Flight Segeant Gordon Howard

Hi
My father (above) has recently passed away and I have obtained his World War II RAF service record from RAF Disclosures, Cranwell. However, they raise a lot of questions and I would appreciate any help that anyone can give me. His record shows him as "discharged [age 20] physically unfit for Air Force service on 21st May 1942" after only 1 year and 121 days service. His record shows nothing thereafter. Yet I have a photograph of him with his aircrew taken in 1943 in front of Lancaster A for Apple prior to a raid on the Messerschmidt factory in Augsburg. The photo even gives the names of his crew:-
Flt. Sgt Ron Taylor (mid-upper gunner), Geoff Clarke (Navigator - New Zealander), Flt Sgt. Bob King (Bomb Aimer), Ken Wood (Wireless Operator - who later founded Kenwood Electronics) and Don Stephens [Stevens?] (Rear Gunner). The Flight Engineer is named only as Len.
Although my Dad was always very reluctant to tell me anything about his RAF war service, and always downplayed it, he did say that for many years after the War he had recurrent nightmares about the Dresden Raid. He also mentioned serving at Home-on-Spalding Moor.
Any help much appreciated.

 

Hello and welcome Baz.
Have you checked that there is not ANOTHER file for your fathers Service records?
What crew position was he?
You name MUG; Nav; B/Aimer; W/Op; rear gunner and F/Eng. with 7 crew it leaves only the pilot......
I have to ask (gently) are you sure the photo shows your father as the pilot?

In the meantime....

From June 1943, Holme on Spalding Moor was the base for 76 Squadron, which flew Halifax bombers, not Lancasters.

101 Squadron was a Lancaster Sqdn, but based at Holme only from November 42 till June 43. Are you sure about the photo being a Lancaster? If he was at Holme on Lancs, he was 101 Sqdn; if actually Halifaxes, then 76 Sqdn....

Further, 101 Sqdn was in 1 Group, and 76 in 4 Group.
Dresden was bombed by Nos 1, 3, 6 and 8 Groups.... so it follows that if he was on the Dresden Operation, he must have been in 1 Group, therefore 101 Squadron.

There was a famous daylight attack on the MAN engine works in Augsburg in April 1942........ by 44 and 97 Sqdns...

Can you please recheck your points to ensure we are tracking the right crew?
Wood, Kenneth Maynard, 1916-1987

Born on 4 October 1916 in London. Wood was educated at Bromley County School before leaving home in 1930 to join the Merchant Navy. He left the Merchant Navy in 1934 when his service ended and began studying electrical and mechanical engineering. In 1937, after completing his studies, he set up a company developing radio, television and radar. In 1939 he sold the company and joined the Royal Air Force where he worked as an engineer at the Admiralty developing radar and electronic controls. Wood left the RAF in 1946 to set up the Kenwood Manufacturing Co Ltd where he was Managing Director. The first product he produced was the A100 turnover toaster, an appliance that was uncommon in Britain at that time. Kenwood’s products were successful because Wood identified household tasks that gave housewives most work and developed machines to do those jobs. Within a few years of setting up the company, he was one of Britain’s youngest millionaires. In 1968 Thorn Electrical Industries Ltd took over Kenwood.

If possible, can you advise if any Sqdn codes apart from "A" are visible? MP was 78 and 101 carried SR

Obviously over the years things aren't remembered too clearly and one incident gets mixed with another.

If it is possible, can you post any photos or other details, such as logbook or Service No?

 

Bomber Command only went to Augsburg twice in WWII. The first time was 17 April, 1942 and the target was the MAN Uboat diesel engine factory. Small raid, in daylight, carried out by 12 Lancasters from Nos 44 and 97 Squadrons with 30 Douglas Boston medium bombers flying diversionary attacks over France.

RAF History - Bomber Command 60th Anniversary

The second time was on the 25-26 February, 1944 with substantially more aircraft that the April 1942 raid

RAF History - Bomber Command 60th Anniversary

The Messerschmidt factory was the target of the USAAF, not Bomber Command, who bombed it on 25 February, 1944 in daylight.

No one by the name the OP has given flew with 101 Squadron to Dresden in February, 1945

 

Many thanks for your detailed reply Icare 9. I'm hoping that my limited IT skills will get this reply posted. I'll also try to post the photo and his service number on a separate thread.

To address the interesting points which you raised.

Firstly, I can't be certain that the man in the photo identified by my father as himself is, him. He always said that he was a pilot. The head is in profile and slightly turned away, but what I can see does look like him. I have written back to RAF records with the same query I posted on this site and am still awaiting a reply. I'm also puzzled that my Dad's record shows him has having served at RAF Hawkinge in 1941-2 as, if I've interpreted the intials correctly, a gunner - but possibly an anti-aircraft gunner. As far as I knw, Hawkinge was purely a fighter base and I can't see how he can have been discharged as physically unfit from there in May 1942 and then be a bomber pilot in 1944.

Although my Dad said he was based at Holme-on-Spalding-Moor at some point, he he didn't say when or what sort of aircraft he was flying from there. (A few years ago he asked me to take some photos of the disused airfield buildings as I was passing that way). From what you say, and assuming my Dad was being honest and hadn't got confused, it looks like he was probably with 101 Squadron.

The plane in the photograph, and the raid it was going on, are (like the crew members), identified only by my father's hand-written notes. It looks like a Lancaster to me but I'm not an expert. Perhaps others can identify the plane more positively.

I'm afraid I'm not sure what you mean by "MP was 78 and 101 carried SR".

I appreciate your tact in suggesting that the man in the photo may not be my Dad and I'm quite open to accepting that some or all of what he has told me may not be correct - for whatever reason. But he was always very reluctant to tell me or my brother much about his war experiences and was always very self-effacing about his war exploits. My understanding is that he once crash-landed in a hop field in Kent and was so severely injured that his mother was called down from Manchester as they didn't expect him to survive, though he obviously did.

One concrete event that does incline me to believe that he is the man in the photo is that in 1992 or 1993 he was contacted by Eroni Clarke, the (adopted) grandson of the navigator, Geoff Clarke in the photo. Eroni was playing in the All Blacks tour in early 1993 and my Dad was invited along to the match and to the dinner afterwards. (I'm trying to find some way of confirming the membership of the bomber crew via Eroni Clarke and like you, I've tried to do the same via info on Ken Wood, without much luck).

One other snippet which has always intrigued me from something which my dad once mentioned but would never expand on or even refer to again. He once told me that one operation he flew on was to bomb a P.o.W. camp in Norfolk that had been seized by fanatical SS prisoners. I think that he said the name of the camp was Kimberley, and there was a camp there. He said that the operation was kept highly secret and that all the crews were warned never to mention their involvement. has anyone else ever heard of this. It seems highly improbable.

Many thanks again for your help. I need to check this site more often.

 

Baz: Now that you have mentioned that he was seriously injured in a crash landing, could it be possible for that to have been the reason for his discharge as then being physically unfit as a result of those injuries? That means effectively reversing the sequence in that he could have been aircrew until the crash injuries prevented him from flight duties, after which he retrained as an airfield defence gunner?
That might explain his being known to Geoff (and therefore Ironi) Clarke and what may have initially been "his" crew. Ken Wood may simply have had the same name as the famous Ken Wood and over time confusion as to who was who crept in....

What I meant regarding

was that when you see side shots of RAF bomber aircraft, most carry 3 letters on the side of the fuselage. Two letters represent the Squadron code, whilst the 3rd letter indicates the individual aircraft code within the Squadron.
Therefore a 78 Squadron aircraft would have MP@A etc (the "@" being the roundel) whilst a 101 squadron aircraft would have SR@A etc. What I meant was that you stated that the photo showed A for Apple. Hopefully the photo shows those markings on the fuselage side (also on the nose) and that may help you identify the Squadron if you can see other letters apart from "A". Of course, knowing our luck, the A for Apple has just been written on the back with no confirmation in the photo.

We want to help you verify your Dad's career, but on what has been provided so far it's not easy!!

 

Thanks Lou. I'll give these a try.

 

Yes, I think my Dad must have got confused re the RAF's (and his squadron's) role in the Augsburg raid and, if he really did take part in it, it must have been the 1944 raid because he was in hospital in April 1942.

Could you tell me what OP means (excuse my ignorance here). If this is some way of determining which Bomber crew personnel went on a particular raid, I would be very interested in accessing this as all I have is fragmentary (and often confusing) information of Dad's ervice record, which has only been further confused by his official record. Thanks.

 

Hopefully I've managed to attach the photo to which I've referred. I only have my Dad's word that the man bottom right his him, (though it does look like him), and I'm assuming that Sergeant's stripes were only worn on the right arm. However, he identified the rest of the crew and their aircrew duties, as follows.
Standing, top left - Ron Taylor, Mid-upper Gunner
Kneeling, bottom left - Bob King, Bomb Aimer
Kneeling, left centre - Geoff Clarke, Navigator (New Zealander)
Standing, bending over (bald head) - Len ?, Flight Engineer
Standing, top right - Ken Wood, Wireless Operator (later founded Kenwood
Electrics)
Kneeling, right centre (wearing forage cap) - Don Stephens (Stevens?),
Rear Gunner

Obviously the aircraft's number is not visible and others may be able to say whether the aircraft was, indeed, a Lancaster. (I think I said that it was my Dad who identified the Lanc as A for Apple).
The RAF war service record gives my Dad's "Official Number" as 1623152 - there's no mention of a Service Number.
Re your suggestion about the sequence of his injury, discharge and possible role as an anti-aircraft gunner, I don't think that's likely from the information on the service record. It shows him as Medical Category Grade 1 in December 1941 but "Not selected for training Aircrew Duties at present" in Jan. 1942, with the note that "Candidate may reapply in 4 months". My Dad's 19th birthday was in Jan 1942. The Discharge section on the record states that he was admitted to hospital in March 1943 and discharged as "Physically unfit for Air Force Service" in May 1943 after 1 year and 4 months total service. The record also indicates that he only attained the rank of A/C 1 during this period and that his trade was Gunner.
If the photo does show my Dad, this raises a lot of questions. But if its not him, I wonder how he was able to identify all the crew and why he would identify such a well known figure as Ken Wood as one of them. When I was a kid ( and wanted my Dad to have done something "exciting" in the War) he was always very dismissive of what he had done and claimed he had been too young to have played an active role in the RAF. He did say he had trained on Avro Ansons and flown Wellingtons and Bostons. Only when I was an adult (and a History teacher) and aware of the unpleasant reality of war, did he reluctantly admit that he had flown Lancasters as a Flight Sergeant but still only revealed odd snippets. This why I don't have much information to help anyone verify (or otherwise) his war career.

 

That looks like a Halifax Mk II or possibly even a Mk V undercarriage to me.
These casualties had similar Service Numbers to that quoted.
CARLIER RW 1623125 - 12/05/1943 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
COOMBE AP 1623145 44 SQDN 24/12/1943 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
CROTHERS B 1623176 - 25/10/1944 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
HARLING JE 1623143 - 07/02/1944 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
HORSFORD J 1623161 272 SQDN 06/09/1944 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
MOTTS GE 1623131 76 SQDN 31/03/1944 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
STANDLEY-SMITH P 1623168 615 SQDN 06/06/1944 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE

Not all were aircrew and none died earlier than May 1943. I can't explain why his Number appears out of sequence to his apparent discharge in 1942. It may need an expert to advise whether he was downgraded as a result of his injuries from a crash landing and allocated a later Service Number, perhaps when he had regained a degree of fitness.

To muddy the water even more, I found this:-
Stirling Mk 1. Serial Number BF380; 15 Squadron Coded: LS-B; Operation Gardening. 17th / 18th December 1942
BF380 was one of two 15 Sqdn Stirlings lost on this operation. See: BF356. Airborne 16:50 17 Dec 42 from Bourn to lay mines in French waters off Bayonne (Elderberry Region). Returned to base on three engines and crashed 01:25, approx 1 mile North of the airfield. No report of injuries.
Sgt A.S. Forbes; Sgt G. Howard; Sgt E. Mossman; Sgt P. Ward; Sgt W. Porteous; Sgt N. Craddock and Sgt P. Sharman.

It may just be a namesake, as the date of the crash is later than when you say your father was invalided out.

Too many inconsistencies for me to try and help make sense for you, so I yield to hopefully more expert Pals to help you on this.

Edit: Just noticed that your last post changes the year to 1943, instead of the original posting date being

 

Hi Baz,

Apologies. OP is the Original Poster. In this case you.

To answer your question, yes. All British and Commonwealth squadrons had what was called an Operations Record Book or ORB. It lists the date, manufacturer's serial number of aircraft, aircraft code (as explained by icare9), men aboard each aircraft, time of takeoff and return, munitions aboard and comments extracted from each crew by base intelligence personnel post operation about highlights of the mission (my favourite is "wizard prang"). Some ORBs are better than others.

When icare9 mentioned 101 Squadron this is a squadron I have studied in some detail for many years. I have the ORB for the squadron throughout the whole war. When you mentioned Dresden I looked up the 21 Lancasters tasked with Dresden that night and saw there was no one with your father's name on the squadron that night.

ORBs for all RAF squadrons are on microfilm at the National Archives, formerly the PRO, in Kew, (Richmond). You can go in there with proper ID, get a reader's ticket and scour the ORBs.

I do know from reading several RAF files over the years that the squadrons personnel were stationed on is listed in these service files. But prior to joining a heavy bomber squadron a man would serve time on an Operational Training Unit (OTU) where two engined bombers like the Wellington would be used for training and later in the war this would be followed by time spent on a Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU) where sprog crews would make the transition from the Wellington to the four engined heavies like the Halifax, Stirling and the Lancaster. These important parts of training are also in a man's service record.

My point is that if you are seeing these acronyms in is service record it is a start. You can look up the ORBs for these OTUs and HCUs, also at Kew. Keep plugging at it and you'll get to the bottom of it soon enough.

edit: A thought. The RAF is not perfect. Have you verified that the service file sent you was in fact your dad's and not another "Gordon Howard"? Did the date of birth match etc? Did they send you photocopies of original documents or their latest, terribly unhelpful, two page summary? With the two page summary you are relying on someone, usually born in the 1980s, typing out what they think they are seeing. With photocopies of originals you are getting what was usually handwritten during the war and thus more reliable.

 

Yes, sorry for any confusion and waste of your time caused by my stupid mistake. His discharge was in 1943. But the crash landing which my father described did, according to him, result in serious injury. I'm really beginning to wonder about how much I can believe of what he said.
The only remaining thought I have rather reeks of conspiracy theory. But her goes. IF my Dad's brief reference to his part in bombing Kimberley PoW camp was true, I have wondered whether the supposed great secrecy surrounding this could have resulted in the service records of anyone who took part being doctored. I know this sounds pretty fanciful and I'm not at all sure whether I could begin to attach any credence at all to the possibility. But much stranger things have been uncovered from WW2. Just a thought. (Alternatively, all the bits and pieces my brother and I have wheedled aout of our Dad while he was alive might just be rubbish).

Thanks again for all your help Icare9

 

Many thanks for all the information. It looks like my Dad can't have been on the Dresden raid after all. None of the acronyms you mention are mentioned in my Dad's very brief service record. The record doesappear to be his as the family information is all correct and they did send me photocopies of the original. Other than the rather fanciful thought I posted with Icare9 I think I'll just have to accept what the RAF have told me. Cheers

 

Baz: I think you're right and let's now leave it as it is.
Whatever else, your father DID join up to do his bit.
I can't identify the aircraft in your picture as a Lanc, the engine cowling and undercarriage look to be a Halifax.
The chap on the right crouching doesn't display Sergeant stripes, which are quite clear on other crew members, and the material looks a darker shade
But what happened to your Dad AFTER he was invalided out?
Did he regain his fitness and join as ground crew or what did he do for the rest of the war?
Was he hospitalised for any length of time, did he complain about old injuries or have any scars?
Is there any info on the Marriage Certificate?
It may turn out that there is another Service file for after 1943......
Sorry, can't be of more help.

 

Hi Baz, please do not assume from what I told you that your dad (or anyone else for that matter) could not have been on the Dresden raid. I merely checked one of the many squadrons on Dresden that night as it was mentioned by icare9. There are others out there with the ORB for 76 Squadron and indeed all other squadrons who would happily look up names and dates for you.

The only way I am aware he would have received a new service number would have been if he had been commissioned. From what you say there is no evidence of that.

Being the curious type I would not rest until I had found everything I could. Look at the thread(s) on here for "Lancaster PB265" for an idea of what I mean.

Can you post the acronyms and dates you did find on his records? If you can, it may be possible to ascertain were this incident which caused him to be medically invalidated occurred. If it was an aviation related incident or something which happened at ground school there are experts all over the UK and indeed the world who look into things like this. I am also curious as to his rank of Flight Sergeant as listed in the thread title. Is this something which is stated anywhere on his records or family lore?

Of course, that is your prerogative. But as the UK does, of course, have the Freedom of Information Act and as his son, you have the right (still) to ask the questions you want answered at a higher level than an internet forum. Fora are always good places to start, and in some cases, good places to finish research but they are not the be all and end all. Had you not been curious you wouldn't have applied for his records and subsequently posted here in the first place.

Cheers and good luck with your search should you decide to continue it.

 

Many thanks for your help ayway. I've no idea about what happened after he was discharged and nothing until he got married in 1946 and I guess I'll never know now that he is no longer with us. Best wishes.

 

Many thanks for reply. Having read the Lancaster PB265 threads I guess I shouldn't give up yet. The problem is that the grandson in that case did have something concrete to go on whereas I've only got a lot of incomplete but intriguing snippets and an RAF record that completely contradicts them.
As I live in Scotland I'll have to wait until I'm near London to pursue the idea of looking at the ORB of other squadrons, and first I'll need to try to find out what squadrons went on the Dresden raid(s).
As far as I know, my Dad was never commisioned. I've only his word that he was a Flight Sergeant but, if sergeant's stripes were worn on both arms then the man he identified as himself in the posted photo wasn't a sergeant. I have a feeling that the photo was something they found in a book they once came across not a photo that my Dad ever had in his possession, at least neither I nor my brother ever saw it until shown it a few years ago. Unfortunately, I don't know what book.
I'd hoped to scan and post the war service record but it's A3 size so I'll post the acronyms and dates on another thread. The sheet of abbreviations and initials supplied by the RAF record office was not of much use.
Re the possible bombing of Kimberley PoW camp, I'll have to think about which Govt body I would need to approach for an FoI disclosure, but it's certainly an idea.
I can only hope that a relative of one of those named in the photo sees it and contacts me - even if its just to say that the man identified is not Gordon Howard.

 

Hi
I hope I've managed to upload the scanned copies of my Dad's short war service record. It may mean more to you experts than it does to me.

 

Well, I think you can pretty much piece together what this says.
He enlisted on 21st Jan 1942 shortly after his 19th birthday (13/1/23) and was training as an electrician in civilian life.
Initially he was assessed as unfit for flying duties, reapply in 4 months (He could have had a bad cold!) and selected as an electrician (unusual, as it seems that perversely, the Services NEVER selected you for something you could do!) and graded as AC2. He was trained as a light anti aircraft gunner, at Hawkinge near Folkestone and also at Ronaldsway Isle of Man... (perhaps just a "paper" transfer and served in 4086 and 2820 RAF Squadron (Reg't?). He was also promoted to AC1 on 1/1/1943, so he had ability.

RAF Hawkinge was also one, if not the, front line stations on the Channel coast, so a likely target for a "hit and run" attack in and away before the defences might have a chance to bring their guns to bear, so he had to be on his toes.

Something then seems to have happened around the 30th March 43 and he was admitted to the Municipal Hospital (?Folkestone?) from which he was discharged some 3 weeks later on 22nd April. However on 21st May he was then discharged as unfit under para 652 clause 4b of Kings Regs and AC1. (whatever that may mean - could be the answer if someone can explain what that means, although it may just be a "catch all" term).
It was serious enough for him to be awarded a grant of 11/3 pence a week (not an inconsiderable amount) until further information. Presumably this was a Medical Board award as it is dated June 43.

Now it could be that the problem was serious enough to prevent him being accepted by the military afterwards. Only you will know whether he had any particular medical problems later in life that could be related to his RAF service. What do you know of his employment history, going back perhaps to close to the war years? Does it give his employment on the Marriage Certificate?

As previously stated, he did join up to do his bit, he was able to gain promotion and appears to have kept out of trouble (or at least not been discovered!) and had a fairly "hot" posting defending a fighter airfield from surprise attack. Whatever the medical issue was, it was serious enough to warrant a fairly reasonable weekly payment and prevent any further military service.

Hopefully, others will concur and help flesh out the bare bones of his Service record.

 

Many thanks for your reply. On my Dad's marriage certificate in December 1946, his profession is shown as electrician. Re later medical problems, he always had stomach problems, which he ascribed to having had the joy stick jammed into his stomach when he crash-landed in the dark into a Kent hop field. In connection with this incident, I remember him saying how terrified he was to see locals with flaming torches coming across the field, when he could smell spilled aircraft fuel all around him.
I have to say that I had just come to accept that he had not been a pilot, when I spoke to my aunt, who was married to my Dad's younger brother (also in the RAF). She met her future husband in 1943 and remembers him telling her that his elder brother was a pilot in the RAF. She remembered a photo of my Dad in uniform and that he had "a flash on his cap, which meant he was aircrew". This reminded me of the attached photograph of him. From some research, and using my very limited knowledge, am I not right in thinking that the white flash at the top of his cap actually denotes aircrew in training? When I asked my Dad about this photo many years ago, he said he thought it was taken when he was on leave in 1941, (when he would have been 18) but that date could be wrong. But if the flash does denote aircrew in training then neither that nor the date fits with what it says on his service record.
More intriguingly still, my aunt clearly remembers that it was the Kent and Canterbury Hospital where my Dad being looked after when she says he was seriously injured in a crash. She also remembered a specific incident that I had never heard of (but which was probably a common occurrence in wartime) when my Dad's aircraft was badly shot up and "his gunner" was killed. My Dad had evidently been best man at the gunner's wedding and when they got back to base, he insisted on going to break the news to the man's widow who lived in a cottage near the runway. I'm now more puzzled than ever.
A final question. Were any RAF squadrons ever stationed in Iceland during the war, or was it only Canadians?