Handley Page Halifax Serial Groups Specifications

Bombing Berlin Germany 1943-03-29 to 1943-03-30

408 (B) Sqn (RCAF) RAF Leeming

408 Goose Squadron (For Freedom) RAF Leeming. Halifax BII aircraft HR 654 EQ-R was shot down by night fighter pilot Oblt Paul Szameitat of the 5/NJG 3, flying Do 217N D5+SN from Schleswig airfield during an operation against targets in Berlin, Germany. The Halifax crashed near Suderschmedeby south of Flensburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany with only one crew member surviving

Flight Lieutenant JS Acheson (RCAF) Navigator, survived to be taken as Prisoner of War

Flight Sergeant JF Barnes (RCAF), Sergeant H Davenport (RCAF), Flight Sergeant NW Roberts (RCAF), Sergeant FJ Cherry (RAFVR), Sergeant G Jennings (RAFVR) and Sergeant LSV Lewis-Stanford (RAFVR) were all killed in action

There were two 408 Squadron Halifax II aircraft lost on this operation. Please see aircraft serial DT 679 EQ-Q for further information on this aircraft and crew

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Bombing Stuttgart Germany 1943-03-11 to 1943-03-12

408 (B) Sqn (RCAF) RAF Leeming

408 Goose Squadron (For Freedom) RAF Leeming. Halifax II aircraft HR 656 EQ-T had a port side engine failure on the way to operations over Stuttgart, Germany. Despite the engine loss and resulting drop in speed, the crew flew on and successfully dropped their bomb load. Sadly, on the return flight the Halifax was attacked and shot down by night fighter pilot Hptm Otto Materne of the 4/NJG 4, crashing north of Rozieres, France

Sergeant RD Davidson (RCAF), Sergeant JA Hammond (RCAF), Flying Officer GH Lamus (RAF) and Sergeant CT Hamilton (RNZAF) all survived and became Evaders

FS DDP Leitch (RAFVR), Sergeant LS Marsden (RAF) and Flying Officer AA Stewart (RNZAF) survived and all were taken ad Prisoners of War

Search for France-Crashes 39-45

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Bombing Wuppertal Germany 1943-05-29 to 1943-05-30

35 (PFF) Sqn (RAF) RAF Graveley

Aircraft was shot down by a night fighter over Netherlands while on an operation to Wuppertal, Germany. The aircraft was abandoned and crashed near Sittard, Holland

Squadron Leader P Johnston DFC (RAF)and Sergeant FJ Jarvis (RAF) were missing, presumed killed. They have no known grave and are commemorated on the Runnymede War Memorial

Sergeant AW Cowan (RCAF) survived and evaded briefly, but was captured 1944-05-30 to join the other survivors: Pilot Officer R Wood (RCAF), FS BT Royall (RAAF), Flying Officer RG Houston (RAF )and Sergeant MT Byrne (RAF) as Prisoners of War. FS EA Roede (RAF) would evade until July before being captured in Brussels

WR Chorley notes that Pilot Officer Wood landed poorly when he baled, breaking his leg, and that he was older than the usual crewman (having lied about his age to re-join the RCAF in 1939 he was 38 years old, not the 33 on his records). His son, FS D Wood, joined the RCAF in Canada on the same day his father was taken POW, and later flew a tour of operations in 1944 as a gunner (Airforce Magazine, Vol 8, No 2, 1984)

Bombing Dusseldorf Germany 1943-06-11 to 1943-06-12

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

Bombing Essen Germany 1943-05-27 to 1943-05-28

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

Bombing Duisburg Germany 1943-04-08 to 1943-04-09

405 (B) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

Bombing Mannheim Germany 1943-09-05 to 1943-09-06

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Berlin

Bombing Hamburg Germany 1943-07-24 to 1943-07-25

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Hamburg

Bombing Cologne Germany 1943-07-03 to 1943-07-04

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) RAF Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

From Operations Record Book:

Weather:-10/10 at first, clearing by mid day to fine. Visibility ability poor at first becoming very good. Light northerly wind.

One of our aircraft was attacked by an unidentified night fighter and severely damaged, the starboard elevator and tail assembly by canon shells; canon shells to starboard centre mainplane, wing internally damaged, fuselage, holed, and bomb doors shot up and mid upper turret astro dome were also holed.Captain of this aircraft is 13399011 Sergeant Phillips J who had much difficulty in preventing aircraft getting into stalling speed because aircraft would not be stopped from climbing. This was overcome by tying the control column to the rudder [word?] by means of the dinghy rope, which was slightly successful although pressure still had to be maintained on the stick. The mid upper gunner was slightly injured in his leg. One of our aircraft is missing. members of the crew were ....... Nothing has been heard from this crew since time of takeoff.

Bombing Elberfeld Germany 1943-06-24 to 1943-06-25

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

Combat Peenemunde Germany 1943-08-17 to 1943-08-18

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Hamburg

Halifax II aircraft HR 817 LQ-C strayed south of its intended route and was shot down by flak near Flensburg during a night attack against the V-2 rocket sites at Pennemunde, Germany. The bomber crashed at Friedenshugel, Germany

All were Killed in Action

Operational None 1943-06-16 to 1943-06-16

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

405 Vancouver Squadron (Ducimus) RAF Gransden Lodge. Halifax BII aircraft encountered severe weather conditions and turbulence on a routine cross-country training flight. The Halifax was struck by lightning and broke up in flight, crashing at Clifton Farm, Clenchwarton, 2 miles west of Kings Lynn, Norfolk, England with the loss of the entire crew

Flying Officer RE Agassiz (RCAF), Flying Officer WC Davies (RCAF), FS CL Pudney GC (RCAF)(USA), Sergeant a Faulkner (RAFVR), Flying Officer RW Frewin (RAFVR), Sergeant MK Holliday (RAF) and Flight Lieutenant CD Lawson MiD (RAF) were all killed in this flying accident

405 Squadron Halifax II HR832 Fl/Lt Lawson RAF Gransden Lodge...

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Bombing Hamburg Germany 1943-08-02 to 1943-08-03

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) RAF Gransden Lodge

Battle of Hamburg

405 Vancouver Squadron (Ducimus) RAF Gransden Lodge. Halifax BII aircraft #HR 849 LQ-E was shot down by flak over Bremen, Germany while on an operation to Hamburg, Germany. The entire crew was lost on this, their 5th operation and the 10th bomber lost on this 4th raid against targets in Hamburg

FS WJ Crozier (RCAF), Sergeant T Brownless (RAFVR), Sergeant H Gardner (RAFVR), Sergeant AF Gregory (RAFVR), Sergeant SJ Passey (RAFVR), Sergeant ST Pitt (RAFVR) and Sergeant D Rowbotham (RAF) were all killed in action

Allied Losses and Incidents: All Commands

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Combat Montbeliard France 1943-07-15 to 1943-07-16

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) RAF Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

405 Vancouver Squadron (Ducimus) RAF Gransden Lodge. Halifax II aircraft HR 854 LQ-A was homeward-bound from an operation to bomb the Peugeot motor factory at Montbeliard, France, when it was attacked by German night-fighters and the two starboard engines were shot up. After losing considerable altitude over 35 minutes, the Pilot finally ordered the crew to bail out before the Halifax crashed near Tonnerre, France

Rear Air-Gunner, Flight Sergeant Arthur Osbourne Prior (RAFVR) survived and was captured to become a Prisoner of War

Flight Lieutenant James Henry Foy DFC MiD (RCAF), Squadron Leader Albert Lambert DFC (RCAF), Flying Officer Hugh Thompson Huston MiD (RCAF), Pilot Officer John Bert MacDougall MiD (RCAF), Sergeant Gregor MacGregor (RCAF) and Flying Officer Thomas William Simpson (RCAF) all survived and became Evaders, all eventually making their way over the Pyrenees Mountains, through Spain, on to Gibraltar, ultimately returning safely to the UK

The crew came down at about 03:15 hours, just West of Beliecarde. They buried their parachutes and mae wests in thick undergrowth and pulled briar over them. They moved South, reaching a canal, walking along it, for about 30 minutes. As it became light, the crew hid in a wood along the canal bank. At 23:00 hours on 16 July 1943, they continued along the canal, endeavoring to find a bridge. They eventually crossed the canal and continued walking until 02:00 hours, when they again hid in woods. The crew spent all of the day, 17 July 1943, in the woods, and began to walk South at 23:00 hours., eventually reaching the outskirts of Les Bordes at 05:30 hours. From the cover of a wood, they watched a nearby farmhouse, which they eventually approached, were taken in, fed and sheltered. Those who dared - A Comprehensive List of World War ll Allied Escapers

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France-Crashes 39-45 Search

Bombing Turin Italy 1943-08-16 to 1943-08-17

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Hamburg

Combat Gelsenkirchen Germany 1943-07-09 to 1943-07-10

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

Bombing Essen Germany 1943-07-25 to 1943-07-25

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) RAF Gransden Lodge

405 Vancouver Squadron (Ducimus) RAF Gransden Lodge. Halifax BII aircraft HR 863 LQ-M was shot down by Oberleutnant Paul Zorner of the 3/NJG 3, flying a Messerschmitt Bf 110 inbound for an operation against the Krupp Works armament factories in Essen, Germany. The Halifax crashed and exploded between Thesinge and Ten Boer, Groningen, Netherlands with the loss of all but one crew member

Flying Officer ME Tomczak (RCAF), Flying Officer AP McCracken (RCAF), Pilot officer MS Smyth (RCAF), Warrant officer Second Class CJV Kettley (RCAF), Flight Sergeant EK White (RCAF), and Sergeant AJ Wood (RAF) were all killed in action

The Bomb Aimer, Flight Lieutenant AJ Sochowski (RCAF) was the only crew member to escape the aircraft before it crashed and survived to become a Prisoner of War

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Bombing Hamburg Germany 1943-08-02 to 1943-08-03

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) RAF Gransden Lodge

Battle of Hamburg

405 City of Vancouver Squadron (Ducimus) RAF Gransden Lodge. Halifax BII aircraft encountered a massive electrical storm during an operation against targets in Hamburg, Germany. Battling towards the target, with ice building up on the wings, the Halifax was struck by a blinding flash of lightning. Both inboard engines lost power, the electrical system and radio destroyed, the bomber lost altitude while the pilot fought to regain control, managing to do so at an altitude of about 4000 feet. Return to the UK was out of the question and the navigator instead plotted a course for neutral Sweden. The Halifax crashed into the Baltic Sea near Kampinge Bay, Sweden shortly after the crew safely abandoned the bomber and all became interned prisoners of Sweden

In an interesting turn of fate, many of the Canadians on this and other downed crews not only survived being shot down, they also played hockey against Swedish teams while they were interned. They were well treated and housed and played hockey for several months before being repatriated to UK 1944-01-30

Amazingly, the wreckage of Halifax HR 871 was located by Swedish divers in 2011 and is now in the process of being recovered, lead by Karl Kiarsgaard, Director of the Halifax 57 Rescue (Canada), Bomber Command Museum of Canada. The plan is to have the Halifax restored as a static display at the museum, similar to Halifax NA 377, recovered by Halifax 57 Rescue from the bottom of Lake Mjosa, Norway. The aircraft was beautifully restored to static condition and is now on display at the RCAF Memorial Museum at Trenton, Ontario.

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RESURRECTION - Vintage Wings of Canada

Halifax Bomber Recovery

The unknown RCAF hockey story from World War II Sweden

Bombing Mannheim Germany 1943-08-09 to 1943-08-10

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Hamburg

Bombing Aachen Germany 1943-07-13 to 1943-07-14

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of the Ruhr

Minelaying Borkum Island Germany 1944-02-11 to 1944-02-12

419 (B) Sqn (RCAF) Middleton St. George

Battle of Berlin

Served with No. 419 Squadron, RCAF, coded "VR*R". Lost during mining operation to the Frisian Islands off Borkum on 12/13 February 1944. Five other crews were in the same area at the same time and reported no enemy activity. The loss of this crew remains a mystery. 52 Aircraft deployed incl. Units 405/419

Bombing Vaires-sur-Marne France 1944-03-29 to 1944-03-30

419 (B) Sqn (RCAF) Middleton St. George

Battle of Berlin

76 Halifaxes and 8 Mosquitoes of 4, 6 and 8 Groups attacked the railway yards at Vaires, near Paris, in bright moonlight. The bombing was very accurate and 2 ammunition trains which were present blew up; it is reported that 1,270 German troops were killed. 1 Halifax lost.

source: The Bomber Command War Diaries, Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt

419 Moose Squadron (Moosa Aswayita). The crew of Halifax aircraft HR 912 were engaged in a night trip to the rail yards at Vaires, France when their aircraft was hit by flak over Le Havre, France. The pilot made a crash landing in the English Channel.

Bombing Berlin Germany 1943-08-31 to 1943-09-01

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Berlin

Bombing Hamburg Germany 1943-08-02 to 1943-08-03

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Hamburg

Bombing Berlin Germany 1943-08-23 to 1943-08-24

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Berlin

Bombing Berlin Germany 1943-08-23 to 1943-08-24

405 (PFF) Sqn (RCAF) Gransden Lodge

Battle of Berlin

405 Vancouver Squadron (Ducimus) RAF Gransden Lodge, Halifax II aircraft HR 923 LQ-V on a raid against targets in Berlin, Germany, was attacked by an Me109 fighter and badly shot up after completing its bomb-run. Short of fuel due to punctured fuel tanks and severely damaged, the Halifax diverted to Sweden, ditching south of Sandhammaren lighthouse, near Ystad, Sweden

Warrant Officer 1st Class H Smith (RCAF), Pilot Officer D P Davies (RCAF), Sergeant L F Cassidy (RCAF), Sergeant J S Gates (RCAF), Sergeant J H Flick (RCAF), Sergeant J C Catling (RAF) and Sergeant T O'Toole (RAF) were all safe after the ditching and were interned in Sweden. The crew were very well treated and even travelled around Sweden to play hockey against Swedish teams. They played 24 games before they were repatriated to England, 1944-03-16

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RAF Forced Landing - Halifax BII - Serial # HR923

The unknown RCAF hockey story from World War II Sweden