E E Stock]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Steve Baldwin]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Hull]]> 1941-01-15]]> After an unsuccessful attempt to run his family business, he applied for the civil service and worked until 1985 on radar development, auto triangulation, Cathode-Ray Direction Finder, Identification Friend or Foe, infrared devices, laser and chain radar stations.]]> Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Coastal Command]]> Civilian]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Blackpool]]> Algeria]]> Austria]]> Austria--Mauthausen]]> Egypt]]> France]]> Germany]]> Rhine River]]> Netherlands]]> Netherlands--Arnhem]]> Tunisia]]> North Africa]]> 1944]]> Nigel Moore]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Bridlington]]> Germany]]> Germany--Dresden]]> Canada]]> 1945]]> Gary Rushbrooke]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Vivienne Tincombe]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Germany]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Korea]]> 1947]]> 1956]]> Anna Hoyles]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea]]> Egypt]]> Egypt--Cairo]]> France]]> Germany]]> Germany--Peenemünde]]> Gibraltar]]> Great Britain]]> Ireland]]> Italy]]> Mediterranean Sea]]> Middle East--Palestine]]> North Africa]]> John discusses Czechoslovakian and Polish aircrew, Jewish personnel, and German-speaking servicemen tasked to listen to German radio communications and disrupt them. He talks about civilian and service life, military ethos, losses, plus personal recollections of Guy Gibson.]]> Julian Maslin]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Carolyn Emery]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> France]]> Germany]]> Nigel Moore]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Australian Air Force]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Wales--Vale of Glamorgan]]> 1942]]> He was classed as working in a reserved occupation, but joined the Air Training Corp whilst waiting to sign up for the Royal Air Force.
John was taken on as groundcrew but successfully trained to become a flight engineer at RAF St Athan. He believes he was one of the youngest.
He trained on Stirlings and then went to Heavy Conversion Unit at RAF Chedburgh where he crewed up with Ronald ‘Eddie’ Edmondson, with whom he maintained a friendship after the war. John talks about his crew and the training they did.
Although John wanted to fly Short Sunderlands, he was not tall enough to reach the leavers, so he was assigned to Short Stirlings and flew them with 514 Squadron. John compares the Stirling and the Lancaster, and also describes a bullseye exercise to the French coast. From RAF Chedburgh he went to the Lancaster Finishing School at RAF Feltwell.
John completed a full tour of 30 operations, including trips to Kiel, the Falaise Gap, Rüsselsheim and Stettin, Duisburg. John explains the accuracy of the Gee-H navigation system. He goes on to describe some incidents including instances of a scarecrow, a fictional shell simulating an exploding four-engine bomber.
John carried out 30 operations. He then returned for a short period to RAF St Athan, followed by RAF Peterborough and its satellite RAF Sutton Bridge before the Motor Transport section at RAF Kirton Lindsey. He left the RAF in May 1947 and eventually set up his own garage. John eventually retired at the age of 65.]]>
Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Vivienne Tincombe]]> Sally Coulter]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Suffolk]]> Wales--Vale of Glamorgan]]> England--London]]> France]]> Germany]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Poland]]> Poland--Szczecin]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> 1946]]> 1947-05]]>
Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Coventry]]> France--Brest]]> France--Saint-Nazaire]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Scotland--Lossiemouth]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> England--Warwickshire]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1945]]>
The interview is incomplete and ends abruptly.]]>
Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Denmark]]> Great Britain]]> Sweden]]> Denmark--Copenhagen]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Sweden--Stockholm]]> 1945-02]]> 1945-03-21]]>
Adam Sutch]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Vivienne Tincombe]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Scarborough]]> South Africa]]> Germany]]> Germany--Dresden]]> 1945]]> Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Richard Bracknall]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> United States]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Florida--Lake Okeechobee]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Leipzig]]> Germany--Munich]]> France--Bordeaux (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)]]> Florida]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1944]]> Gill Barnes]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Canadian Air Force]]> Civilian]]> Great Britain]]> England--Cornwall (County)]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Staffordshire]]> Canada]]> Nova Scotia]]> New Brunswick]]> Nova Scotia--Halifax]]> New Brunswick--Moncton]]> Germany]]> Atlantic Ocean--English Channel]]> Germany--Köhlen]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Duisburg]]> Germany--Solingen]]> Germany--Koblenz]]> Germany--Dortmund]]> England--Newquay]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> 1942]]> Len was then posted to various locations abroad, did a code and cipher course and was demobilised. He went back to his plumbing apprenticeship, got married, settled in Bath but wanted to get back to service life. He started back as an airman and went into the air traffic control branch serving at different stations in Great Britain and Germany until he retired in 1971. Len was into post war meetings and memorial visits.]]> Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Australian Air Force]]> Royal New Zealand Air Force]]> Royal Canadian Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> Germany]]> England--Nottinghamshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Cheshire]]> England--Rutland]]> Sri Lanka]]> Singapore]]> 1945]]> Flying training commenced at RAF Booker on Tiger Moths and he was then sent out of England as part of the Empire Training Scheme. Flying training on Stearman aircraft recommenced at Lakeland in Florida followed by multi-engined training at Macon in Georgia and Valdosta for advanced training. In October 1942 he became a pilot under the American Army Air Force System and declined an offer to stay and become an instructor.
Returning to Britain on an unescorted Queen Elizabeth liner, he trained on Oxfords at RAF Little Rissington. Posted to RAF Harwell to fly, in Bluey's terms "clapped out Wellingtons" he describes the system for forming a crew. They were posted to RAF Riccall to fly the Halifax.
The next posting was to an operational squadron at RAF Lissett where he did his first operational flight to Krefeld in June 1943 and trips to Berlin, Cologne and Mannheim. After his trip to Krefeld, his rear gunner refused to fly and was removed. On his second trip to Mannheim, Bluey's aircraft was struck by a bomb from an aircraft flying above. They had to reduce height and so used Window to disguise their location. The final trip was to Berlin in November 1943 and, having completed his tour, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Bluey never flew again. Sent to Tilly Whim, Bluey was trained to operate Oboe and explains the device. Posted to an Oboe station at RAF Winterton to monitor junior operatives, he met his future wife.
After the war had finished he became an instructor on the Link Trainer and sent to various RAF stations and finally to RAF Marham from where he was demobilised and returned to civilian life. In civilian life, employment in the farm feed industry was followed by time in the lubricant industry until retirement. Bluey compiled a register of all crews that flew with 158 Squadron and formed a Squadron association in 1947, of which he became president, and organised a memorial to the squadron at former RAF Lissett.]]>
Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> England--Gloucestershire]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Canada]]> United States]]> Florida]]> Florida--Lakeland]]> Georgia]]> Georgia--Macon]]> Germany]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Krefeld]]> Germany--Mannheim]]> 1943-06]]> 1943-11]]>
Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> Wales--Anglesey]]> Zimbabwe]]> Zimbabwe--Gweru]]> Zimbabwe--Bulawayo]]> South Africa--Cape Town]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Cheshire]]> England--Essex]]> England--Gloucestershire]]> England--Gloucestershire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> England--Manchester]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Wiltshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> South Africa--Mahikeng]]> South Africa]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Bishop's Stortford]]> 1945]]> Ken went to RAF Shawbury, flying Oxfords. He was posted to RAF Lindholme on Wellingtons where he crewed up. He was posted for a very short time on Halifaxes, followed by a Conversion Unit onto Lancasters. He then went to RAF Elsham Wolds and 576 Squadron. From flight sergeant, he quickly became pilot officer.
Ken shares some good advice he received from a fellow pilot and describes some of his operations. Ken was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses. His first operation was to the Bielefeld viaduct and the last was to Berchtesgaden.
Ken flew three different Lancasters for 617 Squadron and they were the only heavy bomber crew to carry out over 100 operations. During his time at RAF Woodhall Spa, he fostered a good relationship with a local farmer.
When the war ended, he went to RAF Waddington and flew back army personnel from Italy.]]>
Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Sally Coulter]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Shropshire]]> England--Cheshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Canada]]> Québec]]> Queensland]]> Saskatchewan]]> Québec--Mont-Joli]]> Alberta--Innisfail]]> Saskatchewan--Swift Current]]> Germany]]> Germany--Berchtesgaden]]> Germany--Bielefeld]]> Italy]]> 1945]]>
Great Britain. Royal Air Force]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> 1941-02-04]]> Susanne Pescott]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Ian Whapplington]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Sheffield]]> Germany]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Atlantic Ocean--English Channel]]> 1944-06]]> National Service Medical Board]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Civilian]]> Great Britain]]> England--Wiltshire]]> England--Salisbury]]> 1940-10-23]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Devon]]> England--Newton Abbot]]> 1940-10-23]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Lesley Wain ]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Blackpool]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Emily Jennings]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Bedfordshire]]> England--Devon]]> England--Newton Abbot]]> 1940-10]]> Great Britain. The secretary of state for air]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Robin Christian]]> David Bloomfield]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Correspondence]]> Text. Service material]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--London]]> 1945-02-03]]> Great Britain. The secretary of state for air]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Laura Morgan]]> eng]]> Text]]> Text. Correspondence]]> Royal Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> 1942-02-24]]>