, DFC GM DFM (Royal Air Force) and contains his log books. He flew operations as a pilot with 49 and 50 Squadrons.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by william Flint and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
J Flint's RAF pilot’s flying log book. One
Description
An account of the resource
J Flint’s Flying Log Book covering the period 30 August 1938 to 16 February 1944.
Detailing his flying training and operations flown as pilot. He was stationed at RAF Tollerton (27 E&RFTS), RAF Hanworth (5 EFTS), RAF Yatesbury (10 EFTS), RAF Brize Norton (2 SFTS), RAF St Athan (SoAN), RAF Cottesmore RAF Saltby (14 OTU), RAF Scampton (49 Squadron), (RAF Finningley (7 BATF) and RAF Bruntingthorpe and Bitteswell (29 OTU). Aircraft flown in were Magister, Tiger Moth, Oxford, Anson, Hampden and Wellington. He flew seventeen night operations with 49 Squadron. Targets not specified. His first or second pilots on operations were Pilot Officer Bowden and Pilot Officer Kerridge.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1938
1939
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1941-02-25
1941-02-26
1941-03-01
1941-03-02
1941-03-03
1941-03-04
1941-03-21
1941-03-22
1941-03-30
1941-03-31
1941-04-03
1941-04-06
1941-04-07
1941-04-08
1941-04-09
1941-04-10
1941-04-12
1941-04-13
1941-05-08
1941-05-09
1941-05-10
1941-05-11
1941-05-12
1941-05-13
1941-05-16
1941-05-17
1941-05-25
1941-05-26
1941-05-27
1941-05-28
1941-06-22
1941-06-23
1941-06-25
1941-06-26
1941-06-28
1941-06-29
1941-07-05
1941-07-06
1941-08-11
1941-08-12
1941-08-14
1941-08-15
1941-08-17
1941-08-18
1941-08-26
1941-08-27
1941-08-29
1941-08-30
1941-08-31
1941-09-01
1941-09-02
1941-09-03
1942-05-20
1942-05-21
1942-06-01
1942-06-02
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Leicestershire
England--Lincolnshire
England--London
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Oxfordshire
England--Rutland
England--Shropshire
England--Yorkshire
Wales--Glamorgan
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending temporal coverage. Allocated
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Terry Hancock
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LFlintJ121331v1
14 OTU
29 OTU
49 Squadron
50 Squadron
aircrew
Anson
bombing
Flying Training School
Hampden
Magister
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Bitteswell
RAF Brize Norton
RAF Bruntingthorpe
RAF Cottesmore
RAF Finningley
RAF Saltby
RAF Scampton
RAF St Athan
RAF Yatesbury
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1464/36103/LGauntPH755625v1.1.pdf
9d1cdafe29cfd550105dabb992ab7b3a
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
Gaunt, Terrance John
T J Gaunt
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-10-30
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Gaunt, TJ
Description
An account of the resource
Two items. The collection concerns P H Gaunt (Royal Air Force) and contains his logbooks. He flew operations as a pilot with 37 and 70 Squadrons.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Terence Gaunt and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
P H Gaunt’s pilots South African Air Force flying log book. One
Description
An account of the resource
South African Air Force pilots flying log book one, for P H Gaunt, covering the period from 23 August 1943 to 19 November 1944. Detailing his flying training and operations flown. He was stationed at SAAF Witbank, SAAF Pietersburg, RAF Qastina and RAF Foggia Tortorella. Aircraft flown in were Tiger Moth, Oxford, Lodestar, Wellington, and Dakota. He flew a total of 8 operations with 37 Squadron. Targets were Szombathely, Tuzla, Sinj, Sanskimost, Pregrad, Pecorra, Sjenica and Priboj. His pilots for his ‘second dickie’ operations were Flying Officer Lavack and Warrant Officer Shiel.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943
1944
1944-10-20
1944-10-31
1944-11-01
1944-11-04
1944-11-05
1944-11-12
1944-11-18
1944-11-19
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Croatia
Hungary
Israel
Italy
Serbia
South Africa
Bosnia and Herzegovina--Sanski Most
Bosnia and Herzegovina--Tuzla
Croatia--Pregrada
Croatia--Sinj
Hungary--Szombathely
Israel--Ḥatsor
Italy--Foggia
Italy--Piacenza
Serbia--Priboj
Serbia--Sjenica
South Africa--Polokwane
South Africa--eMalahleni
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Mike Connock
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LGauntPH755625v1
14 OTU
37 Squadron
aircrew
bombing
C-47
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1464/36102/LGauntPH755625v2.2.pdf
2343374361dc18ac7eb7711107ea8716
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Gaunt, Terrance John
T J Gaunt
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-10-30
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Gaunt, TJ
Description
An account of the resource
Two items. The collection concerns P H Gaunt (Royal Air Force) and contains his logbooks. He flew operations as a pilot with 37 and 70 Squadrons.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Terence Gaunt and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
P H Gaunt’s pilots flying log book. Two.
Description
An account of the resource
Pilots flying log book for P H Gaunt, pilot, covering the period from 20 October 1944 to 21 June 1952. Detailing his operations flown and post war flying at 69 reserve centre and 7 reserve flying school. He was stationed at RAF Foggia and RAF Desford. Aircraft flown in were Wellington, Tiger Moth, Anson and Prentice. He flew a total of 14 operations 9 with 37 Squadron and 5 with 70 Squadron. Targets were Szombathely, Tuzla, Sinj, Sjenica, Visegrad, Uzice, Bugojno, Podgorica, Matesevo, Mojkovac, Casarsa and Udine. The log book also lists dates and target details of his first tour on Hampdens. His pilot for a ‘second dickie’ operation was Warrant Officer Shiel.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1941-08-08
1941-08-17
1941-08-26
1941-08-29
1941-09-02
1941-09-28
1941-10-12
1941-10-13
1941-10-16
1941-10-20
1941-11-07
1941-11-23
1941-12-25
1942-01-08
1942-01-27
1942-01-31
1942-02-24
1942-02-26
1942-03-08
1942-03-10
1942-04-12
1942-04-14
1942-04-15
1944-10-20
1944-10-21
1944-10-31
1944-11-01
1944-11-04
1944-11-05
1944-11-12
1944-11-18
1944-11-19
1944-11-20
1944-11-23
1944-11-25
1944-12-03
1944-12-04
1944-12-19
1944-12-21
1944-12-26
1944-12-28
1944-12-29
1945-01-08
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Croatia
Great Britain
Hungary
Italy
Montenegro
Serbia
Bosnia and Herzegovina--Bugojno (Opština)
Bosnia and Herzegovina--Tuzla
Croatia--Sinj
England--Leicestershire
Hungary--Szombathely
Hungary--Visegrád
Italy--Casarsa della Delizia
Italy--Foggia
Italy--Udine
Montenegro--Kolašin Region
Montenegro--Mojkovac
Montenegro--Podgorica
Serbia--Sjenica
Serbia--Užice
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Mike Connock
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LGauntPH755625v2
37 Squadron
70 Squadron
aircrew
Anson
bombing
Hampden
pilot
RAF Desford
Tiger Moth
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1794/35819/BWilsonRCWilsonRCv1.2.pdf
46537616119db7e3fe539c2255ec6eb9
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Title
A name given to the resource
Wilson, Reginald Charles
R C Wilson
Description
An account of the resource
166 items. The collection concerns Reginald Charles Wilson (b. 1923, 1389401 Royal Air Force) and contains his wartime log, photographs, documents and correspondence. He few operations as a navigator with 102 Squadron. He was shot down on 20 January 1944 and became a prisoner of war.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Janet Hughes and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-01-13
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Wilson, RC
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
October 2001
[underlined] BOMBER COMMAND & NOTES OF SOME OF MY EXPERIENCES DURING 1941 – 1945 [/underlined]
[underlined] Churchill's Minute of 8 July 1940 about Bomber Command to Beaverbrook (Minister for Aircraft Production) [/underlined] – made [italics] after the fall of France and the retreat of the British Forces from Dunkirk, when Britain stood alone against the might of Germany under the control of Hitler. [/italics]
"But when I look round to see how we can win the war I see that there is only one sure path. We have no Continental army which can defeat the German military power. The blockade is broken and Hitler has Asia and probably Africa to draw from. Should he be repulsed here or not try invasion he will recoil eastward, and we have nothing to stop him. But there is one thing that will bring him back and bring him down, and that is an absolutely devasting, exterminating attack by very heavy bombers from this country upon the Nazi homeland. We must be able to overwhelm them by this means, without which I do not see a way through."
A sustained air bombardment of Germany was therefore a major instrument of military policy, all the more appealing to the Nation as a whole because of the Blitz – As Churchill himself said, the almost universal cry was "Give it to them back!" (Extract from Most Secret War – R.V. Jones)
With regard to the Blitz, I personally experienced before I joined Aircrew in August 1941, seventy-eight consecutive nights when the German Bombers flew up the Thames and bombed London (East London had extensive damage and suffered many thousands of civilian casualties).
One of the last of these raids, and also the worst, occurred on 29 December 1940 when 300 tons of bombs (mostly incendiary bombs) were dropped on the City and surrounding area. The whole area was a mass of flames. (There is a famous photograph of St. Paul's in sharp relief against a skyline of fire). I walked through the devastated area the next morning on my way to Unilever House (my place of work before I joined the RAFVR).
On 29 December 1943 [underlined] exactly three years later to the night [/underlined], I 'gave it to them back!' I flew as navigator, in a Halifax Bomber as one of a force of over 700 Bombers to Berlin. It was the fifth heaviest raid ever made against Berlin and over 2300 tons of incendiaries and bombs were dropped in about twenty minutes!
[underlined] When Britain stood alone [/underlined]
After Dunkirk in 1940 there was no hope of bringing the war [underlined] to Germany [/underlined] on land until the success of the Second Front in 1944 and the Invasion of Germany in 1945. For the first three and a half years only one force, [underlined] Bomber Command [/underlined] was able to do so from the Air, and keep the torch of freedom burning for Britain and occupied Europe.
[page break]
2
For the rest of the war Bomber Command was joined by the American Airforce who supported the air war with a substantial heavy bomber force operating in daytime from East Anglia.
[underlined] 1943 – The growth point for Bomber Command [/underlined]
By 1943 Bomber Command, now under the direction of Air Chief Marshall Arthur Harris, had grown into a powerful heavy bomber force. A famous biblical quotation used by Arthur Harris about Germany's earlier bombing of British cities, summed up the future for Germany's industrial heartland – "they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind".
Bomber Command was able to sustain some 700 to 1000 aircraft, which could deliver in excess of 2000 tons of bombs on a target in one bombing raid. It flew at night throughout the year at relatively high altitudes; and in all weathers. It also used the long winter nights to penetrate deep into Germany to reach their industrial cities. Flying at over 10000ft required crew to wear oxygen masks and at 20000ft., temperatures could be minus 40 degrees centigrade! The sole heating for the crews would be from movable flexible pipes from the engines, or for the air gunners, electrically heated suits. Only fog, snow and ice around their base airfields and perhaps a full moon, would hold the squadrons back from operational flying.
Bomber Command flew in a concentrated stream and bombed targets in a matter of 20 minutes or so. Techniques were developed to smother the ground-to-air radar defences by all aircraft dropping metalised strips ('window') en route and over the target. The mass of strips obliterated the German radar responses from the bombers, so that the ground defences were unable to direct nightfighters or ack-ack to their quarry. Ground control of the nightfighters was also broken by jamming their intercom frequencies. Bomber wireless operators would tune to the nightfighters' frequencies and transmit engine noise to drown out communication. Specially equipped squadrons flying in or near the bomber stream would carry out operations known as ABC (Airborne Cigar), which interfered with radar responses from nightfighters, causing confusion in ground control operations. These squadrons would also tune to the ground control frequencies and with the aid of German speaking specialists gave false directions to the German pilots. When the German defences resorted to broadcasting coded music over national broadcasting channels, to indicate to the nightfighters where the targets were, these were jammed by over-playing the broadcasts, very loudly, with previously recorded Hitler speeches!
The development of the Pathfinder Force and the introduction of more sophisticated radar aids, especially H2S, enabled Bomber Command to keep closely to prescribed routes and to locate targets more accurately. This was achieved by the Pathfinders dropping coloured sky or ground markers near turning points and directly on the target, the whole operation being directed by Master Bomber crews flying at the forefront of the main force. In addition, other radar techniques for guiding bombers and indicating the release point for bombs, known as Oboe and G – H, were very accurate methods for pinpointing targets, especially in areas like the Ruhr Valley. All these techniques helped to produce highly concentrated bombing results.
These successes however were not without heavy losses to Bomber Command * as the German ground control revised their procedures and the German nightfighter force expanded. The nightfighter force (especially squadrons equipped with twin
[page break]
3
engined aircraft) became more freelance and extremely skilled due to the re-equipment of their aircraft with cannon firepower and radar air interception and homing techniques.
Bomber Command took a major part in destroying much of German's industrial base. It also caused the German ground defence forces to divert, in 1943-45, a huge number of men (almost 900,000) and all types of artillery (56,500) from the Western and Eastern Fronts to defend the skies over German cities, especially Berlin and cities in the Ruhr Valley. Additionally 1,200,000 civilians were employed in civil defence and in repair work.
Bomber Command delayed the use of the V weapons in 1944 by many months, and saved thousands of lives and possible destruction of much of London, especially the eastern areas of Greater London.
It was responsible, along with the American Airforce, for destroying in 1944-45 much of the armament, transport, radar and communications infrastructure in occupied Europe and Germany. Additionally the German oil refining industry was destroyed. These successes eventually grounded the German Airforce, paralysed the German Army, and advanced their surrender.
[underlined] *Bomber Command suffered very heavy losses [/underlined]
From 1939 – 1945 Bomber Command suffered some 60% casualties; a number greater than any other British and Commonwealth Force during the Second World War (only exceeded by the German U-Boat Force who suffered some 70% casualties).
Out of a force of 125000 Aircrew:
* 56000 were killed (equivalent to almost one fifth of all the deaths sustained by the British and Commonwealth forces for World War 2, and equal to all the Officer deaths on the Western Front – Vimy Ridge, the Somme, Passchendaele, Ypres etc during World War 1).
* 9000 were injured or wounded.
* 11000 were POWs or were missing.
In the peak times of 1943 and 1944 less than 10 crews in a 100 crews would survive their first tour of 30 operations. The Halifax and Lancaster Bomber would have an average life of 40 operational hours – about 5 or 6 missions.
The worst month of the war for aircraft losses was January 1944 when 633 aircraft were lost out of 6278 sorties – just over 10%.
This was also the month I was shot down over Berlin on my tenth operation, when my Squadron (102) lost 7 out of 15 aircraft – a loss of 47% (a loss of aircraft in percentage terms greater than that suffered by 617 Squadron on the Dam Busters Raid). The following night my Squadron lost a further 4 aircraft out of 16 on a mission to Magdeburg, Germany. Shortly after these disastrous losses, the Squadron was withdrawn from operations over Germany until they were re-equipped with the improved aircraft, the Halifax MK 3.
The worst single operation of the war was in March 1944, when 94 aircraft were lost on the Nurnberg raid with 14 more aircraft crashing on return to UK. On this raid more aircrew in Bomber Command were killed, than were killed in Fighter Command for the whole of the Battle of Britain.
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[underlined] Battle of Berlin [/underlined]
There were 16 raids during the Battle of Berlin from the end of 1943 to early 1944. In this time some 500 aircraft were lost on the Berlin raids. Over 3500 aircrew were lost, of which some 80% were killed! More than 2000 of them lie buried in the British War Graves Cemetery in West Berlin – two of my crew are buried there, two others who have no known graves are remembered on the RAF War Memorial at Runnymede.
[underlined] Bomber Command was heavily criticised for the destruction of Dresden and Chemnitz in February 1945 [/underlined]
Dresden and Chemnitz were regarded as non-military targets. Dresden in particular was a cultural and arts centre since medieval times. They were also great fire risks because of their wooden architecture.
As the Russian Forces on the Eastern Front entered East Germany in 1945, Stalin requested to Allied Command that Leipzig, Chemnitz and Dresden be bombed [underlined] as these cities were strategic railheads for moving German troops to the Eastern Front. [/underlined]
At that time I was a POW at Stalag IVB (Muhlberg on Elbe) and I was being moved to Oflag VIIB (Eichstat, Bavaria) with four other POW's. The route took us through Chemnitz station and we spent the best part of a day waiting with our German guards on the station for a connection to go south to Bavaria. [underlined] During this time we witnessed several German Panzer troop trains en route for the Eastern Front pass through the station. [/underlined] The date was 2 February 1945 just 10 days before Chemnitz and Dresden were bombed. I understand since, that the information about the date of these troop movements was not known at the time; otherwise the Allied Command might have taken action earlier.
Nevertheless Stalin was right, they were strategic railheads, and we (POW's) were [underlined] in the unique position of being the only Allied witnesses to see it. [/underlined] (I have a reference to this event in my wartime log entered whilst I was still a POW in Oflag VIIB).
The bombing was shared by Bomber Command and the American Airforce. The towns were burnt out and the casualties were very high indeed.
Personally I refute the charge, having seen the Panzer troop trains passing through Chemnitz, that these were open cities, wilfully destroyed. The Allied Airforces carried out what they were ordered to do – to aid the Russian Forces in what was total war in those days.
These charges of wanton destruction were, after the war, levelled at Air Chief Marshall Arthur Harris (who was denied a Peerage), and Bomber Command by the post war Labour Government. The accusations have been made ever since by all and sundry. They choose to forget that some 60,000 British civilians were killed as a result of German Airforce bombing and use of V weapons, on London and other Cities.
As a result campaign medals were not awarded to Bomber Command.
Arthur Harris said "Every butcher, baker, and candlestick maker, within two hundred miles of the Front got a campaign medal, but not Bomber Command".
When one reflects on the contribution that Bomber Command (a front line force without doubt) made to the success of World War 2; and the casualties and the
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stress the aircrew (mostly in their early 20's) suffered in achieving it, it is a travesty of justice to level the accusation of wanton destruction. Fortunately, with more thorough research, especially involving veterans of Bomber Command, the books of recent years have put the records straight.
[underlined] Summary of my aircrew training days [/underlined]
I joined the RAFVR in August 1941, wore a white flash in my forage cap to indicate aircrew; and after a long wait at St John's Wood, London, I was posted to Initial Training Wing Torquay, Devon.
Here I learnt the rudiments of subjects such as meteorology, air navigation, aircraft recognition, wireless telegraphy etc, alongside some square bashing and clay pigeon shooting.
I was promoted from AC2 to LAC and posted to Marshalls Airfield, Cambridge for a flying test. I flew with an instructor in a Tiger Moth for about eight hours and passed the initial experience requirement necessary to join the Arnold Training Scheme in the USA.
After some Christmas leave and a short stay at Heaton Park, Manchester, I joined the troopship 'Montcalm' at Gourock, on the Clyde, bound for Halifax, Canada. We were accompanied by another troopship the 'Vollendam' and we were supposed to have had a destroyer as escort for the crossing. Unfortunately the destroyer had to return to base. (It was a World War 1 American destroyer, one of fifty given to Britain in exchange for the use of Bermuda I believe, and it could not cope with the bad weather we were experiencing).
Luckily our two weeks crossing in January 1942 was uneventful although half a dozen ships were sunk in the same area of the Atlantic as ourselves. At this time in the war as many as 60 ships a week were sunk by German U boats in the North Atlantic.
From Halifax we were the first RAF aircrew trainees to travel to the USA in uniform. America had become our Ally just a few weeks before, (after the infamy of the Japanese who had bombed Pearl Harbour, on 7 December 1941, without formal declaration of war, sinking much of the Pacific fleet).
After suffering the privations in Britain – bombing, blackout, blockade, rationing of virtually everything, and the military setbacks such as experienced in Norway, France and the Middle East, America was no doubt the land of milk and honey.
We travelled to 'Turner Field' in Albany, Georgia for a month's acclimatisation, during which time I celebrated my 19th birthday. It was a base for the American Army Aircorps cadets.
Here we were given Army Aircorps clothing and were to be treated like the cadets to all their style of intake training such as:-
– drilling and physical training (callisthenics at 6 o'clock in the morning)
– being given literature on expected behaviour and etiquette!
– marching behind a brass band, playing Army Aircorps music, to all meals and to Retreat (lowering of the American Flag in the evening).
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Having endured basic rations in Britain for a considerable time, every meal at 'Turner Field' was a feast, and as cadets, we were waited on hand and foot by coloured waiters (at this time in the South, coloured people were not considered equal to whites; they were required to sit in the back of buses and in separate parts of the cinema etc and were treated generally as second class citizens). Back in Britain you had to queue up for your meals, get all your meal on one plate, take your own cutlery (in your gas mask case) and wash it up afterwards in a tank of tepid greasy water.
After a month I was posted to Lakeland, Florida (in March 1942) to a Civilian Flying School for Primary Flying Training.
Here I had a very pleasant time indeed. I went solo in a 'Stearman' biplane after the Instructor had 'buzzed off' a herd of cows from the auxillary [sic] landing field by diving at them! I had 40 hours solo, much of which was aerobatics – stalls, spins, loops etc. The flying was over lakes and orange groves in the Florida sunshine. As English Cadets we had much hospitality with local American families and their daughters!
After completion of the Course, we had a few days leave, and a colleague and I hitched a lift to West Palm Beach. We booked into an hotel, but within a short while we were invited to stay with an American lady (Mrs Hubbard), who turned out to be the daughter of Rockefeller (a multi-millionaire and philanthropist). She had an English lady staying with her (who had a son in the RAF) and between them they looked after us for the next two days, like two long lost sons. Her home could have been in Hollywood; it had a beautiful swimming pool within a magnificant [sic] Italian styled garden, with an arcaded drinks bar at one end.
My greatest memory of this occasion, was to meet – and be photographed with – one of the few surviving Fleet Air Arm pilots, who in the previous year had torpedoed the pocket battleship 'Bismark', damaged its rudder, and enabled the British Fleet to sink it in the English Channel. He was touring America as a hero and had been invited to Mrs Hubbard's home. (The sinking of the Bismark was a great British victory, it having sunk the battleship 'Hood', with the loss of nearly 1500 lives.)
After this short break (at the end of April 1942) we were posted to an Army Aircorps Flying School in Georgia for Intermediate Training. Here I started a course of flying on a basic trainer with an Army Instructor. After a number of flying lessons I was unable to convince my Instructor I was safe to go solo on this plane and that was the end of my pilot training. (The US Army Aircorps had a policy of failing a high proportion of cadets and I was one of them; had I been trained in an RAF Flying School in the States the story might have been different). I was disheartened at the time but took the view that I could have killed myself, as one of my friends did shortly afterwards!
I took the train back to Canada (in June 1942) to the RCAF Camp at Trenton, Ontario, and after some interviews and an exam I remustered to U/T Navigator. This transfer did at least give me a chance to see some more of Canada, and I was able to visit Lake Ontario, Toronto and Niagara Falls before I moved on.
A party of us were moved westward for a day or so by train, through impressive Canadian countryside with pine forests and rivers solid with floating logs. The train was pulled by an enormous steam engine, snorting its way through this majestic
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scenery with hardly a sign of civilisation anywhere. We stopped eventually at Brandon, Manitoba, where we stayed awaiting a posting to an Air Navigation School. Whilst at Brandon I managed to spend a weekend at Clear Lake about 60 miles north. It was a beautiful lake surrounded by pine forests (with log cabins, a restaurant, a central hall), where swimming, fishing, and rowing facilities were available. In the evening dances were held in the hall and a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman was in attendance – it was just like a picture post card! At the dance I met a girl who lived in Winnipeg, who I was able to see again on a number of occasions, as I was posted to the Winnipeg Air Navigation School about a week later (August 1942).
Winnipeg Air Navigation School services were run by civilians, with the teaching of all the subjects by the RCAF.
Winnipeg was situated in the vast grain growing area of Manitoba which was as flat as a pancake – when flying at a few thousand feet you had an unrestricted view to the horizon. The towns, marked by grain elevators and water towers (with the town's name painted on the side), were spaced along the railway line, with other towns scattered in the countryside. All were visible on any cross country route, thus it was impossible to get lost during navigational exercises, even at night, as there was no blackout in Canada!
It was a pleasant, comfortable three months training, spending about half our time in the class room and half on air exercises. We flew in ancient Anson aircraft with civilian pilots, and apart from our air exercises we had to wind up the wheels on take off and down on landing!
The main things I can remember were: the crash of a light aircraft only a few yards away, and the raging fire that ensued that made it impossible to rescue the pilot; the freezing nights practising astro sextant shots. And the more pleasant activitity [sic] of eating Christmas-like turkey dinners every Sunday, and going to dances in Winnipeg, with my friend whom I had met at Clear Lake, Brandon, at weekends. I was awarded my Navigator's Wing on 20 November 1942 and was promoted to Sergeant (I was just a few marks short of getting a Commission).
A few days later we were all on the long train journey back to Moncton, Halifax, breaking our journey for a memorable stopover in Montreal. We returned to England on the luxury liner the Queen Elizabeth, which had been converted into a troopship. We had two meals a day, there were 17 bunks to a state cabin, and we travelled without escort taking only four days to cross the North Atlantic. We were home on leave for Christmas – just one year had elapsed since I was on embarkation leave for my training in North America.
The beginning of 1943 brought about a glut of trained aircrew from the North American and Commonwealth Training Schools.
As a result many hundreds of us were held in holding centres in Harrogate and Bournemouth to await postings. To fill in the time I was posted with others to an RAF Regiment Training Course at Whitley Bay on the coast near Newcastle in the freezing weather of February 1943.
It was not until late April 1943 that we took up flying again, when a party of us were posted to the RAF Air Navigation School at Jurby, at the northern end of the Isle of Man.
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For the next three weeks, still flying in Ansons, I brushed up my navigation (not having flown for five months) with day and night cross country exercises around the Irish Sea, the east coast of Northern Ireland and the west coast of Britain. The weather was quite cool and we even experienced snow in the first two weeks of May. On free days we would take the small 'toast rack' railway from Jurby to Douglas (capital of the Isle of Man) for a day out – it was very quiet in wartime. The only feature I can remember was that all the hotels along the sea front were wired off, as they housed many of the aliens that had been interned for the duration of the war.
On the completion of the course we had some leave and I was posted to the RAF Operational Training Unit at Kinloss, Scotland, on the Moray Firth. I was now set for 'crewing up' in Bomber Command and getting nearer to operational flying.
I arrived at Kinloss in the first week in June. The weather was marvellous and stayed like it for the six weeks we were there. For part of the time a party of us were housed in a large mansion-like property (just for sleeping purposes) and each of us was given a bike to get to and from the airfield. The countryside was beautiful and with the consistent fine weather and the birds singing in the trees and hedgerows, cycling was an added pleasure. It was so peaceful the war seemed very far away indeed. RAF Kinloss was equipped with Whitley Bombers (withdrawn from operational flying in 1942) and were known as 'flying coffins' as they were very sluggish responding to the flying controls – a major defect we were to discover when flying in formation over Elgin (to celebrate a special occasion).
After a few days we were crewed up and our crew consisted of:-
F/O S.R. Vivian – Pilot – 'Viv'
F/Sgt R.C. Wilson – Navigator – 'Reg'
F/O L.A. Underwood – Bombaimer – 'Laurie'
Sgt W. Ross – W/OP AG – 'Bill'
Sgt J. Bushell – Rear AG – 'John'
During the ensuing six weeks we had day and night flying fairly frequently, carrying out exercises such as cross country and formation flying, airfiring, fighter affiliation and bombing practice.
We had some ground work also. I can remember being introduced to the Distant Reading Compass, located near the tail of the aircraft away from magnetic influences. It was a giro-controlled compass, very stable (which could be adjusted by the navigator for the earth's magnetic variation to give true north readings), with electric repeaters for the pilot, navigator and bomb aimer.
I can also remember flying at night, trying to practise astro-navigation, with the sky being barely dark. In the north of Scotland in mid-summer at a height of 10000 ft the sun's glow was present on the horizon most of the night. In this light the Grampian mountains and the Highlands below looked very gaunt and awesome indeed.
At the end of our training our crew had become great friends. We spent time together at Findhorn Bay (on the Moray Firth) on some afternoons, and in the pub in Forres town on some Saturdays. And once in the Mess all one weekend, when we were confined to the Station by the C.O. because we landed in error at RAF Lossiemouth (an adjacent airfield on the Moray Firth) instead of Kinloss! But we drank a lot of beer that weekend!
We left Kinloss for some leave towards the end of July, never to see 'Viv' our pilot again. Little did we know that 'Viv' would be killed in three weeks (just a few days
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after getting married on leave). This was before we even reached RAF Rufforth in Yorkshire, our Conversion Unit for Halifax Heavy Bombers.
We arrived at RAF Rufforth in the middle of August to find that 'Viv' had been reported missing on 10 August 1941 flying as second pilot on a raid to Nurnburg. (I have learned since that the aircraft crashed near Ramsen/Bollanden, Germany. Six were killed including 'Viv' and two became POWs).
All pilots, as captains of their aircraft, had to have two operational flights – 'second dickey trips' – before they could fly their own crews on operations. 'Viv' was on the second of his flights.
We were now a headless crew, awaiting the appointment of another pilot.
From now on it would be apparent that our lives in Bomber Command were becoming a lottery. There was no way we could tell, even at a Conversion Unit before Operations, whether from day to day we would live or die.
During our short stay at Rufforth, about 60 aircrew were killed due to mechanical failure or accidents. Among other accidents, I can remember that two aircraft collided in mid-air, another crashed when a propellor flew off into the fuselage, and a further aircraft crashed at night on a practice bombing raid exercise.
After a few days F/L PGA Harvey was appointed as our pilot, Sgt A McCarroll as our mid/upper gunner (formerly the drummer in Maurice Winnick's dance band – well known on BBC radio pre-war) and Sgt J McArdle as our flight engineer. This completed the crew for our 4 engined bomber, i.e. the Halifax.
F/L Harvey was an experienced pilot having two operational tours in the Middle East in 1941 on Wellington Bombers. It was a mystery to us why he was taking on another tour. Flying on operations deep inside Germany in 1943 was another dimension for him, (with cities heavily defended by ack-ack and night fighters armed with cannon and equipped with radar homing devices), to what he had experienced in the Middle East in 1941. Especially as many of his sorties (whilst being in a war zone) had not been bombing missions.
As F/L Harvey was an experienced pilot, the minimum time was taken to crew up, get familiar with the Halifax, and take on the new disciplines of a flight engineer and a mid/upper gunner. For my part I had to learn how to use 'Gee', a radar device for measuring pulses from two transmitting stations displayed on a cathode ray tube, which were then plotted on a special gridded map, to give pinpoint accuracy of your ground position.
There were air exercises for bombing, airfiring and fighter affiliation. The latter was an exercise to remember (the date was 2 September 1943). For this exercise we flew at 10000ft and a fighter would 'attack' from behind. The two gunners would then cooperate with the pilot so that he could take evasive action. F/L Harvey in taking evasive action managed [underlined] to turn the aircraft on its back, [/underlined] and it was several thousand feet later before the aircraft was righted again. I had spun round in the nose of the 'plane, broken rivits [sic] were rattling around inside the fuselage, and the chemical Elsan toilet at the back of the aircraft had emptied its contents all over the rear of the plane. We were all shaken up by the experience, especially as F/L Harvey had [underlined] 390 operational flying hours to his credit [/underlined] and we did not expect him to lose control. However some good came out of it, in that John the rear gunner decided that from then on he would store his parachute in his gun turret, rather than in the fuselage as required by regulations – this action would later save his life!
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I also decided I would be prepared and have a routine to cover baling out and I learnt the following procedure:-
'Helmet off' – You could break your neck with the helmet still attached to the oxygen supply and intercom!
'Parachute on' – You could jump out without it!
'Handle on the left hand side' – I was left handed (aircrew have been killed with an un-opened parachute with the handle – D ring – on the 'wrong' side!).
In addition (as navigator) I decided that over the target I had a minute or so to spare, so I could fold back my seat, lift up the navigation table clear of the escape hatch and be ready to bale out immediately if necessary. I believe these plans gave me and Laurie (bomb aimer) additional vital seconds, and with the action John took, the three of us saved our lives nearly five months later.
In a week or so we were posted to 102 Squadron to commence our operational service.
[underlined] 102 Squadron 4 Group Bomber Command – Pocklington Yorkshire [/underlined]
Pocklington airfield was situated 12 miles south-east of York, with 800ft hills 3.5 miles NE of the airfield. (Whilst I was there two Halifaxes with heavy bomb loads crashed into these hills after takeoff – that particular runway was not used after that.) It was a wartime airfield with only temporary accommodation, thus all our billets were in Nissen Huts. They had semi-circular corrugated iron roofs and walls, with concrete ends and were dispersed in fields nearby. They were dreary inhospitable places in winter, each heated only by a small central coal burning stove.
Where possible, when not on duty, we sought refuge and relaxation in the 'comfort' of the Sergeants' Mess or in the pubs (i.e. Betty's Bar) or dance halls (i.e. DeGrey Rooms) in the city of York.
Pocklington had three affiliated aifields [sic] – Elvington, Full Sutton and Melbourne. All the airfields were commanded by Air Commodore 'Gus' Walker, at that time the youngest Air Commodore at age 31 in the RAF. He had lost his right arm when a Lancaster exploded on the ground at the airfield he commanded, Syerston, in 1942.
We arrived at Pocklington in mid-September 1943. F/L Harvey was promoted to Acting Squadron Leader in charge of 'A' Flight and we became his crew, which meant we would not fly as frequently on operations as other crews. (This was considered to be a mixed blessing as a tour – 30 operations – would take longer.)
Over the next two weeks we completed a number of cross country exercises, mostly for me to practise my navigation with new equipment. At Rufforth I had 'Gee' radar which enabled me to plot accurate ground positions essential for calculating wind velocities – the basis of all air navigation. Unfortunately the Germans were able to jam this equipment, so that as an aircraft approached the coastline of Continental Europe, the radar pulses were obliterated. Thus the navigator had a race against time to get as much data as possible before we reached the 'Enemy Coast'.
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At Pocklington we had a very new piece of radar equipment called 'H2S' (height to surface). Located in the aircraft it sent out pulses to the ground around the aircraft for 15/20 miles. Reflections were received back as bright specks on a cathode ray tube. The density of the reflections depended on whether the aircraft was flying over sea, land, hills, rivers, cities, lakes etc thus a rough topographical map of the ground (the quality of the picture varied) was displayed on the cathode ray screen.
Best map results were between land and sea, but provided the navigator was reasonably aware of his ground position, he could recognise coastlines, large rivers and lakes, and sizable towns, to and from the target. Thus he could plot accurately the bearing and distance from these land marks, and be able to recalculate wind/velocities maintain required tracks, ground speeds and times to the target. For some more experienced navigators, they would have the ability to blind bomb, without the need to use the markers dropped by Pathfinders (who incidentally also used H2S equipment).
H2S could not be jammed, but nightfighters could 'home on' to the H2S frequency if it was continuously switched on (a hazard not known to aircrews for some time after the system was in operation!). Some aircraft were shot down this way. Another new piece of equipment called the 'airplot indicator' was available to the navigator. This linked the giro compass and airspeed indicator to provide a continuous read out of the air position in latitude and longitude. It was a useful guide to have available, but no navigator would rely on it entirely and give up his own airplot drawn on his own navigational chart.
We also had a hand held 'I.C.A.N. computer', a manually operated vectoring device on which we could plot a course and calculate the airspeed (to make good our desired track and ground speed), before we added this information to our main chart. Two other navigational aids we had used in training were radio bearings taken by the wireless operator and our own astro sight shots. The astro shots were converted to position lines by use of air almanacs. Both these methods were not practical when operating over 'enemy territory'. Even more so when considering that operational aircraft were faster, and the need at any moment to take evasive action (because of flak or nightfighters) would make these methods inoperable.
There were times when navigational aids were not available to us and map-reading over cloud or at night, especially at high altitude, was not possible. Then fall back on 'dead reckoning' methods was necessary. This required accurate plotting of the air position and the use of wind velocities supplied by the Meterology [sic] Officer, or use of those already calculated by the navigator en route. In both these cases they would need to be modified to cater for forecast weather and wind velocity changes and any alterations in altitude during the flight.
Preparing for a bombing mission on an operational squadron was quite a lengthy procedure, occupying a good a [sic] part of the day prior to the night's operation. About mid-morning 'Ops On' would be announced if there was to be a raid that night. Soon the ground crew were busy checking each aircraft's radar, guns, engines etc and filling the wing tanks with over 2000 gallons of fuel. Armourers would load the guns with ammunition and bring up and mount a mix of high explosive and incendiary bombs in the bomb bays for that night's target. (The bombs were stored in a remote part of the airfield for safety, behind blast walls. They would be fused for the target and towed on long low trolleys, by tractor, to the aircraft dispersal points.) Although the target was not disclosed at this stage because of the strict security rules, ground
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crews would have a good idea from the amount of fuel loaded and the type of bomb load, as to where the target would be.
About the same time as the ground crew activities, aircrew would be briefed by their respective leaders. There would be a leader for each discipline e.g. pilots, navigators, bomb aimers etc. The navigator would be one of the busiest; the navigation leader would issue them with flight plans and meteorological information (they would be the first to know the target). They would then plot the route on their chart and smaller topographical maps highlighting towns, lakes and rivers near to their track. Initial courses and airspeeds would be calculated from the wind velocities supplied (these would be modified as more information was gained from 'Gee' and 'H2S' during the flight). It was essential that they kept to their prescribed altitudes, tracks and time table, to maintain concentration of the bomber stream and their time slot over the target (no more than three minutes long).
The aircrew would then go to the Mess, have their operational meal of eggs and bacon (civilians were lucky to get one egg a month!), and fill their thermos flasks with coffee. They would also draw their flying rations of chocolate and orange juice to sustain them during the long night. They would also have available caffeine tablets to keep them alert.
The squadron briefing would follow when all aircrew operational that night (about 150 personnel) were assembled in front of a large wall map of Europe, showing the route and the target. If it was the 'Big City' (Berlin) a gasp would go round the hut, as it was considered to be the most dangerous target of them all. The briefing was carried out by the Squadron Commander, the Intelligence officer, the Meteorology officer and any other specialist whose views were pertinent to that night's raid. The briefing would cover overall details of the operation such as:
– size of the bombing force and the objective of any diversionary raids taking place.
– the weather en route and when returning to base; the forecast wind changes; the extent of cloud on route and over the target; icing risks at various altitudes.
– how the pathfinders would be marking the route and target.
– danger spots for flak and nightfighters.
Finally, all personnel, especially navigators, were asked to synchronise their watches (to the second) to GMT
After this the aircrew drew their Parachutes and Mae Wests, left any personal items in a bag to be picked up when they returned(!), and departed by truck to their dispersal points around the airfield.
At the dispersal point they had time to smoke a cigarette outside the aircraft (not frowned upon in those days), and then to check their equipment thoroughly before they took off. The airgunners checked their guns over the North Sea!
(At times they would get to this point of preparation and have to wait for clearance of fog. The 'Met' officer had guaranteed it would clear but mostly it did not, and the operation had to be abandoned!)
At last it was take-off time and they were directed by the Airfield Controller to the runway, where many of the groundcrew would wave them off into the gathering darkness. Then commenced the long ordeal (5-8 hours) of freezing cold and the heavy vibration and incessant roar of four Rolls Royce Merlin engines, in an unpressurised aircraft, until they returned (with luck unscathed) in the early hours the following morning. On return they went to the de-briefing hut where they were given hot coffee and a tot of rum dispensed by the Padre(!) Then followed by a debriefing
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by the Intelligence officer, who took notes about their bombing run and any details of flak and nightfighters they had experienced during the night. After an egg and bacon breakfast, they trekked back to their respective Nissen huts, crawled into bed and attempted to get some sleep if that was at all possible, and await the next call.
After ten days of cross country flights at Pocklington as S/L Harvey's crew and practising with 'Gee' and 'H2S' equipment, we were considered ready for our first operation. This was a mine-laying trip (described as 'Gardening and planting vegetables') to the coastal waters on the east side of Denmark. Mine-laying was regarded as a reasonably safe and easy task and ideally suited to be a first mission – this turned out not to be so!
On 2 October 1943 we took off, carrying in the bomb bay two mines and their parachutes. 117 aircraft took part mining various places from Lorient to Heligoland. We climbed on track across the North Sea to a height of 10000ft. About halfway across the North Sea, S/L Harvey asked Laurie to take over the controls whilst he visited the toilet at rear of the aircraft. Laurie as bomb aimer would have had some training to assist the pilot on take off but not to fly the 'plane. In fact Laurie had never sat in the pilot's seat of a Halifax before.
[underlined] Now Laurie was asked to fly the 'plane on his first operation and, even worse, as we approached the 'enemy coast'! [/underlined] S/L Harvey really must have had an urgent call of nature! If the rest of us had known at the time what a predicament he was putting Laurie in, then I think we would all have needed 'to go', as well! Luckily for everyone S/L Harvey was back in his place before we crossed the Danish coast.
On crossing the coast there was a loud bang which lifted the aircraft alarmingly, afterwards restoring to level flight. At this point both 'Gee' and 'H2S' went out of action, but we continued across Denmark to our dropping zone described as the 'Samso Belt', which we identified visually through broken cloud.
The bomb doors were opened and we made our dropping run at 8000ft. We then attempted to release the mines but they would not drop. Several attempts were made to release them manually but without success. S/L Harvey then decided to return to base with the mines and tried to close the bomb doors. These would not close. It was now evident that the hydraulic system had been damaged as well as the radar equipment, probably caused by a flak ship as we crossed the Danish coast earlier.
We reduced our height to 2000ft to get under the cloud base and some nasty electric storms across the North Sea; also to pick out a landfall as soon as possible, as I had only 'dead reckoning' means by which to navigate!
As we did not need oxygen at this height I decided to visit the Elsan toilet at the rear of the aircraft. Taking a torch I groped my way to the back in the darkness. I was just stepping over the main spar when by torchlight I noticed a gaping hole beneath me; had I completed the step I would have fallen 2000 ft. into the North Sea! I relieved myself through the hole! I returned to the nose section immediately to confirm to S/L Harvey that there was no doubt that we had been hit by flak. I then had a drink of coffee from my thermos flask to restore my shattered nerves.
It was now obvious the damage was more serious than we first thought. Loss of hydraulic power meant that not only were the bomb doors down, but when the flaps and wheels were lowered for landing, the bomb doors, flaps and wheels could not be
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raised again. If we were to overshoot the runway on landing, we would have crashed – with two mines still on board!
These thoughts kept us silent, with all eyes skinned for our landfall 'Flamborough Head' on the Yorkshire coast, and the sight of of [sic] the flashing pundit that would indicate the close proximity of our airfield.
Luckily my dead reckoning navigation brought us back home on course and we landed safely (otherwise these notes would not have been written).
On landing one of the mines fell out onto the runway. At our dispersal point the ground staff were amazed that we had survived as a crew without a scratch.
Both mines, their release mechanism, the bomb doors and the fuselage had been damaged by shrapnel, and the parachutes badly torn. The hydraulics were severed, the 'Gee' and 'H2S' also damaged. Above the flak hole we discovered the fuselage was peppered with shrapnel holes within inches of the mid-upper gunner's turret.
We were told originally that the aircraft would be written off, but I learned since that the aircraft was repaired. It carried out a number of missions, including targets such as Kassel and Berlin, but sadly was shot down by a nightfighter off Denmark in April 1944, again on a minelaying operation. All the crew died when the aircraft crashed into the sea. (This crew had saved their lives three months before, coincidentally on the night we were shot down, having baled out of a Halifax, short of petrol. Such was the fragility of life in Bomber Command at that time).
Reading the [underlined] Squadron's [/underlined] Operational Record after the war, I found S/L Harvey's statement on our minelaying mission to be totally inaccurate. There was no mention of flak damage and having to bring the mines back, though the [underlined] Pocklington Station [/underlined] Operations Record did report it accurately. I believe S/L Harvey wanted to have a successful tour of operations and a possible DFC award later on.
Having had a near miss with shrapnel close to his turret, Alec McCarroll the mid-upper gunner, decided to report sick before the next operation. In fact he never flew again, and sadly he was labelled LMF (Lack of Moral Fibre), reduced from Sergeant to AC2 and posted to Elvington (one or our affiliated airfields) to general duties. Such arbitrary action was taken by Commanding Officers as a deterrent to all aircrew.
At this time losses in aircrew were extremely high, so much so that one crew hardly knew another before one of them went missing (often becoming obvious by a number of empty beds in your Nissen Hut). Every operation to Germany, especially to places such as Berlin, was almost like 'going over the top'. A succession of such raids could bring on exhaustion and a fit of nerves to anyone. The threat of being branded LMF was made to prevent the possibility of some aircrew refusing to fly. In point of fact only about 0.4% of all aircrew in Bomber Command were branded like this during the war. Nevertheless some, who had as many as 20 operations before they came off flying, were cashiered or demoted with ignominy. For these, it was a great injustice, especially as there were many civilians of military age (in reserved occupations) who would never be exposed [to] such risks. And a large proportion of servicemen, in all Services, who fortunately would not have to face the high risk of death on [underlined] every [/underlined] operational mission.
As the minelaying mission was my first operation and because of the experiences I had on that flight, the Squadron Navigation Officer decided to check through my log
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and chart. He found both completely accurate and commended me on the results which he knew were made under testing conditions. Later he informed me that he was recommending me for a Commission. (Actually this was long overdue and should have been made at the time I qualified as a navigator).
Our next operation was on 4 October 1943 to Frankfurt. This was not a success as firstly S/L Harvey decided to weave all the way to Germany (not normally done unless there is some predicted flak or there are nightfighters about, as it doesn't aid good navigation!). Then without explanation he turned back to base, dropping our bombs into the North Sea on the way. (We had flown five hours out of about seven to complete the bombing operation and had been less than a 100 miles from the target.)
S/L Harvey reported in the Squadron Operations Record "Overload petrol pump U/S. Returned early". I had a feeling that S/L Harvey wasn't very happy that night after our minelaying experiences just two days before. It was frustrating for us, having got near the target, as this raid turned out to be the first serious blow on Frankfurt so far in the war.
Later the flight engineer went sick and as far as I can recall he did not fly again.
Our third operation was on 8 October 1943 to Hanover, when 504 aircraft took part. This mission went without mishap. No trouble on route, it was clear over the target, we bombed on red target indicators (Pathfinder markers) from 17200 ft, and fires were see [sic] to start. This raid was reported as the most successful attack on Hanover of the war. We began to think we were at last OK as a crew but this proved not so.
Apart from a cross country flight and an air test we did not fly any more operations in October. In fact we did not fly any more missions again with S/L Harvey(!) although 'officially' he remained the 'A' Flight Commander until the end of November 1943. Shortly after our third operation I was interviewed by Air Commodore 'Gus' Walker for my Commission. During that meeting he informed me that S/L Harvey was being withdrawn from operational flying, indicating that he had had enough. It did not really surprise me though, especially as Bomber Command had entered a phase when life was becoming very fragile indeed. What did surprise me however was to learn (only recently) that at the end of November 1943 when he relinquished command of 'A' Flight, S/L Harvey was recommended for a DFC. The award was described as "long overdue" for his tours in the Middle East in 1941 and his operations over Germany (one in June 1942 and two with us in October 1943, which included the 'returned early' operation). He was awarded the DFC on 28 December 1943.
Now we were a headless crew all over again, awaiting the posting of another pilot. In the meantime destined to fly as spares, replacing crew members in other crews who were sick or otherwise unable to fly. This was a very demoralising position to be in. As a crew you develop a team spirit and a trust in each other; without a crew you are just a floating part. You have little or no faith in the crew you are joining for that night, or for that matter neither are they likely to have any faith in you. Your life is in their hands and their lives are in yours!
I complained on one occasion to the Acting 'A' Flight Commander about flying as a spare. His reply was "You will probably just carry on like it, until one day you don't come back". Later I checked his career and luckily he survived his first tour and got a
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DFC at the end of May 1944. I have often wondered whether [underlined] he [/underlined] survived the rest of the war!
Laurie Underwood, John Bushell and I (the wireless operator seemed to have disappeared), then flew as spares for the next five or so operations, which was one of the most potentially unnerving periods I can remember.
More than a month had elapsed since I flew on the Hanover operation, before my next mission on 11 November '43 minelaying off the Frisian Islands (near the Dutch coast). I flew with F/O Eddy and 45 aircraft took part. We dropped our mines from 6000ft and we lost one aircraft from our Squadron, shot down by a flak ship. The aircraft ditched in the North Sea. All the crew were missing presumed killed. This was the same aircraft that I flew with S/L Harvey when we went to Frankfurt and returned early on 4 October '43!
My fifth operation was on 18 November '43 to Mannheim/Ludwigshafen flying as a spare with P/O Jackson (Australian pilot) when 395 aircraft took part. It was a raid to divert German nightfighters away from the main force of bombers who were bombing Berlin. We bombed from 17000ft on the green target indicators – bombing was well concentrated. The diversion was successful in that the main force only suffered 2% losses, whereas our losses were high at 5.8%. 102 Squadron did not lose any aircraft that night.
I flew again as spare with F/O Jackson on 22 November '43 to the 'Big City' – Berlin – the most heavily defended city in Germany. 764 aircraft took part, dropping 2501 tons of incendiaries and high explosive in about 20 minutes. This was the second out of 16 raids described as the Battle of Berlin. For all raids the target was the centre of Berlin (Hitler's Chancery) and for each raid the City was approached from a different point of the compass. Unless Pathfinders directed otherwise, bombing on each raid would 'creep back' like a wedge from the target point; thus the whole city over the period of 16 raids would be covered by bombing.
This night our bombing run was from the west and we bombed at 18000ft on the centre of the flares (checked by H2S). A glow of fires were seen through 9/10 clouds. This raid was the third heaviest of the war on Berlin and it was also the most successful. Much damage was done to industrial areas and munitions factories, the Ministry of Weapons and Munitions and many political and administrative buildings. The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church was also badly damaged, and post war was part restored and became a Berlin tourist attraction. (I suppose it can be compared with Coventry Cathedral, which back in 1940 was ruined by the German Airforce when they devasted the City. And after the War, a new Cathedral was built alongside the ruins of the old.)
The equivalent of nearly three German Army Divisions were drafted in, to tackle the fires and clear the damage which extended from the centre to the western limits of the City. Luckily we experienced no nightfighter attacks or flak damage, and we narrowly missed an accident on return to Pocklington;
Whilst we were still on the outer circuit waiting to land, another Halifax from our Squadron flying on the same outer circuit as ourselves, had met head-on with a Halifax from 77 Squadron. It had been returning to our affiliate airfield at Full Sutton and was also on its outer circuit preparing to land. The two outer circuits unfortunately overlapped and as a result of the mid-air collision both crews were killed outright –
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we had missed that fate by a small margin! John Bushell (rear gunner in our crew also now flying as a spare) had the unenviable task of representing 102 Squadron at the funeral of one of those killed.
I continued my time as spare, flying with F/O Jackson (his navigator must have had a long time off for sickness or, for some other reason, was not flying). This time, 25 November '43, our target was Frankfurt and only 262 aircraft took part. The flight was uneventful, although the gunners had heated discussions about seeing nightfighters, until F/O Jackson, in his casual Australian voice, settled the argument by saying "If they've only got two engines, shoot the bastards down!". We bombed on the red target indicators from 17500ft. Some fires were seen, but it was cloudy over target and the bombing appeared to be scattered. Despite the small force of aircraft, 102 Squadron managed to lose 2 aircraft over Germany, keeping up its record for high losses.
We had hardly got to bed after debriefing from the Frankfurt raid in the early hours of 26 November, when the tannoys blared out for all aircrew to report to their sections to be briefed for another raid that night. We were supplied with caffeine tablets and given 'pink gins' to drink in the hopes that it would keep us 'on our toes' that night. I flew again with F/O Jackson with a small force of 178 aircraft to Stuttgart. This was a diversionary raid to draw off German nightfighters from the main force of bombers whose target was yet again Berlin. We bombed on the red target indicators from 17500ft. Large fires were seen and bombing was scattered but, as planned, a part of the German nightfighter force was drawn off from the main bomber force sucessfully [sic]. We lost one aircraft which crashed near Pocklington and one returned badly damaged by nightfighter (airgunner killed).
We were diverted to Hartford Bridge airfield in the south, so that the main force of Lancasters could use 4 Group airfields, as some of their airfields were fog bound. They were also short of petrol after an exceptionally long flight. Nevertheless 14 Lancasters crashed in England that night. We returned to Pocklington after a weekend in Hartford Bridge, on three engines after one engine failed on take off. This was my last flight with F/O Jackson, who incidently [sic] was previously awarded the DFM. He finished his tour and was awarded the DFC in June 1944 – perhaps I should have stayed with him rather than return to my original crew!
Before Laurie Underwood and John Bushell and I came together again as a crew, I had just one other experience when I was due to fly as a spare. Fortunately the pilot, prior to take off, taxied off the concrete dispersal point into the mud of the outfield and the flight had to be abandoned. Just as well, as I had premonitions about flying that night with this particular crew.
The month of December 1943 proved to be a month of non activity first there was a full moor, then the weather was poor. I was also waiting for a week's leave to get my officer's uniform (my promotion, although it had been approved had not yet been promulgated) and we were awaiting the names to complete our crew.
Eventually, besides Laurie, John and myself, we learned the additional names to the crew. They were:
Pilot – F/O G.A. Griffiths DFM 'Griff' – On his second tour
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Flight Engineer – Sgt J. Bremner ) all had previous ops. as spare crew
Wireless Op. – F/S E.A. Church ) all had previous ops. as spare crew
Mid/Upper Gr. – F/S C.G. Dupuies (French Canadian) ) all had previous ops. as spare crew
It seemed beyond belief that our new Flight Commander did not authorise any cross country 'runs' for us to gain crew experience, or to practise H2S, bombing and gunnery procedures, before we flew on operations together. However it was not to be, and on 29 December '43 we were scheduled on a main force operation to Berlin.
This was the eighth raid on Berlin and the fifth heaviest. 712 aircraft took part, and 2314 tons of incendiaries and high explosives were dropped in 20 minutes. It was an uneventful flight. I remember clearly seeing the outline of the Zuider Zee on the radar screen (H2S always at its best on coastal outlines) as we flew over Northern Holland. Bad weather restricted the German nighfighters [sic] to 66, but these were the more experienced crews with air interception and H2S homing radar and upward firng [sic] cannon. Fortunately, due to two spoof raids by RAF Mosquitos the nightfighters reached Berlin too late to be effective.
We flew into Berlin from the southeast and dropped our bombs from 17500ft on the target indicators but no results were seen owing to 10/10ths cloud. Aircraft losses that night were down to 2.8%, but 102 Squadron yet again managed to beat the average with two aircraft missing! In one of these aircraft Harold Paar, a Chigwell neighbour of mine, was shot down on his first operation. He became a POW in the same camp – Stalag IVB – indeed the same hut, as myself. (I discovered he was a neighbour when my son met Harold's son in the same class at the same grammar school some 20 years later.)
January 1944 began as another month of inactivity, again as a mixture of bad weather. Also a full moon period prevailed, and there was a reluctance to send Halifax 2's out to Berlin because of their increasing vulnerability. However another maximum effort to Berlin was ordered, so our second operation, as full crew again, was scheduled for Berlin on 20 January '44. In addition a second pilot Sgt K F Stanbridge (flying as a 2nd dickey pilot for operational experience) was also included in the crew.
For this operation I was responsible as one of four navigators operating H2S equipment in 4 Group (4 Group comprised of 15 squadrons totalling 250/300 aircraft), to radio at intervals my calculated wind velocities back to 4 Group. These wind velocities from the four navigators were to be averaged and rebroadcast to the whole of 4 Group for their use in maintaining concentration in the bomber stream. In addition I was to do my own blind bombing that night (not bombing on Pathfinder markers), using H2S to identify the homing point for a timed run into Berlin.
This bombing raid on 20 January '44 was to be the ninth raid and the fourth heaviest on Berlin; 769 aircraft took part and 2400 tons of incendiary and high explosive bombs were dropped in 20 minutes. This riad was considered to have been successful although less concentrated than planned. Due to bad weather again over Germany, the German nightfighters were limited to 98 experienced crews equipped with 'schrage musik' upward firing cannon, and radar interception and H2S homing devices. The nightfighters (all twin engined) were also operating a new procedure called 'tame boar', where they were directed by ground control into the bomber stream at intervals and over the target. From this point they could fly freelance and
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use their own equipment to locate bombers, fly beneath them out of sight of the bomber's gunners and fire cannon shells into their petrol laden wings. Additionally on this night, thin cloud covering Berlin with tops about 12000ft was illuminated from below by many searchlights, allowing the nightfighters flying above the bomber stream to locate them, silhouetted against this bright backcloth. Thus, despite the limitation of nightfighters, it was a highly successful night for them, as they claimed 33 victories (nine of them over Berlin) out of the 35 bombers lost.
We took off at 1630hrs GMT on 20 January 1944 in a Halifax nicknamed 'Old Flo' by the ground crew and were soon flying above 10/10ths cloud. Using Gee radar initially and then H2S to 'map read', we flew uninterrupted over a northerly route into Germany, turning southeast about 60 miles from Berlin. Berlin was a large city and there were too many stray reflections on the H2S screen to identify the target position. I was instructed personally at the navigators' briefing in Pocklington to identify a turning point, by taking a precise bearing and distance on my H2S screen, of a small town about 10 miles north of Berlin. This was the commencement of a timed bombing run to the target – Hitler's Chancery. We flew in straight and level at 18000ft, maintaining a pre-calculated track and groundspeed, and at the time set by stop watch we dropped our bombs (2000hrs GMT).
This bombing procedure made us a sitting target for the nightfighter expertise available that night, for we had hardly closed our bomb doors when we were hit by a nightfighter. He had trailed behind and below our aircraft, waiting for our bombs to be released, then fired cannon shells upwards into our starboard wing. With more than 1000 gallons of petrol still aboard it was only seconds before the whole wing was aflame.
I heard 'Griff' our pilot call out; "graveners, Engineer!". (These were switches to activate the engine fire extinguishers.) This was to no avail, and the blaze was so fierce 'Griff' realised the aircraft was stricken and immediately called out; "parachute, parachute, bale out!". I already had my parachute on, and my seat and navigator's table folded back clear of the escape hatch (a discipline I always carried out over a target). I lifted the escape hatch door and dropped it diagonally through the escape hatch, but it caught the slipstream and jammed half in and half out of the aircraft. With the combined efforts of myself, the wireless operator and Laurie, we managed to kick the hatch door clear. I sat on the edge of the escape hatch and dropped through immediately, followed closely by Laurie. The wireless operator had no time to follow us and was killed. I believe after Laurie dropped out, the blazing aircraft went out of control and into a spiral dive.
After baling out at 17000ft, I spun over a few times, then pulled the rip cord. The canopy opened and my harness tightened with a jerk around my crutch, which brought me to my senses in double quick time! Below me and to my left I could see another parachute; it might have been Laurie but I couldn't be sure (I didn't see him again until his wedding after the war!). I was over a layer of light cloud and could see the glow of fires beneath it, and coming up was plenty of heavy flak and tracer shells hosepiping around the sky – I prayed it wouldn't come too near!
I floated down for 10/15 minutes; somehow I didn't feel too cold although it would have been minus 34 centigrade when I jumped out! With a 60 mph northerly wind prevailing I soon drifted away from being near to the centre of the City. The deafening noise from the aircraft's engines, present during flight, had gone and now the sound
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of bursting flak had died away. Instead there was an uncanny silence and the blackness of the night, as I decended [sic]through cloud which covered the area. Nearing the ground I thought I was going to land in marshes and my hand was on the lever to inflate my 'Mae West' (lifejacket), but it turned out to be the tops of trees of a small wood in a southern suburb of Berlin. I crashed through these, falling the last 15 feet and finishing up with a grazed face and a sprained ankle. I think it was remarkable that this was the only injury I sustained throughout this ordeal.
In less than 20 minutes my life had gone through a dramatic change. I had survived death by a hair's breadth. I was elated at being alive, but what of my crew, were they alive or dead? What traumas will my family suffer when they are informed by telegram that I am missing tomorrow morning? A few hours before I was eating my eggs and bacon (only available before operational flights) in the mess at Pocklington, my aircrew colleagues were around me, the friendly town of York was only 12 miles away and home leave to get my officer's kit was imminent.
I was now in hostile Germany, probably in the south-east suburbs of Berlin. What would happen if I were caught by civilians, having just bombed their City? There was nobody here who would care if I lived or died. Germany was now in the depth of winter. I was in enemy territory 600 miles from home, with only some french francs, a handkerchief with a map of France printed on it, and a magnetic trouser button (with a white spot on it which, when cut off my flies and balanced on a pencil point, would point north!). And a tin of Horlicks tablets. Only these to sustain me, whilst I evaded capture and got back to England!
I was a still in my F/Sgt's uniform although Commissioned on 1 December 1943 and I was five days off my 21st. birthday.
About eight hours, later having disturbed a dog whilst trying to hide up in a barn, I was captured by the civilian police. From here to the end of the war will have to be another story.
Laurie 'blacked out' I believe during part of his parachute drop, but landed uninjured and was captured by the Military early the next day.
Out of our crew of eight, only four survived. The other two survivors, 'Griff' (pilot) and John Bushell (rear gunner), had most remarkable escapes from death!
After Laurie and I baled out and the aircraft had gone into a spiral dive, 'Griff' was thrown forward towards the controls. He was held in his seat by the 'G' of the spiral dive. He saw the altimeter unwind past 7000ft and wondered when his end would come, before going unconscious. I believe the petrol tanks of the blazing aircraft exploded and 'Griff' was blown out, regaining consciousness just in time to pull his ripcord a few hundred feet from the ground. His parachute was still on the swing when he thumped down amongst the debris of the aircraft on waste ground in Berlin! He was uninjured but in shock. He wrapped himself in his parachute and went to sleep under a bush nearby, where he was discovered the next morning by a party of civilians led by a soldier.
John was thrown over his guns when the aircraft went into the spiral dive and he lost consciousness. He also 'came to' in the air in similar circumstances to 'Griff' and opened his parachute near the ground, but landed close to a searchlight battery and was captured immediately. John had a bad cut over his right eye and bruised face but otherwise was OK.
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The four crew who were killed, strangely, were all those fairly new to us. The wireless operator and co-pilot were buried in the British War Cemetery in Berlin. When he was captured 'Griff' our pilot was asked by the German Military "Tell us the name of your wireless operator so that we can bury him with a name". The flight engineer and mid upper gunner were not found nor identified, and having no known graves are remembered only on the War Memorial at Runneymede.
It was very sad that the mid upper gunner, F/S C G Dupuies, had avoided flying to Berlin on his 13th operation by flying on a comparatively 'safe' mission instead; only to be killed on this raid to Berlin, his 14th operation. The lucky rabbit's foot he always carried with him was to no avail. I also regret that I had said to the wireless operator, F/S E.A. Church, before this operation, he shouldn't take milk from the Sergeant's Mess for his own use. I had not known that it was for his young wife living near Pocklington who had just had a baby.
After the war we survivors came to realise that 20 January 1944 was a night to remember. We learned through a German archivist that we had been shot down by an ace nightfighter pilot, Hptm L Fellerer, in a twin engined Messerschmitt Bf 110 G 4 nightfighter. He had 41 victories to his credit, had been awarded the Knights Cross and had shot down five aircraft including ourselves on the night of 20 January 1944! He became Gruppenkommandeur of the Nightfighter Group 11/NJG5 at Parchim near Berlin. After the war he became a high ranking officer in the Austrian Airforce but was killed in a Cessna flying accident in the 1970's.
The archivist also gave us a map of Berlin showing where our aircraft crashed, which was about seven miles southeast of Hitler's Chancery at Oberspree. This confirms that we were on target that night, as the crash point was on our track less than two minutes flying time from the release of our bombs.
20 January 1944 was also a significant date for 102 Squadron, as the following extract from the Squadron Operation Record summary on that date shows (microfilm held at the Public Records Office Kew):
"Weather foggy clearing later, Vis: mod to good. Wind s'ly 20 - 25 mph.
[underlined] 16 Aircraft detailed to attack Berlin on what proved to be probably the most disastrous operation embarked by the Squadron [/underlined] which suffered the loss of 5 crews missing (F/O Griffiths DFM, PO Dean, F/S Render, W/O Wilding, & F/S Compton)
Moreover two aircraft were lost in this country, F/O Hall short of petrol had to abandon his aircraft near Driffield, the whole crew baling out successfully. F/S Proctor crash landed near Norwich, the Airbomber F/O Turnbull unfortunately dying from his injuries. The rest of the crew suffered minor injuries as a result. [underlined] Thus no less than 7 of the 16 aircraft which took off were lost including 5 crews – fortunately, an exceptional night of misfortune & unlikely to be repeated. There was also one early return, [/underlined] F/O W.B. Dean, 'W'."
So this was the end of our time in Bomber Command. After re-forming as a crew again, we had done only two more operations making for me only 10 in all.
2 October 1943 – Minelaying (Denmark)
4 October 1943 – Frankfurt
8 October 1943 – Hanover
11 November 1943 – Minelaying (Frisian Islands)
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18 November 1943 – Ludwigshaven
22 November 1943 – Berlin
25 November 1943 – Frankfurt
26 November 1943 – Stuttgart
29 December 1943 – Berlin
20 January 1944 – Berlin
Nevertheless we will go down in the annals of 102 Squadron as being shot down on the night when the Squadron suffered the loss of 7 out of 15 operational aircraft, a 47% loss, [underlined] which was a loss greater than in any other operation in the Squadron's history in both world wars. [/underlined]
102 Squadron was not a lucky squadron; after the disastrous night of 20 January 1944, another 4 aircraft were lost on the following night's raid to Magdeburg.
Shortly after this, as the losses continued, the Squadron was ordered not to operate over Germany. Subsequently the Halifax 2's were withdrawn to be replaced by the Halifax 3's, which were equal to the Lancasters of that time in their operational efficiency.
(Unfortunately for our crew the new aircraft arrived too late for us, otherwise we might have had a better chance of survival and been able to complete at least one tour – 30 operations – and perhaps been able to enjoy freedom for the rest of the war).
[underlined] In World War 2, 102 Squadron suffered the highest losses in 4 Group Bomber Command (15 Squadrons), and the 3rd highest losses in the whole of Bomber Command (93 Squadrons). [/underlined]
January 2000
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Title
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Bomber Command and Notes of Some of My Experiences During 1941-1945
Description
An account of the resource
Reg summarises Bomber Command's role in the war then details his personal experiences from training days. He covers in detail the navigational techniques he used. He describes the operation he was on when he was shot down.
Creator
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Reg Wilson
Date
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2000-01
Spatial Coverage
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Germany--Berlin
Great Britain
England--London
France--Dunkerque
Germany--Magdeburg
England--Runnymede
Germany--Dresden
Germany--Chemnitz
Germany--Leipzig
Germany--Mühlberg (Bad Liebenwerda)
Germany--Eichstätt
England--Torquay
England--Cambridge
England--Manchester
Scotland--Gourock
Canada
Nova Scotia--Halifax
United States
Georgia--Albany
Florida--Lakeland
Florida--West Palm Beach
Ontario--Trenton
Lake Ontario
Ontario--Toronto
Manitoba--Brandon
Manitoba--Winnipeg
New Brunswick--Moncton
England--Harrogate
England--Bournemouth
England--Whitley Bay
Great Britain Miscellaneous Island Dependencies--Douglas (Isle of Man)
Scotland--Elgin
Scotland--Findhorn
Scotland--Forres
Germany--Ramsen
England--York
France--Lorient
Germany--Helgoland
England--Flamborough Head
Germany--Kassel
Germany--Frankfurt am Main
Germany--Hannover
Germany--Mannheim
Germany--Ludwigshafen am Rhein
Germany--Stuttgart
Netherlands--IJssel Lake
England--Chigwell
England--Kew
England--Norwich
Europe--Frisian Islands
Florida
France
Georgia
Ontario
New Brunswick
Germany
Nova Scotia
Netherlands
North America--Niagara Falls
Germany--Nuremberg
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
England--Devon
England--Essex
England--Hampshire
England--Norfolk
England--Northumberland
England--Surrey
England--Yorkshire
England--Lancashire
England--Surrey
Manitoba
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
United States Army Air Force
Language
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eng
Type
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Text
Text. Memoir
Format
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22 printed sheets
Identifier
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BWilsonRCWilsonRCv1
Temporal Coverage
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1941
1942
1943
1944
1943-10-02
1943-10-03
1943-10-04
1943-10-08
1943-10-09
1943-11-11
1943-11-12
1943-11-18
1943-11-19
1943-11-22
1943-11-23
1943-11-25
1943-11-26
1943-11-27
1943-12-29
1943-12-30
1944-01-20
1944-01-21
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
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IBCC Digital Archive
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Sue Smith
102 Squadron
4 Group
617 Squadron
77 Squadron
air gunner
Air Observers School
aircrew
Anson
anti-aircraft fire
bale out
Bismarck
bomb aimer
bomb trolley
bombing
bombing of Dresden (13 - 15 February 1945)
Churchill, Winston (1874-1965)
crewing up
Distinguished Flying Cross
Distinguished Flying Medal
entertainment
Flying Training School
Gee
H2S
Halifax
Halifax Mk 2
Halifax Mk 3
Harris, Arthur Travers (1892-1984)
Heavy Conversion Unit
Hitler, Adolf (1889-1945)
Initial Training Wing
killed in action
lack of moral fibre
Lancaster
Me 110
memorial
mid-air collision
military living conditions
military service conditions
mine laying
missing in action
navigator
Nissen hut
Oboe
Operational Training Unit
Pathfinders
perception of bombing war
pilot
prisoner of war
RAF Driffield
RAF Elvington
RAF Full Sutton
RAF Hartford Bridge
RAF Jurby
RAF Kinloss
RAF Lossiemouth
RAF Melbourne
RAF Pocklington
RAF Rufforth
RAF Syerston
RAF Torquay
service vehicle
Stalin, Joseph (1878-1953)
Stearman
target indicator
Tiger Moth
training
V-1
V-2
V-weapon
Wellington
Whitley
Window
wireless operator
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1794/35818/BBainesCOBrienCv1.1.pdf
e1b2af064d885cd5e5dc26a62ab00415
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Wilson, Reginald Charles
R C Wilson
Description
An account of the resource
166 items. The collection concerns Reginald Charles Wilson (b. 1923, 1389401 Royal Air Force) and contains his wartime log, photographs, documents and correspondence. He few operations as a navigator with 102 Squadron. He was shot down on 20 January 1944 and became a prisoner of war.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Janet Hughes and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
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2017-01-13
Rights
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This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
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Wilson, RC
Transcribed document
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Transcription
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I never knew my Uncle Cecil O'Brien for he was missing in action over Germany and presumed to be dead, before I was born in country NSW in the autumn of 1944. Cecil, who was born in Sydney in 1916, was the youngest of three boys and the son of John Francis O'Brien and Mary Julia Mann. John, senior, was from a pioneering Irish background and Mary Mann was born in Mousehole, Cornwall in 1886 and came to Australia aged four years with her family on the ship [italics] Oruba [/italics] in 1890.
The three boys, John, who was my father, George and Cecil grew up in the garden suburb of Daceyville in Sydney's Eastern suburbs, not far from famous beaches such as Bondi, or Maroubra, perhaps less well known, but the place they most often went to swim. The eastern beach suburbs of the city are milder in winter and a lovely afternoon breeze makes them pleasant in the heat of summer. Not too far away was the Sydney Cricket Ground and, most exciting of all, Kingsford Smith Airport. The boys were active and swam and loved to play cricket in the local park. It was during one such game in 1930 that George was struck on the head by a cricket ball and later died in Sydney Hospital. The family was bereaved again by the death of their mother, Mary, to cancer, in 1932.
[photograph]
It was with some trepidation that my grandfather watched as Cecil signed up with the Airforce Reserve on October 11, 1941. He had married his fiancée Norma Sumner in April that year. My father John signed up some months later after some deliberation for he was also married, a father of one son, and a school teacher. He went on to serve with 466 Squadron as a navigator, after training in Australia and Canada, and happily returned to civilian life at war's end.
The brothers enthusiastically answered the call to young men to join the Empire Training Scheme (EATS) by which Australia agreed to train and send 36% of the pilots, observers, wireless operators and gunners required by the RAF to fight the war. Approximately 27,800 men were trained by the RAAF in Australia, mostly at an elementary level. Soon after joining the Reserve Cecil was recruited by Air Crew 2 and completed his elementary flying training in the outer suburbs of Sydney, country NSW and Queensland. A week before his 26th birthday on July 13, 1942 Cecil was awarded his flying badge. By November Cecil was on his way to the UK on board a troop ship and attached to the RAF.
Letters to his father in Sydney that have survived for over 60 years have enabled me to gain and [sic] idea of what life was like for my Uncle during his year in England as he trained with Bomber Command to become a well qualified pilot. Although at no time could he reveal to his father where he was situated, or the finer details of his training, further
1
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research has helped me to decipher the abbreviations on his service record papers and reveal where he was attached and posted.
On disembarkation the men were sent to 11 PDRC at Bournemouth in SW England. They were issued with kit, given a general review and instructional course and then immediately sent on 14 days leave as part of the Dominion Troops Scheme. They were chomping at the bit to get flying again.[italics] 'I am going into bombers and hope to get the best little plane in all the world which of course is the Mosquito,' [/italics] Cecil wrote to his father. But he was cooling his heels as the guest of an Australian woman, Mrs. Milne, in her large and comfortable home, Broadkeys, at Lake Windermere, and left to admire the beautiful English countryside swathed in light drifts of snow. The lads were entertained by a special dance held for them, good food, a [italics] 'wonderful room with a feather bed,' [/italics] and tobogganing in the snow.
Back at the original camp at Bournemouth after the leave, and two days at Ealing, Cecil was required to complete a Commando course which seems to have been in the North, at Whitley Bay. Cecil expressed his relief to be back to what was a well organized billet after contracting a severe cold in the chilling weather of NE England. Meanwhile John had commenced his training in Australia and Cecil was waiting patiently for the day when his brother would arrive in England. For the Australian airmen letters from home and the occasional parcel from the Australian Comfort Fund, or home, were much appreciated and looked for. Such a parcel might contain items like fruit cake, cans of peaches, tins of cream, chocolate, tobacco, shaving cream, toothpaste and a brush, paper and envelopes.
Letters tended to come in batches. There would be no mail for weeks and then an avalanche of letters. Part of the problem was that that [sic] the men moved on as they trained and the mail had to follow. This resulted in airmen spending many a spare moment writing replies. John O'Brien senior sent Cressy Comfort Fund Canteen Orders because he read in the paper that England was short of food, although Cecil reassured him, [italics] 'believe it or not there is plenty of food. Certain items are scarce but there is more than plenty for everyone. From the stories we heard we thought everyone would be perpetually hungry.' [/italics] Cecil did ask for sweeteners for his tea for sugar was in short supply. Norma numbered all her letter [s] to Cecil but they tended not to arrive numerically.
In March, after completing a course on the links trainer Cecil and his cohorts were granted three short periods of leave enabling them to visit Reading, Birmingham and beautiful Winchester, while they waited for a training post to become available. It was one thing to ship in air crew but quite another to have them continually training in the air. On March 22 the group was sent to Anstey near Leicester to 9EFTS to train on Tiger Moths. For reasons not explained this did not work out and the men were returned to base at Bournemouth. Another posting was found with 50 Group Pool on April 9, with 18 EFTS, where the lads threw themselves with gusto into the 6 day week of training on old Tiger Moths. They regarded this as fun as they were fully aerobatic. Cecil's morale lifted as he was busy again, [italics] 'This is a grand place. We are well billeted and well treated in a lovely spot. The country around here is beautiful with its spring mantle.' [/italics]
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The group was separated at the end of this training and Cecil found most of his cobbers were sent to other stations, except one Australian who had been with him all along. They were posted to 15 (P) AFU at Ramsbury from April 16 to May 25 for intensive training on Airspeed Oxfords. [italics] 'We touch on quite a bit of new work, mostly wireless aids, such as Beam approach and Homing at night etc. I must mention my respect and liking for the 'Pommy' instructors. There is no bull about them at all and they are most courteous and friendly. Not in a condescending way, they just treat us as pals which make learning so much easier.' [/italics] Equipped with hydraulic undercarriage there was no winding up as Cecil had to do with the old Anson in earlier training. At this base there was time enough to visit the local village and explore the country side. But there was en [sic] element of home sickness in letters home when Cecil wrote that [italics] 'the time can't come soon enough for me to be on my way home.' [/italics] This was constant message in his letters over the year of training. He expressed his desire to have the war over and be home again soon.
By the end of May, with a good assessment and 300 hours of flying in his log book the boys were with 1518 BAT flight at the famous Scampton base continuing intensive training on Oxfords and logging up hours of night flying. The operational station was home to 617 Dambuster Squadron and the boys were told in real terms what it was like to fly a raid. [italics] 'This is a wonderful place,' [/italics] wrote Cecil to home. They were provided with first class billets and mess. On May 27 the King and Queen visited to award Guy Gibson his VC and Cecil had a good view of the proceedings.
Cecil got an above average assessment at the end of his course and returned to the Satellite base at Ramsbury on May 31. While waiting for a posting his duties were odd flying duties and duty pilot. Cecil wrote to this father commenting on night flying saying that [italics] 'with the modern aids flying the kites was a piece of cake.' [/italics] The posting came through to 29 OTU at Bruntingthorpe, Leicestershire, on June 29. The base was much dispersed and Cecil and friends found themselves having to walk miles as they began each day at 6.30 am with PT. As the daylight of summer continued till near midnight the lads had trouble falling asleep. They were used to going to bed in darkness because the Australian summer sun slips below the horizon early in the evening and darkness falls quickly. To get to meals on time they went to town and bought themselves bikes. [italics] 'There is a fair bit to learn and our crews to select but it won't be a hell of a while now. I'm afraid there isn't much I can tell you about it except that I will be in heavy stuff for ops,' [/italics] Cecil warned his father
By July 27 Cecil was happier at a new station in the midlands. Unfortunately the records do not give any details but presumably he was still with 29 OTU at this new base. What is known is that the [sic] he was flying a plane that was very heavy at the controls and may have been a Manchester. Cecil had selected some of his crew. The first was an Australian wireless operator named William Simpson, from Guyra, NSW who, coincidentally, just happened to be a relative of a maternal Great Uncle. He chose an English navigator and his pal, Gerald Sudds, as bomb aimer. The air gunner was expected to arrive the following week
3
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A lot of night flying followed and Cecil said he had [italics] 'seem [sic] more dawns in the Air Force than I have seen in the rest of my life.' [/italics] The training continued full time with no day off in a month as the work was intensified in the lead up to the bombing of Berlin. There was time spent waiting for kites be serviced and for the weather to clear and time spent on long range country flying. Surrounding this dome were farms with heavy crops and herds of cattle grazing contentedly. [italics] 'The cattle look beautiful and seem pretty hefty. I'd like to cut a steak off one of them,' [/italics] wrote Cecil. Food was an ever important subject. [italics] 'We have just returned from a Satellite dome [sic] (possibly Ramsbury) where we could occasionally get eggs and chips for tea from a cafe near the gates. We usually get good breakfasts and lunch on camp but tea is usually terrible and as we were night flying we were not wanted in the afternoon.' [/italics]
As September began Cecil heard that his brother John was training in Toronto, Canada. The invasion of Italy has begun. Twelve letters arrived from Australia and Cecil was looking forward to leave coming up at the end of his operational training. The hazards of night flying became real for Cecil when he was lost one night close to a balloon barrage area and another tine [sic] he just saw another aircraft in time to avert a collision. [italics] 'I put my plane into a violent dive and busted a few pipes, and my rear gunner's head, but other than that everything went very well and we passed out with very favorable [sic] reports.' [/italics]
Some well earned leave was taken as guests of Bomb Aimer Gerald Sudds and his parents at Applegarth Farm, Sevenoaks, in Kent. [italics] 'Eggs and bacon every morning, lots of good food and a feather bed. It was such a break from service life.' [/italics] On their return there was no transport to meet them and they were sent to the wrong station and had to spend a night under canvas before they were picked up. A week of commando training was set down for them at HQ 51 base before the new posting to 1661 Conversion Unit based at Winthorpe, Nottinghamshire, came through on October 3.
Boosted by the change Cecil wrote enthusiastically of the [italics] 'beaut 4 engined Lancaster, the best heavy bomber in the world. It is streets ahead of anything else in the heavy class and we are fortunate to be posted to them. Also we are going to the best group in bomber command and with any luck may be attached to an Aussie squadron which is perhaps the best in the group. If we can make ourselves the best crew in the squadron we would be the best crew, on the best bomber, in the best squadron, in the best group, of the best Airforce in the world. The best crew in the world. What an aspiration!' [/italics]
Cecil found the aircraft relatively easy to handle and most maneuverable [sic]. [italics] 'They are really a lovely aircraft. I am amazed at what well over 20 tons of aircraft can do' [/italics]. Food parcels had arrived from Australia. There were three cakes from Norma and a parcel from work colleagues, tins of fruit from the Sumner family and Saxin tablets to replace sugar in tea. It was now just over a year since Cecil had left Australia and he was expecting to be commissioned as an officer before Christmas
By December 12 the men were posted to 467 Squadron at Waddington air base. This was the most comfortable base to date. They had centrally heated billets with showers and
4
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ablutions attached. The mess had billiards tables and a camp cinema with a change of programs three times a week. There was a sunray lamp in the officer's mess, a little touch of luxury. A telegram had arrived from John saying he had arrived in England to begin service. He was stationed at Driffield with 466 Squadron. Cecil travelled to the base for a reunion with his brother. They spent a day and night together and John had chocolates and soap from America for Cecil. They parted with John intending to join Cecil at Waddington when his leave came up. When Cecil returned to base another parcel containing a Christmas cake and chocolate had arrived from Australia, sewn into a calico bag to protect it on the journey.
The crew had their photograph taken as a group and Cecil posted it home to his father and wife Norma. [italics] 'I'm sorry I won't be home for Christmas but I will be thinking of you all and hope to be home for the next,' [/italics] he wrote to his father. Instead of singing [sic] his letter with the usual, [italics] 'Cheers,' [/italics] he wrote an affectionate, [italics] 'love to all.' [/italics] Christmas day was rather festive at Waddington and the crews were on general stand down from 10am. They helped serve the airmen their dinner then retired to the officer's mess for drinks before a meal of turkey and pudding. A dance was held before Christmas and there was generally a round of entertainment on off nights which helped to make spirits bright. Cecil reported feeling in the pink and that everyone was ok.
Found among my mother's papers following her death in 2008 were letters from Cecil to my father, John, of 466 Squadron. As Cecil was writing to his brother, now stationed in England, he was able to express himself without the censor to strike out any information. He wrote on December 28 that he had done two trips. One was to Berlin on December 16 and the other to Frankfurt on 20th. The dentist u/sed [sic] Cecil for the next Berlin raid because of a bad toothache. [italics] 'I did a cross country exercise one night and it ached like buggery all the way round. [/italics]
Writing on a Sunday which must have been at the end of December Cecil told his brother he was due for leave about January 4. As it turned out he left on January 6. He planned to go down to Cornwall to his mother's birthplace Mousehole. [italics] 'I've done three trips now. Two to Berlin and one to Frankfurt. The last Berlin was a bit shaky, the winds reared round and we got over Kiepzig and had a hot time there with flack. We were followed by fighters for a while shortly afterwards but they weren't in the show to shoot as I was weaving like buggery. We were late at Berlin and the attack had finished and we had plenty of attention. We were hit by one lot of flack and didn't know how lucky we were until the next morning when we found a hole in the oil tank and an engine strut almost severed besides a few other holes. I should have been in the last two shows but have been unlucky with kites and didn't get off.' [/italics] Cecil's commission came through that day of letter writing, January 3, 1944 along with a food parcel form [sic] Norma. It contained a Christmas cake and a big tin of sweets.
The trip to Cornwall to his mother's birthplace did not happen for Cecil found he could not afford such a long trip after having to go to London to arrange for his officer's uniform. Instead he travelled to Applegarth Farm with Gerald Sudds. Upon his return he
5
[page break]
did two more trips with 467 Squadron. Writing to John again on a Sunday, [italics] ' We have done two trips since I got back to Berlin and Magdeburg. Both as uneventful as a trip can be which isn't very. These long stooges are grim. We were shot at and followed by the Gerry fighters but came back without a scratch. I have yet to see anything like Magdeburg. The cloud had broken through and the whole area was a mass of coloured target marker planes explosions enclosed in the brilliant white fires of burning incendiaries. I was going out tonight but a snow storm decided against it.' [/italics] Cecil's final word to his brother who was yet to begin his tour of operations was, [italics] 'Be careful.' [/italics]
On January 27 1944 another major raid on Berlin's western and southern districts was planned. Cecil was on his fourth trip as the sole pilot, but his sixth trip in total. His first two trips to Berlin and Frankfurt were as 2nd pilot with F/L D.S Symonds and P/O D. Harvey at the controls, as was the custom for the initial raids. The Lancaster ED539 PO.V MKIII as reported missing on January 28 1944. In Australia John O'Brien received the dreaded telegram, not knowing until he opened it which if his sons it related to.
[ telegram letterhead]
423 MELBOURNW 130/1 5-20 P
[missing letters]STAL ACKNOWLEDGEMENT [inserted] 2970 [/inserted]
[missing letters]LIVERY PERSONAL . . . MR J.F. OBRIEN
[missing letters]ILLS CRESCENT DACEYVILLE NSW
20250 PILOT OFFICER C OBRIEN MISSING STOP REGRET TO INFORM YOU THAT YOUR SON PILOT OFFICER CECIL OBRIEN IS MISSING AS RESULT AIR OPERATIONS ON NIGHT 27/28 JANUARY 1944 STOP KNOWN DETAILS ARE HE [missing word] MEMBER OF CREW LANCASTER AIRCRAFT DETAILED TO ATTACK BERLIN GERMANY WHICH FAILED TO RETURN TO BASE PRESUMABLY DUE TO ENEMY ACTION [missing word] REQUEST YOU INFORM NEXT OF KIN MRS CECIL OBRIEN 262 RAINBOW STREET COOGEE IMMEDIATELY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS OFFICERS WISHES NOTED IN HIS RECORDS STOP THE MINISTER FOR AIR JOINS WITH AIR BOARD IN EXPRESSING SINCERE SYMPATHY IN YOUR ANXIETY STOP WHEN ANY FURTHER INFORMATION IS RECEIVED IT WILL BE CONVEYED TO YOU IMMEDIATELY
The tattered and folded nature of this small document is evidence of the many times over the years my grandfather opened this to read it. It was as if the profound shock of his loss was and [sic] experience that he relived many times.
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Cecil's brother, John, did not know his sibling was missing until a cable from his family in Australia on February 2 informed him of the loss. John took leave and travelled to Waddington where Mrs Kenrick, a friend of the Group Captain's wife at Waddington was about to write to John in case he had not heard the news. The only information Waddington had was that no radio communication was received from the plane once it left base and no other aircraft reported seeing any incident involving ED 539.
There followed an agonizing wait for official confirmation that Cecil was indeed dead and that did not come until a letter was received from the Department of Air on March 6, 1945. Further details were received in an aerogram from Mrs. J. Doncaster, the transcript of which is as follows;
[italics] AIR MINISTRY
Casualty Branch
73-77, Oxford Street,
W.1.
4th June 1946
Madam,
I am directed to refer to your letter of the 3rd May 1846 [sic], regarding your son, Sergeant F.H. Doncaster, and to inform you with deep regret that the confirmation of his death has been obtained from captured German documents which state that his aircraft crashed at 8.38pm on the 27th January 1944, 'Berlin-Kopenick, 239 and 254 Wendenschloss Road or Street. No information as to his place of burial is given, and every effort will be made by the Royal Air Force Missing and Enquiry Service to ascertain these details.
I am to express the sincere sympathy of the Department with you in your loss.
I am Madam,
Your Obedient Servant,
A.W. Livingston
For Director of Personal Services.
Mrs. J.A. Doncaster
16, Top Row.
Beacon Hill Newark [/italics]
A letter from the Department of Air was sent in 1945 expressing sympathy but giving few details.
7
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[Australian Coat of Arms]
COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA
Casualty Section,
DEPARTMENT OF AIR,
391 Lit. Collins St.,
150867
RAAF.166/31/143(23A)
Dear Sir,
It is with deep regret that I have to inform you that the death of your son, Pilot Officer Cecil O'Brien, occurred on the 28th January, 1944.
The operation in respect of which your late son was reported missing took place on the night of the 27/28th January, 1944, and Overseas Headquarters, Royal Australian Air Force, London, had presumed that the casualty occurred on the 28th January, 1944.
The Minister for Air and members of the Air Board desire me to express their profound sympathy. It is hoped that the accompanying enclosures will contain information of assistance to you.
Yours faithfully,
[signature]
(M.C. Langstow)
[underlined] SECRETARY. [/underlined]
Enc. 4.
Mr. J. F. O'Brien,
4 Wills Crescent,
[underlined] DACEYVILLE. [/underlined] N.S.W.
The final letter from the Department of Air gave details of the crash and was received in
8
[page break]
May 1948. The letter is attached as a separate file.
Thus it was that the boy from the Eastern suburbs of Sydney, who so longed to go home again, was never to have that opportunity and, neither did his mate from the Guyra bush. We are proud that he rose to the demands of the training and the task of flying with 467 Squadron. We are sure that the families of all the crew killed in action that January night have mourned, as we have, over the years, the loss of their sons.
May they rest in peace.
The crew of ED 539 PO.V lost over Berlin 28-1-1944 were;
Pilot Officer Cecil O'Brien, 420250 RAAF aged 27. Son of John Francis and Mary Julia O'Brien; husband of Norma Ellen O'Brien of Maroubra, NSW Australia. No known grave. Commemorated at Runnymede.
F/S William John Simpson 421693 RAAF aged 23. Son of William Henry and Mary Ellen Simpson of Guyra NSW Australia. No known grave. Commemorated at Runnymede.
F/O Gerald Henry Sudds Bomb Aimer 136393 RAFVR aged 22. May have been born in district of Malling, Kent in December quarter 1922. Son of Mr and Mrs Sudds of Applegarth Farm, Sevenoaks, Kent. Berlin War Cemetery, 1939-1945. Grave 5-K-36.
Sgt Harold Boardley Navigator 159485 RAFVR aged 22, May have been born at Mutford in 1922? No known grave. Commemorated at Runnymede
Sgt Douglas James Coombe Flight Engineer 1582983 RAFVR age 19. May have been born at Blaby in June 1924. Berlin War Cemetery 1939-1945. Grave 5-K-37.
Sgt Francis Herbert Doncaster Rear Gunner 1013809 RAFVR age 23. Born Newark in June 1920. No known grave. Commemorated at Runnymede.
Sgt Joseph James Melling Mid Upper Gunner. 1017778 RAFVR age 27. May have been born at Barnsley, Yorkshire in March quarter 1917. No known grave. Commemorated at Runnymede.
Photograph of crew follows.
9
[page break]
[photograph]
Crew of flight ED 539 PO.V 467 Squadron
Front row left: Sgt William Simpson Wireless Operator: F/O Gerald Sudds Bomb Aimer; P/O Cecil O'Brien:
Remainder of crew, not identified,
Sgt Harold Boardley, Navigator
Sgt Douglas Coombe Air Gunner (maybe airman on first right second row?)
Sgt Francis Doncaster
Sgt Joseph Melling.
Colleen Baines
Sydney
Australia
28 May 2009
10
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Cecil O'Brien Biography
Description
An account of the resource
A biography of Cecil written by his niece. It is based on letters he wrote to his brother, Colleen's father. She explains his training and the various locations where he served. He was lost 27 January 1944 over Berlin.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Colleen Baines
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2009-05-28
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Germany
Ireland
England--Mousehole
Australia
New South Wales--Sydney
New South Wales--Maroubra
New South Wales--Kingsford Smith
Great Britain
England--Bournemouth
England--Ealing
England--Whitley Bay
England--Reading
England--Birmingham
England--Winchester
England--Anstey (Leicestershire)
New South Wales--Guyra
Germany--Berlin
Canada
Ontario--Toronto
Italy
England--Sevenoaks
Germany--Frankfurt am Main
Germany--Leipzig
England--London
Germany--Magdeburg
England--Runnymede
England--West Malling
England--Mutford
England--Blaby
England--Newark (Nottinghamshire)
New South Wales
Ontario
England--Berkshire
England--Hampshire
England--Kent
England--Leicestershire
England--Middlesex
England--Northumberland
England--Suffolk
England--Yorkshire
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Surrey
England--Warwickshire
England--Barnsley (South Yorkshire)
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Australian Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Personal research
Format
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Ten printed sheets
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
BBainesCOBrienCv1
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-01-27
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Sue Smith
29 OTU
466 Squadron
467 Squadron
617 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
air gunner
aircrew
Anson
bomb aimer
crewing up
entertainment
final resting place
Flying Training School
George Cross
George VI, King of Great Britain (1895-1952)
Gibson, Guy Penrose (1918-1944)
Heavy Conversion Unit
killed in action
Lancaster
Manchester
memorial
missing in action
Mosquito
navigator
observer
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Ansty
RAF Bruntingthorpe
RAF Driffield
RAF Scampton
RAF Waddington
RAF Winthorpe
sport
Tiger Moth
training
wireless operator
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/632/35811/LRichardsonF146443v2.1.2.pdf
f9df367b4bc34be854c6e74670081902
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Richardson, Frederic James
F J Richardson
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Richardson, FJ
Description
An account of the resource
13 items. An oral history interview with Flight Lieutenant Frederic Richardson ( - 2020, 1234575, 146433 Royal Air Force), his log books and photographs. He flew operations as a pilot with 207 Squadron.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Frederic Richardson and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-06-08
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Fred Richardson's log book. Two
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LRichardsonF146443v2
Description
An account of the resource
Pilots flying log book 2 for F J Richardson, covering the period from 3 March 1943 to 8 October 1945. Detailing his operations flown, flying training and instructor duties. He was stationed at RAF Langar, RAF Ossington, RAF Church Broughton, RAF Gamston, RAF Castle Combe and RAF Lulsgate Bottom. Aircraft flown were Lancaster, Oxford, Tiger Moth and Wellington. He flew a total of 25 operations with 207 Squadron. Targets were Hamburg, Saint Nazaire, Berlin, Kiel, Duisberg, Spezia, Stuttgart, Stettin, La Rochelle, Essen, Pilsen, Dortmund, Wuppertal, Dusseldorf, Bochum, Friedrichshaven, Cologne, Gelsenkirchen, Turin, Cislago and Leghorn. A second pilot on an operation was Flight Sergeant Kirkwood.
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-03-03
1943-03-04
1943-03-22
1943-03-23
1943-03-27
1943-03-28
1943-03-29
1943-03-30
1943-04-03
1943-04-04
1943-04-05
1943-04-08
1943-04-09
1943-04-10
1943-04-13
1943-04-14
1943-04-15
1943-04-20
1943-04-21
1943-04-26
1943-04-27
1943-04-28
1943-04-30
1943-05-01
1943-05-13
1943-05-14
1943-05-23
1943-05-24
1943-05-29
1943-05-30
1943-06-11
1943-06-12
1943-06-13
1943-06-20
1943-06-21
1943-06-23
1943-06-24
1943-07-08
1943-07-09
1943-07-10
1943-07-12
1943-07-13
1943-07-16
1943-07-17
1943-07-24
1943-07-25
1943-07-29
1943-07-30
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Czech Republic
France
Germany
Great Britain
Italy
Poland
Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea
Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay
Czech Republic--Plzeň
England--Derbyshire
England--Somerset
England--Wiltshire
England--Nottinghamshire
France--La Rochelle
France--Saint-Nazaire
Germany--Berlin
Germany--Bochum
Germany--Cologne
Germany--Dortmund
Germany--Duisburg
Germany--Düsseldorf
Germany--Essen
Germany--Friedrichshafen
Germany--Gelsenkirchen
Germany--Hamburg
Germany--Kiel
Germany--Stuttgart
Germany--Wuppertal
Italy--La Spezia
Italy--Livorno
Italy--Turin
Italy--Varese
Poland--Szczecin
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1943
1944
1945
207 Squadron
82 OTU
aircrew
bombing of Hamburg (24-31 July 1943)
Lancaster
mine laying
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Castle Combe
RAF Church Broughton
RAF Gamston
RAF Langar
RAF Ossington
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2376/35685/LHorsburghR1318178v1.1.pdf
eda212c3a93cae1102e474792b64438f
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Horsburgh, Roy
Description
An account of the resource
One item. The collection concerns Roy Horsburgh (b. 1922, 127997 Royal Air Force) and contains his log book. He flew operations as an observer with 77 and 35 Squadrons.
The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by John Horsburgh and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2018-04-13
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Horsburgh, R
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Roy Horsburgh’s Royal Canadian Air Force Observer’s Flying Log Book
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Description
An account of the resource
R Horsburgh’s Observer’s Flying Log Book detailing operations and training flown as Observer covering the period 25 October 1942 to 23 August 1943. He was stationed at RCAF Virden (19 EFTS), RCAF Brandon (12 SFTS), RAF Abingdon (10 OTU), RAF Marston Moor (1652 HCU) RAF St Eval, RAF Elvington (77 Squadron) and RAF Graveley (35 Squadron). Aircraft flown in were Tiger Moth, Crane, Anson, Whitley and Halifax. He flew eight anti-submarine sweeps with 10 0TU, four night operations with 77 Squadron and 10 night operations with 35 Squadron (total 14) Targets were Bochum, Dusseldorf, Le Creusot, Gelsenkirchen, Hamburg, Essen, Remscheid, Mannhein, Turin, and Berlin. Logbook annotated “missing” on this operation.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Air Force. Coastal Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Terry Hancock
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LHorsburghR1318178v1
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Germany
Great Britain
Italy
England--Cornwall (County)
England--Cambridgeshire
England--Oxfordshire
England--Yorkshire
France--Le Creusot
Germany--Berlin
Germany--Bochum
Germany--Düsseldorf
Germany--Gelsenkirchen
Germany--Hamburg
Germany--Mannheim
Germany--Remscheid
Italy--Turin
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940-05-13
1943-06-11
1943-06-12
1943-06-19
1943-07-09
1943-07-24
1943-07-25
1943-07-27
1943-07-29
1943-07-30
1943-08-09
1943-08-12
1943-08-16
1943-08-23
10 OTU
1652 HCU
35 Squadron
77 Squadron
aircrew
Anson
bombing
Halifax
Heavy Conversion Unit
missing in action
navigator
observer
Operational Training Unit
RAF Abingdon
RAF Elvington
RAF Graveley
RAF Marston Moor
Tiger Moth
training
Whitley
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1895/35680/LGillK1438901v1.1.pdf
1fcaf9a0c545538c4700852b3da1bf4c
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Gill, Kenneth
K Gill
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-07-09
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Gill, K
Description
An account of the resource
One hundred and sixty-four items plus another one hundred and fifteen in two sub-ciollections. The collection concerns Flying Officer Kenneth Gill DFC (1922 - 1945, 1438901, 155097 Royal Air Force) and contains his log book, documents, photographs and family and other correspondence. <br />He flew operations as a navigator with 9 Squadron before starting a second tour with 617 Squadron. He was killed 21 March 1945 having completed 45 operations.<br /><br />The collection also contains two albums. <br /><a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2114">Kenneth Gill. Album One</a><br /><a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2117">Kenneth Gill. Album Two</a><br /><br />Additional information on Kenneth Gill is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/108654/">IBCC Losses Database.</a><br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Derek Gill and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Kenneth Gill’s observer’s and air gunner’s flying log book
Description
An account of the resource
Observer’s and air gunner’s flying log book for K Gill, navigator, covering the period from 17 May 1942 to 21 March 1945 when he was missing on operations. Detailing his flying training, operations flown and instructor duties. He was stationed at RCAF Chatham, RAF North Luffenham, RAF Swinderby, RAF Bardney, RAF Syerston and RAF Woodhall Spa. Aircraft flown in were Anson, Wellington, Halifax, Lancaster, Hudson, Tiger Moth and Stearman. He flew a total of 46 operations, one with 29 operational training unit, one with 1660 conversion unit, 26 with 9 squadron and 18 with 617 squadron. His pilots on operations were Flight Lieutenant Evans, Flight Lieutenant Derbyshire, and Fl;ight Lieutenant Gumbley. Targets were Clermont Ferrand, Spezia, Dortmund, Duisburg, Dusseldorf, Essen, Wuppertal, Bochum, Oberhausen, Krefeld, Gelsenkirchen, Cologne, Milan, Nurnberg, Rheydt, Berlin, Munich, Kassel, Frankfurt, Leipzig, Tromso - Tirpitz, Urft Dam, IJmuiden, Politz, Rotterdam, Horten, Pootershaven, Bielefeld, Ladbergen, Arnsberg and Arbergen.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1942
1943-02-25
1943-02-26
1943-04-18
1943-04-19
1943-05-04
1943-05-05
1943-05-11
1943-05-12
1943-05-23
1943-05-24
1943-05-25
1943-05-26
1943-05-27
1943-05-28
1943-05-29
1943-05-30
1943-06-11
1943-06-12
1943-06-13
1943-06-14
1943-06-15
1943-06-21
1943-06-22
1943-06-25
1943-06-26
1943-06-28
1943-06-29
1943-07-08
1943-07-09
1943-07-25
1943-07-26
1943-08-07
1943-08-08
1943-08-10
1943-08-11
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
1943-10-20
1943-10-21
1943-11-03
1943-11-04
1943-11-18
1943-11-19
1944-10-29
1944-11-11
1944-12-11
1944-12-15
1944-12-21
1944-12-22
1944-12-29
1944-12-30
1944-12-31
1945-01-01
1945-02-03
1945-02-06
1945-02-14
1945-02-22
1945-02-24
1945-03-13
1945-03-14
1945-03-19
1945-03-21
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Canada
France
Germany
Great Britain
Italy
Netherlands
Poland
Atlantic Ocean--North Sea
England--Lincolnshire
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Rutland
New Brunswick--Chatham
France--Clermont-Ferrand
Germany--Bremen
Germany--Arnsberg
Germany--Berlin
Germany--Bielefeld
Germany--Bochum
Germany--Cologne
Germany--Dortmund
Germany--Dortmund-Ems Canal
Germany--Duisburg
Germany--Düsseldorf
Germany--Euskirchen Region
Germany--Essen
Germany--Frankfurt am Main
Germany--Gelsenkirchen
Germany--Kassel
Germany--Krefeld
Germany--Leipzig
Germany--Munich
Germany--Nuremberg
Germany--Oberhausen (Düsseldorf)
Germany--Rheydt
Germany--Wuppertal
Italy--La Spezia
Italy--Milan
Netherlands--Hoek van Holland
Netherlands--IJmuiden
Netherlands--Rotterdam
Norway--Horten
Norway--Tromsø
Poland--Police (Województwo Zachodniopomorskie)
Germany--Bielefeld
Germany--Dortmund-Ems Canal
Germany--Arnsberg
Germany--Bremen
New Brunswick
Norway
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Mike Connock
Cara Walmsley
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LGillK1438901v1
1660 HCU
29 OTU
617 Squadron
9 Squadron
Air Observers School
aircrew
Anson
bombing
Halifax
Heavy Conversion Unit
Hudson
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
mine laying
missing in action
navigator
Operation Catechism (12 November 1944)
Operational Training Unit
RAF Bardney
RAF North Luffenham
RAF Swinderby
RAF Syerston
RAF Woodhall Spa
Stearman
Tallboy
Tiger Moth
Tirpitz
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1282/35617/LWannopRE176129v2.2.pdf
477c62a8871042dcaa4a57d25c5b0dea
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Wannop, Robert Eric
R E Wannop
Description
An account of the resource
Nine items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Robert Wannop DFC and contains his log books, documents and photographs. He flew operations as a pilot with 90 Squadron.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Judy Wannop and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-06-10
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Wannop, RE
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
RE Wannop's pilot's flying log book. Two
Description
An account of the resource
Pilots flying log book two, for R E Wannop, covering the period from 22 September 1943 to 28 February 1945. Detailing his instructor duties, flying training and operations flown. He was stationed at RAF Sealand, RAF Calveley, RAF Cranage, RAF Worksop, RAF Sandtoft and RAF Tuddenham. Aircraft flown were, DH82, Oxford, Anson, Wellington, Halifax and Lancaster. He flew a total of 11 Operations with 90 Squadron, 7 Daylight and 4 night operations. Targets were, Ludwigshaven, Nuess, Krefeld, Saarbrucken, Duisburg, Cologne, Dortmund, Dresden, Kamen and Gelsenkirchen. The log book also contains a copy of his citation for his DFC.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1945-01-05
1945-01-06
1945-01-07
1945-01-11
1945-01-13
1945-01-22
1945-01-23
1945-01-28
1945-02-03
1945-02-04
1945-02-13
1945-02-14
1945-02-25
1945-02-26
1945-02-28
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Mike Connock
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LWannopRE176129v2
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Germany
Great Britain
England--Cheshire
England--Lincolnshire
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Suffolk
Germany--Cologne
Germany--Dortmund
Germany--Dresden
Germany--Duisburg
Germany--Gelsenkirchen
Germany--Kamen
Germany--Krefeld
Germany--Ludwigshafen am Rhein
Germany--Neuss
Germany--Saarbrücken
Wales--Sealand
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
1667 HCU
18 OTU
90 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Anson
bombing of Dresden (13 - 15 February 1945)
Distinguished Flying Cross
Flying Training School
Halifax
Heavy Conversion Unit
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Calveley
RAF Cranage
RAF Sandtoft
RAF Sealand
RAF Tuddenham
RAF Worksop
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1549/35521/LHansonJE46968v1.1.pdf
4b0fc8fbb3e8b03820e6719b128cd957
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Hanson, Joseph Edward
J E Hanson
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-10-18
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Hanson, JE
Description
An account of the resource
Three items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Joseph Edward Hanson DFM (<span>46968 </span>Royal Air Force) and contains his log book, remembrance and photograph. He flew operations as an air gunner with 50, 44 and 61 Squadrons. He was killed 1 October 1942. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Colin Thompson and catalogued by Barry Hunter.<br /><br /><span data-contrast="none" xml:lang="EN-GB" lang="EN-GB" class="TextRun SCXW134679673 BCX0"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW134679673 BCX0">Additional information on<span> Joseph Edwar Hanson Joseph Edward Hanson</span></span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW134679673 BCX0"><span> </span>is available via the</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW134679673 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":200,"335559740":276}"> <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/109837/">IBCC Losses Database.</a></span>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
JE Hanson flying log book
Description
An account of the resource
Flying log book for J E Hanson, wireless operator/air gunner, covering the period from 3 January 1939 to 1 October 1942. Detailing his flying training and operations flown. He was stationed at RAF Finnningley, RAF Upper Heyford, RAF Lindholme, RAF Warmwell, RAF Coningsby, RAF Scampton, RAF Waddington, RAF Boscombe Down, RAF Nutts Corner and RAF Syerston. Aircraft flown in were Tiger Moth, Wellesley, Anson, Whitley, Hampden Hereford, Blenheim, Battle, Lysander, Lancaster, Manchester, Hind, Botha and Wellington. He trained with 76 Squadron which became 16 Operational Training Unit. He flew a total of 46 operations. 29 with 50 Squadron, 3 with 44 Squadron and 14 with 61 Squadron. The aircraft crashed on take off on their 47 operation, with the loss of all crew when the dinghy deployed fouling the tail plane. Targets were Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Dusseldorf, Lorient, Bremen, Brest, Cuxhaven, St Nazaire, Wilhelmshaven, Dunkirk, Hannover, Kiel, La Rochelle, Copenhagen, Bordeaux, Essen, Saarbrucken, Atlantic Ocean, Kassel, Konigsberg, Wismar and mine laying. The log book also contains photographs of him and aircraft. His pilots on operations were Pilot Officer Paramore, Pilot Officer Woodward, Squadron Leader Weston DFC and Squadron Leader Burnett.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Atlantic Ocean
Denmark
France
Germany
Great Britain
Russia (Federation)
Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea
Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay
Atlantic Ocean--English Channel
Atlantic Ocean--North Sea
Denmark--Copenhagen
England--Dorset
England--Lincolnshire
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Oxfordshire
England--Wiltshire
England--Yorkshire
France--Bordeaux (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
France--Brest
France--Dunkerque
France--La Rochelle
France--Lorient
France--Saint-Nazaire
Germany--Berlin
Germany--Bremen
Germany--Cologne
Germany--Cuxhaven
Germany--Düsseldorf
Germany--Essen
Germany--Hamburg
Germany--Hannover
Germany--Kassel
Germany--Kiel
Germany--Saarbrücken
Germany--Wilhelmshaven
Germany--Wismar
Northern Ireland--Antrim (County)
Russia (Federation)--Kaliningrad (Kaliningradskai︠a︡ oblastʹ)
Great Britain
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LHansonJE46968v1
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940-10-29
1940-10-30
1940-11-15
1940-11-16
1940-11-25
1940-11-26
1940-11-28
1940-11-29
1940-12-08
1940-12-09
1940-12-16
1940-12-17
1940-12-21
1940-12-22
1940-12-28
1940-12-29
1941-01-01
1941-01-02
1941-01-04
1941-01-05
1941-01-08
1941-01-09
1941-01-14
1941-01-15
1941-01-30
1941-01-31
1941-02-05
1941-02-06
1941-02-07
1941-02-08
1941-02-10
1941-02-11
1941-02-12
1941-02-21
1941-02-22
1941-02-24
1941-02-25
1941-02-26
1941-02-27
1941-03-18
1941-03-19
1941-03-20
1941-03-21
1941-03-29
1941-03-30
1941-04-08
1941-04-09
1941-04-13
1941-04-14
1941-04-17
1941-04-18
1941-04-24
1941-04-25
1941-04-28
1941-04-29
1942-05-02
1942-05-03
1942-05-31
1942-06-01
1942-06-02
1942-07-26
1942-07-27
1942-07-29
1942-07-30
1942-08-09
1942-08-13
1942-08-17
1942-08-19
1942-08-28
1942-08-29
1942-09-01
1942-09-02
1942-09-10
1942-09-11
1942-09-14
1942-09-15
1942-09-16
1942-09-17
1942-09-24
1942-09-25
1942-10-01
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Mike Connock
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1939
1940
1941
1942
16 OTU
44 Squadron
50 Squadron
61 Squadron
76 Squadron
Air Gunnery School
aircrew
Anson
Battle
Blenheim
bombing
bombing of Cologne (30/31 May 1942)
Botha
crash
Distinguished Flying Medal
Hampden
killed in action
Lancaster
Lysander
Manchester
Me 109
mine laying
Operational Training Unit
RAF Boscombe Down
RAF Coningsby
RAF Finningley
RAF Lindholme
RAF Nutts Corner
RAF Scampton
RAF Syerston
RAF Upper Heyford
RAF Waddington
RAF Warmwell
take-off crash
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
Whitley
wireless operator / air gunner
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2109/34865/SWeirG19660703v130001.1.pdf
c6ed68dd8a908559b5f8403385f594af
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Weir, Greg. Edwards, William
Description
An account of the resource
One item. Collection contains the log book of William Edwards (RAAF) who flew thirty operations as Lancaster pilot on 467 Squadron between September 1944 and April 1945.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-04-26
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Weir, G
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
William Edwards - pilot's flying log book
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Australian Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Description
An account of the resource
Flying log book for William Edwards, pilot. Covering the period 25 June 1942 to 31 January 1952. Details his training, operations and post-war civilian flying with Qantas. He was based at RAF Calveley, RAF Windrush, RAF Docking, RAF Church Broughton, RAF Swinderby, RAF Syerston and RAF Waddington. Aircraft flown were Tiger Moth, Yale, Harvard, Anson, Master, Oxford, Wellington, Stirling, Lancaster, Lancastrian, C-47, Constellation and B-24 . With 467 Squadron he flew 30 operations plus a recall and an early return (Dresden). Of these 21 were night and 9 daylight operations. Targets were Karlsruhe, Wilhemshaven, Bremen, Flushing, Brunswick, Nuremberg, Flushing, Dortmund-Ems Canal, Harburg, Duren, Trondheim, Heilbronn, Giesson, Urft Dam, Munich, Mittelland Canal, Houffalize, Politz, Leuna, Rositz, Bohlen, Dortmund, Lutzendorf, Ijmuiden and Hamburg. His pilot on his first ‘second dickie’ operation was Squadron Leader Dieghan.<br /><br /><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW254546702 BCX0">This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW254546702 BCX0">better quality</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW254546702 BCX0"> copies are available.</span>
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-09-26
1944-09-27
1944-10-05
1944-10-06
1944-10-07
1944-10-11
1944-10-14
1944-10-15
1944-10-19
1944-10-20
1944-10-23
1944-11-06
1944-11-07
1944-11-11
1944-11-12
1944-11-16
1944-11-22
1944-11-23
1944-12-04
1944-12-05
1944-12-06
1944-12-07
1944-12-08
1944-12-10
1944-12-11
1944-12-17
1944-12-18
1945-01-01
1945-01-02
1945-01-05
1945-01-06
1945-01-13
1945-01-14
1945-01-15
1945-01-17
1945-02-02
1945-02-03
1945-02-13
1945-02-14
1945-02-15
1944-02-19
1944-02-20
1944-02-21
1944-02-22
1944-02-24
1944-03-07
1944-03-08
1944-03-12
1944-03-14
1944-03-15
1944-04-06
1944-04-09
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SWeirG19660703v130001
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
1660 HCU
27 OTU
467 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Anson
B-24
bombing
bombing of Dresden (13 - 15 February 1945)
C-47
Flying Training School
Harvard
Heavy Conversion Unit
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
Lancaster Mk 1
Lancaster Mk 3
Lancastrian
Me 109
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Calveley
RAF Church Broughton
RAF Swinderby
RAF Syerston
RAF Waddington
RAF Windrush
Stirling
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
Yale
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2108/34860/SWeirG19660703v120002.2.pdf
84fea302600fad1ff3f1f9cd8bcfe9b5
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Weir, Greg. Hickey, Ronald R
Description
An account of the resource
Seventeen items. Collection concerns Flight Lieutenant Ronald Roy Hickey DFC (b 1922, Royal Australian Air Force). He completed a tour of 35 operations as a Halifax pilot on 466 and 462 Squadrons after which he transferred to Transport Command. Collection contains photograph, his log books, decorations and pilot's brevet.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-04-26
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Weir, G
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Ronald Hickey - Royal Australian Air Force flying log book. One
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Air Force. Transport Command
Royal Australian Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SWeirG19660703v120002
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Description
An account of the resource
Royal Australian Air Force flying log book for Ronald Hickey, pilot. Covers the period from 9 August 1942 to 23 August 1950. It details his training, Bomber Command operations, flights in Transport Command and post-war civilian flying. He was based at RAF Hullavington, RAF South Cerney, RAF Babdown Farm, RAF Church Broughton, RAF Marston Moor and RAF Driffield. Aircraft flown were Tiger Moth, Anson, Oxford, Wellington, Halifax and C-47 Dakota. With 466 Squadron and 462 Squadron he flew 35 operations. Targets were Bois de la Halle, Vaires, Ardouval, Les Catelliers, Wanne Eickel, Foret de Nieppe, Caen, Coqures, Etaples, Brunswick, Eindhoven, Kiel, Sterkrade, Watten, Homberg, La Pourchinte, Soesterberg, Le Havre, Gelsenkirchen, Nordstern, Boulogne, Kleve, Bochum, Duisburg, Willhemshaven, Cologne and Dusseldorf. First or second pilots on ‘second dickie’ operations were Pilot Officer Wilson, Flight Lieutenant Black, and Pilot Officer Boys.<br /><br /><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW41131828 BCX0">This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW41131828 BCX0">better quality</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW41131828 BCX0"> copies are available.</span>
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-07-12
1944-07-14
1944-07-17
1944-07-18
1944-07-20
1944-07-21
1944-07-25
1944-07-28
1944-08-06
1944-08-07
1944-08-09
1944-08-11
1944-08-12
1944-08-15
1944-08-16
1944-08-18
1944-08-25
1944-08-27
1944-08-31
1944-09-03
1944-09-09
1944-09-10
1944-09-11
1944-09-12
1944-09-13
1944-09-15
1944-09-17
1944-10-06
1944-10-07
1944-10-09
1944-10-14
1944-10-15
1944-10-30
1944-11-02
1944-11-06
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
France--Les Catelliers
France--Watten
1652 HCU
27 OTU
462 Squadron
466 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Anson
bombing of Luftwaffe night-fighter airfields (15 August 1944)
C-47
Flying Training School
Halifax
Halifax Mk 3
Heavy Conversion Unit
Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944)
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Church Broughton
RAF Driffield
RAF Hullavington
RAF Leconfield
RAF Marston Moor
RAF South Cerney
tactical support for Normandy troops
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2100/34840/SWeirG19660703v110001.2.pdf
5e40ffbaae8c83adbd3d5dcd070d76db
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Weir, Greg. Jubb, Robert
Description
An account of the resource
62 items. Collection concerns Pilot Officer Robert Venter Jubb DFC (b 1922, 426609 Royal Australian Air Force), a Halifax pilot he flew operations on 76 and 462 Squadrons between July and November 1944 when his aircraft was shot down. He evaded capture but remainder of crew were caught and became prisoners of war. Collection contains his log book, newspaper cuttings, photographs (including his target photographs), documents, correspondence and operational route maps.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-04-26
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Weir, G
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Robert Jubb - Royal Australian Air Force flying log book
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Australian Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SWeirG19660703v110001
Description
An account of the resource
Royal Australian Air Force flying log book for Robert Jubb, pilot. Covers the period from 23 November 1942 to 25 August 1946. Details his training, operations and post-war flying. He was based at RAF Bibury, RAF Lulgate Bottom, RAF Moreton in Marsh, RAF Riccall, RAF Holme-on-Spalding Moor and RAF Driffield. Aircraft flown were Tiger Moth, Wirraway, Oxford, Wellington, Halifax, Beaufighter and C-47. Serving wih 76 Squadron and 462 Squadron he flew 32 operations; 12 at night and 20 daylight. Not all targets are legible but those that are include Foret de Croc, Foret de Nieppe, Villers Bocage, Dijon, Brest, Sterkrade, Soesterberg, Le Havre, Gelsenkirchen, Kiel, Boulogne, Dusseldorf, Bochum, Duisburg, Essen and Cologne. He survived being shot down.<br /><br /><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW217037194 BCX0">This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW217037194 BCX0">better quality</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW217037194 BCX0"> copies are available.</span>
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-07-25
1944-07-26
1944-07-28
1944-07-29
1944-07-30
1944-08-10
1944-08-11
1944-08-12
1944-08-13
1944-08-14
1944-08-15
1944-08-17
1944-08-18
1944-08-19
1944-08-25
1944-08-27
1944-08-31
1944-09-03
1944-09-09
1944-09-10
1944-09-11
1944-09-12
1944-09-13
1944-09-15
1944-09-16
1944-09-17
1944-09-23
1944-09-24
1944-10-06
1944-10-07
1944-10-09
1944-10-10
1944-10-14
1944-10-15
1944-10-23
1944-10-24
1944-10-25
1944-10-28
1944-10-30
1944-10-31
1944-11-02
1944-11-03
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Yorkshire
England--Gloucestershire
France
France--Boulogne-sur-Mer
France--Brest
France--Forêt du Croc
France--Le Havre
France--Nieppe Forest
France--Villers-Bocage (Calvados)
Germany
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
Germany--Bochum
Germany--Cologne
Germany--Duisburg
Germany--Düsseldorf
Germany--Essen
Germany--Gelsenkirchen
Germany--Kiel
Germany--Oberhausen (Düsseldorf)
Netherlands--Soesterberg
France--Dijon
1658 HCU
21 OTU
462 Squadron
76 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
air gunner
aircrew
bale out
Beaufighter
bomb aimer
bombing of Luftwaffe night-fighter airfields (15 August 1944)
C-47
flight engineer
Flying Training School
Halifax
Halifax Mk 2
Halifax Mk 3
Harvard
Heavy Conversion Unit
Me 110
Me 262
navigator
Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944)
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
prisoner of war
RAF Driffield
RAF Holme-on-Spalding Moor
RAF Moreton in the Marsh
RAF Riccall
Stalag Luft 7
tactical support for Normandy troops
Tiger Moth
training
V-1
V-weapon
Wellington
wireless operator
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1874/34826/MCropperEW1655303-170618-020001.2.jpg
f97f69b577f0f7db8abf6022782af422
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1874/34826/MCropperEW1655303-170618-020002.2.jpg
cdb8e108c5eba6692d336349998b363c
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Cropper, E W
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-06-18
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Cropper, EW
Description
An account of the resource
Three items. The collection concerns Group Captain EW Cropper (Royal Air Force) and contains his log books and documents. He flew operations as a navigator with 57 Squadron.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by [name] and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
EW Cropper Flying Log Sheet
Description
An account of the resource
A record of EW Cropper's first flights on Tiger Moths.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
EW Cropper
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1943-05
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Two printed sheets with handwritten annotations
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
MCropperEW1655303-170618-020001, MCropperEW1655303-170618-020002
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-05
aircrew
Flying Training School
pilot
Tiger Moth
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1874/34824/LCropperEW1655303v1.2.pdf
f88f6fb528ed66723be5e4de2ff41906
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1874/34824/LCropperEW1655303v2.2.pdf
d22e5a5b3765c935d430baf26790a835
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Cropper, E W
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-06-18
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Cropper, EW
Description
An account of the resource
Three items. The collection concerns Group Captain EW Cropper (Royal Air Force) and contains his log books and documents. He flew operations as a navigator with 57 Squadron.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by [name] and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
EW Cropper's Log Books
Description
An account of the resource
Two flying log books for navigators, air bombers, air gunners and flight engineers for E.W. Cropper. Between them they cover the period 17 May 1943 to 6 October 1950. There is much overlap between them and an original log book was destroyed by fire.
<p>Log book One.<br /><br />E W Cropper’s RAF Observer’s and Air Gunner’s Flying Log Book from February 1944 to 6th October 1950, recording training, operations, instructional and staff duties as a navigator. Aircraft in which flown: Stirling, Lancaster III, Lancaster VII (FE), Halifax II and V, Wellington XIII, Oxford, Anson, Proctor, Mosquito B35, Lincoln 2B. Based at: RAF Jurby (No. 5 Air Observer School), RAF Wratting Common (1651 Conversion Unit), RAF Hemswell (1 Lancaster Finishing School), RAF Elsham Wolds (103 Squadron), RAF Blyton (1662 Heavy Conversion Unit), RAF Shawbury (Empire Central Navigation School/Empire Air Navigation School), RAF Lindholme (1656 Heavy Conversion Unit), RAF Oakington and RAF Mepal (7 Squadron), RAF High Wycombe and RAF Booker (Bomber Command Communications Flight), RAF Waddington (57 Squadron) and RAF Scampton (Bomber Command Instrument Rating and Examining Flight).</p>
Records a total of 29 completed operations (26 night, 3 day)) on the following targets in Belgium, France and Germany: Aulnoye, Caen, Calais, Dortmund, Duisburg, Essen, Flers, Friedrichshaven, Gelsenkirchen, Hasselt, Karlsruhe, Kiel Bay, Le Havre, Mailly-Le-Camp, Maintenon, Mardyck, Marquise-Mimoyecques, Orleans, Rennes (St Jacques airfield), Revigny, Saintes, Sanneville, Scholven, St Martins-de-Varreville, Sterkrade, Vire and Wimereux.<span><span> He also flew 3 Cook's Tour flights and two Operation Dodge flights. Post-war he served with 7 and 57 Squadrons. His pilot on operations was Pilot Officer Moore.<br /><br />Log Book Two.<br /><br /></span></span>
<p>E W Cropper’s RAF Flying Log Book for Navigators, Air Bombers, Air Gunners and Flight Engineers from 17 May 1943 to 16th April 1945, recording training, operations, instructional and staff duties as a navigator. Entitled “PERSONAL LOGBOOK”, includes detailed personal notes about training courses, first operational tour (“29 sorties”), instructor and staff navigator training. Aircraft in which flown: Tiger Moth, Stirling, Lancaster III, Halifax II and V, Wellington XIII, Oxford, Anson. Based at: RAF Shellingford (No. 3 Elementary Flying Training School), RAF Jurby (No. 5 Air Observer School), RAF Wratting Common (1651 Conversion Unit), RAF Hemswell (1 Lancaster Finishing School), RAF Elsham Wolds (103 Squadron), RAF Blyton (1662 Heavy Conversion Unit) and RAF Shawbury (Empire Air Navigation School).</p>
<p>Records a total of 29 completed operations (26 night, 3 day) on the following targets in Belgium, France and Germany: Aulnoye, Caen, Calais, Dortmund, Duisburg, Essen, Flers, Friedrichshaven, Gelsenkirchen, Hasselt, Karlsruhe, Kiel Bay, Le Havre, Mailly-Le-Camp, Maintenon, Mardyck, Marquise-Mimoyecques, Orleans, Rennes (St Jacques airfield), Revigny, Saintes, Sanneville, Scholven, St Martins-de-Varreville, Sterkrade, Vire and Wimereux. <span>His pilot on operations was Pilot Officer Moore.</span></p>
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Two printed books with handwritten annotations
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LCropperEW1655303v1, LCropperEW1655303v2
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Belgium
France
Germany
Great Britain
Great Britain Miscellaneous Island Dependencies--Isle of Man
Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea
Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay
Atlantic Ocean--English Channel
Atlantic Ocean--Kiel Bay
England--Buckinghamshire
England--Cambridgeshire
England--Lincolnshire
England--Shropshire
England--Yorkshire
Belgium--Hasselt
France--Caen
France--Charente-Maritime
France--Flers-de-l'Orne
France--Le Havre
France--Mailly-le-Camp
France--Maintenon
France--Mimoyecques
France--Nord (Department)
France--Orléans
France--Pas-de-Calais
France--Rennes
France--Revigny-sur-Ornain
France--Vire (Calvados)
France--Wimereux
Germany--Dortmund
Germany--Duisburg
Germany--Essen
Germany--Friedrichshafen
Germany--Gelsenkirchen
Germany--Karlsruhe
Germany--Oberhausen (Düsseldorf)
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
France--Saint-Martin-de-Varreville
France--Manche
France--Calvados
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-04-24
1944-04-25
1944-04-26
1944-04-27
1944-04-28
1944-04-30
1944-05-01
1944-05-03
1944-05-04
1944-05-07
1944-05-08
1944-05-09
1944-05-10
1944-05-11
1944-05-12
1944-05-15
1944-05-16
1944-05-19
1944-05-20
1944-05-21
1944-05-22
1944-05-23
1944-06-02
1944-06-03
1944-06-04
1944-05-05
1944-06-06
1944-06-07
1944-06-09
1944-06-10
1944-06-12
1944-06-13
1944-06-14
1944-06-16
1944-06-17
1944-06-18
1944-06-19
1944-06-20
1944-06-22
1944-06-23
1944-06-24
1944-06-25
1944-07-04
1944-07-05
1944-07-07
1944-07-12
1944-07-13
1944-07-17
1944-07-18
1944-07-19
1945-07-03
1945-07-13
1945-11-28
1945-11-30
1946-01-14
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
David Leitch
103 Squadron
1651 HCU
1656 HCU
1662 HCU
57 Squadron
7 Squadron
Air Observers School
aircrew
Anson
Bombing of Mailly-le-Camp (3/4 May 1944)
bombing of the Le Havre E-boat pens (14/15 June 1944)
bombing of the Normandy coastal batteries (5/6 June 1944)
Cook’s tour
Flying Training School
forced landing
Halifax
Halifax Mk 2
Halifax Mk 5
Heavy Conversion Unit
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
Lancaster Mk 3
Lincoln
mid-air collision
mine laying
Mosquito
navigator
Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944)
Operation Dodge (1945)
Oxford
Proctor
RAF Blyton
RAF Elsham Wolds
RAF Hemswell
RAF High Wycombe
RAF Jurby
RAF Lindholme
RAF Mepal
RAF Oakington
RAF Scampton
RAF Shawbury
RAF Upwood
RAF Waddington
RAF Wratting Common
Stirling
tactical support for Normandy troops
Tiger Moth
training
V-1
V-weapon
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1879/34815/MClarkM[Ser -DoB]-170623-01.pdf
f8d0e85663defb4325b86599799358aa
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Clark, Marion
Clarke, Marion
M Clark
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-06-23
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Clark, M
Description
An account of the resource
Ten items. The collection concerns Leading Aircraftswoman Marion Clark (Royal Air Force) and contains an audio recording and photographs. She served as a driver in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force at RAF Hemswell and RAF Ingham.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Dorothy Cole and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
Great Aunt Marion was the eldest of 4 siblings Ken, Pat & Dorothy. She was born in Leeds to Violet & Henry Clark, and, was educated at Burley Church School in Leeds. She was a high achiever academically and physically, being captain of the netball team, she was also taught to play golf. She had the opportunity to go on to higher education, but, due to the ill health of her Father, Marion at the age of 14 returned home to help her Mother run The Royal Oak at Swayfield. Marion had beautiful hand writing and a wonderful way with words, delivered in distinctive melodious voice, with a wonderful laugh and mischievous sense of humour.
On his way home from market Great grandfather taught Marion & Ken to drive. He was in the observer core and allowed special fuel rations. She recalled filling a 2 gallon can of petrol for 1/2 a crown.
Learning to drive stood Marion in good stead. When the war started she made the decision not to work in the ammunitions factory at Grantham – she didn't want to turn yellow! So, when war broke out in 1939, Marion secretly sent off her application form, under the age of 18! Her Father approved, her mother certainly didn't. Marion wanted to join the MT section. She scored 98% in her test for vehicle maintenance, and would remove the rotor arm to disable her vehicle – in case it fell into enemy hands. Marion drove until she was 90, and then only stopped because of the minor stroke she had.
Marion commenced her WRAF duties at Hemswell and various locations around Britain, often working 36 hours and only admitting to falling asleep at the wheel once! She said how bitterly cold it was and how she cried when her hot water bottle burst. Marion drove the length and breadth of Britain, without Sat Nav. or road signs! Delivering supplies and chauffeuring Officers and Generals to meetings, and air crew to and from their planes.
It was whilst in the forces Marion became engaged to Peter Ball a B17 bomber pilot, Peter was billeted at Stocking Hall, they met at a dance at Swayfield.
Unfortunately, like many other brave young men he failed to return from his mission, along with his crew. Marion was left to deal with the loss of her first love.
At the end of the war Marion was recruited into the W.V.S. She had postings in Germany, Singapore, Burma and Kuala Lumpur. Whilst in the Far East, Marion learnt to fly, she went solo in 1951 and gained her
[page break]
pilots licence in a Tiger Moth, under the tutorage of Don McFail and Freddy Fisk – she said he smoked such a lot his teeth were almost brown. Marion remembered delivering a 21st Birthday cake to a soldier chasing communist bandits. She parachuted the cake over the side of the Auster aircraft.
Marion loved all creatures, great or small. She remembered an Orangutan while in the Far East that lifted her skirt and looked at her face through the material, he was fascinated he could see through the material. Her friend Elizabeth used to collect moths, so, she used to make sure they flew off before Elizabeth could stick a pin through them! Marion and her flying instructor Don, also tried to save a baby elephant, when its mother was mistakenly killed.
Marion was especially fond of dogs and had many throughout her life, given or rescued. Jumpy Foster, she looked after him in Germany, he was a border terrier. Knick named Jumpy Foster because he used to jump with the parachute regiments whilst training. When Marion left Germany leaving Jumpy Foster broke her heart, she said "he came to me and looked down at my suitcase, then looked up, and he gave me a wet nose kiss goodbye. With a heavy heart, she entrusted him to the house keeper.
After the war 1949 – 52 period. Marion had a wonderful time in Fallingbostel, the invites to Balls littered the door mat. There was so much to do, squash courts, Polo ponies to ride and race, skying – Three very happy years there with The 7th armoured division that had fought in Middle East, beside the desert rats, 7th Hussars and the Queen bays. Marion was posted to Berlin but didn't want to go, she was enjoying herself so much at Fallingbostel – Marion said they were 3 of the best years of her life.
Marion returned to England in 1955 decorated with The Defence Medal, British War Medal and General Service Medal. She resumed her life, but continued to put others first, working for Lincolnshire County council, where she gained her qualifications as a Social Worker, working with Children Services and still supporting her mother in running the Three Tunns pub at Castle Bytham. She was also an active member for the Parish Council.
Marion & her mother had a caravan at Heacham in Norfolk, spending many happy hours walking with their dogs and socialising. The Clark family have always been great believers in the restorative powers of fresh air and a tipple or two. Many reckling pigs, ducks, lambs, birds, cats,
[page break]
dogs and family members have been restored with a generous dose of Brandy!
When Marion retired, she moved to Bourne with her mother. Marion now had the time to pursue her love of art and caring for animals.
Marion loved all her dogs the latter being Dachshund's Sarus, Pippa, and Brigg and finally tiny Amber her Jack Russell, her last little love, rescued from the back of a van.
Marion looked after her mother at home until she passed on, with only a brief spell in hospital at the very end. Marion was also able to stay in her home, which was her dearest wish. With the help of her carers and good neighbours:- Amber, Richard, Anne & Dave. Marion's final weeks were filled with Christmas and visits from friends and family. Her last little adventure was down to the Nags Head pub, to have lunch with her dearest friend Joan, before spending Christmas day with her family.
Marion loved to dance and Dorothy as a little girl remembers Marion frequently dancing around the kitchen, with her in her arms. Both Beverley & Tracey remember being taught to do the twist at the Three Tunns pub, with much laughter and merriment.
Life was an adventure and although towards the end of the 2015, Marion's infirmities could have laid her low. She would have none of it, she lived her life on her terms, determined, and with great dignity and strength of character.
Marion would not deviate from her chosen path, which was a good, kind one.
If she ever took your suggestion, it was because, she had already chosen that route!
We say this with great respect for a Gentle Women [sic] of a stoical era.
We will always remember her tickling laughter, when relating the recent story of her Knight in shining armour Dave. Who climbed through her upstairs window to rescue her! And Richard guiding her home from town when she was caught in heavy rain and soaked to the skin.
Last but not least a big thank you to Amber and Ann for keeping a close eye on Marion, sharing their meals with Aunt, and the most precious gift of all to Marion, their time.
[italics] We thank you all – "God Bless" [/italics]
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Marion Clark Biography
Description
An account of the resource
Marion's life detailed, from birth, including her days with the RAF.
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Leeds
England--Grantham
Germany--Fallingbostel (Landkreis)
Singapore
Burma
Malaysia--Kuala Lumpur
Germany--Berlin
England--Lincolnshire
England--Heacham
Germany
Malaysia
England--Norfolk
England--Yorkshire
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Personal research
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Three printed sheets
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
MClarkM[Ser#-DoB]-170623-01
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Sue Smith
animal
B-17
entertainment
ground personnel
killed in action
RAF Hemswell
sport
Tiger Moth
Women’s Auxiliary Air Force
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2099/34696/SWeirG19660703v100003.1.pdf
3739e002571031609213160af0b204f8
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Weir, Greg. Wilson, Paul Dean
Description
An account of the resource
Thirty-four items. Collection concerns Flying Officer Paul Wilson RAAF, a Halifax pilot he flew operations with 466 and 462 Squadrons from June to October 1944. Collection contains his log books, photographs, newspaper cutting and documents.
The collection was catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-04-26
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Weir, G
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Australian Air Force
Royal Air Force. Transport Command
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SWeirG19660703v100003
Description
An account of the resource
Flying Log Book for Paul Wilson, pilot. Covers period from 22 October 1942 to 28 March 1946 including his training, operations, Transport Command and post-war civilian flying in Australia. He was based at RAF Lulsgate Bottom, RAF Babdown Farm, RAF South Cerney, RAF Lichfield, RAF Marston Moor, RAF Leconfield and RAF Driffield. Aircraft flown were Tiger Moth, Anson, Oxford, Wellington, Halifax and C-47. Serving with 466 and 462 Squadrons he flew 41 operations: 16 night and 25 day. Targets were Ferme d'Urville, Amiens, Evrecy, <span>Mimoyecques, Oiseont, Domleer, Ferme du Forestal, Landes, Paris, Ardouval, Les Catelliers, Stuttgart, Foret de Nieppe, Caen, May sur Orne, Falaise, Coqueraux, Dijon, Etaples, Brunswick, Eindhoven Kiel, Sterkrade, Soesterberg, Le Havre, Gelsenkirchen, Calais, Hanover, Essen, Oostrappelle and Westkappelle. <br /><br /><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW201071876 BCX0">This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW201071876 BCX0">better quality</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW201071876 BCX0"> copies are available.</span><br /></span>
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-06-01
1944-06-02
1944-06-12
1944-06-13
1944-06-14
1944-06-15
1944-06-27
1944-06-28
1944-07-01
1944-07-04
1944-07-06
1944-07-12
1944-07-13
1944-07-14
1944-07-15
1944-07-18
1944-07-20
1944-07-21
1944-07-23
1944-07-24
1944-07-25
1944-07-28
1944-07-30
1944-08-01
1944-08-05
1944-08-06
1944-08-07
1944-08-08
1944-08-09
1944-08-10
1944-08-11
1944-08-12
1944-08-13
1944-08-15
1944-08-16
1944-08-17
1944-08-18
1944-08-19
1944-09-01
1944-09-09
1944-09-10
1944-09-11
1944-09-12
1944-09-15
1944-09-16
1944-09-25
1944-09-26
1944-10-06
1944-10-21
1944-10-22
1944-10-23
1944-10-24
1944-10-25
1944-10-28
1944-10-29
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
France--Les Catelliers
Title
A name given to the resource
Paul Wilson's RAAF pilot's flying log book. One
1652 HCU
27 OTU
462 Squadron
466 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Anson
bombing
bombing of Luftwaffe night-fighter airfields (15 August 1944)
bombing of the Mimoyecques V-3 site (6 July 1944)
C-47
Flying Training School
Halifax
Halifax Mk 2
Halifax Mk 3
Heavy Conversion Unit
Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944)
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Driffield
RAF Leconfield
RAF Lichfield
RAF Marston Moor
RAF South Cerney
tactical support for Normandy troops
Tiger Moth
training
V-1
V-weapon
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2093/34640/SWeirG19660703v090005.1.pdf
74ac85235abe6fb895ef94b26b3c25ea
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Weir, Greg. Flannigan, J and McManus, JB
Description
An account of the resource
Seventeen items. Collection concerns Flt Sgt James Flannigan who flew as a wireless operator/air gunner on 77 and 76 Squadrons in 1941, he failed to return from operations 31 October 1941 and J B McManus (RAAF), a Halifax pilot who flew operations on 466 Squadron in 1944-45. Collection contains their log books, mementos, parade notes, medals, documents and photographs.
Collection catalogued by Nigel Huckins
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-04-26
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Weir, G
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
J B McManus - pilot's flying log book
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Australian Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SWeirG19660703v090005
Description
An account of the resource
Flying Log Book for J B McManus, pilot. Covers the period from 22 December 1942 to 29 April 1948 and his training, operations and post-war flying in Australia and Japan. He was based at RAF Clyffe Pypard, RAF Wymeswold, RAF Weston on the Green, RAF Moreton in Marsh, RAF Rufforth, RAF Driffield, RAF Edzell and RAF Hawarden. Aircraft flown were Tiger Moth, Wirraway, Oxford, Wellington, Halifax, Albemarle, Anson, Beaufort, Proctor, Mosquito, Martinet, Master, Lancaster, Lincoln, Avenger, Dominie, Warwick and P-51 Mustang. With 466 Squadron he flew on 33 operations (including one recall); 17 daylight and 16 daylight. Targets were Hamburg, La Pourchinte, Soesterberg, Le Havre, Gelsenkirchen, Kiel, Neuss, Calais, Bottrop, Wilhemshaven, Hannover, Essen, Walcheren, Cologne, Dusseldorf, Bochum, Julich, Munster, Sterkrade, Bingen, Mulheim, St Vith, Opladen, and Koblenz. His pilots on his first ‘second dickie’ operations were Flying Officer Herman and Flight Lieutenant Hutchison.<br /><br /><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW135383485 BCX0">This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW135383485 BCX0">better quality</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW135383485 BCX0"> copies are available.</span>
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-08-27
1944-09-01
1944-09-03
1944-09-09
1944-09-11
1944-09-12
1944-09-15
1944-09-16
1944-09-22
1944-09-23
1944-09-25
1944-09-27
1944-09-30
1944-10-15
1944-10-16
1944-10-22
1944-10-25
1944-10-29
1944-10-30
1944-10-31
1944-11-02
1944-11-03
1944-11-04
1944-11-05
1944-11-06
1944-11-16
1944-11-18
1944-11-21
1944-11-22
1944-11-29
1944-11-30
1944-12-12
1944-12-13
1944-12-18
1944-12-19
1944-12-22
1944-12-23
1944-12-24
1944-12-26
1944-12-27
1944-12-28
1944-12-29
1945-01-05
1945-01-06
1945-01-07
1945-01-12
1945-01-13
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
1663 HCU
21 OTU
466 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Albemarle
Anson
Dominie
Flying Training School
Halifax
Halifax Mk 2
Halifax Mk 3
Halifax Mk 5
Harvard
Heavy Conversion Unit
Lancaster
Lincoln
Martinet
Mosquito
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
P-51
pilot
Proctor
RAF Clyffe Pypard
RAF Driffield
RAF Hawarden
RAF Moreton in the Marsh
RAF Rufforth
RAF Wymeswold
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2088/34559/SWeirG19660703v080001-0011.1.jpg
d4dd4a7bf1ad4050325626c1b30bcd68
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Langworthy, Max. Langworthy one
Description
An account of the resource
31 items. Photographs of travels in United States and Great Britain as well as colleagues and friends. Includes photographs of and from aircraft as well as of 462 Squadron pilots in March 1945.
Collection catalogued by Nigel Huckins
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-04-26
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Weir, G
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Kew Gardens, Landram Bay and Tiger Moth
Description
An account of the resource
Top left - view of ducks in foreground with tree surrounded pond in distance. Captioned 'Kew Gardens, Richmond, Oct 43'.
Top right - view across lake of trees. Captioned 'Kew Gardens, Richmond, Oct 43'.
Bottom left - view of a Tiger Moth in a field. Captioned 'Tigersmitt, Fairoaks, Dec 43'.
Bottom right - view of coastal cliffs and bays. Captioned 'Landram Bay, from Peak Hill, Devon, 15.1.44'.
This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1943-10
1943-12
1944-01-15
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-10
1943-12
1944-01-15
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Surrey
England--Devon
England--Richmond upon Thames
England--Chobham
England--Sidmouth
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Civilian
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Photograph
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four b/w photographs mounted on an album page
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SWeirG19660703v080001-0011
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Tiger Moth
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/2087/34541/SWeirG19660703v080004.1.pdf
ba25404959efade2494291a5d7a5fa24
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Weir, Greg. Langworthy, Max
Langworthy, GM
Description
An account of the resource
Ten items and fifty-two items in two sub-collections. Collection concerns Flt Lt Geoffrey Maxwell Michell (Max) Langworthy (428848, Royal Australian Air Force). A Halifax pilot, he flew operations on 462 Squadron from November 1944 to April 1945. Collection contains photographs (including two albums in sub-collections), documents and his log book.
Collection was catalogued by Nigel Huckins
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
201-04-26
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Weir, G
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
G M (Max) Langworthy - Royal Australian Air Force Flying Log Book
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Australian Air Force
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SWeirG19660703v080004
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Description
An account of the resource
Royal Australian Air Force Log Book for Max Langworthy, pilot. Covers period 8 January 1943 to 15 February 1958. Includes his training, operations and post-war flying. He was based at RAF Babdown Farm, RAF Bibury, RAF Morton in Marsh, RAF Rufforth, RAF Driffield and RAF Foulsham. Aircraft flown were Tiger Moth, Anson, Oxford, Halifax and Auster. Serving with 462 Squadron he flew 27 operations of which 3 were daylight and 24 night. Operations 12 and onwards were providing radio counter measures. Targets were Walcheren, Dusseldorf, Bochum, Gelsenkirchen, Sterkrade, Essen, Duisburg, Hagen, Soest, Osnabruck, Hamburg, Mannheim, Cochem, Mainz, Heilbronn, Krefeld, Neuss, Kaiserlautern, Dortmund-Ems canal, Frankfurt, Stade, Lubeck and Wangerooge. He also flew 6 Cook's Tours flights. His pilot for his first 'second dickie' operation was Flight Lieutenant Cuttriss.<br /><br /><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW226334026 BCX0">This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW226334026 BCX0">better quality</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW226334026 BCX0"> copies are available.</span>
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944-10-29
1944-11-02
1944-11-04
1944-11-06
1944-11-21
1944-11-28
1944-11-30
1944-12-02
1944-12-05
1944-12-06
1944-12-12
1945-01-01
1945-01-14
1945-01-17
1945-01-22
1945-01-28
1945-02-02
1945-02-20
1945-02-22
1945-02-24
1945-03-01
1945-03-03
1945-03-05
1945-03-13
1945-04-02
1945-04-23
1945-04-25
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Great Britain. Royal Air Force
1663 HCU
21 OTU
462 Squadron
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Anson
Cook’s tour
crash
Flying Training School
Halifax
Halifax Mk 2
Halifax Mk 3
Halifax Mk 5
Heavy Conversion Unit
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
RAF Driffield
RAF Foulsham
RAF Moreton in the Marsh
RAF Rufforth
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
Window