Browse Items (69 total)

  • Tags: submarine

PNeilsonNS1604.jpg
Norman Neilson was an apprentice engineer at St Rollox Locomotive Works when he volunteered. He had originally wanted to join the Navy but joined the RAF because the only way he could be released from his position was to volunteer for aircrew. His…

AMulhallJE160823.mp3
James was born in Gorton, attended Catholic schools, and became an apprentice plumber. In November 1942 he joined the Royal Air Force. He then trained as a mechanic at RAF St Athan before being posted to RAF Henlow to assemble Hurricanes. He then…

PJeziorskiAFK1705.jpg
Andrzej Jeziorski was born in Poland and, when war broke out, fled to Britain, where he flew as a pilot with 304 Squadron. Remembers the 1st of September 1939. Talks about his father, a Navy officer who served in the First World War. Mentions his…

AInkpenH160712.mp3
Harry Inkpen joined Bomber Command in November 1944 and flew 33 operations on Mosquitoes as a pilot on 162 Squadron. Tells of how, in his view, his squadron had more losses because of bad weather conditions than because of encounters with the enemy.…

AHarrisHST150909.mp3
Harry ‘Sam’ Harris grew up in Scotland and volunteered for the Air Force. He trained as a navigator in South Africa. On the penultimate day of his training he flew over a multitude of lifeboats bearing the survivors of a torpedoed ship. The next…

Ces Barlow volunteered for training with the RAAF and completed his pilot training in Canada. He was kept on to instruct new pilots and converted to fly Mosquitoes. On one search trip to look for U-boat activity a German aircraft attacked them and…

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Starts with domestic matters. Writes about recent operation to Heligoland which was unopposed. The attack involved 1000 Lancasters dropping 5000 tons of bombs on submarine pens and enemy troops. Mentions that he was on operation to Bremen the…

MBarkerR[Ser#-DoB]-151001-01.pdf
Opens with mention of Bomber Command memorial in Green Park and 55,573 despite killed, moral was high due to belief that winning was vital. Tells story that he was guest at two weddings in 1943 with three other members of Bomber Command and that all…

PRobinsonD1601.jpg
Douglas was in the Local Defence Volunteers before joining the Royal Air Force as a pilot. After Babbacombe, he did initial training at Scarborough and then in Rhodesia. Initial flight training in Harare on Tiger Moths was followed by service…

AFarrC160524.mp3
Colin was born in Ilford in 1920 and at the outbreak of war was working in a London warehouse. Seeing the bomb damage around him he wanted to join the RAF and gain revenge, so he volunteered. Unfortunately he had a plaster cast on his leg, following…

PWynneH1824.jpg
Helga Wynne was born into a family of twelve in 1926 in Kiel, Germany. She describes her childhood and her father working as a shipbuilder in the dockyards. She left school at 14 and went to work on a farm. She fell through the hayloft opening,…

AWarrenHJ160506.mp3
Continuing of interview with H J Warren. Includes descriptions of encountering submarines when flying from RAF Greenock.

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Benny Goodman grew up in London and hoped to become a pilot. He volunteered for the Air Force and was originally posted to RAF Abingdon as a ground gunner before beginning his flying training. After qualifying as a pilot in Canada, he became an…

PGoodmanLS1501.jpg
Benny Goodman discusses some of his operations as a pilot with 617 Squadron. He discusses attacking the Tirpitz and the use of Tallboy and Grand Slam bombs which required the Lancaster plane to be modified. On a flight against the U-boat pens in…

PDixonAS1501.jpg
Alec Stuart Dixon volunteered for the Royal Air Force via the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. After training he flew Beauforts and Ansons, then trained as a Hudson pilot. He flew convoy escort operations and reconnaissance flights looking for…

PBryanWA1501.jpg
William Bryan reminisces being hit by a German fighter and anti-aircraft fire while mine laying the Kiel Bay. The rest of the tour was a reasonably quiet time, consisting mainly of operations in the run-up of the Normandy campaign. Describes bombing…

PPalaG1801.jpg
Gavino Pala reminisces about his childhood in Sardinia, describing schooling and paramilitary training. Recollects the 17 May 1943 Alghero bombing, explaining how part of the population had left the city the day before and slept among olive trees,…

PTwellsE15070083.jpg
The obituary of Flight Lieutenant Bob Knights. It details his operations on the Tirpitz, his early life, his training in Florida, his time with 617 Squadron and his role with BOAC after the war until his retirement in 1976.

PTwellsE15070022.jpg
An vertical aerial photograph of Brest docks. Annotated 'S/M Shelters'.

PDorricottLW15090103.jpg
A letter from No 10 Downing Street to air officer commanding-in-chief, Bomber Command, complimenting the RAF on their success in bombing Augsburg.

PDorricottLW15090102.jpg
Details about the operation on the MAN u-boat engine factory in Augsburg and the decorations awarded to the crew members.

PHouriganM18030146.jpg
Target photograph of Bordeaux. River Garonne running across bottom of photograph. Basins, docks, submarine pens, and industrial buildings clearly visible. Captioned '3°F', '5B', '1951 SKELL.11.8.44//8" 18000 [arrow] 010° 1635 BORDEAUX RD.D. 6X2000.…

PHouriganM18030051.jpg
Target photograph of Bordeaux. Both banks of river Garonne with basins, docks submarine pens, and moored ships clearly visible. Industrial area with roads and railways visible. Captioned '3°F', '5B', '1918 SKELL.11.8.44//8" 17000 [arrow] 005° 1632…

PHouriganM18030051.jpg
Target photograph of Bordeaux showing both banks of the River Garonne with submarine pens in docks. Northern districts are visible. Target area clear with no clouds. No bomb bursts seen. Captioned ‘3° F’, ‘5B’, ‘1918 SKELL. 11.8.44 // 8”…

SCavalierRG1264567v10012.pdf
Propaganda leaflet aimed at German-speaking population.
This document mimics recruitment material seeking volunteers for the U-Boat service. It is in interactive form and shows a seaman dropping into a watery grave. It quotes the average life…
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