February  1944

 19th

William is on Leave.

823 aircraft - 561 Lancasters, 255 Halifaxes, 7 Mosquitos.    78 aircraft - 44 Lancasters and 34 Halifaxes - lost

This was an unhappy raid for Bomber Command. The German controllers only sent part of their force of  ighters to the Kiel minelaying diversion. When the main bomber force crossed the Dutch coast,  they were met by a further part of the German fighter force and those German fighters which had been sent  north to Kiel hurriedly returned. The bomber stream was thus under attack all the way to the target.

There were further difficulties at the target because winds were not as forecast and many aircraft reached  the Leipzig area too early and had to orbit and await the Pathfinders. 4 aircraft were lost by collision and proximately 20 were shot down by flak. Leipzig was cloud-covered and the Pathfinders had to use  skymarking.

The raid appeared to be concentrated in its early stages but scattered later.

45 Stirlings and 4 Pathfinder Halifaxes minelaying in Kiel Bay, 16 Oboe Mosquitos bombing night-fighter airfields in Holland, 15 Mosquitos on a diversion raid to Berlin, 12 Serrate patrols. 1 Mosquito lost from the  Berlin raid. 3 Mosquitos attacked Aachen and 3 more bombed flying-bomb sites in France without loss.

No.78 Squadron

23 aircraft detailed for operations, Target Leipzig.

7 aircraft did not airborne , 7 aircraft reached and attacked the target.

The ground crew had his hands full preparing the LW465, LV814, HX355 (with Sgt. LeBlanc as

Rear Gunner), LV820, LV799, LK763, LW367, LV795, LV816, HX241, LW547, LW507, LW509,  LW511 and LK762, filling them up with fuel and bombing them up.

The pre-briefing was called for 11:00 hours, but when the pilots and navigators had gathered  for it tob egin, a call was received by the squadron commander telling him the Briefing had been put back to 17:00 hours.    

At midnight the bombers began taking off to rendezvous with the rest of the force for there raid on Leipzig.

3 Halifax’s didn't return during this run.

 Returned early

LW465

Departed at 12:16 a.m., with Sgt. Hampson as pilot, but had to return early about 60 miles off the coast of England due to overheating of the port outer engine at 54.00N/01.44E. Bombs dropped safely.

GEE was also unusable. So LW465 landed at Elsham on return.

Returned early

HX355

F/S Storey departs Breighton on HX355 at 00:19. Returned early in the middle of the North Sea due to oil pressure drop of the port outer engine at 54.09N/03.06E.

Bombs dropped safely.      Landing resumed at Breighton at 02:21.

Returned early

LV820

F/L Watson left Breighton Air Base at 00:06, but aborted the mission approximately 100 km off the Danish coast due to the starboard inner engine being inoperable.

Farthest point reached just above the Dutch/German border at 54.21N/0007E.

Bombs safely dropped, and return to land at Breighton at 00:58.

Returned early

LW547

Sgt. Mockler took off from Breighton at 23:47 hour. Returned early in the middle of the North Sea due to the starboard outer engine being unusable due to high oil temperature and low oil pressure. Very heavy icing also made the plane slow and the pilot also became ill. Farthest point reached at 54.00N/03.35E. LW547 landed safely at Breighton at 03:00.

Returned early

LW511 EY-Z

F/L Hurley returned early after taking off at 00:17 due to the starboard inboard engine being inoperable as they flew north of the estimated route 100 miles east of Newcastle at 55.58N/01.33E.    Bombs safely dropped into the sea and landing commenced at 02:15.

 Lost in Action

LK763 EY-K

 Airborne 00:11 hour on 20 February '44 from Breighton. 

Lost without trace. All are commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial.

Sgt J.Smith KIA,   Sgt G.Beal KIA,   F/S E.M.Coulter RCAF KIA,    F/O I.R.M.Douglas-Pulleyne KIA,

Sgt G.F.Rynolds KIA,    Sgt L.E.Mears KIA,    Sgt R.G.O'Neill RAAF KIA.

Lost in Action

LW367 EY-L

P/O Smith took off from Breighton airfield at 00:03 on 20 February '44.. Suffered heavy damage from flak on there way to Leipzig Crashed near Kallenkote (Overijssel), 5km east-north-east of Steenwijk, Holland.

Probably shot down by Hans-Heinz Augenstein head of the 7./NJG.    All killed.

Funeral services for six of the crew were held 23Feb44 at Steenwijkerwold (Kallenkote) General Cemetery,     while Sgt Hemmings was brought here 12 March '44, following the discovery of his body two days    previously, still in the wreckage.

P/O T.H.Smith KIA,   Sgt W.J.Webb KIA,    P/O I.G.Bunn KIA,    P/O D.A.Riach RCAF KIA,

F/S A.C.Hamilton RNZAF KIA,    Sgt H.Hemmings KIA,    Sgt R.J.Chaplin KIA.

Lost in action

LW816 EY-N

F/L Denman took off from Breighton airfield at 00:13.

Shot down in flames from 22,000 feet by a night fighter near Stendal.

The Halifax went into a very steep dive before breaking up at about 5,000 feet, allowing the two survivors to escape. The dead were originally buried in Stendal. Their graves are now in the Berlin War Cemetery of 1939-45.F/L B.Denman KIA,    F/S W.A.Lea PoW,    Sgt E.H.Glibbery KIA,

F/O E.M.Wells PoW,    F/O W.S.Wilson RCAF KIA,    P/O R.G.Messer KIA,    F/S H.F.Kelter RCAF KIA,

WO2 E.F.McAneeley RCAF KIA,

F/S W.A.Lea was interned in Camps L6/357, PoW No.1624. F/O E.M.Wells in Camp L3, PoW No.3517.

 In Combat

LV795 EY-H

F/O Crawford took off from Breighton at 00:01.  Returned from target area around Leipzich due to oxygen and icing problems, Landing initiated at 07:12 at Breighton.

For as Combat report: Target not identified, attack believed 40miles south east of target area.

Rear gunner Sgt. Hayward first saw M.E.110 port quarter down at 500 yards on a hight of 23.000 feet at

03.00 hour east of Hannover on 52.40N /10.00E, heading not known, navigators log damaged.

Rear gunner gave order to corkscrew to port. Eneny aircraft opened fire with a short burst at 400 yards closing to 150 yards and broke away to starboard quarter up.

Gunners could not open fire as guns were frozen up. The same enemy aircraft was again seen at 600 yards port quarter down by rear gunner who again gave order to corkscrew to port. Enemy aircraft opened fire with a short burst at 500 yards closing to 250 yards and broke away to starboard quarter down and went  out of sight.

Gunners again could not fire as guns were still frozen. And again on 23.000 feet at 03.10 hour this time a

J.U.88 closed in on 52.40N / 10.10E.    Rear gunner first sighted J.U.88 at 600 yards at port quarter up and gave order to corkscrew to port.   Enemy aircraft opened fire with a short burst at 600n yards.

Closing to 200 yards and breaking away starboard quarter down.

Gunners could not open fire as guns were frozen.

First indication of third enemy aircraft 30 km North of Erfurth at 51.30N/11.00E was on 04:30 hour on

23.000ft flying 165 I.A.S, when he opened fire at 700 yards dead astern, seen by rear gunner. And as enemy

aircraft closed to 400 yards sighted by rear gunner but not identified.

Rear gunner gave order to corkscrew and owing to the violence of the maneuver enemy aircraft was lost  sight of and direction of breakaway was not observed.     Enemy aircraft fired short bursts, but both gunners, Sgt. Hayward and F/O Raby could not return fire as guns were frozen.

On 04.37 hour again a unidentified enemy aircraft was first seen by pilot F/O Crawford on starboard bow at 800 yards range. Pilot did a dive to starboard and enemy aircraft was lost sight of in turn.

Enemy aircraft opened fire at 800 yards range with a short burst closing to 300 yards when enemy aircraft was lost sight of.

Gunners did not see enemy aircraft owing to type of attack but guns would not fire any way as they were frozen up.

 In Combat

LW509 EY-T

F/O Molin took off at 00.08 from Breighton.

Target attacked and bombed at an altitude of 17,500 feet at 04.24 , having contacted a twin-engine enemy fighter two hours earlier.

Arrive safely in Breighton at 07:28 hour

.

As for combat report: On February 20, at 02.30 hour on a hight of 23.000 feet heading 016 with a speed  of 160 I.A.S. The mid upper Sgt. Wideman observed an unidentified twin engine fighter coming in dead  ahead at approximately 400 yards.

The Pilot F/O Molin, upon seeing enemy aircraft at the same time, dived the aircraft under the German fighter.     As enemy aircraft passed overhead, the mid upper gunner Sgt. Wideman gave a short burst,  but his gun jammed. Icing was immediately suspected.

The enemy aircraft did not opened fire during this attack, but broke away to starboard and was lost.

The rear gunner Sgt. Airey did not see where the enemy plane was so was unable to fire, or identify.

Meanwhile the bomber had done a slight corkscrew to starboard, and then resumed course.

No damage was sustained by the crew or own aircraft.

No claims or damage to enemy aircraft was reported by the mid upper gunner.