Letcher, Albert Clayton (Pilot Officer)

Killed in Action 1944-April-25

Pilot Officer Albert Clayton Letcher RCAF

Birth Date: 1925-July-03

Born:

Parents:

Spouse:

Home: Mountain Park, Alberta

Enlistment:

Enlistment Date: unkown date

Service

RCAF

Unit

115 (B) Sqn- Squadron (RAF)
Despite The Elements

Base

RAF Witchford

Rank

Pilot Officer

Position

Air Gunner

Service Numbers

J/92031
Prev: R/192848

Home
Google MapMountain Park, Alberta
Target
Google MapKarlsruhe Germany
Final Burial
Google MapSchoonselhof Cemetery
Plot IVa Row D Grave 21

Took off from Witchford at 21:51 in Lancaster Mk II (Sqn code KO-Y Bomber Command0 on an operation to Karlsruhe, Germany.

Home-bound, the aircraft was shot down by night fighter and crashed at Hoeveweg, Sint-Katelijne-Waver, Antwerp, Belgium.

Killed includes Letcher: Pilot Officer Joseph Murdoch MacLeod RCAF J/92030 KIA Schoonselhof Cemetery Plot 4a. Row D. Grave 8. Pilot Officer Robert Roland Cagienard RAF pilot KIA Schoonselhof Cemetery Antwerp, Belgium. Plot 4a. Row D. Grave 20. Sergeant Charles Philip Kelly RAF KIA Schoonselhof Cemetery, Antwerp, Plot 4a. Row D. Grave 37. Flight Sergeant Frederick Albert Foster RAF KIA Schoonselhof Cemetery, Plot 4a. Row D. Grave 36. Sergeant William Shorten RAF KIA Schoonselhof Cemetery Plot 4a. Row D. Grave 20. Sergeant Frank Desmond King RAF KIA Schoonselhof Cemetery Plot 4a. Row D. Grave 20.

Canada Source Canadian Virtual War Memorial

Commonwealth War Grave Commission Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Find-A-Grave Finadagrave.com

Canada Primary Source Library and Archives Canada Service Files (may not exist)

Unit Desciption

115 (B) Sqn Despite The Elements ()

No. 115 Sqn was originally formed on Dec 1, 1917 as a heavy bomber squadron and joined the Independent Air Force of the RAF in August 1918. It was disbanded in 1919, then re-formed in June 1937. It formed part of RAF Bomber Command No. 3 Group in WWII. Starting with Handley Page Harrow aircraft, it transferred to Vickers Wellingtons in 1939, which it flew until March 1943, when it transferred to Avro Lancaster B. Mk. II and later B. Mks I and III. Between April 1940 and September 1942 the squadron was seconded to Coastal Command and based at Kinloss, Scotland. It rejoined Bomber Command and flew from Mildenhall, East Wretham and Little Snoring in 1942 and 1943 before settling at Witchford, Cambridgeshire from November 1943 until the end of hostilities.

In April 1940 the squadron made the RAF's first bombing attack on the mainland of Europe, at Stavanger in Norway. In August of 1941 it participated in the service trials of the new navigational aid, GEE, and as a result of its report the device was put into mass production. Overall, in WWII the squadron flew 5392 sorties and dropped about 23,000 tons of bombs. This was the second-highest tonnage of bombs in Bomber Command. The squadron was 3rd in the number of raids in the course of the war. Since it was active over the whole span of WWI, it lost the greatest number of aircraft of any squadron in Bomber Command: it was the only squadron to lose more than 200 aircraft.