Mission: Gardening
Date: 07/08th March 1942 (Saturday/Sunday)
Unit: No: 50 Squadron
Type: Hampden I
Serial: AE400
Code: VN-?
Base: R.A.F. Skellingthorpe, Lincolnshire
Location: Bay of Biscay?
Pilot: F/O. Allan Godfrey Davidson 61280 R.A.F.V.R. Age 27. Killed
Pilot 2-Obs: Sgt. Leslie Norman Follows 1178923 R.A.F.V.R. Age ? Killed
W/Op/Air/Gnr: Sgt. William Mervyn Alastair Eardley 1182318 R.A.F.V.R. Age ? Killed
W/Op/Air/Gnr: Sgt. Gordon Shackleton 1101049 R.A.F.V.R. Age 27. Killed
REASON FOR LOSS:
Took off at 02.17 hrs. from R.A.F. Skellingthorpe, Lincolnshire to drop mines in the "Artichokes" area
A double operation taking place by Bomber Command this night with 17 aircraft bombing the Submarine pens at St. Nazaire with a further 17 aircraft (Hampdens) being dispatched to drop mines off Lorient.
The body of Sgt. Leslie N. Follows was washed ashore at Finistère on the 11th March, the remainder were not found, it is assumed that the aircraft was lost in the Bay. No claims for nightfighter attacks have been found, so it is possible the aircraft (the only one lost on the raid) was hit by flak.
F/O. Allan Godfrey Davidson
Thomas and Millicent Davidson of Kenley, Surrey - father and mother of F/O. Davidson sadly also lost another son, Capt. Douglas M. Davidson M.C. South Wales Borderers - serving as a commando with No. 1 Unit. Killed on Tuesday 16th March 1943, almost a year to the day.
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Mission: Dortmund
Date: 15th November 1944
Unit: No. 115 Squadron ("Despite the Elements")
Type: Lancaster I
Serial: NN706
Code: KO-B
Base: Witchford, Cambridge.
Location: Leverkusen, Germany.
Pilot: Fl/Lt. John William Davidson J/26633 R.C.A.F Age 21. Killed.
Fl/ Eng: Sgt. Arthur Douglas Ward Gillibrand 572714 R.A.F Age 23 Killed.
Nav: F/O. James Henry Powner 153204 R.A.F.V.R Age 20. Killed.
Air/Bmr: F/O. Charles Douglas Dowse 153656 R.A.F.V.R Age 23. Killed.
W/Op/Air/Gnr: F/O. Joseph Reginald Dunford J/38266 R.C.A.F. Age. 22 Killed.
Air/Gnr: Fl/Sgt. Donald Nelson Page J/95462 R.C.A.F Age ? Killed.
Air/Gnr: Fl/Sgt. Kerry Milton Crayston J/95218 R.C.A.F Age. 20. Killed.
REASON FOR LOSS:
Took off at 12.41 hrs from Witchford near Ely in Cambridgeshire to attack Dortmund. 177 Lancaster's took part in this G-H attack on the oil plant in Dortmund which had been classed as very accurate even though the raid took place with thick cloud. This Lancaster NN706 collided with another Lancaster HK595 in a mid air collision also from the same squadron. These were the only aircraft to be lost on this raid. The crew of the HK595 Lancaster flown by Sqn/Ldr. Hugh Wilfred Castle were also all lost.
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Mission: Homberg
Date: 20/21st July 1944 (Thursday/Friday)
Unit: No: 75 (N.Z.) Squadron R.A.F.
Type: Lancaster I
Serial: HK569
Code: AA-Q
Base: R.A.F. Mepal, Cambridgeshire.
Location: Kessel
Pilot: Fl/Sgt. Neil Douglas Davidson NZ422057 R.N.Z.A.F. Age 21. Killed
Fl/Eng: Sgt. Robert Gerald Sloman 914220 R.A.F.V.R. Age 24. Killed
Nav: Sgt. Arthur Ernest John Goddard 1323141 R.A.F.V.R. Age 22. Killed
Air/Bmr: Sgt. Thomas Gilbert Little 1459875 R.A.F. Age 21. P.O.W. No: 52469 Camp: (9C) Muhlhausen, Nurnberg
W/Op/Air/Gnr: Sgt. Douglas Corris 1501099 R.A.F.V.R. Age 25. Killed
Air/Gnr (mid upper): Sgt. Raymond Stanley Lang 1896528 R.A.F.V.R. Age 32. Killed
Air/Gnr (rear): Fl/Sgt. Henry John Hiscox 928092 R.A.F.V.R. Age 35. Killed
REASON FOR LOSS:
Lancaster took off from RAF Mepal, Cambridgeshire, England, on its way to bomb the Fischer Tropsch oil refinery/aviation fuel producer in Homberg, Germany. It was attacked by a German night-fighter flown by Oblt. Dietrich Schmidt of 8./NJG1 over Heibloem, Limburg, Netherlands on its way to the target. It crashed into a river bank at 01.25 hrs near Kessel after the pilot avoided a village called Reuver.
Above left to right: Fl/Sgt. Davidson, Sgt. Sloman, Sgt. Goddard and Sgt. Corris
Sgt. Little and Fl/Sgt. Hiscox survived the crash however Fl/Sgt. Hiscox died on the river bank, discovered by Sef Williams - subsequently buried in the village of Beesel. Sgt Little became a P.O.W. surviving the war. No bodies were found for the rest of the crew and they are commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial.
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