Stanley, County Durham, England (parents)
Stanley New Cemetery Stanley, County Durham, England
Liberator B 24 BZ961
Returning to Scotland after their anti-submarine patrol north of the Faroe Islands, the two aircraft were diverted to RAF Tain, in the Highlands of North Scotland because of bad weather at Leuchars in the south. After some considering both crews decided to return to Leuchars.
EV887 left Tain first followed by BZ961. EV887 landed safely after three attempts (100 foot cloud ceiling and mist). BZ961 attempted to land but overshot the runway and was unable to avoid crashing into Lucklaw Hill, west of the runway. All aboard died in the crash, including a passenger, a civilian meteorologist, Jack Davidson.
Taylor, Raymond (Flying Officer)
Killed in Action 1944-September-14
Birth Date: 1922
Born:
Parents: Arthur Elliott & Elizabeth Ann Taylor
Spouse:
Home: Stanley, County Durham, England (parents)
Enlistment:
Enlistment Date: unkown date
Service
RAF
Unit
206 (AS) Sqn- Squadron (RAF)
Nihil Nos Effugit Nothing escapes us
Base
RAF Leuchars, Scotland
Rank
Flying Officer
Position
pilot
Service Numbers
153174
Library and Archives Canada Service Files (may not exist)Crew or Other Personnel
Liberator BZ961
Liberator serial: BZ961
(DND Photos via James Craik) (Source Harold A Skaarup Web Page)
Consolidated Liberator G.R. Mk. VIII, RCAF (Serial No. 11130) ex-USAAF Consolidated (Vultee) B-24L Liberator USAAF (44-50154)
ex-RAF (Serial No. 5009), ex-Indian Air Force (Serial No. HE773).
Currently preserved in the Canada Aviation and Space Museum Ottawa Ontario.
Consolidated Liberator G.R. Mk. VIII, RCAF (Serial No. 11130) ex-USAAF Consolidated (Vultee) B-24L Liberator USAAF (44-50154)
ex-RAF (Serial No. 5009), ex-Indian Air Force (Serial No. HE773).
Currently preserved in the Canada Aviation and Space Museum Ottawa Ontario.
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber flown by the RCAF during the Second Word War. It was designed with a shoulder-mounted, high aspect ratio Davis wing which gave the Liberator a high cruise speed, long range and the ability to carry a heavy bomb load. Early RAF Liberators were the first aircraft to cross the Atlantic Ocean as a matter of routine. In comparison with its contemporaries the B-24 was relatively difficult to fly and had poor low speed performance; it also had a lower ceiling compared with the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. Of the roughly 18,500 B-24s built in the USA during the war, 148 were flown by the RCAF on long range anti-submarine patrols, with the B-24 serving an instrumental role in closing the Mid-Atlantic gap in the Battle of the Atlantic. The RCAF also flew a few B-24s post war as transports.
Roughly half of all (RAF) Liberator crews in the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theatre were Canadian by the end of the war. John Muir of Vancouver flew the longest mission of the war: 24hrs, 10mins from Ceylon to Burma and back. (Kyle Hood) Harold Skaarup web page
Liberator bomber
Wikipedia Liberator bomber
Harold A Skaarup Web Page