Britain at War – August 2019

AVRO LANCASTERS|RCAF RCAF|AVRO LANCASTERS

ABOVE

The colourful nose

art of ‘Vicky the

Vicious Virgin’ on

a 426 Squadron

Lancaster II.

(L MILBERRY)

RIGHT

The shattered

streets of

Berlin after the

succession of

heavy RAF raids

through the winter

of 1943-1944.

(RAF BENSON)

RIGHT

Flt Lt Shedd

and Sgt Jones

talking with their

groundcrew after

their safe return

from Frankfurt

in Lancaster II

DS830/OW-S on

March 22, 1944.

(RCAF/PAC)

cloud. The next night eight 426 Lancs

left Linton to repeat the attack. Lt

John Smith, a USAAF pilot on loan,

took off fully laden with an 8,000lb

(3,630kg) bombload but suffered an

engine failure; only his skilful flying

averted disaster. Over the target and

just after bombing DS760/OW-M,

flown by Plt Off Charles Griffiths, was

attacked from behind by a Ju 88 and

downed with only two crew surviving.

BLACKEST NIGHT

A concentrated attack on the Baltic

port of Stettin (now Szczecin) and a

raid on Brunswick followed without

loss to the squadron before it returned

to Berlin on January 20, launching

16 Lancs. Despite complete cloud

cover the glow from fires lit up the

sky, though when over the target

incendiaries dropped by another

Lancaster hit Fg Off Patterson’s aircraft

and only a steep dive extinguished the

flames. In LL628/OW-Y Flt Lt Les

McCaig’s crew were not so fortunate,

likely victims of the deadly flak

barrage, all were killed over Berlin.

Magdeburg was attacked the

following day before three heavy

assaults on Berlin before the end of the

month. The strike on January 27 was

to prove 426 Squadron’s blackest night

with the Lancaster. Seventeen took

off with solid overcast again affecting

ability to launch a concentrated drop.

Despite seeing fighters inbound, Flt

Lt Wilson in LL721/OW-U bombed

unmolested, but turning for home

a fighter came from behind and

damaged the rudders and rear turret.

A second attack set two engines on

fire and started a blaze in the fuselage.

Wilson ordered the crew to bale out

but only he and two others survived.

Flt Lt Arthur Martens’ aircraft blew

up near Genthin, 17 miles west of

Brandenburg, killing Martens and all

but two on board. There was only

one survivor of Flt Lt Tom Shaw’s

crew when DS686/OW-D was shot

down over the target, while Plt off Ray

Countess’ aircraft disappeared without

trace. Fortunately, the next two attacks

were without loss, though on the 28th

two aircraft came back damaged. The

CO’s bomb aimer described it as the

best raid on Berlin. However, through

January six crews were lost.

After a period of bad weather, the

Thunderbirds next op on February

15 was by 15 aircraft, again to Berlin.

This cost Flt Sgt Basil Pattle’s crew

in DS794, shot down over Elburg,

Holland by Ofw Heinz Vinke of

11./NJG.1.

After the bloodletting against Berlin,

the four raids flown in the remainder

of February went elsewhere.

Leipzig was visited on the 19th in a

concentrated blind bombing attack,

but on the return flight Flt Sgt Morris

McKenzie’s crew fell victim to a night-

fighter over Holland. No.426’s last

attacks of February followed daytime

USAAF raids on Schweinfurt and

Augsburg, where they found large fires

already burning.

52 http://www.britainatwar.com

ABOVE cloud. The next night eight 426 Lancs