GrandFather WWII

[leitch]

This maybe alittle off topic but I am trying to find out some details about 514 Sqn RAF. My Grandfather was assigned to the Sqn during WWII, flying the Lancaster BII, he was shot down and went missing for close to 2 years.

He has told us very little about his experiences, and being a veteran myself I can understand. The problem is I don't want his story to go with him, he has been ill the past year.

To my understanding from the pieces collected over the years, he did 10 missions past his tour to stay with his original skipper, he was awarded the DSO I believe.

His name Alfred Foster. I have a photo which I will try to scan. If anyone has any details about the Sqn or Alfred himself please reply, I would like to thank everyone in advance, as I am a truck driver and do not get online to often.

 

[leitch]

Here is a picture of my Grand Father.

 

[mosquitoman]

Try Index

 

[leitch]

Thanks Have tried the site, not much is working there anymore, most of the links are broken.

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

hey, this cirtainly sounds interesting do you not have any more information such as when he was shot down and where he was attacking we might be able to help more......

 

[leitch]

Sorry I do not, all he ever told me was he flew in Lancaster BII's he wasn't a pilot though. His aircraft had the 2 yellow stripes on the tail. My Grandmother said he went missing and she never knew whether he was alive or not, at the end of the war he walked in the front door.
He told me he had been on 2 daylight missions, one I believe was against V1 sites, though not certain, I have only met him once, he lives in ozz since 1946.

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

well the unit only operated the Mk.II from september '43 to july '44 so that narrows it down a bit, unfortunately many lancs were lost in that period........

 

[trackend]

Heres a few snippets that may help in the hunt

514 Foulsham Norfolk 01/09/43 Formed. Lancaster II, 09/43.
514 Waterbeach Cambridgeshire 23/11/43 Lancaster I, 06/44. Lancaster III, 06/44. Disbanded 22/08/45.
I would say he may have been at Foulsham if he was a pow for 2 years

I found this POW listing that may be him if his middle initial is T

Camp POW No Name Service No
344 11836 Foster A T 1166961 RAF

give us some more detail and i'm sure some of the guys can add some more info

I also found this clip which is linked with 514 Sqdn

Avro Lancaster - 514 Squadron - Google Video

 

[Soundbreaker Welch?]

I've never really met a Vet that I can tell....and talked with him about his war memories. I believe most of my relatives that fought in WWII are dead.

 

[Soundbreaker Welch?]

Is that your grandfather sitting on the wing?

 

[leitch]

Sorry to say Soundbreaker that is not my Grandfather on the wing, that is the spitfire pilot.

Trackend, my grandfather's middle initial is T, called my mom in England, she knows about as much as I do.

 

[trackend]

I've never really met a Vet that I can tell....and talked with him about his war memories. I believe most of my relatives that fought in WWII are dead.

my old man never stops talking about his war time exploits SBW.

Right Leitch, You now have his service number 1166961 this can help alot
heres a link to Stalag8B (344) that has lots of pictures and gives an insight to the camp that your grandfather was in. The Wartime Memories Project - STALAG 8b POW Camp (344) - Page 2

Try this site for tracing his service records, Mates, ect
World War 2 Ex RAF Useful addresses page 1

 

[P38 Pilot]

I've never really met a Vet that I can tell....and talked with him about his war memories. I believe most of my relatives that fought in WWII are dead.

So sorry. I wish you could talk to a veteran relative. I had 4 great uncles on my dad's side who fought in WWII. One of them was attached to the 28th Infantry Division. He was a tech sgt who was killed March 2nd 1945 while trying to cross the Rhine River. His unit saw action in the Hurtgen Forest and at the Battle of the Bulge. I wish he had survived because he would have had some war stories.

Anyway, I had another in the 101st Airborne. I had another Great uncle as a engineer in the 1282nd Engineers and another Great uncle in the Army Air Corp attached to the 1881st engineers stationed in the Soloman Islands and the Phillipines. One interesting is how they came under attack by a Japanese fighter strafing their postition with machine gun fire and dropping bombs.

Leitch, I hope you find more about your Grandpa. He has quite a story from what you have told us.

 

[Soundbreaker Welch?]

I had 4 great uncles on my dad's side who fought in WWII.

To them all and to the uncle who died in the line of service. Crossing rivers always seems to cause casualties for soldiers.


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So sorry. I wish you could talk to a veteran relative.
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Thanks, I wish I could have too. The only thing about veteran relatives I know is that one of my grandfathers was a sailor in a US Navy Submarine during WWII. But he never talked about it much to my dad or family. Maybe his war experiance was something he didn't want to remember that much, but at any rate he died when I was still a babe.

Rest in peace.

 

[P38 Pilot]

I had 4 great uncles on my dad's side who fought in WWII.

To them all and to the uncle who died in the line of service. Crossing rivers always seems to cause casualties for soldiers.


-------------------------------------------------
So sorry. I wish you could talk to a veteran relative.
-------------------------------------------------

Thanks, I wish I could have too. The only thing about veteran relatives I know is that one of my grandfathers was a sailor in a US Navy Submarine during WWII. But he never talked about it much to my dad or family. Maybe his war experiance was something he didn't want to remember that much, but at any rate he died when I was still a babe.

Rest in peace.

Thanks SBW.

Thankfully, my great-uncles dont hesitate about talking about their war experiance. My great-uncle attached to the 1881st managed to capture a Japanese soldier armed with a bayonet and hand grenade!

 

[k9kiwi]

The two yellow stripes denote a "leader" aircraft, usually equiped with H2S radar. There would be two or three of these for each squadron and they were used to guide the rest of the bombers into the stream and onto the target.

Like the earliest form of pathfinder force.

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

not quite, the two yellow stripes were used by a few squadrons only and denoted aircraft carrying G-H equiptment, which 514 sqn's Mk.IIs never did so quite where that comment came from is beyond me, something to ponder

 

[k9kiwi]

My mistake on the G-H V H2S eauipment. I was wondering the same thing about the fin marking.

Also being shot down in 43, kinda muddies the water for V1 raids.

The earliest reference from the RAF archive shows the following enigmatic report.

30/31 December 1943

10 Lancasters of 617 Squadron and 6 Pathfinder Mosquitos attempted to destroy a V1 site which had been missed on an earlier raid, but the markers were 200 yards from the target and, with the Lancasters' bombs well grouped around these, the site was again undamaged. No aircraft lost.

With this from 29/30 Dec

8 Mosquitos to Magdeburg, 6 to Düsseldorf, 5 to Leipzig, 4 to Bristillerie - a suspected V-weapon site near Cherbourg - and 3 to Leverkusen, 6 RCM sorties, 2 Beaufighters on Serrate patrols, 5 Stirlings minelaying in the Frisians and off French ports, 4 OTU sorties. No losses.

1 November 1943 reveals

38 Lancaster IIs - Nos 3 and 5 Groups - made the first large-scale test of the G-H blind-bombing device and attempted to bomb the Mannesmann tubular-steel works on the northern outskirts of Düsseldorf while the main raid was taking place. 5 had to return early and 2 more were lost; the equipment in 16 other aircraft failed to function leaving only 15 aircraft to bomb the factory on G-H. The device later became a most useful blind-bombing device when it was produced in sufficient numbers for a major part of Bomber Command to be fitted with it.

Now as 514 was part of three group, it is potentailly possible for the stripe markings to have been applied for these raids.

Source Royal Air Force - Home

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

it may not have been out of the question for that one raid however there was no other way that a 514 sqn Mk.II would've carried the fin markings...........

 

[babykayleigh]

This maybe alittle off topic but I am trying to find out some details about 514 Sqn RAF. My Grandfather was assigned to the Sqn during WWII, flying the Lancaster BII, he was shot down and went missing for close to 2 years.

He has told us very little about his experiences, and being a veteran myself I can understand. The problem is I don't want his story to go with him, he has been ill the past year.

To my understanding from the pieces collected over the years, he did 10 missions past his tour to stay with his original skipper, he was awarded the DSO I believe.

His name Alfred Foster. I have a photo which I will try to scan. If anyone has any details about the Sqn or Alfred himself please reply, I would like to thank everyone in advance, as I am a truck driver and do not get online to often.

Hi

Have you tried contacting the RAF as they can give you information all you need to provide is kinship information, or you have written confirmation from him or any next of kin, then they'll send you that info, I'm sure you have to contribute some money to get it around 30 quid, but all you need is a letter from him and they'll give you that info...

As my Grandfather was in the WWII also and was a POW, I'm unable to obtain his info even with written confirmation from his daughter my mother as he married after my nannas divorce and his second wife and family are the next of kin... As I've recently made contact with them and trying to learn more about my Grandfather I'll be going back to the RAF now with a copy of his death certificate and written confirmation from his son by his second marriage... The RAF as you know are very help and the forms can be obtained online... Or by contacting them direct and asking them for the forms...

RAF Disclosures Section
Room 221b
Trenchard Hall
RAF Cranwell
Sleaford
LINCS
NG34 8HB

or the following might be of some help....

RAF Community Support | Support Groups Veterans

See advertisement/notice on right hand side

Veterans-UK.info

Veterans UK website and it seems to be the latest up to date information for all services veterans.

Service records

Specific to the RAF is:
Service records - RAF

RAF - Contacts