6 Bomber Group February 14/151945
66 Halifaxes from 408, 415, 420, 425, 426, 427, 429, and 432Squadrons were joined by 52 Lancasters from 419, 424, 428, 431, and 434 Squadrons on an attack at Chemnitz. The crews were over the target at between18,000and 20,000 feet, releasing 431,000 lbs on incendiaries and 291,000 lbs of high explosives. According to reports, the target was cloud covered with some damage caused.
While some crews were attacking Chemnitz, 10 Lancasters from424 and433 Squadrons were joined by 10 Halifaxes from 427 and 429 Squadrons on a mining operation to the Kattegat. The crews were over the garden at15,000feet, sowing 90@1500 lb mines. Richard Koval (6bombergroup.ca)
429 Bison Squadron (Fortunae Nihil) RAF Leeming. Halifax BIII aircraft MZ 865 AL-V went down in the sea off Sweden during a night mine-laying operation in the Kadet Channel, Western Baltic south of Copenhagen. The aircraft had inadvertently entered Swedish airspace and disregarded warning shots, ultimately being shot down and crashing near the Falsterbo Lighthouse with the loss of the entire crew
Flying Officer KW Rainford (RCAF), Flight Lieutenant RC Charlton (RCAF), Flying Officer RA Thorne (RCAF), Pilot Officer W Fedorchuk (RCAF), Pilot Officer RJ McCallum(RCAF), Flight Sergeant SE Bostwick (RCAF) and Flight Sergeant GJ Barnes (RCAF) were all killed in action
The bodies of most of the crew were recovered or washed ashore to be buried in various Swedish or Danish cemeteries. The body of Pilot Officer RJ McCallum (RCAF) was never found and has no known grave
[Royal Air Force Serial and Image Database]...
Halifax III MZ865 in the Baltic Sea south of Sweden 14/2 1945
Plane 395 HAL MZ865 - The Baltic Sea S of Sweden
Bomber Command Museum Monthly ORB