Doidge, William Thomas (Sergeant)

Prisoner of War 1944-July-29

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Birth Date: unkown date

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Service

RAFVR

Unit

576 (B) Sqn- Squadron (RAF)
Carpe Diem Seize the opportunity

Base

RAF Elsham Woods

Rank

Sergeant

Position

Navigator

Service Numbers

1517136
PoW: 511

Footprints on the Sands of Time, RAF Bomber Command Prisoners of War in Germany 1939-45 by Oliver Clutton-Brock, page 282

The Long Road, Trials and Tribulations of Airmen Prisoners from Stalag Luft VII (Bankau) to Berlin, June 1944-May 1945 by Oliver Clutton-Brock and Raymond Crompton, page 301

Unvetted Source Carpe Diem - 576 Squadron RAF - The Crews

Mission

Lancaster Mk.I LL905

Bombing Stuttgart Germany 1944-July-28 to 1944-July-29

576 (B) Sqn (RAF) RAF Elsham Woods

576 Squadron (Carpe Diem) RAF Elsham Woods. Lancaster I aircraft LL 905 UL-H2 was lost during a night raid against targets in Stuttgart, Germany. The Lancaster was shot down by a German night fighter and crashed six miles south-east of Saaralben, Alsace Lorraine between Saarewerden (Bas-Rhin) and Rimsdorf, France

Their are two claims for this Lancaster, either Hauptmann Martin Becker of the 2/NJG6 (flying Bf 110 G-4 2Z+MK) or Unteroffizier Egon Engling of the 8/NJG2

Flying Officer Edward James Mann DFC (RCAF), Flight Sergeant Donald Irwin MacVicar (RCAF), Flight Sergeant Leslie Mutton (RAAF) and Sergeant Reginald Alan Wellesley Roberts (RAFVR) were all killed in action

Flying Officer Anton Novak (RCAF), Flight Sergeant Francis Thomas McCann (RAFVR) and Sergeant William Thomas Doidge (RAFVR) survived to become Prisoners of War

There were four 576 Squadron Lancaster aircraft lost this same date. The other Lancaster aircraft were serials PB 128 UL-S2, LL 799 UL-N2 and PB 253 UL-A2

Nachtjagd Combat Archive 1944 Part 4 24 July - 15 October by Theo Boiten, page 22

1 Group Bomber Command an Operarional Record by Chris Ward with Greg Harrison and Grzegorz Korcz

Unvetted Source Royal Air Force Serial and Image Database

Unvetted Source Aviation Safety Network

Unvetted Source France-Crashes 39-45 Search