Fairey Battle

Fairey Battle P2332, PH-FF/O Norman Thomas'A' Flight, No. 12 SquadronBelgium, 1940This Battle was shot down on May 12, 1940 by German anti-aircraft guns during a raid on the Maastricht bridges. Five crews volunteered for this raid, developed in answer to the German assault started two days earlier. Hoping to stop the German advance on Brussels, these five crews from "The Dirty Dozen" No. 12 Sqn attacked the bridges. All five planes were shot down, but one of the bridges was seriously damaged in the raid. F/O D. E. Garland and his observer Sgt. T. Gray were posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for leading the attack. They were the first two RAF VC recipients of WWII.