Brother's Birthday RAF/RAAF

Today is a sad day for me, it is my brother's birthday, born 13 August 1924, who would be 88 today if he had not been shot down and killed , aged 20.
As I grow older (I'm 79) , each year I seem to feel it worse, as I am the only one of his family left to remember him.
berkyboy

 

I thank your brother for his sacrifice. He helped make the world a better place. His actions helped the allies and I will always be grateful. What plane did he fly?

 

Thanks to pilot2fly, & Peter T. Davis for their responses
Yes I know a great deal regarding my brother, and his RAAF/RAF service as I have been researching it for over a decade. As a youth, he trained with the Air Training Corps and later
he inlisted in the RAAF at age 18. His early RAAF training was in Australia, before being sent to GB as part of the Empire Training Scheme,( by a converted passenger liner-Niew Amsterdam).
After further training in England was transferred to RAF 101 Squadsron, at Ludford Magna as a Wireless Air Gunner. His Lancaster bomber crew consisted of 4 RAF, 3 RAAF & 1 RCAF (special Operator). There were 8 crew members in their Lancaster Bomber, due to the Lancaster being fitted with the special ABC wireless equipment. On 16 January, on their 28th mission, flying to attack Synthatic oil production at Brux, Western Czech, aboard Lancaster bomber LM472, SR-V2, as part of 231 Lancasters (7 planes from 101 Squadron-usually 8 ABC planes were included, but unfortunately 1 plane was unservicable, and the reserve plane would not start- I have spoken to an Australian crewman, who should have been in the 8th plane in the raid, who confirmed this) & 6 Mosquito aircraft fromNos 1 &5 Bomber Command Groups-time up 1748 due to return 0247 (17/1/45)
Part of the journey, they were with 328 aircraft on a raid to Zeitz & another 371 aircraft on a raid to Magdeburg, but continued on their own from 21.55 hours. At 22.04, Lancaster LM472 was seen flying low over the village of Geilsdorf (on fire) by the villagers and the pilots intention appeared to try to land in a snow covered field. (It was snowing at the time and was bitterly cold- minus 18 degrees) At 22.09 there was a large whitish explosion seen as LM472 crashed into HT wires and crashed into a snow covered field and exploded, 30 meters from the road between Ruderitz and Geilsdorf.
Of the 231 aircraft on the Brux raid, his plane was the only one not to return. Put that with the fact that only 7 ABC planes flew in that flight, and they were not able to block the 24 radio communucations used by the Germans (each ABC plane could block 3 channels), it would appear that the TIME of this unfortunate crew must have been up!
Seven members of the crew were killed instantly, including my brother, W/O Laurence COLLINS, aged 20, but miraculously RAAF F/Sgt John Knight, Navigator, only suffered burns and cuts. He was taken to a local inn Goldener Lowe (golden lion) for treatment. Jack Knight's story is really another tale on its own. He was talen POW where he saw the war out and was then repatriated. He returned to the crash area in 1968, but his family have told me he never spoke much about his experiences. (the crash area became part of Russian, East Germany after the war, and he must have obtained special permission to visit there-I have spoken with other people who were not granted access to the area) He died in Australia, 9 August 1999 before I had a chance to met him.
Due to my research, I have been able to contact relatives of the other 7 crew members and we share our losses over the internet, (Canada, Scotland, Nth Ireland, Sth Ireland, and Australia.)
The other crew members were identified and interred in the Guilsdorf cemetery 18 January 1945. On 14 December 1948 their bodies were exhumed and their remains were reburied in the 1939-1945 Berlin War Memorial Cemetery.
Hope this makes sense, but there are so many details and I have shortened it very much
Unfortunately, I have not had the opportunity to visit Laurie's grave, although I do have some photos of it.
Due to my research, I have been able to contact relatives of the seven other crew members and we have been able to share our losses as an "extended family" and that is some consulation. (Scotland, Nth Ireland, Sth Ireland, Canada and Australia)
In our family there were 6 boys and 1 girl, and I was the youngest. Our mother passed away in 1944, and did not know she had lost a son in war, but she had already lost a brother in 1917, WW1.

Unfortunately I am the only member of our family left, and on the 16 January and 13 August each year, my thoughts turn to Laurie, the brother I really didn't know as I was only 9 when he left for overseas service-thus my thoughts at the beginning of this topic
berkyboy. (Ray)

 

Hello Peter,
Yes, my research has indicated that the plane was shot down by an enemy aircraft, but some reports indicate that it was " friendly fire".

In his casualty report, after the war, the survivor Jack Knight, stated that LM 472 was hit by gunfire from below, setting the plane on fire which spread over and caused the fuel tanks to explode. The plane should have only lasted 3 minutes after catching on fire and exploding, but it flew for over 5 minuets from the time it was hit, and the actual crash. There was some speculation that in Jack Knight's casualty report (after the war), that LM 472 may have been hit by “friendly fire”-this was because Jack Knight said that it was hit by another “aircraft”, rather than an enemy plane. However the eye witness, Pole K Borowski witnessed “combat” near Schwand and Jack Knight’s statement that the plane was hit from below, should put an end to the “friendly fire” story

Night Fighter, Obstlt. Walter Borchers was based between the aerodromes of Erfurt and Altenburg, although the German fighters were ordered to attack the Zeitz raiders , because of his fuel requirements, was not with the main fighters and after refuelling, took of to the West, which would put him in the vicinity of the Southern (Brux) bombers
He was credited with three Lancaster “hits’ for that night.
At 22.30 he was credited with two Lancasters (Zeitz group returning home) near (Sangerhausen/Nordhausen) in rapid succession
The third Lancaster (and first) is thought to be LM 472 (hit at 22.04)
Reports state that he had not made contact with the bombers prior to 22.00 hours.
Another report stated that a night fighter- Tame Boar Zahme Sau- flew with the Brux stream for about 12 minutes before attacking LM 472, causing it to catch on fire.
Another interest item was that the majority of the bomb load (including a 4,000 pound cookie) was found unexploded in the wreckage and had to be detorated the next day./
Regards,
berkyboy

 

Wow, it's great to see what happened, but it's horrible it happened. Friendly fire was a real issue and continues to be today. Lancasters were sweet planes. It's a shame there are only a few left flying.