Cooke, David Clifford (Flying Officer)
Killed in Action 1944-September-12
Birth Date: 1913
Born:
Parents: REVD. DAVID COOKE AND CLARA A. COOKE, OF FULWOOD, PRESTON, LANCASHIRE
Spouse: KATHLEEN COOKE.
Home:
Enlistment:
Enlistment Date: unkown date
Service
RAFVR
Unit
207 (B) Sqn- Squadron (RAF)
Semper Paratus Always prepared
Base
RAF Spilsby
Rank
Flying Officer
Position
Pilot
Service Numbers
162972
Darmstadt Germany
Library and Archives Canada Service Files (may not exist)Crew or Other Personnel
Lancaster LM261
Mission
Lancaster Mk.I LM261
Bombing Darmstadt Germany 1944-September-11 to 1944-September-12
207 (B) Sqn (RAF) RAF Spilsby
226 Lancasters and 14 Mosquitoes of 5 Group. 12 Lancasters lost, 5·3 per cent of the Lancaster force.
A previous 5 Group attack in August had failed to harm Darmstadt but, in clear weather conditions, the group's marking methods produced an outstandingly accurate and concentrated raid on this almost intact city of 120,000 people. A fierce fire area was created in the centre and in the districts immediately south and east of the centre. Property damage in this area was almost complete. Casualties were heavy. The deaths of 8,433 people were actually reported to police stations. This figure was made up of: German civilians - 1,766 men, 2,742 women and 2, children, 936 service personnel, 492 foreign workers and 368 prisoners of war. United States Strategic Bombing Survey,* which quotes these figures, adds that actual death figure may have been 5,000 more, because many deaths were not immediately reported by the 49,200 homeless people who were evacuated from Darmstadt most of whom did not return until after the war, if at all. A present-day Darmstadt city guide says: '12,300 dead, 70,000 homeless.'
The Darmstadt raid, with its extensive fire destruction and its heavy casualties was held by the Germans to be an extreme example of R.A.F. 'terror bombing' and is still a sensitive subject because of the absence of any major industries in the city. Bomber Command defended the raid by pointing out the railway communications: passing through Darmstadt; the directive for the offensive against German communications had not yet been issued to Bomber Command, although advance notice of the directive may have been received. Darmstadt was simply one of Germany's medium-sized cities of lesser importance which succumbed to Bomber Command's improving area-attack techniques in the last months of the war when many of larger cities were no longer worth bombing. The Bomber Command War Diaries, Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt207 Squadron (Sernper Paratus). Lancaster aircraft LM 261 went down near Fosses, Belgium during a night raid against Darmstadt, Germany. F/Os E.J. Brian, R.B. Gowan, Pilot Officers J.J. Milne, W.L. Moxley,(RCAF), Warrant Officer J.M. Bingham (RAF), Flying Officer D.C. Cooke (RAF), and Sergeant A.H. Davies (RAF) were all killed.
Lancaster serial: LM261
Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum
The Avro Lancaster is a British Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to the same specification, as well as the Short Stirling, all three aircraft being four-engined heavy bombers adopted by the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the same wartime era.
The Lancaster has its origins in the twin-engine Avro Manchester which had been developed during the late 1930s in response to the Air Ministry Specification P.13/36 for a capable medium bomber for "world-wide use". Originally developed as an evolution of the Manchester (which had proved troublesome in service and was retired in 1942), the Lancaster was designed by Roy Chadwick and powered by four Rolls-Royce Merlins and in one version, Bristol Hercules engines. It first saw service with RAF Bomber Command in 1942 and as the strategic bombing offensive over Europe gathered momentum, it was the main aircraft for the night-time bombing campaigns that followed. As increasing numbers of the type were produced, it became the principal heavy bomber used by the RAF, the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and squadrons from other Commonwealth and European countries serving within the RAF, overshadowing the Halifax and Stirling. Wikipedia
Lancaster Bomber
Wikipedia
Harold A Skaarup Web PageLancaster LM261 Mk.I - Bombing Darmstadt Germany - 1944-09-11 to 1944-09-12
6 Bomber Group September 11/12, 1944
18 Halifaxes from 424, 429, and 433 squadrons were ordered on a mining operation to Kiel Bay. The crews were over the garden at 15,000 feet, sowing68@1500 lb mines. Richard Koval (6bombergroup.ca)
226 Lancasters and 14 Mosquitoes of 5 Group. 12 Lancasters lost, 5·3 per cent of the Lancaster force.
A previous 5 Group attack in August had failed to harm Darmstadt but, in clear weather conditions, the group's marking methods produced an outstandingly accurate and concentrated raid on this almost intact city of 120,000 people. A fierce fire area was created in the centre and in the districts immediately south and east of the centre. Property damage in this area was almost complete. Casualties were heavy. The deaths of 8,433 people were actually reported to police stations. This figure was made up of: German civilians - 1,766 men, 2,742 women and 2, children, 936 service personnel, 492 foreign workers and 368 prisoners of war. United States Strategic Bombing Survey,* which quotes these figures, adds that actual death figure may have been 5,000 more, because many deaths were not immediately reported by the 49,200 homeless people who were evacuated from Darmstadt most of whom did not return until after the war, if at all. A present-day Darmstadt city guide says: '12,300 dead, 70,000 homeless.'
The Darmstadt raid, with its extensive fire destruction and its heavy casualties was held by the Germans to be an extreme example of R.A.F. 'terror bombing' and is still a sensitive subject because of the absence of any major industries in the city. Bomber Command defended the raid by pointing out the railway communications: passing through Darmstadt; the directive for the offensive against German communications had not yet been issued to Bomber Command, although advance notice of the directive may have been received. Darmstadt was simply one of Germany's medium-sized cities of lesser importance which succumbed to Bomber Command's improving area-attack techniques in the last months of the war when many of larger cities were no longer worth bombing. The Bomber Command War Diaries, Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt207 Squadron (Sernper Paratus). Lancaster aircraft LM 261 went down near Fosses, Belgium during a night raid against Darmstadt, Germany. F/Os E.J. Brian, R.B. Gowan, Pilot Officers J.J. Milne, W.L. Moxley,(RCAF), Warrant Officer J.M. Bingham (RAF), Flying Officer D.C. Cooke (RAF), and Sergeant A.H. Davies (RAF) were all killed.
Specifications
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Avro Type 683 Lancaster
| General Characteristics | ||
| Crew: | 7 (typical) | |
| Length: | 69 ft 6 in (21.18 m) | |
| Wingspan: | 102 ft 0 in (31.09 m) | |
| Height: | 20 ft 6 in (6.25 m) | |
| Wing area: | 1,300 sq ft (120 m2) | |
| Aerofoil: | Root: NACA 23018. Tip: NACA 23012 | |
| Empty weight: | 36,900 lb (16,738 kg) | |
| Max takeoff weight: | 72,000 lb (32,657 kg) | |
| Fuel capacity: | 2,154 imp gal (9,792 L) | |
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Ventral Turrets
As originally designed the Lancaster was provided with ventral defence in the form of a Nash and Thompson FN64 turret, which was fitted to some early production aircraft. However, in common with all other periscope sighted ventral turrets, the narrow viewing angle made it almost impossible for gunners to acquire and track targets, and the few turrets which were installed were soon removed from service.
The ventral .50 inch (50 calib) was approved as Lanc Mod.925 during February 1944, and was one of a number of unsuccessful measures taken to counter night fighter attacks from below.
The growth of the Luftwaffe night fighter force was followed by an increase in the in the number of attacks from below, exacerbated from August 1943 onward by the introduction of aircraft equipped with Schrage Musik upward firing 20mm cannon. A number of responses were considered by Bomber Command including a free mounted ventral .50 calibre Browning machine gun, which was approved on the Lancaster as Modification 925 during February 1944.
The modification was very basic, consisting of little more than an enlarged bicycle seat for the gunner and a simple free mounted gun with open sights which fired through the ventral turret/H2S aperture. On aircraft with bulged bomb doors the mounting (often unpainted) was incorporated into the fairing at the rear of the doors.
Non-H2S fitted aircraft were sporadically equipped with the gun from February 1944 onward, although a clear plan for installation appears to have been lacking. The quantity of aircraft which actually had the gun installed is unknown and photos of the mounting with a Browning actually installed are very rare.
Serious problems quickly became apparent, as noted in the following V Group monthly newsletter for April 1944:- "With the gunner strapped in his seat it is difficult to follow the gun round on the beam; it is difficult for the gunner to get his head down behind the sight as it tends to push the oxygen mask upwards on the gunners face; and also considerable vibration is experienced on the sight when the gun is fired."
These problems, plus the gradually more widespread introduction of H2S saw the gun fall out of use quite quickly, although it does appear to have been retained on some aircraft until war's end (most notably in 3 Group).
The quantity of aircraft which actually had the gun installed is unknown and photos of the mounting with a Browning actually installed are very rare.
Notice on these aircraft the extra position in the eight person crew of Mid-Under-Gunner.