Good Morning everybody! This is my first entry to this site and I wonder if anybody can help. I have got a lot of information so far from various places including ORBs, the museum at Wickenby and Dave at the excellent 626 Research project, but there are gaps, so here goes: On 24/25 February 1944 Lancaster LL of 626 Squadron (Wickenby) was brought down over Marsal France on the way to bomb Schweinfurt. This was to be the 30th operation of their first tour. The crew were F/O Jack Pierce Hutchinson DFC RAAF (Pilot) F/O Peter Henry Wilson Young (Air Bomber) P/O Leonard Goodkey RCAF F/S Arthur Hodgson F/S Ken Macey Sgt Bob Edgeworth W/O Hector Binder RCAF and second pilot Sgt Brian Bowditch. I believe an issue of the Wickenby Register from around 2002 contains a report about this crew, but is proving difficult to track down. If anybody should have a copy of this, or any information at all about the crew and the circumstances of their crash, I would be very pleased to hear from them. Similar questions are being asked of the Wickenby Register members on my behalf at their annual reunion/service which takes place this weekend. Many thanks for reading this, "Squawk".
This is a possible claim Squawk: right place, right time etc, though there are two others in the Metz area by Kollak, he had a total of 49 victories, so he was obviously a very competent and experienced pilot. 24.02.44 Ofw. Reinhard Kollak of 8./NJG 4 (flying a Bf 110G4) shot down a Lancaster (details unknown) S.E. Metz: no height given, attack at 22.10. Regards Max
Thank you all for your good wishes - and the wealth of knowledge thatis out there. Max - Thanks very much - this is one of the areas I am working on , but it is anything but easy. I have logged the claims for A/C downed over France that night and the result on the map shows pretty well the bomber route in. Kollak is a likely candidate for LL797, but I was trying to firm that up. I noted that Von Bonin claims two "4 engined A/C" downed at the same time Kollak was in the air, with the grid references TN and TM - and I managed to find a map showing these (to the North of Metz), but there does not appear to be any crash located in these areas. The nearest is to the NW of Metz which is put down to "flack". That leaves him and Kollak shooting down A/C in roughly the same genaral area at the time the bombers were outbound. An idea struck me that Von Bonin did not identify his aircraft as Lancasters as did Kollack, so wonder if his navigation record may be less than precise. I have noted two 405 Squadron A/c downed further away to the South East of Metz, one of which is claimed by the survivors to have been hit by the upfiring cannon that V-B unit made use of. These two aircraft came down one behind the other on the route, and had taken off from Gransden Lodge within a minute of each other. I am wondering if these two could be victims of V-B which clears the way for Kollack to be firmly linked to LL797. A further twit is that the Canadian air force site states that one of these two 405 Aircrat was downed over Bemering on the return flight. They got this from the crew no doubt, but I am left wondering at the coincidence of the A/C returning over outbound route, crashing just behind the A/C that took off with it, after watching over the target for a period of time. If both these 405 aircraft came down on the outroute, then I can look at V-B but if they were on the way back it is not so clear. Loads more digging to do!! Many thanks all! Squawk.
arthur hodgson Hi this is the grandaughter of Arthur Hodgson. What info do you require? Have article re: our trip to Marsal to visit grave site, and the wonderful way our heroes are looked after there.
Bob Edgeworth flew with 12 Squadron for his first tour and did some Ops with my dad's crew. a picture of him is on my web site raf-bombercommand - Home Any information you have on him would be appreciated. Andy j
The Australian connection with "Derbyshire" is the seven Aussies from 27OTU who are buried at Scrompton St Paul Churchyard which I have in my collection. BELL, FREDERICK GEORGE Sergeant 401884 27 O T U RAF 3/02/1943 CATRON, WILLIAM ALAN Sergeant 409080 27 O T U RAF 30/01/1943 HODSON, RAYMOND KNIGHT Sergeant 413999 27 O T U RAF 3/02/1943 HOWES, KEVIN VINCENT Sergeant 405737 27 O T U RAF 3/02/1943 KILLEEN, KENNETH BARTON Sergeant 413210 27 O T U RAF 30/01/1943 McDONALD, IAN ROSS Sergeant 408737 27 O T U RAF 11/01/1943 WEARNE, WILLIAM RAYMOND Sergeant 409191 27 O T U RAF 11/01/1943
The son of my father's bomb aimer Jim Tattersall has a copy of The Wickenby Register you are looking for. I can get him to e mail a copy to you if required.
