Chapter Seven

1944: A New Role and the Avro Lancaster

January

Flying Officer Doolan RAAF opened the 1944 mining offensive for 218 Squadron in the early evening of January 1st, with Texel as the intended destination, and six mines were dropped successfully during an otherwise quiet trip. From 1942 the German Air Force had been developing an unmanned aircraft, which became known as the V1 flying bomb. This was the first of three “Vergeltungs” or vengeance weapons being developed, the others being a stratospheric rocket, the V2, and a subterranean supergun at Mimoyecques in France, the V-3. In order to launch the V1, the Germans began work in the spring of 1943 to construct four large bunkers and ninety-six bases along the French and Belgian coasts. These sites, and their supporting infrastructure, would become a target for Harris’s bombers over the ensuring months in a campaign codenamed “Crossbow”. The V1 ski sites themselves were referred to as “No Ball” targets and each was given its own unique code name. The first bombing operation of the year for the squadron took place on the 4/5th, when twelve crews were briefed for a raid in the Pas-de-Calais area. The target was a V1 site codenamed ‘Blackcap’, which was situated just south-west of the town of Hazebrouck. A Flight Commander, S/Ldr Overton, led the crews out over Beachy Head, and found the target in good visibility and well-marked by Oboe-equipped Mosquitos. Enemy opposition was described as negligible, but danger was never far away, and LJ472 HA-K was raked by an overzealous rear gunner in another Stirling. One engine was put out of action and minor damage was caused to the nose section, but thankfully without injury to F/O Brentnall and his crew.

Apart from another mining effort on the 6/7th, which took place off the entrance to the River Adour just north of Biarritz, bad weather curtailed any further operations for 218 Squadron until the 14th. On this night nine crews were ordered to attack the constructional works at Bristillerie, codenamed ‘Blackbird D’, which was situated south of Cherbourg. In the event eight crews took off, and carried out what appeared to be a successful attack on the primary target.

A blanket of fog prevented further operations until January 20th, when the main force returned to Berlin, and three 218 Squadron crews were given the Nectarines I garden to mine north of Den Helder and around Texel. Oddly, three 214 Squadron aircraft were used by the squadron for this operation, EF215 BU-M, BF727 BU-S and LK445 BU-D. In the early evening of the 21/22nd S/Ldr Ryall led twelve aircraft in two sections against the constructional sites at “Blackbird” D and “Blackcap”. Each was attacked by six crews in good visibility, and bombing appeared to the accurate, although returning crews were of the opinion that the targets would be easier to bomb accurately if fewer aircraft were over the target at the same time. The main operation on this night was carried out by over six hundred Lancasters and Halifaxes against Magdeburg, when, in return for an inconclusive raid and almost certainly little damage, a new record loss of fifty-seven aircraft was incurred. 218 became the sole occupant of Downham Market when 214 Squadron departed on January 24th for Sculthorpe. As a part of the ongoing restructuring within the group, 214 had been chosen to join 100 (SD) Group in a radio countermeasures (RCM) role.

Weather conditions had improved sufficiently for ten crews to be briefed on the 25th for a small scale attack on “Blackbird D”. Seven aircraft actually took off in marginal weather conditions to join up with ten more from 90 Squadron. The Pathfinders delivered their green TIs a few minutes ahead of zero hour, and this forced the bombing element to orbit until the target was re-marked. Fortunately the flak defences were light, but crews remarked on an increase in searchlights positioned south of the target area. Australian P/O J Webster finally managed to bomb on a number of concentrated green TIs from 14,000 feet, and reported, “A Good Show, if TIs correctly placed.” A major mining operation was undertaken on the 27/28th for which 218 Squadron contributed fourteen of seventy-six Stirlings. It was an extensive diversionary operation in support of a large-scale all-Lancaster attack on Berlin. Ten 218 Squadrons crews were given the Heligoland Blight to mine, and the remaining four were assigned to the Esbjerg Approaches, while twenty-one Pathfinder Halifaxes carried out a diversionary raid on Heligoland docks. The flares from the last-mentioned allowed the minelayers to pinpoint their position, and seventy-two mines were delivered without loss in a total for the group of an impressive 269 mines. Another major minelaying operation was laid on for the 28/29th, for which 218 Squadron supplied twelve aircraft. Two returned early, but the remainder pressed on to pinpoint the Aero Island, which had been marked by the Pathfinders. This was the first occasion on which the Pathfinders had actively participated in a minelaying operation undertaken by 3 Group.

So ended January 1944, during which the squadron had flown seventy-eight bombing sorties, elevating it to first place among the Stirling squadrons with a 91% success rate. It stood joint third behind its old rivals, 75 and 90 Squadrons, in mining sorties, but all were accomplished without loss, and it was an encouraging start to the year. The influx of new crews and the switch to targets in the occupied territories was welcomed, and the mood within the squadron was buoyant. The squadron’s strength at the end of the month stood at twenty-three fully operational Stirlings. They would be needed for the forth-coming period of operations, in which the squadron would be given a number of new challenges that would test crews and senior officers to the limit. The installation of Sodium Funnel lighting was completed at the east end of the main runway during the month, in a system that would become known as FIDO. Installation had started back in September 1943. William Press the contractors had been tasked with laying thousands of yards of piping along the East – West runway, initial results were encouraging and throughout the winter of 1943, improvements were carried out.

February

The first operation of February took place on the 3rd, when two crews headed for the waters off le Havre. Seven crews were aloft by 11.30hrs on the 6th for a daylight cross-country exercise in conjunction with RAF fighters. Up until then the squadron had been relegated almost to the bottom off the group ladder for training and fighter affiliation flights. Life was not all about operations and training, and there were some light hearted moments. Harry Pinnell, navigator to F/L Goodman, recalls some such incidents.

“I was at Downham Market when the powers-that-be built a new officers mess. It really was quite deluxe for those days. It was built in a hollow presumably so that any bomb blast would go over the top. This was OK, but my crew started up a steam roller standing there minding its own business. We were having some fun when we lost control of it and it smashed through the new mess wall, fortunately it went through two pillars, but did leave a rather big hole! On another occasion we managed to get the Peter Piper DFC the squadron gunnery leader’s fiat sports car into the mess by turning it on its side and pushing it in. We then cleared the furniture and succeeded in driving around the ante room … eight point turns as well.”

Partially successful mining operations were carried out on the nights of the 10th and 11th in the Cinnamon, Brest Peninsular and Cherbourg areas, while eight aircraft from the squadron planted forty-seven mines in the Hyacinth and Greengage gardens on the 12/13th. Wing Commander Royd Fenwick-Wilson AFC arrived on attachment on February 8th from 31 Base to assume temporary command of the station on the departure of G/C Down, who was awaiting a posting on the 10th to 33 Base, Waterbeach. The move would bring with it a promotion to Air Commodore. Canadian Fenwick-Wilson had enlisted in the Air Force in 1934, and by the outbreak of war he was instructing at 12 Service Flying Training School, where he was eventually awarded the AFC and promoted to wing commander. Eager to get “stuck-In” Fenwick-Wilson found himself in England in early 1941 and flying Wellingtons with 405 Squadron RCAF, the squadron he would eventually command. On completion of his first tour in February 1942 he was sent back to Canada, where he toured the various training stations north and south of the border. Succeeding him at 405 Squadron was fellow Canadian W/Cdr Fauquier, who would eventually command 617 Squadron during the final months of the bombing war. The new base commander’s first official duty was to welcome HRH the Duke of Gloucester and the A-O-C on February 13th. A full tour of the station was undertaken, and a selected number of senior officers were introduced to the Duke.

Thirteen crews successfully carried out a mining operation in Kiel Bay on the 15/16th, and a total of thirty-nine mines were delivered to the primary target, the Forget-me-Nots area. Flying Officer Webster RAAF and crew were attacked by a JU88 while at 15,000 feet, and the crew returned to claim it as destroyed. The Combat Report recalls,

“Our aircraft was doing a gentle weave when the rear gunner F/Sgt Howes saw two unidentified aircraft flying together on the starboard side up at 800 yards. He told the pilot to corkscrew to starboard and on doing so the mid upper gunner F/Sgt Clarkson saw the two a/c. The rear gunner opened fire at the aircraft, which was at this time at 400 yards. He gave a 5 second burst and saw his tracer strike the enemy aircraft which continued to come in firing with tracer. The rear gunner gave another burst and saw the aircraft suddenly turn over and dive towards the ground. While the rear gunner was firing at this aircraft the mid upper gunner saw the other aircraft dive away to starboard and was not seen again. Both aircraft had twin engines and are believed to be JU88’s. At time of this combat other combats were seen to take place by tracer in the sky by other members of the crew. The enemy aircraft is claimed as destroyed.”

Eight 218 Squadron crews returned to Kiel Bay on the 19/20th, and delivered thirty-two mines, while the main force of over eight hundred aircraft headed for Leipzig, and the greatest disaster to afflict the Command thus far in the war. Part of the enemy night fighter force met the bombers as they crossed the Dutch coast, and remained in contact all the way to the target. It was impossible to assess the results of the attack, but there was no question over the scale of the defeat for Bomber Command. A massive seventy-eight aircraft failed to return, a new record loss by a clear twenty-one aircraft.

Six 218 Squadron crews enjoyed a successful night of mining off the island of Borkum on the 20/21st, while the main force went to Stuttgart, and produced an effective and damaging raid. Twenty-four hours later five aircraft went back to the Borkum area, and one was claimed by flak from the island. Returning crews reported seeing an aircraft burst into flames about two miles north of the island, and fall in flames into the sea. Twenty-four year old Scotsman F/L James “Red” Wiseman had begun his operational career with 623 Squadron back in August 1943, having joined from 1657 CU. He and his crew had completed eleven operations before the unit’s disbandment, and they had flown four further sorties before being lost. It was initially thought that EJ125 HA-J had been brought down by flak, but information from historian Dr Theo Boiten indicates that it may have been the victim of Uffz Lorenz Gerstmayr of 4/NJG3. A large-scale mining operation in Kiel Bay on the 24/25th was intended to act as a diversion for the main force operation taking place against Schweinfurt. Ten 218 Squadron aircraft joined forty other Stirlings and more than ninety Halifaxes from 4 and 6 Groups. Flak and fighter opposition appeared to have increased, and F/L T Knapman RNZAF reported an exchange with a prowling FW190.

On the 25th 121 ground crew departed Downham Market by road and headed south to Gibraltar Farm, otherwise known as Tempsford in Bedfordshire. Once there they would make ready for the arrival of the squadron’s detachment for a period of “Special Duties”. February had been a rather quite month for the squadron with only fifty-nine sorties undertaken, all of which were mining. Squadron Leader Overton and eleven other crews, eight from A Flight and three from B Flight, were dispatched to Tempsford on the 28th for operations over the forthcoming moon period. Tempsford was home to two Special Duties squadrons, 138 and 161, both of which were engaged in clandestine operations over occupied Europe under the direct control of 3 Group. These two squadrons were known within the group, but not so outside. With the invasion of Europe only months away, supplies of weaponry and equipment were urgently needed by the various resistance organisations. The removal of the Stirlings from front line operations left them available to supplement the efforts of the designated SOE squadrons and those of 38 Group.

March

March began with the majority of the squadron still on detachment, and the remaining crews at Downham Market non-operational, awaiting a move to Woolfox Lodge in the county of Rutland. The main force went back to Stuttgart on the night of the 1/2nd, and lost only four out of 557 aircraft in return for a highly destructive attack. Thereafter, the majority of the Command stayed at home until mid-month, and it was during this interlude that 218 Squadron began its SOE flights over France, and the first salvoes were fired in the pre-invasion campaign as part of the Transportation Plan. SOE sorties were particularly arduous, and often required crews to fly low to pinpoint the drop zone, often in difficult visibility, and this made them easy targets for light flak. Seventy-six aircraft were involved in SOE sorties on the 4/5th, on return from which, 218 Squadron’s EE944 HA-H lost its port-outer engine during final approach to Tempsford. Pilot Officer Elywn Edwards tried to overshoot, but was unable to prevent the port wing from dropping, and the Stirling side-slipped into the ground. Edwards and four of his crew died in the wreckage, while the two gunners sustained injuries.

On the night of the 6/7th Halifaxes of 4 and 6 Groups carried out the first of the interdiction raids in preparation for the forthcoming invasion. The systematic dismantling by bombing of the French and Belgian railway networks would occupy much of the Command’s attention from now until the end of the summer, but with the Lancasters still fully engaged in the winter campaign, it was left to the Halifaxes to open proceedings on this night. The target was the railway yards at Trappes, where heavy damage was inflicted on installations, track and rolling stock. Later on the morning of the 7th, the 218 Squadron remnant completed its move from Downham Market, which was transferred to 8 Group, and took up residence at Woolfox Lodge, recently vacated by 1665 HCU. On its departure 1665 HCU had declared Woolfox Lodge to be unserviceable, but 218 Squadron signalled group that the aerodrome was serviceable, but for day operations only because of the incomplete state of the Mk II Drem light system. With Woolfox Lodge now housing a front line operational squadron a change in station commander took place, S/Ldr Lidstone stepping aside on the 7th in favour of G/C Heard.

Wing Commander Royd Fenwick-Wilson AFC. The Canadian enlisted in the RAF in 1934, his experience was put to good use during his tenure as commanding officer. His organisational skills and his style of command did much to change the fortunes of 218 Squadron.

On the March 9th W/Cdr William Oldbury concluded his tour as commanding officer, and was posted to HQ Bomber Command prior to attending 13 Intermediate Course at the Army Staff College at Camberley. He was succeeded by the previously mentioned W/Cdr Fenwick-Wilson, whose tenure as station commander at Downham Market had ended with the arrival there of the Pathfinders. Following further operations on the nights of the 5/6th, 6/7th and 7/8th, the Tempsford detachment carried out another one on the 10/11th, when ten crews were tasked with S.O.E drops in France. On the 11th the squadrons former commanding officer, Air Commodore H Kirkpatrick DFC, now SASO 3 Group, paid a visit to the station and the squadron, and he was followed the next day by 3 Group A-O-C AVM Harrison CBE DFC AFC. The squadron, which had been partially equipped with G-H since December 1943, carried out a series of G-H training flights on the 18th, and a number of local cross country flights. At the time only one flight of eight plus two Stirlings was fully equipped. It would be left to 218 Squadron to re-introduced G-H operationally into the Group after both 115 and 514 had their sets withdrawn. These sets would find their way to the squadron over the coming weeks. The final Tempsford operation was undertaken on the 15/16th by three crews, none of which was successful.

During the squadron’s short period at Tempsford it launched forty-four sorties, and a top secret report drawn up at the time recorded the extent of the SOE operational activities of 3 Group’s Stirling squadrons, including 138 and 161, during the moon period between February 28th and March 16th. A total of 509 sorties was carried out, of which 265 were successful, resulting in the dropping of 3,553 containers and 709 packages for the loss of five Stirlings, one Halifax and one Lysander. The Tempsford detachment arrived at Woolfox Lodge on the 16th to bring the squadron back to full operational strength.

A period of relative calm settled over Woolfox Lodge for the remainder of the month, and this was in contrast to the activity elsewhere in the Command. The final operation of the war against Berlin was carried out on the 24/25th, and resulted in the loss of seventy-two aircraft. Squadron leader Ian Ryall DFC was posted to 1651 CU on the 26th on completion of his second tour. His leadership qualities and determination instilled confidence not only to “B” Flight but to the whole squadron. He had proved himself to be a first rate flight commander during an intense period of heavy losses against well-defended targets. Happily he would survive the war and be awarded a bar to his DFC. The very next day S/Ldr Poulter MiD arrived with his crew from 31 Base to assume command of B Flight. The winter campaign came to an end on the night of the 30/31st, with a standard maximum effort raid on Nuremberg. The operation went ahead despite grave doubts about the forecast cloud, and in the face of a hotly disputed 5 Group-inspired straight-in route. The operation became the greatest disaster to afflict the Command during the entire war, with the loss of ninety-five aircraft, more than eighty of them falling to night fighters before the target was even reached. Over a hundred crews bombed Schweinfurt in error, and Nuremberg escaped with only insignificant damage.

Squadron Leader Cecil Poulter MiD, B Flight Commander. His selfless act of keeping his stricken Stirling aloft saved the lives of his crew over Soissons, France.

In a Top Secret memo dated March 31st, the future role of 218 Squadron was finally decided. The squadron had one of its flights equipped with G-H back in December, and was now to be totally equipped with the device to assist in the marking of any target within range. This could be carried out in conjunction with Oboe marking, by the PFF or on its own for 3 Group, and, if required, the Command as a whole. G-H would become a 3 Group preserve from the autumn, and in its hands, it would prove to be a highly effective blind bombing device. The system was based on a G-H equipped lead aircraft releasing its bombs as a signal to the following gaggle to do likewise, and it would be developed by the group into a fine art, with a particular application against oil and railway targets. This did not mean, however, that the squadron would no longer be required to participate in bombing and mining operations. G-H training was to be carried out as a matter of urgency, and the pilots, navigators and air bombers were to attend lectures at the Navigation Training Unit (NTU) at Warboys, a Pathfinder station.

The squadron was to remain under the operational and administrative control of 3 Group, but it was evident that close co-operation with 8 Group would be necessary. 3 Group was ordered to make arrangements for the installation of a G-H type 77 trainer at Woolfox Lodge for the training of both pilots and navigators on curved-track bombing approaches. At the time there was only one type 77 in existence, and it was for the Air Ministry to decide who had priority, the A.E.A.F, or 218 Squadron. After some lengthy discussions and numerous meetings it eventually arrived at Woolfox Lodge! March had been a busy month for all concerned, and had included a change of commanding officer, a change of station and a temporary change of role with the detachment to Tempsford.

April

That now facing the main force crews was in marked contrast to what had been endured over the long winter months. The Transportation Plan was now the priority for the whole Command, and the long slog to Germany on dark, often dirty nights was to be replaced by largely shorter range hops to France and Belgium in improving weather conditions. These operations would prove to be equally demanding in their way, however, and would require of the crews a greater commitment to accuracy, to avoid unnecessary civilian casualties. The main fly in the ointment was a decision from on high, which decreed that most such operations were worthy of counting as just one third of a sortie towards the completion of a tour, and until this flawed policy was rescinded, mutterings of discontent pervaded the bomber stations. Despite the prohibitive losses over the winter, the Command was in remarkably fine fettle to face its new challenge, and Harris was in the enviable position of being able to achieve what his predecessor had sought but failed to do. This was, to attack multiple targets simultaneously, with forces large enough to make an impact. Such was the number of aircraft and crews available to him, that he could now assign targets to individual groups, to groups in tandem or to the Command as a whole, as dictated by operational requirements. Although invasion considerations were the priority, Harris still favoured city-busting as the key to victory, and while he remained at the helm, he would pursue this line of attack whenever an opportunity arose.

The new month opened with an intensive G-H training programme, while the station ground staff continued preparing the station for operations. The first signs of tension between 8 Group and 3 Group came on the 2nd, when 8 Group chief, AVM Don Bennett, fired off a top secret memorandum to HQ Bomber Command demanding that 8 Group have full control and sole responsibility in both the training and operational marking role of 218 Squadron. It was the start of a simmering dispute. The new campaign got into full swing on the night of the 9/10th, when Halifaxes, Lancasters and Stirlings of 3, 4, 6 and 8 Groups attacked the Lille-Delivrance goods station, while elements from all the groups went for the railway yards at Villeneuve-St-Georges on the outskirts of Paris. The former in particular was highly successful, and involved ten Stirlings from 218 Squadron, whose crews found a number of well-placed TIs, which despite a thin layer of cloud, they managed to pin-point and bomb from between 11,000 and 13,000 feet. Pilot Officer H Seller EF249 HA-H, P/O L Gillies RAAF LJ481 HA-B, F/L C Doolan RAAF EF259 HA-G and F/L A King RNZAF EF184 HA-A all used their G-H equipment for the first time on a main land target. Crews reported a concentration of explosions over the target, F/L Brentnall reported “Wizard bombing” on his return. Post raid reconnaissance revealed that over two thousand items of rolling stock were destroyed, along with buildings and installations. Sadly, the satisfaction was marred by very heavy casualties among French civilians in adjacent residential districts, and this was a problem that would never satisfactorily be addressed.

Two mining operations were planned for the night of the 10th, but one was cancelled to leave four 218 Squadron aircraft assigned to the waters off Ile de Re. The Transportation Plan continued on this night at five railway centres in France and Belgium, before an area raid on Aachen devastated the town on the 11/12th, and killed over fifteen hundred people. A high-level G-H mining operation was carried out on the 12th, when four 218 Squadron crews went to the waters around Den Helder and north of Egmond. Wing Commander Fenwick Wilson AFC flew with F/L Brentnall aboard LJ472 HA-K on this operation. Both F/Ls Brentnall and Funnell dropped their six mines from between 14,800 and 15,000 feet. The operation was only partially successful after two crews were unable to receive G-H reception.

From the 14th the Command became officially subject to the demands of SHAEF, and would remain thus shackled until the Allied armies were sweeping towards the German frontier at the end of the summer. No further operations took place until the 18th, when thirteen aircraft from the squadron joined a contingent of 4 Group Halifaxes for a high level mining trip to Kiel Bay. The German defences were alert, and fighter activity was reported all across Denmark to the target area. The crews reported seeing one aircraft shot down near the town of Ribe, only minutes after F/L King RNZAF had been attacked by an unidentified fighter. The enemy managed to manoeuvre behind and below the Stirling without being detected, and its first burst of cannon fire rendered the rear and mid-upper turrets unserviceable, and wounded the rear gunner, Sgt Hancock, in the right knee. Flight Lieutenant King managed to shake off the fighter by carrying out a diving turn to the port, and continued on to deliver the payload at an alternative location west of Fano Island. Sergeant Hancock was given a morphine injection, and it was found that his knee had been almost shot away.

The crew of Australian F/Lt Gregory Doolan RAAF. Twenty three year old Doolan seen here back row right failed to return from an attack against Chambly on April 20th 1944, it was his 18 operation.

218 Squadron sent fourteen Stirlings on the 19th, to conduct a G-H raid on the important railway depot at Chambly situated north of Paris. Weather conditions outbound and in the target area were good with no moon, but, disappointingly, only three crews reported a successful reception on G-H, and they each brought home an aiming point photograph. Post raid reconnaissance established that two bombs had severed railway lines at two points, and there was severe damage to a stores building. LJ448 HA-D was hit during the bombing run, and an explosion near the flight engineer’s panel was the first indication of any danger. The flight engineer informed the pilot, F/L Doolan RAAF, that a fire had taken hold forward of the mid-upper turret. The twenty-three-year-old Australian skipper gave the order to bail-out, and five of the crew left through the front hatch at 6,000 feet. The Stirling crashed near Asnieres-sur-Oise, where the bodies of Gregory Doolan and his flight engineer, Sgt Cecil Bishop, were found two hundred yards from the wreckage. Four of the crew, who were on their fifteenth operation, ultimately evaded capture, while one became a PoW.

Two small-scale mining operations off the Dutch coast were carried out successfully on the 21/22nd, during which forty-eight mines were delivered. It was back to the interdiction campaign for 218 Squadron on this night, when thirteen crews took off to attack the marshalling yards at Laon. Three aircraft returned early with technical malfunctions, but the remainder joined thirty-seven other Stirlings from 149 and 90 Squadrons to attack two aiming points. Wing Commander Cousens of 635 Squadron was Master Bomber for the occasion, and the initial marking was carried out by Mosquitos. 218 Squadron was assigned to the second wave with the northern aiming point as its objective. The markers went down late, and W/Cdr Cousens instructed the main force to orbit while he confirmed their accuracy. That done he instructed the crews to bomb from 7,000 feet, and to aim at a number of well-placed green markers. Fighters were evident in the target area, but for once there was practically no opposition from flak. Crews bombed in good visibility and reported the target to be well ablaze. EH942 HA-M was attacked by Lt Otto Fries of Stab II/NJG1 soon after leaving the target area. Cannon fire left the port wing tanks ablaze, and five members of the crew managed to bail out before the Stirling crashed south-west of Soissons at 00.26hrs, killing the pilot and mid-upper gunner. The pilot was the recently appointed B Flight commander, S/Ldr Cecil Poulter MiD, who was operating with the squadron for the first time. It was an experienced crew with eighteen operations behind it, but its first with S/Ldr Poulter, who, it is understood, had not operated since completing eight sorties in 1940/41. All five survivors managed to escape and return to the UK, a remarkable feat. The following is Harry Fisher’s, the crews wireless operators own account of that fateful night and the days and weeks that followed.

After successfully bombing our target, we were attacked by enemy aircraft. Both the port inner and outer engines were ablaze and we had lost altitude to about 10,000 feet. There was no way we were going to make it back to base and the order was given to bale out. I made my way to the forward escape hatch only to find it open, and the navigator and bomb aimer had already gone. I looked up at our pilot, S/Ldr Poulter, and received a tap on the shoulder indicating to me that it was time to go! I naturally thought the pilot would be following me but he was either too badly injured or lost control of the aircraft. He went down with the plane. The injured mid-upper gunner also died in the crashed plane, and the five other members of the crew, including myself, parachuted into France to meet differing fates. For me, it was the start of an incident-packed attempt to reach neutral territory - and one that almost succeeded while trying to recall details of pre-operational training on how to deal with such events. I had landed at midnight, in a field near the village of Vic-sur-Aisne, situated between Compiegne and Soissons. After hiding my parachute and Mae West in tall grass, I followed the railway line for almost two kilometres to a farmhouse but the family was too frightened to let me in. However, the young couple at the next farmhouse answered my door-knocking and kept me overnight. The following morning, they made contact with Allied sympathisers at another farm, where I discovered our bomb aimer was already being given shelter. For ten days, we hid in a mushroom cave and food was brought to us at this hideout.

We were then taken by farm cart, hidden under straw, to the house of a resistance leader in Vic-sur-Aisne where we were vigorously interrogated. From there, we were moved to another farm in a village named Morsain, where we were hidden for a further few days. Plans were made to get us into occupied Paris so we could be guided to safety by the French underground. Dressed in civilian clothes, we were accompanied to Paris by the farmer’s wife. She took us to her mother’s home, and then we were moved to a nurse’s house. Staying there for about a fortnight, we passed some of the time by listening to BBC broadcasts at a nearby clinic. On 25th May 1944, armed with bogus identity cards supplied by the underground - mine stated I was 75% disabled and unable to speak (I only had schoolboy French), we were taken by a girl from the underground movement, along with a few others, on a 27 hour train journey to Toulouse. Included in this group was my flight engineer who turned up in Paris, having arrived via a different route within a similar elaborate network.

We were always very careful to keep our distance from the guide. If we were suspected and caught, she would hopefully keep walking and evade capture. There was nothing more she could have done for us in any case by hanging around and there was always some chance for us to attempt escape in the future. It was understood that if caught, she would be tortured to extract information before being eventually shot - the grim fact being, that no amount of torture would yield useful information to the enemy because each guide had only very limited information sufficient for the immediate task in hand. Each contact was very much an individual cell who did not know the identity of the next underground member in the chain leading to freedom. Arriving without incident at Toulouse, we changed trains heading for Pau near Lourdes, close to the Spanish frontier. Although arriving after the official curfew time, our luck held. I was issued with a pass by the German guard at the exit, to enable me to get from the station to my place of residence. From the railway station, we were taken to an underground movement house in Pau. Several others had successfully made it to this point and we travelled by car up into the mountains where Basque guides were expected to take over. Basque guides were not always the most reliable and there were now a fairly large numbers of people including a Jewish group, all attempting to cross the Pyrenees in their bid to escape. It was early June, yet we were so high (about 8,000 feet), we reached the snow-line.

Eventually we travelled into a valley where the guides pointed in the direction of the Spanish frontier. There was still a considerable distance to go but the guides indicated they were about to return to the pick-up point and therefore we were now on our own. We spent that night alone in the open without the guides. Next morning, we discovered that, without guides, the large group had split into smaller groups. The following morning, as a member of one of the small groups, we headed towards what we thought was the Spanish border. Too late! In our weary and tired condition we had failed to notice the German soldiers, although only 200 or 300 yards away, until they started to fire at us. We were hungry and exhausted having been in the mountains for 10 days and we didn’t stand a chance. Four of us were captured and I think it was on Spanish territory. The four included me, our flight engineer, a bomber pilot from Portsmouth, and an American from Pasadena, California. Our bomb aimer was some way behind our small group and managed to evade the Germans. He later made it into Spain and returned to the UK by way of Gibraltar. The four of us were taken back by three German soldiers to a small mountain village where we were interrogated.

We were lying in the cell where we had been placed when the door opened and an immaculately dressed German Officer, jackboots and all, walked in. In perfect English, he asked, “Who is the ‘English’ officer here?” As no one else moved, I rose to my feet and said “I am” only to be told, “Stand to attention when you speak to a German Officer!” We were then taken to a room for interrogation. I was asked questions such as “Where was your base?” Which type of aircraft were you flying and where was your target? Where were you shot down and who helped you?” Predictably, my replies were, “I cannot give you that information” and quoting the Geneva Convention on the requirement to give only number, rank and name. The others gave the same answers. I then heard the lines that were to be caricatured many times in the future but were extremely threatening and sinister given the situation of airmen being captured in civilian clothes. I quote verbatim, “Huh! So you won’t talk, well it is not my job but we have ways and means of making you talk!” We were threatened with torture and the firing squad but we never revealed any details of the people who had helped us. From the mountain village, we were then taken back to Pau, and as I subsequently found out later, spent some time in Gestapo headquarters. Curiously enough, during our short spell there, we were given the best meal in all the time we spent in German hands. Mind you, that wasn’t saying very much. From Pau, we were taken under escort by train to a civilian prison in Toulouse. During the train journey, another incident of note occurred. We were in a compartment by ourselves with armed German guards when the door opened and a Luftwaffe Officer came in. He looked at us and said in English, “Who are you?” At this point, the German soldiers were obviously unhappy but as he was an officer, they were limited in what they could do or say. On being told we were RAF airmen who had been shot down he replied, “I thought perhaps you were”. He took out a pack of cigarettes, gave us a cigarette each, and said “Good Luck!” before leaving. Had we witnessed an example of the special bond between flying types

Having walked through the Pyrenees escape route for 10 days, we were hungry and exhausted, and no match for the German soldiers who captured us on the Spanish border. We then spent 75 days in what appeared as a nightmare prison. 250 grams of stale black bread and two bowls of weak cabbage soup per day, with ‘always the threat to shoot.’ With the Allies pushing south after D Day, the Germans suddenly decided to evacuate the prison in a frantic hurry, leaving us in our cells. We were freed by the Maquis who broke down our cell doors on August 19th 1944. By that time, I had lost about three stone in weight, and helped myself to food, still hot on the stove, left by the fleeing Germans. It was indeed fortunate I had stopped to have some food, as the first of my fellow-prisoners who had dashed outside, were machine-gunned down by passing Germans who were themselves evacuating the city. Many fellow-prisoners were killed or wounded, and having seen what was happening, some of us managed to hide behind stone pillars, with bullets flying around us. French Forces of the Interior (Maquis) took charge of the town, as there were no Allied forces close by. However, Germans were being cut off from that part of France, hence the reason for their evacuation in sudden panic. I was with the Maquis until September 3rd 1944, and was expected to accompany them on some of their missions to blow up bridges, railway-lines etc. An aircrew member like me (?) who could never hit anything with a rifle at the best of times!

At one point, we were driven through the streets of Toulouse in an open truck by the Maquis who were shouting ‘Anglia’s et Americans’ while the people lined the streets cheering and shouting. Allied troops had still not arrived in the Toulouse area, the Maquis were in full control, and I had been given a ‘Pass’ by the Free French stating I was a British Officer liaising with the Maquis. At this time, we witnessed what happened to traitors, or females who had collaborated with Germans; they were stripped to the waist, had heads shaved, paraded through the streets and humiliated. On September 3rd, we were taken into the countryside to a site used by RAF Special Duties aircraft who had delivered arms & supplies to the Maquis, and even landed on improvised runways if need be. On this night, a Hudson landed with the help of only a few flares, and with engines still running ready for a quick get-away, boxes and crates was hurriedly chucked out. To the utter amazement of the crew, I scurried quickly across the grass towards the plane. “Where the hell have you come from?” was all they could utter. One minute later before being spotted, we were taking off across the field. On the flight back, I can still remember being astounded by the sheer mass of shipping we could just see in the dawn light across the English Channel. Massive quantities of supplies were still being ferried across to France 3 months after D Day. On landing back in U.K., I was taken to London for interrogation, given back-pay and leave, and then sent to a Rehabilitation Unit near Nairn. As I had never been classified as a POW the only news my mother had received was that I was ‘missing.’ I still have the telegrams to that effect. On my return to UK in September 1944, I became an active aircrew member again, but according to RAF policy, I was not sent on flying operations over the area where I had been previously shot down. It struck me later, the extent to which indoctrination had been applied over the previous 11 years under Nazism. When captured in the Pyrenees, one of the first questions asked was “Are you Jewish?” This question from ordinary German soldiers who considered this to be of paramount importance. I shudder to think of the consequences if the answer had been “Yes!” but it did illustrate the powerful influence exerted by the Nazi regime.

The experienced F/L Philip Brentnall was promoted to acting squadron leader on the 23rd, and he assumed command of B Flight. Unlike the majority of their predecessors, Brentnall, and the A Flight commander, S/Ldr John Overton, would survive their time in the roles, and over the ensuring months contribute to the success of the squadron. A switch to a Belgian target on the 23/24th focussed attention on the Luftwaffe signals Depot at Vilovorde, located three miles northeast of Brussels. This was an all 218 Squadron G-H attack carried out by twelve aircraft led by S/Ldr Overton. Flight Lieutenant Lock RNZAF was involved in an incident at take-off, when, having just become airborne, the port-inner engine of LJ481 HA-B cut suddenly and without warning. The prompt action of jettisoning the bomb load gave the crew a few extra feet, and the Stirling brushed through tree tops on the perimeter. Lock managed to land the Stirling without further incident in a marvellous display of airmanship by the twenty-one-year-old from Kawa Kawa. The bombs landed in a field alongside No.2 Site, and were dealt with by the armoury on the following morning. The remaining crews found the target clear of cloud, and good G-H reception allowed the bombing to fall all across the target area. There was practically no opposition, and all the crews had landed safely back at base by 01.50hrs. The target was, in fact, completely untouched, and the only encouraging feature of an otherwise disappointing raid was that over 50% of the bombs were within 550 yards of the aiming point.

The squadron was asked to operate again on the following night, when the target was the Chambly railway yards. This was the fifth night of action in succession, and the four crews who were briefed would be the only ones attacking the target. Squadron Leader Overton, P/O Coram RAAF, P/O Seller and F/L Goodman DFM departed England over Orfordness in good visibility, and G-H reception was good in the target area. Three crews bombed from 14,000 feet, and there was a tremendous explosion when Overton’s load hit the aiming point, which momentarily enveloped the whole area in a red glow that illuminated the surrounding buildings. Post raid reconnaissance showed heavy damage to installations and plant, and that a bomb had exploded on the railway lines near the storage yard. A return to Chambly railway depot took place on the 26/27th, and 218 Squadron was once again the only unit involved. Sadly, the raid was a failure after none of the crews was able to obtain G-H reception. The last operation of the month was carried out by four crews on the 29/30th, to deliver mines by G-H off Den Helder and north of Egmond. The squadron dispatched 103 sorties during the month, of which thirty-three were mining.

May

3 Group opened its May account on the night of the 1/2nd with a return to Chambly by predominantly Lancasters, while 218 Squadron provided all sixteen Stirlings. After initial difficulties with the marking, the raid was outstandingly accurate, and one of Europe’s most modern and important depots was severely hit, sustaining heavy damage to installations, plant and buildings. It was a bad night for 218 Squadron, losing three aircraft, one of which crashed in England. B Flight’s EF504 HA-P was subjected to repeated attacks over a fifteen minute period, during which the rear gunner, F/O E Twinning, managed to draw a bead on the attacker, and he informed the pilot “I’ve got him, he is going down in flames. Sadly it was too late, as a fire had begun in the starboard-outer engine, which spread along the wing. Twenty-nine year-old Flying Officer leuan Jones ordered his crew to bail out, and two managed to comply as the Stirling passed through 3,000 feet. It exploded on hitting the ground near Poix at 00.47hrs, about thirty yards from where the navigator landed. He and the flight engineer were aided by the resistance, and managed to return to England, arriving at Northolt in mid August. Flight Lieutenant Jones was on his third operation, having been posted in from 31 Base on April 16th.

“A” Flights Flying Officer leuan Jones and crew. The crew had various operational experience when they arrived from No.31 Base on April 16th. Within two weeks of their arrival they were shot down while attacking Chambly Railway Depot, only two of the crew survived.

“A” Flights Pilot Officer Noel Elliot RAAF and crew pose with the ground crew besides Short Stirling LK387 IC-P of 623 Squadron November 1943. The crew completed four operations with 623 before transfer to 218 Squadron where they completed a further 9 operations.

Having successfully bombed the target, EF259 HA-G was attacked by two fighters, reported to be FW190s. It is believed that Hptm Fritz Sothe of 4/NJG4 shot down the Stirling near la Houssaye, taking with it four members of the young, skippered by experienced F/O Noel Elliot RAAF. There were four evaders, including the pilot, who stated in his escape and evasion report that the tail section had been almost shot off, and the port-outer engine set on fire before the order was given to bail-out. On board was Sgt Wilson, who was officially still attached to Training Command, but went on the trip for the experience. EF184 HA-G was attacked by two JU88s soon after leaving the target, and extensive damage was sustained in the encounter. The flight engineer was killed and both gunners injured, but P/O Scammell nursed the Stirling back to the emergency airfield at Woodbridge, where he landed at 02.10hrs. EF184 HA-G was struck off charge and scrapped. This proved to be the only bombing operation to be carried out by the squadron during the month.

Three crews carried out a mining operation on the 2/3rd, and successfully planted eighteen mines off the West Frisians. No further operations took place until the 7/8th, when four Stirlings delivered twenty mines with the aid of Gee off the coast of Terschelling, while five others headed south across France to mine the waters off Courbre Point in the Gironde Estuary. Both operations were completed in excellent visibility without encountering any opposition. Four aircraft returned to the Gironde Estuary on the following night, and each delivered four mines in bright moonlight. On return F/Sgt Samuels attempted to land on three engines, after the port-inner engine failed over France, but overshot and wrote-off EF249. The squadron was asked to provide six aircraft for three gardens on the 9/10th, when Australians F/Sgt J Corlis RAAF and Sgt R Ecclestone were given the Sultanas area to mine. Both crews had collected ten special mines from Tuddenham, which were designed to be dropped from a higher attitude. Both aircraft carried five mines, and successfully dropped them from 14,000 feet. In all twenty-seven mines were planted by the squadron. It was similar fare for two crews on the following night, and for five more on the 11/12th.

The main force, in its constituent parts, began to concentrate in greater detail on pre-invasion targets, thus coastal batteries, airfields, ammunition dumps and military camps and depots all competed with railways for the bombers’ attention. The coastal batteries were generally in the Pas-de-Calais, and well away from the planned invasion beaches, in order to maintain the deception. Deception was to play a major part in the actual landings, and 218 Squadron was one of a number of units to be selected for an important and special role. 617 Squadron was approached in early May to evaluate the feasibility of carrying out a major deception operation, which, by its very nature, would call for a high degree of flying ability and navigational accuracy, and above all crew discipline.

A meeting had been held on Sunday May 7th at 54 Base, Woodhall Spa, to discuss the forthcoming operation. A number of high-ranking personnel from the Air Ministry and senior Bomber Command officers were present. The meeting was chaired by Air Commodore Dalton Morris, (Chief Signals Officer, HQ Bomber Command). Also attending the meeting was Air Commodore H.A.Constantine, (Operations, HQ Bomber Command), Air Commodore Sharp, Base Commander 54 Base, and, finally, the commanding officer of 617 Squadron, W/Cdr Cheshire DSO, DFC. A number of points were raised by Cheshire, who expressed his concerns about the complexity of the operation and the strain it would place upon his crews. The assembled senior staff listened to Cheshire’s concerns, and decreed that a second navigator would operate with each of the selected crews. An extra GEE set would be fitted to each Lancaster, along with an additional flare chute to deliver the required amount of Window. Within a matter of days the new modifications had been carried out, and an intense period of training began.

This decision to select 218 Squadron was made in the light of the squadron’s familiarity with both the GEE and G-H systems. 218 Squadron was the only front line heavy bomber squadron fully operational and trained to use the G-H device. The squadron’s early success with G-H was in no small part due to the involvement of one of the “boffins” of ORS, Sebastian Pease, known to his friends as Bas. Bas joined Bomber Command in 1942, and had worked tirelessly on blind-bombing equipment, and was, at the time, one of Bomber Command’s leading experts in the field. While at High Wycombe he was also involved with the development and use of Window. Bas was one of those lucky individuals who managed a more “hands-on” approach to his research, resulting in him spending a lot of time with the squadron assessing the accuracy and complexities of the temperamental G-H apparatus under operational conditions. His knowledge of the G-H system was eagerly passed onto the crews, who benefitted from his vast experience, and this was to pay dividends.

On Wednesday the 17th a special meeting was held at HQ Bomber Command, High Wycombe. Once again the meeting was chaired by Air Commodore Dalton Morris. Twenty-two senior Bomber Command and Royal Navy officers were in attendance, including the Vice Admiral of Dover, Commodore Jessel RN. This meeting was again attended by W/Cdr Cheshire, and, for the first time, W/Cdr Fenwick-Wilson, and finalised the planning of the forthcoming operation. On the 19th, HQ Bomber Command issued instructions to 218 Squadron to commence timed training flights. Six experienced senior crews with two reserves were selected. Normal operations still had to be carried out, however, and on the evening of the 19th four crews were given the now familiar Greengages garden off Cherbourg. Ten mines were dropped with the aid of G-H, while F/L R “Wag” Walker and F/L Rycroft dropped ten mines in the Scallops garden area.

“Happy” Funnell and crew stand beside their regular aircraft EF124 HA-R. The crew completed a full tour of operations with 218 Squadron. Frederick Fennell DFC was one of the squadron’s characters when not operating.

Training commenced on the following day under the watchful eye of W/Cdr Fenwick-Wilson AFC, and within the short space of eleven days 119 training flights had been undertaken. It was soon apparent that the exacting requirements of the operation demanded a larger crew complement, and it was increased accordingly to two pilots, three navigators, one wireless operator, one flight engineer, two gunners, two Window droppers plus two reserves, a total crew compliment of thirteen. For the remainder of the month the selected crews spent their time in preparing for the big day, the training flights being recorded in their log books as “special local flying” or something similar. The speed with which the squadron reached the stringent operational requirements confirms the very high standard of all those who served on the squadron. It also pays tribute to the special leadership qualities of the squadron’s Commanding Officer, W/Cdr Fenwick-Wilson. Life on the squadron was not all training, and there were some stress free nights. Flying Officer Roy Hine, bomb aimer to F/L King RNZAF, recalls one of the many squadron characters who did much to ease the tension and anxieties of operational flying during this period,

“One of the more notorious characters was Happy Funnel, I clearly remember his doleful voice announcing “Funnel in the Funnel” as he made his final approach. In the mess “Happy” was completely wonderful. I clearly remember in the Mess at Woolfox Lodge Happy with his tunic inside out, his trouser leg rolled up “Masonic Fashion” hanging in a bat like manor from one of the rather low girders drinking pint after pint. Both he and his pint seemed to defy the laws of gravity for at least an hour.”

The squadron carried out forty-nine sorties during the month, well down on previous months, but this resulted from the squadron’s operational stand-down from the 19th. Even so, the squadron was top of the 3 Group board with a 97.9% completion rate.

June

The weather at the start of June was less hospitable than had been hoped for, and delayed the launching of the invasion. Training for 218 Squadron’s part in Overlord continued with practice flights on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th, during which, twenty-eight sorties were carried out by the eight selected crews. Their role was one of supreme importance, which would have a direct bearing on the enemy’s response to the approaching invasion fleet. If 218 Squadron’s Operation Glimmer and 617 Squadron’s Operation Taxable were successful, it meant that the armada of Allied ships would probably reach its position off the Normandy beaches unopposed, and be able to disembark the invasion forces in relative peace. The plan was for six 218 Squadron aircraft in two lines of three abreast, to fly a meticulously accurate succession of overlapping elongated orbits for up to 2¾ hours, each one advancing gradually towards the coastal area between Boulogne and le Havre, north of the genuine landing grounds. At precise intervals, Window would be dispensed into the slipstream at a rate of a bundle every twelve minutes, and to the enemy radar, this would appear as a large convoy of ships heading across the Channel at a speed of seven knots. These six aircraft plus two reserves would represent only a tiny fraction of the Command’s contribution to the invasion, and in all, a record 1,211 sorties would be dispatched against coastal batteries, and in diversionary and other support operations.

It was 23.39hrs when LJ522 HA-N took off from Woolfox Lodge in the hands of F/L Chaplin and F/L Webster, to launch Operation Glimmer. Two minutes later S/Ldr Brentnall and P/O Ecclestone departed in LJ472 HA-K, to be followed at 23.44hrs by S/Ldr Overton and F/L Funnell in EF133 HA-A. The reserve aircraft were next away at 23.50hrs, F/Ls Locke and Coram in LJ449 HA-E, and F/L Knapman with the appropriately named F/L Stirling in LJ517 HA-U, both of these pilot combinations RNZAF/RAAF. An hour after the departure of the first aircraft, F/Ls McAllister and Young initiated the second wave in LK401 HA-I, to be followed three minutes later by F/Ls Seller and Scammell in LJ632 HA-J, and F/Ls King and Gillies in EF207 HA-F at 00.43hrs. By the time the second wave reached its beat, the first wave had completed eight of its eventual twenty-three orbits and the final fifteen would be conducted in tandem. If a single crew faltered in its course or the timing of turns and Windowing, the enemy would see the operation as a spoof, and be alerted to a landing elsewhere. In the event, the crews of both 218 and 617 Squadrons performed to the high standards expected and demanded of them, and the operations were a complete success. The German reaction to Glimmer was immediate. Official Air Ministry and Naval documents state that the Germans mistook this raid for a genuine threat unlike 617 Squadron activities, German long-range guns along the French coast opened fire on Glimmer’s imaginary convoy. German searchlights were also pressed into service, as too were a number of E-Boats dispatched into the convoy area.

At around 19.30hrs on the evening of June 6th a message was received from HQ No.3 Group:

“I HAVE RECEIVED THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE FROM C IN C FOR AIRCREWS…

“YOU DID FAMOUSLY LAST NIGHT IN THE FACE OF NO MEAN DIFFICULTIES. FIRE FROM COASTAL BATTERIES WHICH WERE YOUR TARGETS HAVE BEEN VIRTUALLY NEGLIGABLE.””

A further message arrived on June 7th at 10.55hrs from the C in C Bomber Command to Officer Commanding No.218 Squadron:

“IT IS ALREADY ESTABLISHED THAT THE OPERATIONS ON WHICH YOU ENGAGED ON THE NIGHT OF 5/6TH JUNE WERE VERY SUCCESSFULLY AND IT MAY WELL BE WHEN THE FULL FACTS ARE KNOWN IT WILL BE FOUND THAT YOU ACHIEVED RESULTS OF EVEN GREATER IMPORTANCE THAN CAN BE KNOWN AT PRESENT. THIS CAN ONLY HAVE BEEN BROUGHT ABOUT BY INTENSIVE TRAINING AND ATTENTION TO DETAIL AS A RESULT OF WHICH CREWS CONCERNED ACQUITTED THEMSELVES ADMIRABLY. THE NAVAL COMMANDERS HAVE EXPRESSED THEIR GREAT APPRECIATION OF THE SUPPORT OF NO.218 AND 617 SQUADRONS, AND IT IS NOW DISCLOSED THAT THE PATROL CARRIED OUT BY 101 & 214 SQUADRONS SUCCEEDED TOGETHER IN DELAYING THE ENEMY’S APPRECIATION AS TO THE ACTUAL POINT OF ASSAULT, THEREBY ASSISTING THE MEASURE OF TACTICAL SURPRISE GAINED FOR OUR MAIN ASSAULT FORCES.”

A thousand aircraft were aloft on D-Day Night to attack communications targets in and around the towns leading to the beachhead. It was similar fare on the next two nights, as 218 Squadron returned to the business of mining, a role to which it would devote itself exclusively for the remainder of the month. The campaign against railways would continue, but would run alongside two new offensives, one of which was to make particular demands on the Command’s resources over the summer. This was the renewed campaign against flying bomb launching and storage sites, which would begin on the 16/17th, but first, 1, 3 and 8 Groups opened a new oil campaign with stunning success at Gelsenkirchen on the 12/13th. All production of vital aviation fuel at the Nordstern plant was halted for several weeks, at a cost to the German war effort of a thousand tons per day. The first daylight operations since the departure of 2 Group a year earlier, were mounted against E-Boats and other fast light craft at Le Havre on the evening of the 14th. It was a predominantly 1 and 3 Group show, the former attacking first, with 3 Group following up at dusk, both under the umbrella of a Spitfire escort. The operation, and a similar one against Boulogne on the evening of the 15th, were entirely successful, and few craft remained sufficiently intact to pose a threat to Allied shipping supplying the beachhead.

The first bombing operation of the month for 218 Squadron was an all-Stirling attack on the 15/16th against the marshalling yards at Lens, for which the squadron put up sixteen aircraft. The crews found the target to be well marked with red TIs, and S/Ldr Overton reported that a number of explosions were observed. On the 17th 90 Squadron conducted its final Stirling sorties, leaving only 218 and 149 Squadrons to carry the banner in 3 Group as Stirling bomber units. For the remainder of the month the Command was active by day and night against railways, oil refineries, V-Weapon sites and fuel and ammunition dumps, each raid accompanied by Pathfinder Mosquitos and or Lancasters to carry out the marking. Apart from its eight sorties on behalf of Operation Glimmer, 218 Squadron flew forty-nine mining sorties, which resulted in two Stirlings being written off at home on the night of the 12/13th. EF181 HA-J crashed when the Starboard tyre burst during take-off for French coastal waters, but F/L Young and his crew walked away, while EF299 HA-Z came to grief when attempting to overshoot on return, striking a ridge resulting in the u/c to collapse and F/L Funnell and his crew also emerged unscathed. As events were to prove, these were the final Stirling casualties to be suffered by the squadron as its two and a half year association with the type neared its end. A WAAF Anniversary dinner and dance was organised in the WAAF dining hall on the 28th, in honour of the fifth anniversary of their forming. A cake was made, and the station commander, G/C R.A.T Stowell, did the honours of cutting it. Messages from Her Majesty the Queen, the Duchess of Gloucester, the Chief of Air Staff and the A-O-C in C Bomber Command were read out to all ranks.

July

With the capture of the Cherbourg peninsula by the advancing allied armies, the onetime safety of the Channel ports had been compromised. German naval units were being harried, and any movement was becoming hazardous. The German U-Boot headquarters was moved to Brest, and Bomber Command consequently began a short campaign to extensively mine the waters off the port. Light rain and drizzle curtailed operations until the 3rd, when four 218 Squadron Stirlings took off for Brest. One aborted, but the remaining three delivered their mines from 14,000 feet using G-H. Six Stirlings returned on the following night to plant thirty mines, when the weather conditions over the garden area were such that F/L Gilles was able to follow fellow Aussie F/L Young visually, and successfully plant his five mines, despite having lost the use of his G-H apparatus while outbound. Returning crews reported what appeared to be rockets bursting at 14,000 feet while on their bomb run. Four crews were given individual targets on the 6/7th, Knocke, Ijmuiden, Noordwal and Gravelines, and all were serviced successfully. Flying bomb sites and railway targets would keep the rest of the Command busy during the first two and a half weeks of the month, although the first tactical operations in support of the ground forces took place on the evening of the 7th. Over 450 aircraft attacked enemy strong points in fortified villages north of Caen ahead of a British and Canadian advance.

Four 218 Squadron crews returned to Brest on the 8/9th, and delivered twenty mines. There was a determined effort from the defences to hamper the operation with accurate heavy and predicted flak as well as rockets, and LJ440 HA-E, captained by F/L Scammell, sustained damage to its front turret. Four crews were briefed for Goulet-de-Brest on the 9th, and three of them planted twelve mines using G-H.

No further operations were carried out until the 13/14th, when six crews were sent back to Goult-de-Brest, and five of them laid twenty-five mines in their allotted positions on G-H. Weather condition were ideal, with a solid cloud base at 10,000 feet. The last of the current series of operations against Brest was carried out on the 16/17th, when four crews returned again to Goult-de-Brest. There was only one incident to an otherwise quiet night, and this resulted from a training flight. Flight Sergeant Hibbard RAAF lost radio communications while returning to base, and when the navigator informed him that they were at Woolfox Lodge, he lined up for an approach. A near perfect touchdown was followed soon after by the end of the runway, much to the surprise of the pilot, who soon discovered the Stirling had landed at the 9th USAAF Troop Carrier base at North Witham, ten miles north-east of Woolfox Lodge. EF291 HA-C overshot the runway, which was four hundred yards shorter than the one at Woolfox Lodge, and ended up imbedded in a ditch. The aircraft was declared CAT AC/FB, and sent to SEBRO for repair, returning to the squadron in late August.

Squadron Leader Overton led an early evening take-off of fifteen Stirlings on the 17th, for a dusk attack on the flying bomb site at Mont Candon located south of Dieppe. On reaching the target area the crews easily identified the Pathfinder markers in the slight haze. The Master Bomber, S/Ldr Attwater DFC of 156 Squadron, ordered a one second delay in bombing the selected TIs south of the aiming point, and the delay took the bombs even further away, leaving the target unscathed. Eight 218 Squadron crews were given the task of mining between Ile de Groix and Lorient on the night of the 20th. Weather conditions outbound were terrible, with heavy rain and dense cloud over the Channel. Fortunately, conditions improved in the target area, and twenty-eight mines were laid with the aid of Gee from around 500 feet. This was followed by a small-scale mining operation on the 23/24th, when two crews returned to the waters off Goult-de-Brest to deliver ten mines with the aid of G-H.

A select number of B Flight pilots began their Lancaster conversion on the 24th, and the squadron’s B Flight ground crews began the move to the squadron’s new home on the 25th, Methwold having been chosen to accommodate the squadron during its long awaited conversion to the Lancaster. One flight of 3 Lancaster Finishing School at Feltwell moved to Woolfox Lodge for the purpose of training and converting the crews of A Flight. The Lancasters intended for 218 Squadron were initially allotted to XV and 514 Squadrons for acceptance and installation of G-H. Once accepted and modified the Lancasters were to be collected by the converted 218 Squadron crews, or to be ferried directly to Methwold. It is believed that the squadron’s first Lancaster was Armstrong Whitworth built Mk I LM257, which arrived from XV Squadron on the 25th. An early problem was that the recently installed G-H equipment interfered with the operation of TR1196 sets. TRE and 3 Group’s own radar specialists were soon on the job, and developed a suppresser that was found to cure the problem. With Methwold now being occupied by a front line squadron, it was upgraded to the full status of an independent station under direct operational and administrational control of Group HQ, rather than remain a substation to Feltwell.

The squadron was called upon to carry out another early evening operation on the 27th, when eight Stirlings were detailed to attack the flying bomb site at les Landes Vieilles et Neuves. The attack was divided into two waves, each consisting of two G-H aircraft followed by eight from 149 Squadron and a further two from 218 Squadron. Everything went to plan until the last turning point, when the G-H aboard the lead aircraft of the first wave failed. Squadron Leader Overton ordered his rear gunner to fire a green verey flare, which was the signal for the deputy leader F/L Gillies RAAF to take over. This delay resulted in the first wave being south of its intended track, and the bombing appeared too scattered to be effective. Complete cloud cover over the target meant there was no opposition from either flak or fighters. This was the first occasion that the G-H leader method of attack had been employed by the group, and although the operation appeared to be disappointing, group believed that this method of attack had potential, and the squadron and G-H would be given the opportunity to develop the technique further. Wing Commander Rogers was posted onto the squadron from 3 Lancaster Finishing School on the 27th. It is not known if the posting was to gain operational experience or for flight commander duties, but his stay was relatively short-lived, and he was posted to command 214 Squadron in 100 (RCM) Group on September 28th.

The flying bomb sites at Wemaers Cappel and Fromental were attacked in the late evening of the 28th. Seven aircraft were dispatched, each carrying twenty 500lb bombs, four of them acting as G-H leader and deputy pairings for each target. The other three crews together with thirteen from 149 Squadron made up the rest of the formation. The aircraft formed up in pairs, line astern over Cambridge, and proceeded on their respective routes. G-H reception was good, although the Wemaers Cappel element drifted off course, which brought it close to Ostend, where the flak defences gave a good account of themselves, and inflicted damage to four of the squadron’s aircraft. The flak dispersed the formation, but this did not prevent accurate bombing. The attack on Fromental was carried out in excellent visibility, and the G-H leader saw his bombs burst across the target area, which was confirmed by the deputy.

“B” Flight Commander, Squadron Leader Phil Brentnall DFC and crew. Phil brought a wealth of flying experience when he arrived on the squadron in October 1943. A number of former flying instructors found their way onto the squadron, their skill and experience was a major factor in the squadron’s success.

Four crews were selected to lead an attack on the flying bomb storage dump at Foret de Nieppe on the 29th. The operation, which would prove to be the last of the month, was again carried out in two waves, each with a G-H leader and deputy from 218 Squadron and twelve Stirlings from 149 Squadron. Bombing was carried out over ten-tenths cloud with tops up to 13,000 feet. Heavy flak was encountered at le Touquet, but the gunners’ aim was off, as the flak was seen to burst 1,000 to 1,500 feet below the formation. Five Lancasters arrived at Methwold at the end of the month, LM281 and PD223 on the 30th from XV Squadron, and PB291 from 514 Squadron. PD234 arrived direct from AV Roe on the 31st, while NF906 came from Armstrong Whitworth. It had been a busy month for the squadron, during which eighty-two operational sorties had been carried out, and over 162 tons of bombs and 145 mines had been delivered without loss. The squadron had also undertaken 130 non-operational sorties, totalling some 138 hours. Three crew members of S/Ldr John Overton DFC crew were the recipients of awards in July, two DFC’s and a DFM thus making the squadrons most decorated crew of the war.

August

V-Weapon-related targets dominated proceedings at the start of August, and on the 2nd, twenty Stirlings joined 370 other aircraft in attacks on one launching and three supply sites. Six from 218 Squadron paid a return visit in daylight to Mont Candon in company with fourteen from 149 Squadron. Weather conditions outbound and over the target were perfect, and G-H reception was good. The first bomb hit the wooded aiming point, while the remainder overshot, but the following bomb loads were seen to be accurate, and sent up plumes of earth, debris and uprooted trees. The second formation approached the target, which was now covered in smoke, and bombed from 13,000 feet. The bombs were mostly well placed, but dense smoke had by then obscured the target area. This was the final operation for the Stirling in 218 Squadron service, and also the last to be undertaken from Woolfox Lodge, as the move to Methwold would shortly be completed. On the departure of the squadron, RAF Woolfox Lodge was reduced to a care and maintenance basis under the command of the American IX Troop Carrier Command. The squadron’s brief stay at Woolfox was a happy one, characterized by low losses, good leadership and decent facilities on and off the station. The period in Rutland had provided the whole squadron with the tonic it needed before its return to operations over Germany.

Over the next few days the squadron’s conversion to the Lancaster was carried out in overcast and drizzly conditions, and the move to Methwold was completed with the arrival of the rear party on the 9th. Since the start of the year 3 Group had been gradually emerging from its “winter of discontent”, as one by one, its squadrons took on Lancasters, and soon it would regain its rightful place at the forefront of operations.

The group’s squadrons were divided into three bases, 31 at Stradishall, 32 at Mildenhall and 33 at Waterbeach. Control of 218 Squadron was directed from 31 Base Station at Stradishall under the able command of Air Commodore J Silvester CBE. Joining 218 in the months to come would be 186 Squadron at Stradishall and 195 Squadron at Wratting Common. After its short period of screening, 218 Squadron returned to the fray as a fully-fledged Lancaster unit on the night of the 9/10th, when seven aircraft took off to attack a flying bomb storage site at Fort d’Englos, located west of Lille. The squadron participants joined a further ninety-three Lancasters drawn from 32 and 33 Bases, which made up 3 Group’s effort on this target. Oboe Mosquitos opened proceeding by marking the aiming point with red TIs, before the 218 Squadron Lancasters delivered eighty-four one-thousand pounders on a number of well-placed markers from between 13,000 and 14,000 feet. There was no flak or fighter opposition on this raid, and all of the Lancasters returned safely to base. The operation was a success, which left the target area a mass of craters, and the concrete and earth structure protecting the fuel badly damaged. A daylight raid on Lens marshalling yards was undertaken on the 11th, when six 218 Squadron Lancasters joined a further 114 from 3 Group. They picked up an escort of 11 Group Spitfires at the south coast, and carried on to deliver an accurate attack on a number of accurate red and yellow target indicators. A large cloud of smoke began to obscure the target as the crews turned for home, and once again there was no opposition from flak or fighters.

On the night of the 12/13th eight 218 Squadron Lancasters were made ready for an operation against the Opel works at Rüsselsheim in southern Germany. This was to be the squadron’s first venture into Germany since November 1943, and for the majority of the crews now serving with the squadron, it would be their first ever foray over Germany. Each Lancaster was carrying a 4000lb cookie, a new experience for former Stirling crews, plus six 500lb bombs and 540 x 4lb incendiaries. The force departed England over Orfordness to join thirty-eight other 3 Group Lancasters heading towards the French coast in conditions of tentenths cloud. There was one early return, but the remainder pressed on to the target, where, in view of the small size of the factory site, the marking was to be by controlled by visual ground marking.

The attack opened punctually, but thick ground haze prevented the Master Bomber and his deputy from visually identifying the target, and the subsequent marking was not concentrated. The squadron was part of the second wave, and crews reported that the markers were scattered, and that a number of fires were evident but isolated. Flak over the target was intense, and night fighters had already been active since the force had passed by Brussels. PD252 HA-D failed to return home and thus became the first Lancaster to be lost by the squadron, and the first crew to go missing since May. The Lancaster crashed forty miles west of Frankfurt-am-Main, possibly the victim of a prowling night fighter. The bodies of the twenty-three-year-old pilot, P/O Vernon Humphrey RAAF, and his navigator, F/Sgt Alan Chew, were found in the wreckage the following day, and it is believed that all of the remaining crew members managed to bail out as ordered. Two of these succumbed to their injuries, and three survived to become PoWs. The crew’s regular rear gunner, Sgt Knopp, was in Ely Hospital with an eye problem, and was replaced by Sgt Westbrook DFM, rear gunner to P/O Scammell. Leslie Westbrook had received his award in June for his actions over Chambly. The fortunate Knopp went on to complete thirty-five operations with the squadron. Pilot Officer Humphrey had joined the squadron from 31 Base on May 9th, and he had completed six operations when lost on what was his first Lancaster operation.

One of the squadron’s longest serving and most respected crews completed its tour mid-month. Squadron Leader John Overton DFC, A Flight Commander, was posted to 1657 CU on the 13th. John Overton had joined 218 Squadron from 1657 CU on 21st May 1943, and undertook his first operation as second pilot against Dortmund two nights later. Together with his crew he completed thirty one operations over a fifteen month tour.

Over eight hundred aircraft were involved in support of Canadian ground forces on the afternoon of the 14th, as they advanced on German positions around Falaise. Three 218 Squadron Lancasters were involved at Hamel, a strong point north-east of Falaise, along with a further ninety-seven 3 Group Lancasters. In clear weather the bomber stream collected their 11 Group Spitfire escort and headed almost directly to the target. Crews bombed a number of well-placed green TIs from 9,000 feet, and clouds of dust soon enveloped the whole area to obscure the results. It was during these attacks that some stray bombs fell among Canadian troops, killing thirteen of them, and wounding over fifty others.

In preparation for his new night offensive against Germany, Harris launched a thousand aircraft by daylight on the 15th, to attack nine night fighter airfields in Holland and Belgium. 218 Squadron supported the attack on St Trond, initially with three Lancasters, but W/Cdr Fenwick-Wilson was forced to return early when the port-inner of NN704 HA-S over-heated. The operations took place in conjunction with almost a thousand American bombers, and under the umbrella of both RAF and USAAF fighters. On the night of the 16/17th over four hundred aircraft destroyed fifteen hundred houses and many industrial buildings at Stettin, and sank five ships in the harbour. 218 Squadron provided five crews, and three newly arrived pilots flew their maiden operations as second pilots. A simultaneous attack on Kiel by three hundred aircraft was partially successful, many of the bombs falling within the docks area and ship-building yards. Bremen was left devastated by an assault on the 18/19th, which left more than 8,600 houses and apartment blocks gutted by fire, and well in excess of a thousand people killed. Eight 218 Squadron Lancaster’s took part, and one of them sustained flak damage during its run-in to bomb.

The campaign against flying bomb sites would be concluded by the end of the month, as the Pas-de-Calais returned to Allied hands, but in the short term the weather conditions over 3 Group bases curtailed any further operations until the 25th, when six crews were detailed to carry out a daylight G-H attack on the flying bomb site at Vincly in the Nord Pas-de-Calais region of France. The crews were dispatched to RAF Waterbeach, where they would be briefed and joined by crews of 514 Squadron. The intention was to attack the target in three waves of five aircraft, each with a G-H leader from 218 Squadron, but problems with the take-off and identification of the G-H leaders forced a reduction to two waves. Flight Lieutenant Arbury arrived over the aiming point four minutes after zero-hour, and was the first to bomb. With G-H working perfectly the crew watched from 13,000 feet as their load of eleven one thousand pounders and four five hundred pounders exploded in two distinct clusters across the aiming point. Flight Lieutenant “Happy” Funnell identified the wood and road, and he too saw his bombs explode across the target area. It was impossible for the following crews to gauge the accuracy of the bombing as low cloud and smoke drifted across the target.

The small gaggle of eleven Lancasters encountered heavy accurate flak from St Omer on the way home, and F/L Knapman lost an engine to it. LM258 HA-Q was also hit, and it seems that F/L Douglas Haggis had to feather one or both engines on the port side. The Lancaster was coaxed across the North Sea to within sight of the Suffolk Coast, where a number of witnesses in Felixstowe observed it approaching low from the north-west with its undercarriage lowered and both port engines stationary. Witnesses also reported that the pilot was apparently looking for somewhere to ditch as the Lancaster was circling near the New Pier, when it suddenly banked to port, side slipped and dived into the sea at 21.15hrs. Two dull explosions followed and a fire broke out on the water. A Walrus aircraft was soon on the spot, as were two launches, but sadly, only one survivor was located. The critically injured gunner was brought to Felixstowe docks and then transported to a local RAF Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries at 00.30hrs. The pilot had been on his eleventh operation, and his and his crew’s bodies were recovered over the following weeks as they were washed ashore.

The crew of Flight Lieutenant Douglas Haggis taken just prior to their arrival on the squadron.

That night, four hundred aircraft from 1, 3, 6 and 8 Groups returned to Rüsselsheim, to try again at the Opel factory. Seven 218 Squadron Lancasters took part, and they encountered considerable opposition in the target area from both flak and fighters, but returned safely. Considerable damage was inflicted upon the forge and gear-box assembly workshops, and both were out of action for over seven weeks, despite which, there was no effect on lorry production. The night’s activities were no yet over, as seventeen 115 Squadron Lancasters were diverted from Witchford to Methwold on return from the raid due to unfavourable weather over their own base. The following morning the squadron was visited by the A-O-C, AVM R Harrison CB CBE DFC, AFC, to discuss with the crews the daylight operation to Vincly.

1, 3 and 8 Groups delivered a destructive attack on Kiel in hazy conditions on the 26/27th, for which 218 Squadron provided ten Lancasters. Flak and searchlight activity over the target was described as heavy, and fighters were active all along the route to and from the target. Severe damage was inflicted on the naval dockyard and arsenal, and the Germania Werft A.G and Deutsche Werke Kiel A.G factories were also hit. The final acts of the flying bomb campaign were played out in daylight at twelve sites on the 28th.

A follow up raid on Stettin was undertaken on the 29/30th, for which the squadron put up nine Lancasters, three of which returned early. A fire broke out in the fuselage of PD259 HA-A during the outward flight, caused by the ignition of three incendiaries. Prompt action by the flight engineer, P/O Shorter, prevented the fire from spreading, and F/L R “Taffy” Ecclestone and his crew were able to continue on and bomb the target. Considerable flak was experienced, particularly over Denmark and the target, and fighter activity was reported from Denmark to the target area. There was also a spirited response as the force made an incursion over neutral Sweden. W/O B Aves reported “A very considerable flak barrage on route over Sweden, they were just not playing cricket!!” All 218 Squadron crews returned home after being aloft for over nine hours.

August was brought to a close with daylight attacks by almost six hundred aircraft on nine V-2 stores on the 31st. Eleven G-H crews carried out a daylight raid on the flying bomb supply dump at Pont Remy. Two aiming points had been selected, one north of Pont Remy, and one slightly south. 218 Squadron was given the southern target, and attacked first at 16.00hrs. Cloud covered the target as the crews bombed from 15,000 feet, and they were unable to report on the accuracy of the bombing. On return it was considered the bombs may have overshot the aiming point, but one large explosion was observed, which produced a column of dense black smoke. Flak was encountered in the le Touquet area, where PD262 HA-G was slightly damaged, but all of the crews landed safely back at Methwold.

August had been a busy and satisfying month for the squadron, characterised by a smooth transition to the Lancaster. 218 Squadron was back at the forefront of operations, and once more taking the war to the German homeland. It was also the first in the Command to be fully equipped with G-H, 514 Squadron, who had pioneered G-H back in 1943 had almost two flights equipped, while 149 was in the process of fitting out a flight. Daylight operations were now being undertaken regularly, some of them complex in nature, but they would soon become a matter of course for 218 Squadron and the group. Over 357 tons of bombs had been dropped, eighty-nine operational sorties had been carried out, and none of these were mining.

September

September would be devoted largely to returning to Allied control the three French ports still occupied by the enemy. 218 Squadron had reason to celebrate on the 1st, as the new communal sites were finally completed and the first official party was given in the officers mess. The following day, and a million miles from the destruction being wrought over Germany, the squadron held the finals of the base gardening competition. The judge was the respected Mr J Young, Air Ministry Horticultural Advisor, who presided over a keenly fought contest, and, after considerable debate, declared the winners to be Station Police, Main Guard Room, while second place went to 149 Armoury, and the SHQ Photographic Section, Hut 124, came third.

1 and 3 Groups opened the campaign against enemy positions around Le Havre on the 5th, when 218 Squadron provided fifteen Lancasters to an overall force of more than 340. Accurate bombing took place in good visibility, and the operation was concluded without loss. 218 Squadron supported the next visit with fourteen Lancasters on the 6th, and sent ten to the same destination on the 8th. This time the intention was to attack in two waves, each assigned to its own aiming point, and the 218 Squadron aircraft bombed from between 3,000 and 5,000 feet on instructions from the Master Bomber. In view of the proximity of Allied troops and the general uncertainty of the situation, two-thirds of the crews brought their bombs home after the Master Bomber called a halt to the proceedings. Four Stirlings from 149 Squadron took part, and carried out the type’s final bombing sorties under Bomber Command. Over 250 aircraft went back on the 9th, but this time all were sent home with their bombs because of poor visibility. The squadron lost the services of two experienced crews on the 9th and 12th, when F/L John McAllister and F/L Robert Chaplin were posted to 1653 Conversion Unit for instructional duties on completion of their tours. Each would receive a well-earned DFC within weeks. The operation was rescheduled for the following day, when fifteen 218 Squadron Lancasters participated in a particularly concentrated attack in excellent weather conditions. All the crews bombed on a concentration of red TIs as instructed by the Master Bomber, and opposition was non-existent. The final operation was mounted on the 11th, and a few hours afterwards the German garrison surrendered to British forces.

Also on this day 370 aircraft carried out attacks on synthetic oil refineries at Kamen, Castrop-Rauxel and Gelsenkirchen under a heavy fighter escort. 218 Squadron supported the first-mentioned, which produced accurate bombing in conditions of good visibility. On the night of the 12th 3 Group participated in the final heavy raid of the war on Frankfurt. Among the aiming points was the marshalling yards, to which S/Ldr Brentnall led fifteen 218 Squadron Lancasters. German night fighters were active early in the proceedings, and a clear sky gave them an advantage, which they exploited. Heavy flak and searchlight activity in the target area was not considered by returning crews to have been unduly troublesome, but night fighters were, and NF911 HA-F was shot down at 23.25hrs soon after leaving the target, the possible victim of Ofw Kurt Karsten of I/NJG6. The Lancaster crashed near Nastatten, and there were no survivors from the crew of F/O Frank Smith, who had been with the squadron since July, and were on their fourth operation together. NF906 HA-B crashed near Bad Homburg, approximately six miles north of Frankfurt, and there were no survivors from the crew of twenty-five year old F/O John Corliss RAAF. The circumstances surrounding the loss of this crew are unclear, but there is every chance that they met their end after an encounter with a night fighter. The crew had arrived on the squadron from 1657 CU on May 3rd, and were on their eleventh operation. The third loss was that of F/L Howard Seller and crew, who were on their twenty-sixth operation. It is believed that PD262 HA-G collided with Lancaster ME854 of 576 Squadron over Germany at approximately 23.00hrs, before crashing one mile south of Eppelsheim. This was an experienced crew, some members of which had been with the squadron since late in 1943. An eighth member of the crew, flying as second pilot, was twenty-year-old F/O Winston Leichardt RAAF. Leichardt had already completed two operations as captain since his arrival on the squadron on September 1st from 31 Base.

Cornish born Squadron Leader Nigel MacFarlane arrived on the 14th from 31 Base to command A Flight on the departure of S/Ldr John Overton DFC. Weather prevented the squadron from operating again until September 17th, when Bomber Command dispatched 762 aircraft in daylight against the German positions around Boulogne in preparation for an attack by Canadian ground forces. Ten 218 Squadron Lancasters were involved, one of them flown by S/Ldr McFarlane, while W/Cdr Fenwick-Wilson flew with F/O H Hibberd. The Master Bomber instructed crews to bomb from below cloud, which in the case of 218 Squadron, was as low as 2,000 feet, and returning crews reported an accurate attack. This one operation delivered three thousand tons of bombs, and that was sufficient to demonstrate to the occupiers of Boulogne that their situation was untenable, and they surrendered a little over a week later. This left only Calais to be liberated, and moves to bring this about began on the 20th. Over six hundred aircraft took part, including eleven from 218 Squadron. Take off was late in the afternoon, and the force carried out a successful attack from 2,000 to 3,000 feet, meeting no opposition from the Calais defences.

By mid-September 1944 218 Squadron was at its peak, having an abundance of experienced crews within it ranks. Squadron Leader MacFarlane’s A Flight had thirteen operational crews, of which the senior captains had between them a wealth of operational experience. Flight Lieutenant Lock RNZAF had completed thirty-four operations, F/L Gillies RAAF twenty-seven, F/L Coram RAAF also twenty-seven, F/L Stirling RAAF twenty-six, F/L Scammell twenty-three, F/L Ecclestone twenty-two and F/L Young RAAF twenty-one. Across the tarmac B Flight was equally experienced, and among its fifteen crews F/L Funnell had completed thirty operations, F/L Webster RAAF twenty-nine and F/L Arbury twenty, while F/Ls Walker, Rycroft and Field each had eighteen to their name. This was without the operational record of S/Ldr Brentnall, the former B Flight commander, who was now awaiting posting on completion of his operational tour of thirty operations. Operational experience was not just confined to the pilots of course, and F/Sgt Boon, a gunner in F/L Lock’s crew, had completed thirty-seven operations, while P/O Gordon, a gunner in F/L Funnell’s crew, had completed an equally impressive thirty-six. The squadron section leaders were all similarly experienced, F/L Glover, navigation leader having completed thirty-three operations, the signals leader, F/L Taylor thirty-five, F/L Russell, bombing leader, thirty-three, and the engineering leader, F/L Phillips, twenty-eight. The most experience airman on the squadron at the time was the gunnery leader, F/L Piper DFC, who had flown on sixty-four operations over three operational tours. Flight Lieutenant O’Brien arrived on the squadron from 31 Base on the 18th, having completed his conversion to the Lancaster at 3 LFS at Feltwell. Over the succeeding months he would become one of the squadron’s most experienced and respected captains.

1, 3 and 4 Groups provided the main force for a heavy raid on Neuss on the 23/24th, when fifteen Lancasters represented 218 Squadron. Returning crews were not enthusiastic about the marking, and F/L Coram reported having to bomb on a reddish glow seen through the clouds. Contrary to the crews’ opinions, however, the raid was a success, with the bombing concentrated in the docks and industrial areas, where a reported 617 houses and fourteen public buildings were destroyed and numerous others were damaged. Later on the 24th the second raid was mounted against enemy positions around Calais. 218 Squadron sat this one out, but fourteen Lancasters left Methwold in marginal weather conditions on the afternoon of the 25th, and headed towards Calais as part of a force of 870 aircraft. Complete cloud cover in the target area resulted in the operation being abandon by the Master Bomber after less than three hundred bomb loads had been delivered. On the following day S/Ldr MacFarlane led ten 218 Squadron Lancasters back to Calais as part of a force of more than seven hundred aircraft. They found the Pathfinder markers to be initially scattered, and this caused a number of bomb loads to explode on the beach. The Master Bomber responded by instructing an overshoot of two seconds, which resulted in bombs falling beyond the aiming point. A timely intervention by the Deputy Master Bomber brought the attack back on track, and all aiming points were accurately targeted.

The crew of Flight Lieutenant John O’Brian seen here at RAF Methwold. A vastly experienced pilot John worked tirelessly as flight commander, however his concerns about crew inexperience resulted in his posting.

The last raid of the month took place on the 28th, and would prove to be the final one of the series against Calais. Ten 218 Squadron Lancasters were again led by S/Ldr MacFarlane, and they were part of a force of almost five hundred aircraft. Four enemy strong points were attacked, along with six coastal batteries at Cap Gris Nez, although the operation was curtailed after cloud intervened. The job was done, however, and the German garrison surrendered to Canadian forces within days. Thus ended September, another busy month in which the squadron carried out 120 operational sorties, and delivered 762 tons of bombs in the process. However, the loss of three crews was a timely reminder to all on the squadron that the war was far from over. Two experienced captains and their crews completed their tours in September and were awaiting posting, F/L Ian Lock RNZAF had completed thirty-four operations and was posted to 1651 CU, while fellow New Zealander, F/L Trevor Knapman, had completed an impressive first tour of thirty seven sorties. Both officers would be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross within a matter of weeks.

Flight Sergeant Trevor Knapman RNZAF and crew seen here at the start of their tour in October 1943. Twenty-year-old Knapman carried out an impressive 37 operations with the squadron before he was screened. Seated in front is the crews original mid upper gunner, American Staff Sergeant George Furste.

October

October would see the start of a new Ruhr offensive, and the heaviest attacks of the war on the German homeland. Rain and low cloud prevented any operations from taking place until the 3rd, when ten 218 Squadron Lancasters took off at lunch time to attack the sea wall at Westkapelle on the island of Walcheren. 250 Lancasters represented the heavy brigade, and they were to attack in sections of thirty aircraft under an escort of fighters from 11 Group. 218 Squadron contributed to the third wave, and bombed in excellent visibility from between 3,500 and 4,500 feet. Flight Lieutenant Stirling reported seeing his cookie hit the wall of the dyke, as did fellow Australian F/L Young and crew. The Master Bomber was clearly heard by all the crews, and they were enthusiastic about the outcome of the raid. On leaving the target water was seen to be flooding through the breaks in the wall and spreading inland. It was actually during the fifth wave that a breach occurred, and it was widened by those following behind. The squadron was now fully equipped and trained with G-H, as was 149 Squadron across the airfield. 514 Squadron had just two of its flights equipped, and this was because of delays in production and delivery. In the whole of 3 Group only sixty G-H sets were available. The new Mk II G-H was making an early appearance, replacing the almost exhausted stocks of the old Mk I. The group’s ability to mark and bomb its own targets allowed it from now on to operate independently of the Pathfinders. AVM R Harrison had long championed a specialist role for the group in Bomber Command, and believed that it should be allowed to carry out independent G-H blind bombing operations.

Wing Commander Fenwick Wilson AFC leads the cheers at the presentation of the honours board. The Honourable H Herman Hodge High Commissioner of the Gold Coast is in attendance.

In response to a request from the American Third Army, the squadron contributed fourteen Lancasters to a force of more than five hundred from 1, 3 and 8 Groups to attack the town of Saarbrücken on the night of the 5/6th. The two phase operation began with an attack on the marshalling yards, to disrupt supply routes to the front. The 218 Squadron element took part in this phase, which did not proceed as planned after a disagreement arose between the Master Bomber and his deputy over the accuracy of the markers. Ultimately the Master Bomber abandoned the attack, by which time all but one of the 218 Squadron crews had bombed on a number of scattered markers. The attack on the town itself followed two hours later, and was highly destructive, destroying almost six thousand houses and damaging a further eleven hundred. Happily, the majority of the inhabitants had fled the town as the front drew closer, but even so, more than three hundred people lost their lives.

The Hon Harry B Hermon-Hodge, official representative of the Colonial Office, paid a visit to the station on the morning of the 6th to present the squadron with a Mahogany Honours Board on behalf of the Gold Coast. A number of crews were introduced, and a series of official photographs were taken. The second Ruhr campaign was opened on the night of the 6/7th by a force of more than five hundred aircraft from 3, 6 and 8 Groups. The target was Dortmund, where the usual extensive catalogue of damage resulted to industry and communications. Only five aircraft failed to return, and none was lost from the 218 Squadron contingent. In order to protect the exposed Allied right flank following the failure of Operation Market Garden, daylight attacks were carried out against the towns of Cleves and Emmerich on the 7th. The former, situated near the Dutch Border and straddling the Rhine, was assigned to 350 aircraft from 3, 4 and 8 Groups, including ten 218 Squadron Lancasters. Crews bombed visually on smoke markers under the control of a Master Bomber, and the attack was reported to be accurate and concentrated, although smoke obscured most of the target. Medium flak was experienced, but no crews reported damage. Flying on this operation was the A Flight crew of F/O Robbie Roberts RAAF, who were on their first operation. The bomb-aimer was F/O Richard “Dick” Perry RNZAF, who kept a war time diary of the crew’s operations.

We took off at noon into a clear sky and climbed up to 14,000 feet to meet the bomber stream. Crossed the Dutch coast at The Hague with very little flak in evidence. As usual Gee was out and, being a clear day, map read our way in to the target for our final bombing run. The target was a railway marshalling yards and, still with little flak to trouble us, unloaded our bombs as a clear straddle across the tracks. Bomb load was 11x1000’s plus 4x500’s. A Halifax, right in front of us, had its wing shot off and crashed, not the best of sights for us on our first bombing sortie. Map read all the way back to base, again encountering very little flak at the Belgian coast. All of our aircraft returned safely.

A thick blanket of fog and low cloud settled over East Anglia, which caused the cancellation of an operation planned for the 8th. It would be almost a week before the weather would clear sufficiently for operations to resume, and this respite gave the hard pressed ground crews time to install a number of newly arrived Mk II G-H sets, and carry out some long overdue inspections and repairs. For the aircrews the temporary reprieve from operations was especially welcome. Flight Lieutenant Dunham returned to the squadron from 31 Base on October the 12th. Peter Dunham had previously been with the squadron back in 1941 as an observer, completing twenty-nine operations on Wellingtons, for which he was awarded a well deserved DFC. Prior to his first spell with 218 in 1941 he had completed fourteen operations as a gunner with 214 Squadron. Now in 1944, married and the father of a young son, he had returned to the squadron as a fully trained Lancaster pilot.

The crews enforced lay-off came to an end on the 14th, when the squadron took part in the first of a series of raids under the code name “Hurricane I”. This was a campaign directed against oil and communications specifically located in the Ruhr. The aim of the raids was to disrupt and disorganise Germany’s industrial heartland. The raids would also demonstrate to the enemy the overwhelming superiority of the Allied air forces ranged against it. At first light on the 14th over a thousand aircraft took off for Duisburg, among them twenty Lancasters representing 218 Squadron, led by the A Flight commander, S/Ldr MacFarlane in NF934 HA-G. Time on target was set for 08.45hrs, and 218 Squadron was part of the third wave timed to be over the target some twenty minutes later. 3 Group was allotted to the northern aiming points and attacked from between 17,000 and 23,000 feet. The attack was an outstanding success, which delivered almost four and a half thousand tons of bombs, and caused severe damage, particularly in the docks area. Flying Officer D Perry wrote in his diary:

Daylight raid on Duisburg, trip #2. Off the ground at 7 am and climbed to 18,000 feet to meet the bomber stream and away out across the Channel for Belgium. Arrived over the target at 9am to find heavy flak and a master bomber yelling “FREEHAND”. We took him at his word, picked a target, a bridge over the Rhine, and bombed visually straddling the west end with our bomb load, 11+1000’s and 4x500’s. We raced away from the target, throwing out “Window” as we went and headed northwest for home. Map read across Belgium and so to baseball. All of our aircraft returned safely.

To emphasize the point about air superiority, Bomber Command returned to Duisburg that same night, dispatching 1005 aircraft, among them a further twenty from 218 Squadron. This time no cloud was encountered over the target, and the crews bombed from between 18,000 and 20,500 feet on TIs. Fires were still burning in the docks area from the morning raid, and F/O Ellis reported that “The whole dock area was ablaze”, while F/O Lloyd reported that he “could see the fires from 15 miles before the T.Is went down”. In all the squadron had dropped 227 tons of bombs in less than twenty-four hours. Remarkably, this massive effort of despatching 2,018 sorties within less than a day was achieved without the support of 5 Group. F/O Perry wrote:

Night raid on Duisburg, trip #3. Briefed at 8 pm, took off at 10.15 and were over Reading at about midnight, making for the French coast. Over the target, bombed on markers and were away again before anything serious started coming up. Same bomb load as for the previous trip. Looking back one noted the evident destruction. Searchlights weaving about the sky, flack bursting around and behind us like balls of smoke, markers floating down to lie on the city like varicolored flowerbeds and the streets lighted up by fires burning all over the city. Uneventful flight back to base and the usual de-briefing and bacon and eggs. Big headlines in papers. 10,000 tons of bombs and incendiaries during the 24-hour period. Germany’s greatest inland port demolished.

A heavy attack was carried out on Wilhelmshaven on the 15/16th, for which the squadron put up nine crews led by S/Ldr MacFarlane. As events were to prove, this was the final of fourteen heavy raids directed at this port since early 1941. Thick haze was encountered over the target, and this resulted in some scattered bombing. Returning crews reported that fires could be seen in the target area from up to fifty miles away. On the following day another experienced and respected pilot was unexpectedly posted. The B Flight commander, acting S/Ldr Philip Brentnall DFC, joined the newly formed 195 Squadron after completing thirty-one operations. Phil Brentnall’s contribution to the success of the squadron was unequaled. Respected and liked by all ranks, he had brought with him a wealth of experience which he freely passed onto all the crews. By the time of his posting he had amassed over 1,353 flying hours. Such was his high regard, Wing Commander Fenwick-Wilson rated his flying ability as exceptional. Peter Dunham was promoted to acting squadron leader on the 18th, and was appointed to succeed him as B Flight commander.

A new role was beckoning for 3 Group as an independent group using the G-H device. In order to gauge its effectiveness in the hands of a largish force, an undamaged urban target was required so that there would be no old craters to cloud the issue. The virtually virgin target of Bonn was selected to host a raid on the 18th, for which around a third of the group’s Lancasters were equipped with G-H to act as gaggle leaders. To aid identification their fins were painted with two prominent yellow horizontal bars. The system had been in use for some time, but not by large forces, and it was to be employed by day and night, whenever the target was cloud covered, and the cloud did not extend beyond 18,000 feet. Eight 218 Squadron Lancasters joined 120 others from the group for this operation, with four crews, those of F/L Stirling RAAF, F/L Coram RAAF, F/O H Knight and F/O D Cook RNZAF, selected as G-H leaders. The intention was for the formation to fly in sections of three, with a G-H aircraft leading. Forming up proved more difficult than expected, and the G-H leaders had four or possibly five followers, while some had no followers at all.

A standard Vic formation No. 1 was the G-H leader.

Formation of five aircraft, this formation often proved difficult to maintain. No. 1 is the G-H leader with No. 2 Deputy.

A four flight formation, again aircraft No.1 is the G-H leader.

Eventually the gaggle set off, and met their fighter escort of seven Mustang squadrons east of Dunkirk, before proceeding south-east to the northern tip of Luxembourg, and then east-north-east to approach the target from the south. Seven squadrons of Spitfires also joined the formation from the River Meuse onwards. Contrary to expectations, the weather over the target was only three to five tenths, rather than the ten-tenths expected. With the gaggle of matt black painted Lancasters clearly visible against the clear blue sky, the city’s flak defences were both heavy and accurate, and the formation was broken up and dispersed. To compound the problems, a fading G-H release pulse was experienced and many crews decided to bomb visually. Two 218 Squadron Lancasters were damaged by flak on the bomb run, and LM281 was extensively damaged after incendiaries hit the starboard-inner engine and caused a fire. Despite all of the difficulties, the attack was well concentrated in the centre of the city, where seven hundred buildings were destroyed. Evidence at debriefing demonstrated that the crews persevering with G-H had obtained good results.

The Group would still operate in tandem with others as required, and on the 19/20th it joined 1 and 6 groups in a two-phase assault on Stuttgart. 565 aircraft ultimately took off, the second phase four and a half hours after the first. F/O Perry.

Night raid on Stuttgart, trip #4. Briefed at 2 pm, took off at 5.00am. Same route to the French coast. Took over from Robbie for part of the trip out, which he found useful, as it allowed him to spend some time with the other members of the crew. Used H2S for the first time as a navigating aid and Frank, our Navigator, used it until we were some 20 miles from the target which was a marshalling yard. Bombed target visually in clear sky and very little flak. Bomb load was a 1x4000 (affectionately known as a cookie} and 6x1000’s. On the way home we lost all of our navigational aids and had to rely on Frank’s dead reckoning to bring us back to base. Proof of the pudding was that we were first to land.

This was the last operation to be presided over by the respected and admired W/Cdr Fenwick-Wilson AFC, who was posted to 31 Base Stradishall as Wing Commander Training (Plans) on the 21st. His contribution to the success of the squadron during 1944 cannot be overstated. Characteristically Canadian, he led from the front and oversaw a number of squadron transitions with a typical North American determination. He commanded the squadron during the conversion to the Lancaster, and was instrumental in the development and operational use of G-H, although, perhaps his most notable contribution to the war effort was his role as squadron commander during the training and application of Operation “Glimmer”, which was never acknowledged. There were celebrations in the officers mess on the 19th, when the popular Aussie, F/L Jack Coram was screened from further operations, after he and his crew had completed their first tour of thirty-seven operations. He would be awarded a DFC in January 1945.

Squadron Leader W Smith arrived on the 21st of October from 115 Squadron, and he was promoted within days to assume command of the squadron. Thirty-one-year-old William John Smith had served with the Indian Army before joining the RAF in 1936. Prior to his period with 115 Squadron Smith had served the majority of the war in RAF Training Command, two years of which were in Canada, instructing on twin engine aircraft. Regrettably for the squadron, W/Cdr Smith brought with him the rather starched and authoritarian approach to commanding that was evident in Training Command, but was not appreciated on a front line squadron.

A daylight G-H raid was directed at Neuss on the 22nd, for which 218 Squadron contributed ten Lancasters. There was complete cloud cover with tops as high as 17,000 feet, but the G-H pulse was strong, and subsequent photographs showed that the bombing had been concentrated. Despite this, the operation caused the destruction of only around a hundred buildings. Wing Commander Smith’s leadership style was demonstrated before this operation, as Australian F/O Lance Gregory, bomb-aimer to F/L Robert Stirling RAAF recalls:

Just before the departure of W/Cdr Fenwick Wilson he informed my crew that having completed 35 operations we were screened. However within days we were told that we were on op’s again, not believing this we checked the “Battle Order” and at the top was F/L Stirling. The skipper went to see the Wing co and informed him what W/Cdr Fenwick Wilson had told the crew on completion of their 35th operation. The commanding officer was not happy having his decision questioned and replied “I am the commanding officer of 218 Squadron and if I say you fly tonight, you fly, how dare you question my orders.” For his stand my skipper got sent on a course at RAF Cranwell. We went on to fly a further 3 op’s bringing our tour up to 38 operations. It was not an auspicious start.

The Hurricane force moved on to Essen on the 23/24th, when 218 Squadron contributed twelve Lancasters led by S/Ldr MacFarlane. Seven of the squadron’s crews were selected to bomb using G-H, and they were part of a record force of 1055 aircraft, which delivered 4,538 tons of bombs. A return to Essen was planned for the following day, but the weather closed in for the next twenty-four hours. A late afternoon take off by 770 aircraft on the 25th headed back to the Ruhr city, this time with eleven 218 Squadron Lancasters in support led by S/Ldr Dunham. Cloud over the target prevented the crews from identifying the aiming point, and the attack, therefore, proceeded on Pathfinder sky markers. Extensive damage was caused in the city and upon the Krupp Steelworks, and this once mighty armament producing giant now lay in ruins.

An all-3 Group attack on the chemical works at Leverkusen was undertaken on the 26th. The group dispatched 105 aircraft, ten of which represented 218 Squadron. Rendezvous was over Bury St Edmunds, where the squadrons formed up into their now familiar vic formations. The force made landfall near Ostende, and with their escort of four squadrons of RAF Mustangs swung due east towards Mönchengladbach. Predicted flak met the crews as they bombed on G-H over a cloud covered target, and a large column of black smoke was seen rising up through the clouds. News was received on the 27th that 149 Squadron was to expand to three flights, and would require the facilities at Methwold. Consequently, 218 Squadron was told to anticipate a move to Stradishall. Five of the squadron’s Lancasters were dispatched against the heavy gun emplacements near Dishoek situated on the island of Walcheren on the morning of the 28th. Two large explosions were seen, and F/O Cook RNZAF reported that they appeared to be ammunition dumps. Just two crews represented the squadron in an operation against Cologne that evening, and the attack by over seven hundred aircraft appeared to be concentrated, with numerous fires reported in and around the aiming point.

Wing Commander William Smith DFC last war-time commanding officer. His authoritarian style of command was not appreciated by the squadron crews. Group Captain Brotherhood station commander RAF Chedburgh recorded that Wing Commander Smith’s inflexible resolve and insistence on the highest standards was the reason for the squadron’s success.

Five 218 Squadron Lancasters took part in a daylight operation against Westkapelle on the 29th, led by S/Ldr MacFarlane. This was followed on the 30th by an attack on the oil refineries at Wesseling, near Cologne. This all-3 Group operation was carried out in conditions of total cloud cover, and for once, forming up and flying in formation went without a hitch. A total of 102 Lancasters carried out accurate bombing, despite an initial problem with a false G-H pulse. This was picked up by a number of crews, who, as a result, bombed some five miles from the aiming point. It was later established that the pulse had originated from a recently set-up ground testing station. The final assault on Walcheren was delivered by 5 Group on the 30th, before Canadian and British ground forces went in and secured the island after a week of heavy fighting. It would take a further month to clear the forty mile stretch of river of mines, and the first convoy would not arrive at Antwerp until the end of November.

It was back to Cologne on the evening of the 30th, when over nine hundred bombers inflicted further enormous damage. Marking was provided by Pathfinders, who dropped a number of accurate sky markers. The ninety-nine 3 Group Lancasters attacked in clear conditions using G-H. A full moon illuminated the aircraft, which were visible to each other for miles in the crisp freezing night air. Flak over the target was described as moderate but accurate. Returning crews reported a number of large fires in the target area, and one of them, slightly southwest of the aiming point, was particularly substantial. A number of fighters were seen, including a jet, but no encounters were recorded. F/O Perry:

Night raid on Cologne, trip #5. Took off into very bad weather and carried on to the target over 10/10ths cloud. Very pretty over target, very little flak, sky markers, bright moonlight and German fighters circling above us. Saw our first jet/rocket aircraft which went straight up through the bomber stream and started circling above us. Did not note that it accomplished anything. Bombed on sky markers, a cookie and 14 cans of incendiaries. Very uneventful trip and arrived back at base at 11.30 pm.

An all-3 Group daylight raid on a synthetic oil refinery at Bottrop was carried out by 102 Lancasters on the 31st. The target, to the north-west of Essen, was approached on an almost due south heading, and flak was reported as active. The aiming point was concealed under a complete cloud cover, and the G-H leaders consequently released sky markers. After bombing the crews turned to the northwest to pick up their fighter escort before heading back to the safety of the Allied front line. The last operation of the month was again directed at Cologne on the night of the 31st, when almost five hundred bombers attacked a cloud-covered target. The Pathfinders dropped a number of Oboe-assisted sky markers over the western suburbs of the city, and the six participating 218 Squadron crews successfully delivered their loads from between 18,000 and 20,000 feet. They encountered practically no flak, and below them the city still glowed from the previous night’s raid. A familiar face met the crews at de-briefing, W/Cdr F Milligan AFC, the former commanding officer of 623 Squadron, spoke to the crews upon their return. Wing Commander Milligan was at the time serving at 3 Group HQ at Exning Hall.

October had been an extraordinary month for the squadron, and the busiest it had ever experienced. 206 operational sorties had been carried out during nineteen operations, eleven of which had been in daylight. A squadron record of 1,148 tons of bombs had been delivered, and all without loss. The month brought the one-thousandth sortie flown from Methwold since it became operational in May. The Group had beaten August’s record of 1,341 sorties, by a considerable margin, and had, in fact almost doubled it with 2,676.

November

The squadron opened its November account on the 2nd, with a G-H raid on the Meerbeck synthetic oil plant at Homberg, just north-west of Duisburg. A new method of sky marking was employed for this attack, which involved the G-H leaders dropping green flares with their bomb loads, mimicking the Pathfinder technique known as the Wanganui method. Seventeen 218 Squadron Lancasters participated, and the force of 180 3 Group Lancasters was escorted by 109 Spitfires and forty-five RAF Mustangs. It was not until the formation was within five miles of the target that fairly accurate predicted flak was encountered, and this caused damage to sixty-two aircraft during the bomb run, including five from 218 Squadron. Flight Lieutenant “Wag” Walker was wounded by flak splinters in his shoulder while on the bomb run, as Sgt Aubrey Benns, the flight engineer, recalls:

We were over the target when we were hit, the skipper was hit in the shoulder and had to be helped from his seat to have his wound treated and to recover. I took over as pilot and boy o boy did I sweat. I reckon I lost ponds in the short time I was at the controls. My piloting experience up until then was two twenty minute periods on the link trainer! Somehow I managed to keep us in the air and out of danger. Thankfully “Wag” recovered enough to take over and bring us home”

On his return F/L Walker was admitted to the SSQ were he remained for the next two days. Two large explosions were seen, and black smoke was rising up to 10,000 feet as the crews turned for home. At debriefing crews declared themselves unimpressed by the green markers, which had been difficult to pick out in daylight. They were, however, in agreement with the idea in principle, and that it was worth further trials. Lady luck was certainly with the group on this operation, as it was discovered later that over sixty enemy fighters had been dispatched to meet the force, but had been sent mistakenly towards Münster.

A 3 Group raid on the town of Solingen on the 4th involved 176 Lancasters, of which seventeen represented 218 Squadron. Sky marking was once again tried, but this time in the form of bundles of three red flares fixed together. There was nine-tenths cloud over the target with tops up to 8,000 feet, with limited defensive activity, all of the squadron’s participants bombed on G-H. Bombing appeared concentrated, but this was a false impression, and the results on the ground were disappointing. F/O Dick Perry:

Day raid on Solingen, trip #6. Took off at 12 noon and proceeded to the target over 10/10 cloud. No flak evident and were able to bomb visually through a gap in the cloud cover. Target a marshalling yards and bomb load a cookie, 6/1000’s and 6/500’s. One unnerving experience, the aircraft next to us blew up for no explainable reason. Was it sabotage, who knows? Then to top things off, the Germans sent up two scarecrows, the first we’d seen. Very evident that they were not planes as there was no sign of any wreckage and we actually flew right through some of the debris. Flew back by way of the sunken island of Walcheren but could see no sign of activity even though it was a battlefield at the time. Map read back to base through clear skies and landed at 5.30 pm.

The group returned to Solingen on the 5th, when sixteen 218 Squadron Lancasters joined a further 159. The bombing proceeded in four waves with G-H leaders from the squadron at the head of three of them. There was complete cloud cover over the target as the attack began at 13.00hrs. Once again flares were dropped as the lead G-H crews bombed, and the group’s experiments over the past few attacks had established the optimum frequency of marking required to achieve the necessary accuracy and concentration. The raid was an outstanding success, which left thirteen hundred houses and eighteen industrial properties destroyed, with over sixteen hundred other buildings severely damaged. Flight Lieutenant Gillies RAAF completed his tour of thirty-six operations on return from this raid, it had taken him almost a year. For some inexplicable reason twenty-six-year-old Leonard Scot Gillies did not receive any award in recognition of his operational tour. Dick Perry:

Back to Solingen, trip #7. Took off at 10.30 am and proceeded to the same target. My first experience with the Elsan, it was full up and liquid sloshing about. Used a perfectly good Mae West in order to clean myself up. This time we bombed over 10/10 cloud on sky markers. Also dropped some of our own markers for the following aircraft to bomb on. Same bomb load. Came home to pouring rain and had to virtually feel our way down to the runway. Advised that aircraft had been bombed by other aircraft on both of these days. Is it any wonder that we keep Dennis, our mid-upper, searching the skies for aircraft above us with their bomb doors open.

The aerodrome was rocked by the explosion of a 500lb long delay bomb on the 6th. The bomb had been found to have a technical problem, and had been stored in the old sand pit for safety. Tragedy struck when it prematurely exploded, killing two members of the 2807 RAF Regiment from Feltwell. A civil inquiry was held by the local coroner on the 9th in the station sick quarters, and this was followed on the 10th by a Court of Inquiry to “allocate responsibility”.

A raid on the town of Koblenz was detailed for the night of the 6th, for which seventeen crews had been briefed. However, the above-mentioned explosion in the bomb dump led to eight Lancasters being withdrawn because of delays in bombing up. This all-3 Group attack resulted in the destruction of 58% of the town’s built-up area. Marking was carried out by G-H, and crews reported visibility over the target to be ideal, with the rivers Mosel and Rhine clearly evident, and the ground markers to be concentrated around the aiming point. The town offered practically no defence, and was blanketed in incendiaries, the glow of which was visible from Brussels on the way home. Bomber Command letter BC/S.25172/ORG arrived at Methwold on the 7th, advising the squadron of its move to Chedburgh, and not Stradishall as previously instructed and this was followed up on the 8th with Instruction No.44, confirming the move. Before this the Group had another crack at the Meerbeck synthetic oil plant at Homberg during the morning of the 8th. Fifteen Lancasters were away by 08.33hrs, and they joined up with over a hundred other 3 Group Lancasters at 10,000 feet over Bury St Edmunds in marginal weather. The cloud covered target was attacked from between 15,000 and 17,500 feet in the face of heavy and accurate flak, and sixty-five Lancasters sustained damage. Eight 218 Squadron aircraft were hit during the bomb run, and one was lost.

PD374 HA-C was in the first wave over the target, and was hit by flak in the starboard-inner engine immediately after bombing. The Lancaster was again bracketed by flak, which damaged the fuselage near the rear exit door, and set both port engines on fire. Twenty-six year-old F/O Leslie Hough RAAF instructed his crew to prepare to abandon the aircraft as he turned towards the west in an attempt to reach the safety of the Allied lines. With both port engines and the port fuel tank ablaze, it was obvious that the crew had to leave the aircraft without delay. As the wing dipped Les Hough shouted over the intercom “Go – everybody out”. The bomb-aimer, F/O John Barron, opened the front hatch and left, the flight engineer, W/O John Tales, secured the seat type parachute to his skipper and followed Barron out. Just before he left, Sgt Allen Clifford, the crews navigator exchanged a wave with his grim-faced skipper, before he too dropped head-first out of the hatch to leave the pilot alone in the forward section. At the rear of the aircraft, tail-gunner Sgt Stanley Lee made the short distance to the damaged exit, where he found the mid-upper gunner, Sgt J Lawson, and the wireless operator, Sgt H Burnside, seemingly unwilling to jump. Lee wasted no time and went out, leaving his two crewmates to their fate, and both were found dead in the wreckage.

Almost immediately after navigator F/Sgt Allen Clifford bailed out, the main spar folded and the aircraft disintegrated, taking with it the gallant young pilot. The main part of the Lancaster crashed at Krampf Farm near Horstgen. Flight Sergeant Clifford was shot at on his decent by the local Volkssturm, who put a number of rounds into his canopy. Such was the speed of his decent, that on hitting the tiled roof of a house, he smashed straight through and continued on until finally coming to rest in the attic. A local mob rushed into the house and found the winded navigator, whom they dragged down the stairs and out onto the road. He was immediately set upon by a group of hostile civilians who began to kick him to death, it was only the brave and timely intervention of a Luftwaffe Feldwebel that saved his life. It is believed that twenty-six-year-old W/O John Tales landed in a field owned by Herr Holland, he was also set upon by civilians at the instigation of Ortsgruppenleiter Kaumans, a local leader, who also took an active part in the beating. Soon afterwards a motor cycle combination arrived with two members of the SS aboard and another unidentified man. They drove off with the semi conscious Tales and headed towards Moers, where the defenceless young airman was cold-bloodedly murdered.

Having been saved by the Feldwebel, Allen was put into the German’s side car and taken to a nearby police station. On the way the Feldwebel stopped in a quiet side street and told Allen in English that he would be safe as long as they avoided the SS. Eventually they arrived and Allen was placed in a cell, where he was later joined by a dishevelled and shocked Stan Lee. Allen takes up the story:

That afternoon we were paraded by armed soldiers through Duisburg. People were shouting Terrorfleiger” and throwing stones at us. We were marched through some badly damaged property and then put against a factory wall. A line of soldiers stood with their rifles against their shoulders. Stan said in a horrified voice “they are going to shoot us.” I felt protective of Stan and said “For God’s sake don’t let them see you are frightened”. He immediately pulled himself together. A soldier barked an order and we both waited terrified for the bullets, but then a fat old women appeared, shrieking, and placing herself between us and the execution squad. She ran in front of us screaming what sounded like propaganda at the soldiers. They shouted back but this brave woman stood her ground and saved our lives. The soldiers meekly shouldered arms and we were marched down the road, silently giving thanks to this one civilian in a vengeful city who had shown us mercy.

This ill-treatment of captured airmen would escalate as Germany’s position declined, and it was a very bad time for crews to find themselves in enemy hands. In most such cases, and certainly in this one, the perpetrators underwent trial after the war, and were hanged. Leslie Hough had arrived on the squadron on August 10th from 31 Base, the crew had been on its fourteenth operation. There was some cause for celebration, as this was the last of thirty-five operations for F/O Jack Arbury and crew, who had joined the squadron in March 1944 from 1651 CU. It was now becoming a regular occurrence for crews to complete their operational tours, and it was, indeed, almost something of an expectation.

The oil plant at Castrop-Rauxel was visited by 117 Lancasters from 3 Group on the morning of the 11th, and among them were ten from 218 Squadron led by F/L R Scammell. The bombers tracked across a cloud-covered Ruhr, where the flak was initially ineffective, but this soon changed as the bombers began their bombing run from between 17,000 and 23,000 feet, and delivered what was believed to be an accurate attack. With the Group expansion programme in full swing the squadron received a telegram on the 12th informing it that the formation of a third flight would be imminent, and it would carry the code XH. The High Commissioner for New Zealand, Mr W.J Jodan, and Air Commodore E.G Olsen, Air Officer Commanding RNZAF, London, visited Methwold on the 14th and spoke to the New Zealand personnel. At the time the squadron had only five officers and just three NCOs, considerably less than the previous year, when it boasted a number of experienced Kiwi crewmembers.

The squadron operated against the synthetic oil plant in Dortmund on the 15th, when five recently-arrived pilots joined experienced crews for operational experience. Dick Perry:

Day raid on Dortmund, trip #8. Took off at 12.30 pm into 10/10 cloud and followed the main stream to the Belgian coast. This time we used Gee which was working for a change. We took an unorthodox course over Belgium and, as a result, arrived over the target before the bomber stream. We were leader to three other aircraft, AA-K, Y and B and they followed us faithfully, dropping their bombs when we dropped ours. Bomb load was a cookie and 14x500’s. Target was a marshalling yards. There was very little flak although we heard, later, that it was much heavier when the main stream arrived. This was the first time that we had used G-H as the bombing device. Once again had scarecrows tossed up in front of us, two of them! Then our Gee caught fire and, fortunately, went out by itself. Back to map reading with the aid of H2S.Got back down at 5.30 pm with one aircraft, AA-K, still following us.

On the following day S/Ldr Dunham led thirteen Lancasters from the squadron to take part in the group’s first daylight army support operation. 182 Lancasters attacked the town of Heinsberg in support of the US 1st and 9th Armies, and while orbiting the target directing proceedings, the Master Bomber, W/Cdr Watkins DSO DFC DFM of XV Squadron, was shot down by flak, and was the sole survivor from his crew. His demise was witnessed by 218 Squadron’s F/O Cook and crew, who reported a Lancaster falling in the target area. Dick Perry:

Day raid on Heinsberg, trip #9. Army co-operation, breakthrough to Cologne. Took off at 1.30 pm in terrible weather which fortunately cleared up over the target. Ran up on G-H but were ordered to bomb the town visually rather than use either G-H or markers. That was the last we heard from the Master Bomber although we heard later that he had been shot down. Orbited around looking for a likely target and, then, dropped our bombs, a cookie, 6x1000’s and 6x500’s, in the town center. Very heavy light flak by this time so quickly exited from the area. Took over from Robbie as usual, and noted that this time he went up in the nose where he probably took a nap. He took over from me after we left the Belgian coast and proceeded to base. No brake pressure so was diverted to Woodbridge where we had a hairy landing using FIDO. Almost ran off the end of the runway before we came to a stop. Spent three of the worst days we have ever experienced, cold, and wet, nothing to do. Finally left for base again but were diverted to Newmarket. Eventually made it home on the 20th.

It was back to the Meerbeck synthetic oil plant at Homberg on the 20th, for which the squadron dispatched eleven Lancasters in mid-afternoon in foul weather. Conditions did not improve over the target, where crews encountered complete cloud cover reaching up to 24,000 feet. It created problems for the non G-H aircraft trying to maintain formation with their G-H leaders. F/O Dick Perry:

Flight Lieutenant Robbie Roberts RAAF and crew seen here on completion of their operational tour. Sitting 2nd left is Flying Officer Dick Perry.

Day raid on Homberg, trip #10. Really duff met, we hit cloud at the Belgian coast and it stayed with us, with few breaks, til we reached the target. Once again we bombed on G-H over 10/10 cloud and no flak. Carrying a cookie and 14x500’s. In cloud all the way back till we were over the Channel when it cleared until we reached the English coast where it thickened up again. What a sight coming back. Hundreds of aircraft all leaving black vapor trails behind them and, at one stage, climbing up to 24.000 feet to get over the Cu-Nimbs. On this trip we actually saw three aircraft destroyed by bombs dropped from aircraft above them, and swerved away ourselves from beneath one that would have passed right over us with its bomb doors open. I’ll always remember our mid-upper, Dennis, yelling out the instruction to swerve right.

With improved weather 3 Group sent 186 Lancasters back to Homburg to finish off what they had started on the previous day. Intensive accurate flak met them, and forty of the 160-strong force sustained damage. Among them was New Zealander F/O Cook’s PD296 HA-B, which was hit in ten places, while F/O Stewart’s PB291 HA-O was extensively damaged along the whole length of the fuselage, thankfully without crew casualties in either case. Bombing was considered scattered by returning crews, but those over the target later in the attack witnessed a vast sheet of yellow flame and black smoke rising to a great height. Dick Perry:

Return to Homberg, trip #11. Yesterday’s effort was no good so back we go again, takeoff 12.30 pm. Bursts of cloud all the way back until we reached the target where it cleared so bombed visually on sky markers. No flak and great visibility, a perfect bombing run and bombs right on target. Once again, the target was a marshalling yards. We carried a cookie and 14x500’s. Back to base and arrived home at 5 pm.

A Flight commander, S/Ldr Nigel MacFarlane, was posted to XV Squadron at Mildenhall on the 21st to succeed the above-mentioned W/Cdr Watkins as commanding officer. The experienced and highly respected F/L John O’Brien was promoted as his successor. The squadron dispatched twelve crews to the Nordstern oil plant at Gelsenkirchen on the 23rd, when G-H worked extremely well, and an accurate attack was carried out. An attack on the marshalling yards at Fulda on the 26th was unsuccessful, after the G-H pulse was found to be faint, and finally faded out over the target. This was at the maximum range of both B and C G-H slave stations. Without G-H guidance the crews bombed visually or on targets of opportunity, and to confuse matters more, a number of inaccurate flares were dropped and attracted some bomb loads. This was the deepest penetration into Germany to date by the group. F/O Perry:

Day raid to Fulda, trip #12. Takeoff at 8 am over 10/10 cloud, essentially to test the range of our G-H equipment. A very easy trip, no flak, no fighters and 10/10 cloud. The trip was unsuccessful as we were unable to pick up a signal at that range. Target was to be a marshalling yard. Returned to base, jettisoning our bombs over the Channel.

B Flight’s F/O William “Shorty” Stewart RNZAF and crew were screened from further operations after completing their first tour of thirty-five operations on return from Fulda. It was another busy night in the mess, with the diminutive New Zealander, pint in hand, leading the charge at the bar.

The group dispatched 169 Lancasters on the 27th for a two wave attack on the Kalk railway yards at Cologne. Fourteen 218 Squadron aircraft were led away by S/Ldr Dunham as part of the first wave. A navigational error by the lead 75(NZ) crew took the first wave through most of the Ruhr defences before reaching the aiming point, and this resulted in the two formations converging on the target from different directions. Flak over the target was heavy and accurate, and a total of seventy-nine Lancasters sustained damage, five of them from 218 Squadron. The bombing was described by returning crews as fairly concentrated, and a dense column of brown smoke was seen rising up through 5,000 feet as the force withdrew. Dick Perry:

Day raid to Cologne, trip #13. Takeoff at 1 pm in clear skies. Everything went fine until we reached the target and the flak started coming up at us. I have never seen so many shell bursts at one time. We picked our target, marshalling yards, and went in on our bombing run. Everyone was yelling. “Drop those bombs and get out of here.” We pressed on, dropped the bombs, a cookie and 14x500’s, and raced for home. It’s hard to describe the sheer terror and beauty that accompanied a raid like this one. 500 odd bombers above us, beneath us and around us, flak bursts like myriads of balls of cotton wool, aircraft spiraling down to crash into the holocaust below and tail gunner, Harry, shouting “Weave” as the predicted flak crept up behind us. My comment, I note, was that I hoped we would never again have to fly over Cologne in broad daylight with no cloud cover. We were one of the few aircraft that returned without any damage, our lucky day.

A G-H operation was carried out against the town of Neuss on the 29th by 145 Lancasters, including nine from 218 Squadron. A number of recently posted-in pilots were sent on this raid to gain first-hand experience of a night raid over Germany. There was complete cloud cover over the target, and results could not be assessed, although a glow was seen through the cloud and one large explosion was observed. Only slight flak was encountered and no fighters were reported during an otherwise quiet operation. Dick Perry:

Night raid Neuss, trip #14. A marshalling yards and an uneventful trip over 10/10 cloud. Off the ground at 2.30 pm, very little flak over the target, bombing on G-H and, for a change, equipment was operational. We ran up on the target, dropped our bombs, a cookie, 6x1000’s and 6x500’s, and headed for home to arrive back at 7.30 pm.

The final operation of the month was flown on the 30th, two separate targets in the Ruhr would be attacked, each by sixty Lancaster’s. The attack on a coking plant at Bottrop included four aircraft from 218 Squadron, while the second element targeted an oil plant at Osterfeld. The two objectives were less than two miles apart, and situated west of Essen. Both formations attacked downwind from the direction of Cleve at lunchtime, and two aircraft from the latter failed to return. Group Captain Brotherhood, the Station Commander of Chedburgh paid a visit to Methwold on the 30th, together with W/Cdr Smith and Methwold’s Station Commander G/C Yarde. They discussed the squadron’s impending move to Chedburgh, where G/C Brotherhood had only taken command on the 27th, on the departure of G/C Bale to command North Luffenham.

Indifferent weather during the month resulted in the squadron carrying out just 166 sorties, 148 by day and eighteen by night, dropping in the process just over 960 tons of bombs for the loss of one crew. With the group undertaking principally daylight G-H raids, the need for tight formation flying was now essential. A number of telegrams from 11 Group HQ to 3 Group HQ raised concerns about the ability of the escort to shepherd and protect the Lancasters. On two operations during the month flak had scattered the formations and on almost every other occasion the gaggle of lumbering Lancasters had become too strung out, particularly on the way home, to allow the escorts to do their job effectively.

December

The expected moved to Chedburgh began on December the 2nd when the non-flying sections of the squadron took up residence. Operations for the new month began for 3 Group with a G-H raid on the Hansa benzol plant at Dortmund on the 3rd. A relatively small force of ninety-three Lancasters was escorted by six squadrons of Mustangs and four of Spitfires. The bombing took place over a cloud covered target in the face of spasmodic to moderate flak, and ten aircraft sustained damage, but all returned home. Once again the fighter escort expressed concerns that the bomber formation had become dispersed after the attack, and was consequently harder to protect. On a positive note, this was the first operation since October in which every G-H set had worked. This was a fine achievement from the manipulation of the sets by the crews to the servicing of the temperamental “George Henry” by the Radar Sections.

The town of Oberhausen was successfully attacked by 160 Lancasters on the 4th, despite complete cloud cover, and all thirteen 218 Squadron Lancasters bombed the target and returned safely. This proved to be the final operation by the squadron from Methwold, and it was also the last operation for F/L “Wag” Walker and his crew, who had now completed their first tour of thirty-three sorties. F/O Perry:

Day raid on Oberhausen, trip #15. Took off at 12 noon over 10/10 cloud for an uneventful trip. Target was a marshalling yards, we bombed on G-H, a cookie and 14x500’s, and headed back to base and were on the ground again at 5 pm.

On the following day Chedburgh was declared serviceable following runway repairs, and eighteen Lancasters had arrived and been dispersed by mid afternoon. The move also signalled the squadron’s upgrading to three flights. The squadron was not required to operate on the 6th and 7th, and the old hands of the squadron set about inspecting the new airfield and the local pubs. Chedburgh was part of 31 Base, originally planned as a subsidiary station serving Stradishall. It was built on farmland directly south of the village of that name, six miles from Bury St Edmunds. Major construction work was carried out by John Laing & Son Ltd during the early part of 1942, followed by an official opening of the station in 3 Group on September 7th of that year. The first resident was 214 Squadron with its Stirlings. Built to Class A standard, the airfield had three concrete runways, one of two thousand yards and two of fourteen hundred. Dotted along the concrete perimeter track were thirty-four pans and two loop hard standings. Prior to the squadron’s arrival it had been home to 1653 CU since November 1943.

The squadron’s first operation from its new home was undertaken on the 8th, when thirteen Lancasters were sent to attack Duisburg marshalling yards in daylight. Thick cloud up to 25,000 feet made forming up almost impossible, and the conditions remained the same all the way to the target. Surprisingly, individual crews or small gaggles managed to navigate to the target, where they emerged from the cloud in a surprisingly compact stream. The Lancasters of 31 Base were the first over the target between 11.03hrs and 11.06hrs, with two further waves close on their heels. Twenty-three of the 163 participating Lancasters sustained flak damage, but all returned home. Wing Commander Smith was taken ill on the 10th and was removed to Ely Hospital, whereupon command of the squadron passed temporarily to the B Flight commander, S/Ldr Dunham DFC.

The group was required to attack two targets at Osterfeld on the 11th, the marshalling yards and the coking plant. The 218 Squadron element was assigned to the former, which it attacked from around 20,000 feet, but heavy cloud prevented most of the crews from visually identifying the target and assessing the accuracy of the bombing. The raid on Osterfeld would witness the first operation undertaken by the recently arrived F/L George Allardyce and crew, who had been posted in from 3 LFS at Feltwell. Twenty-six old Allardyce had joined the RAF in 1939, having previously served with the 16th London Regiment, at Buckingham Palace Gate. The crew had followed the customary route to the squadron by training at 16 OTU Upper Heyford on Wellingtons, before moving on to the Stirling-equipped 1653 CU and finally to Chedburgh having converted to the Lancaster. Prior to this Allardyce had spent eighteen months in Winnipeg, Canada as an instructor. George would ultimately be promoted to squadron leader and take command of C Flight.

The marshalling yards at Witten came next on the target list on the 12th, when the 218 Squadron element was part of a force of 140 Lancasters. Heavy cloud outbound led to the 31 Base participants ending up seven miles ahead of the stream in what was a three wave operation. The bulk of the escorting fighters were operating with the main formation, while 31 Base and the 149 Squadron Lancasters out of Methwold had the escort of a single squadron of RAF Mustangs. The forward formation had been engaged by flak at Castrop-Rauxel, just north of the target, and now settling into their bomb run, they were attacked by over forty Bf109s and FW190s of JG3 and JG27. Flying Officer Les Harlow’s Lancaster, which was the lead G-H aircraft of 31 Base, was attacked by a Bf109, while two others latched on to the two other Lancasters in the vic. Harlow’s gunners had the satisfaction of watching their assailant take to his parachute, but his colleagues shot down the two 195 Squadron Lancasters, and only one rear gunner survived from the fourteen occupants.

Squadron Leader George “Ron” Allardyce “C” Flight Commander strikes a classic pose. Known as “Straight ahead Allardyce” he was a highly experienced pilot even before his arrival on the squadron.

Four more Lancasters were shot down from this forward formation, another from 195 Squadron and two from 149 Squadron, along with 218 Squadron’s PB674, piloted by twenty-two-year-old P/O Robert Roberts RAAF. The Lancaster was seen to explode over the target, and there were no survivors from the crew, which was operating for the eighth time. It was the timely intervention of the Mustangs that prevented further losses from the formation. PB766 HA-C was hit by flak over the target, and both port fuel tanks were holed. Flight Lieutenant Harry Warwick decided to first nurse the Lancaster back to the Allied lines, and then decide if they could make it back to base. The Lancaster slowly lost height as it crossed the North Sea, and got to within fifty miles of Felixstowe before a ditching became inevitable. The force of the impact broke the Lancaster in two, but the entire crew managed to clamber out and gathered on the wing of the forward section, which remained afloat for forty-five minutes. When that sank, they climbed aboard the dinghy and bobbed around in the freezing and choppy sea awaiting rescue. A fighter from their escort had been circling above, and within eighty minutes an Air Sea Rescue Walrus flying boat appeared overhead. The Walrus remained until a launch arrived with an escort of two Spitfires, and the crew was taken aboard.

Flight Lieutenant Harry Warwick DFC and crew pose beside Avro Lancaster ME454 XH-L “lovely Lou”.

After a number of cancelled operations through unfavourable weather conditions, nine 218 Squadron Lancasters joined over a hundred other aircraft from the group on the 21st to attack the railway yards at Trier, a target which had hosted a small 3 Group G-H raid two days earlier. The crews arrived over the target to find it covered in a thick blanket of cloud, forcing them to drop their bomb loads on G-H from between 16,000 and 18,000 feet. A number of crews experienced hang-ups because of icing, and were forced to jettison their bombs on the way home. A column of brown smoke was observed to slowly emerge through the clouds at 12,000 feet. Dick Perry recorded the raid in his dairy:

Day raid on Trier, trip #16. The weather was so bad that 7 trips in a row were scrubbed. We took off at 12.30 pm over 10/10 cloud and proceeded to the target. Very little flak but, for the first time, our bombs hung up. Very disappointing. Came back over the Channel and jettisoned our bomb load and were on the ground again at 5 pm.

After being discharged from hospital on the 22nd, W/Cdr Smith arrived back at the squadron in time to preside over a third operation to Trier on the 23rd. 153 Lancasters attacked the snow-covered target in good visibility under the control of S/Ldr Scott of 90 Squadron. The southern part of the town was enveloped in smoke as a succession of bomb loads struck home. It was difficult to assess the results, but the local authorities confirmed later that it was the town’s worst experience of the war. The attacks on Trier were vitally important in slowing down the movement of the Wehrmacht in support of their Ardennes offensive. Flying Officer Perry:

Back to Trier, trip #17. Off at 12.30 pm into a beautiful clear sky. Target, the town of Trier, stood out like a sore thumb. A classic bombing run and all of our bombs, a cookie and 14x500’s, right down on the target. Very little flak to contend with. Congratulations received from Bomber Harris. Two of us got direct hits on the target which was a tank concentration in the middle of the town. Back home at 5 pm.

A night G-H raid on the Bonn Hangelar airfield was carried out on Christmas Eve by 104 Lancasters, including twenty from 218 Squadron. By the time the Chedburgh gang reached the target, it was already covered by smoke, and numerous explosions were observed. Crews reported that the bombing appeared to be divided between two main groups of red TIs half a mile apart. German fighters were active, and a number of inconclusive encounters took place involving 218 Squadron aircraft, but all returned home. Dick Perry:

Night raid on Bonn Airfield, trip #18. A clear night, off the ground at 3.30 pm. Once again we were supposed to bomb on G-H but could not get any signal. Bombed visually on the aiming point, the airfield runways, and got a direct hit. Bomb load 11x1000s and 4x500s. Very little flak and were back at base at 8.30 pm.

The sixth Christmas Day of the war arrived, and as tradition dictated, it was celebrated in the customary RAF fashion. With the weather improving over the Ardennes, all groups were required to provide aircraft for operations in support of ground forces around St Vith on Boxing Day. 3 Group managed to send forty-six Lancasters, fourteen of which were from 218 Squadron. There was no cloud over the target and visibility was excellent, which enabled the crews to identify the target visually before a series of red TIs were dropped. Dick Perry:

Day raid on St. Vith, trip #19. Off the ground at 1.30 and clear skies all the way to the target. This was another tank concentration and, again, a classic bombing run with very little light flak. A cookie and 14x500s. The German tanks were clearly visible and, once again, a direct hit on the target. Back to base to land at 5pm.

The marshalling yards at Rheydt was the target selected for the afternoon of the 27th, and after a change of plans, just five 218 Squadron Lancasters were called upon to make up a force of ninety-one, which made landfall over France just south of le Touquet-Paris-Plage. 1 Group was to be first on target, followed by 3 Group and finally 5 Group. Visibility over the target was perfect, and bombing was carried out on Pathfinder TIs. Bombing was concentrated in spite of the defences, which became increasingly active towards the end of the attack. Bombs were seen exploding all over the marshalling yards, and plumes of smoke covered the aiming point as the bombers turned for home. It was the turn of Cologne Gremberg marshalling yards to face an all-3 Group attack on the 28th. Nineteen 218 Squadron Lancasters joined 168 others to form up over Brentwood, north London, before heading for the target. On leaving the English Coast the formation headed out over the Channel, before making landfall over le Touquet-Paris-Plage. Leading the squadron as Deputy Base Leader was the recently promoted S/Ldr O’Brian in PD256 HA-J. John had also taken over the running of A Flight on the departure of S/Ldr MacFarlane. H-Hour over target was scheduled for 15.00hrs, but one group of five Lancasters bombed 2½ minutes early. G-H leader F/L Spiers in PD278 HA-V, released his payload on the wrong release pulse, and the bombs fell harmlessly into fields. Flying Officer K McKenzie’s aircraft was hit by flak from Bonn, which rendered the port-outer engine unserviceable, and they came home on three. Flying Officer Eyles’ PD288 XH-F was struck on the port wing leading edge by a packet of Window. All of the crews were confident that the marshalling yards had been plastered, and described dense columns of smoke drifting up to 4,000 feet and more as they departed.

There were no losses, and returning crews were confident that the marshalling yards had been plastered, after seeing dense columns of smoke drifting up through 5,000 feet as they turned for home. F/O Dick Perry on his twenty-first birthday recorded:

Day raid on our “favorite”, Cologne, trip #20. Off the ground at 11.30 pm over 10/10 cloud. Target was a marshalling yard to the south of the city. Bombed on G-H, a cookie and 14x500s. Noted smoke going up to about 8,000 feet so presumed that the target was hit. Very little flak to contend with, this time. Back to base to land at 5 pm.

The last operation of the month was mounted on the 31st, and was another G-H daylight raid on the German transportation system, this time the Vohwinkel marshalling yards at Wuppertal. Seventeen 218 Squadron Lancasters lifted off shortly after 11.00hrs, and they joined up with 138 others from the group to make landfall over Boulogne, and pick up an escort of eight squadrons of Mustangs and nine squadrons of Spitfires. Weather conditions were marginal during the outward flight, with heavy cloud and stronger than forecast winds. Followers had difficulty in forming up and finding their G-H Leaders, and the stream became strung-out as it headed across France. The three mile long marshalling yards were identified visually, and crews bombed on a number of red TIs dropped by the G-H leaders. Just after leaving the target two 218 Squadron Lancasters were involved in a suspected collision, after which NG330 HA-M crashed at Solingen, killing twenty-year-old F/O Robert Kench RAAF and his crew who were on only their second operation together.

A studio photo of Robert Kench RAAF with his recently presented pilot wings. The crew arrived on the squadron December 11th 1944 via 73 Base. The young Aussie completed two operations before his death, the first was a 2nd Dickie trip on Christmas Eve to Bonn Hangelar airfield with F/O Knight. On the 28th, he took his crew to the Gremburg Marshalling Yards.

The other Lancaster, C Flight’s NF926 XH-X, contained the crew of F/O Roy Woodrow, and this crashed into a workshop also in Solingen. The twenty-three-year-old pilot and his navigator, Sgt William Watson, were found badly injured in the wreckage, the pilot still strapped into his seat in the cockpit, and asking for help. Sadly he was murdered by a local SA Policeman, Fritz Schulze, who then shot the navigator in the head. In October 1945 Schulze was arrested and interviewed by Major S Arnold, an investigator examiner for the Missing Research Enquiry Service. He was tried for the murder of the two airmen before the British Military Court at Hamburg between 8th and 17th July 1947, was found guilty and was hanged. The only survivor from this crew was the rear gunner Sgt V Wellbourne, who became a PoW. The crew had arrived on the squadron from 31 Base on August 12th 1944, and had flown twenty-six operations. There was one other collision, thankfully without fatalities, involving PB856 from 195 Squadron and XH-B from 218. Flying Officer G Armstrong RAAF, the skipper of the 195 Squadron aircraft, reported on his return that Lancaster XH-B collided with their Lancaster over the target rendering the rear turret unserviceable, but without injury to Sgt Norman, the rear gunner. The pilot of XH-B was F/L C Warwick, there is no mention of this incident in 218 Squadron records, one must assume that he was either unaware of the incident or decided to remain stumm!

So ended 1944, a year in which the group completed a total of 2,009 bombing and mining sorties. The group undertook fifteen G-H daylight attacks and two by night during the month. 218 Squadron dispatched 167 sorties, of which 145 were successful, dropping in the process over seven hundred tons of bombs. The squadron’s ranking had slipped to last place for sorties dispatched, but this was not surprising, as it had been among the last to introduce a third flight. The scent of victory was wafting over from the Continent, but the end was still some way off, and much remained to be done before the proud and tenacious enemy finally laid down his arms.

A simplified diagram showing how all three No.3 Group bases formed up into their allotted positions before departure over the English coast, January 1945.