|
Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter Mark X
Origins
The pugnacious Beaufighter derived, through the Beaufort design, from Blenheim antecedents. Equally at home over land or sea, the Beaufighter was highly successful as a heavy strike fighter, as a night fighter, in reconnaissance or in the torpedo attack role. A very great deal has been written and published about this aircraft, with many titles readily available through libraries, bookshops and on-line. Only the barest summary of the Beaufighter story is presented here.
Although unsuccessful in tendering a number of cannon-armed fighter designs in the the late 1930s, and despite the loss of Frank Barnwell in an aircraft accident in August 1938, late that year Bristols were well-placed to meet emerging recognition of the need for a long-range heavy fighter. With Air Ministry support, the Type 156 Beaufighter prototype first flew in July 1939, just six months after the layout drawings had been agreed.
Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter Mark X NV526 ‘M’ of 211 Squadron Chiringa 1945 (Marsh-Collis collection)
The prototype was met with an order for 300 aircraft under Specification F.17/39. While the design had much in common with the Blenheim and the Beaufort, another year of development time and many thousands of design drawings were needed to arrive at the final operational design.
By April 1940, the first two production-standard prototypes were delivered to the RAF. After final acceptance testing with full operational equipment at Boscombe Down, Beaufighters entered RAF Squadron service in late July 1940. Robust, versatile and heavily armed, the Bristol Beaufighter operated in many roles and theatres, remaining in RAF service (albeit as target tugs) until 1960.
Mighty Wurlitzer—the cockpit of the Beaufighter (Bristol Aeroplane Co)
Beaufighter Mark X
The Mark X derived from the Mark VI version, initially built for Coastal Command duties with ASV AI Mark VIII scanning radar in the nose and torpedo release gear. Mark X aircraft saw service as long range reconnaissance and strike fighters, equipped with rockets, cannon and machine guns, a nose-mounted camera replacing the ASV scanner.
Specifications
|
General
|
Long-range strike fighter. Twin-engine, mid-wing cantilever stressed-skin monoplane.
|
|
Crew
|
Pilot; Navigator/Wireless Operator/Rear Gunner.
|
|
Engines
|
2xBristol Hercules XVII radials of 1735hp, single speed supercharging, 100/130 grade fuel, maximum boost +10lb on take-off or 5 minute combat limit.
|
|
Armament
|
Four 20mm cannon, fuselage mounted.
Four .303in Browning machine guns in starboard wing, two in port wing.
8 rocket projectiles, 25lb AP or semi-AP, 60lb HE.
|
|
Weights
|
Empty variously quoted and depending on “fit”: 14,069lb
All-up variously quoted as above: 22,100lb
Overload (maximum take-off): 25,000lb
|
|
Range
|
1,470 miles (at 200mph with full load), endurance well in excess of 7 hours.
2x188 gallon inner-wing tanks, 2x 87gallon outer wing tanks.
|
|
Stalling speed
Safety speed
Approach
Maximum speed
|
Flaps & undercarriage up: 104mph. Flaps and undercarriage down: 80mph
170mph
Preliminary 160mph; final 115mph
Variously quoted 330mph
Vne (without external stores) 400mph Vne (with 8x60lb RP) 345mph
|
Far East Service
In the Burma theatre, the firepower of the rocket-equipped Mark X was put to effective use in the strike fighter role, on long-range intruder operations against Japanese transport and communications. Recognition and friendly fire incidents saw aircraft markings evolve in the theatre, starting with suppression of the inner red of the RAF roundel, replaced firstly by white and later by light blue.
From a slow start in early 1943, held back somewhat by lack of spares, aircraft and aircrew, Beaufighter operations against Japanese transport and airfields in Burma steadily stepped up in scale. By early 1944 the several Squadrons were fully effective, gaining the attention of not only the Japanese but of story-hungry Allied war-correspondents.
Whispering Death
About this time, the Beaufighter nickname Whispering Death started to appear in booklets and the media. Reporting on this period, the 1949 HMSO history of the Burma Air War Wings Of the Phoenix, Ch 4 discusses the 1943 Monsoon (June to September) offensive. From the original context, the remarks that follow would seem to relate to a 27 Squadron operation around September 1943:
"Beaufighters too were now coming into prominence, setting fire to the huge oil tanks at Yenangyaung and yet further reducing Japanese freedom of movement on their rain-soaked roads and broken railways. The twin-engined Bristol Beaufighter carried a crew of two and, until it was later fitted for rockets or bombs, was equipped with four 20-mm cannon and five machine-guns, one of them in the navigator's turret. As a jest at a mess party, where pilots liked to mock what they thought were newspaper clichés, someone invented for Beaufighters the name of Whispering Death, for the Beaufighter has a trick of remaining silent at low level until it is almost on its target.
In just such a way a Beaufighter had come across a full-dress parade of Japanese soldiers at Myitkyina on the birthday of Emperor Hirohito. Myitkyina was now the largest enemy air base in North Burma, and high-ranking samurai officers were sitting stiffly on their chargers, fronting a hollow square of rigid troops around a flagpole bearing the Rising Sun of Nippon, when they were toppled from their saddles. By its silent approach the Beaufighter caught the parade unprepared and left the square with riderless horses galloping among the bodies, the flagpole broken and the Rising Sun sinking. The name Whispering Death stayed on."
Curiously, the "Emperor's Birthday" as reason for the Myitkyina parade seems to be another myth. In Hirohito’s time the celebration was held on 29 April, some weeks before the South-West monsoon breaks over Burma around late May to last until September. In Beaufighters Over Burma (Blandford 1985) on No 27 Squadron from 1942 to 1945, Innes declares emphatically "Throughout April [1943] no sorties were flown in Northern Burma" (and Myitkyina is certainly that).
However, Bowyer in Flying Elephants (also on 27 Squadron) remarks that 22 sorties were flown by the Squadron that month and goes on to mention the Myitkyina “Emperor's birthday” raid in summarising operations for the period January 1943 to September 1943, but without date. The same event is again recorded by Bowyer in closely similar terms in Beaufighter (Kimber 1987 p148) and from context apparently sometime in the period to September 1943. Notably, however, Innes went on to make these further remarks:
"During March 1944, one operation of four Beaufighters led by Pilot Officer Clegg, an Australian, was mounted to strafe a Japanese camp at Lemyethna, west of Henzada, in Southern Burma. Accompanying Clegg as an observer was Mr Paul Chadburn, a reporter of the Parade magazine, whose three page story entitled Death Whispers over Burma with photographs of the briefing, the attacks, and the post-operational activities, does full justice to the operation as would be expected of a wartime journalist."
The British forces Parade Middle East Weekly may be the magazine Innes refers to, though perhaps there was a Far East edition. Innes goes on to quote Chadburn’s article in full. The opening paragraph remarked of the Beaufighter:
This seems to be the first published report of a supposed Japanese origin for the nickname—an account so appealing that it was soon taken up by others (in the 1944 booklet Beaufighter for example). Indeed, the legend is still told, despite the 1949 HMSO account and the efforts of Bowyer, Innes, and Scutts (Bristol Beaufighter, Crowood 2004, p135) at intervals ever since. Let Bowyer, then, have the final say on this famous nickname and its origins:
"And it was in Burma that the Beaufighter acquired its legendary nickname, Whispering Death—a soubriquet which, despite the many versions of its origin published in the past, actually originated as the whimsy of an RAF officers Mess in India."
Bowyer: Beaufighter at War (Ian Allan 1976) p90 and Beaufighter (Kimber 1987 p144).
Beaufighters in 211 Squadron service
Starting in October 1943, 211 Squadron took their Beaufighters on charge at Phaphamau in Uttar Pradesh, the first two arriving on the 15th of the month. By 8 November 1943 they were moving to Ranchi in Bihar, fully equipped with 16 Beaufighters (and 2 Bisleys for use as Squadron hacks). The average personnel strength of the Squadron that November was 324 personnel.
After a period working up and training with the then-novel rockets (RPs or rocket projectiles), the Squadron resumed operational status in January 1944 with 24 two-man Beaufighter crews for their establishment of 18 aircraft. Moving forward firstly to Bhatpara (south of Dacca), from July they took post at Chiringa in the North of the Arakan peninsula.
211 Squadron Beaufighters, Chiringa, 7 December 1944 (AWM image SEA0051)
Aircraft ‘X’ in the background. Open air servicing of the aircraft. Reproduced with the kind permission of the Australian War Memorial, where a number of 211 Squadron images are held in the on-line photographic collection, searchable through the Collection Database page.
211 Squadron Beaufighters, Chiringa 7 December 1944 (AWM image SEA0048)
In the background, the flight-line, with perhaps ‘O’ leading. In the foreground, Indian Army Punjabi troops man an anti-aircraft gun. A carefully posed official shot, the alertness of the Gunner stands in contrast to the close order of the flight-line.
For much of the period of operations over Burma, the 211 Squadron Operations Record Book records aircraft only by individual letter rather than by serial no. However, it has been possible to fully identify a number of the Squadron’s aircraft by matching information from the ORB, from the Squadron OpReps (the sortie reports held in TNA AIR 27/1305 to AIR 27/1310), from aircrew logbook entries and from a detailed table of losses in the personal diary of groundcrew Corporal Arthur Goodinson.
In time it may be yet be possible to firmly identify more aircraft losses. All the currently known official and personal records are incomplete to some degree. The mass of detail, of sometimes indifferent image quality, will take some considerable time to examine in full.
In the meantime, the following list has been extended to include all known aircrew losses. The aircraft listed, whether fully identified or not, are shown by date and serial no where known. A full table of aircrew lost is shown on the India & Burma page.
October to December 1943
In the working up period they suffered a spate of accidents, damaging three aircraft and destroying three others with the loss of five aircrew. Ten of the Squadron’s initial allocation of Beaufighter X aircraft have now been identified from the Operations Record Book. The ORB for this early period, thought by some to be lost, turned out to be lodged in AIR 27/1302 with the Middle East pages.
These LX and LZ serialled aircraft were all of the batch of 480 Mark X machines built by Bristols Weston-super-Mare and delivered between May and November 1943:
LX996, LZ113 ‘V’, LZ123, LZ223.
LZ122 ‘R’ damaged on landing at Ranchi 8 November.
LZ124 F/Sgt D Grant and Sgt D Bendall crashed south of the airfield at Ranchi on 15 December while returning from range practice. Grant was killed instantly and Bendall died of his injuries two days later.
LZ137 ‘N’ swung on landing 23 December 1943, undercarriage written off, Sgt Pilot Davies and passenger unhurt.
LZ151 J8141 F/O JR Edgar RCAF killed 27 December 1943 attempting a wheels-up forced landing 3 miles E of the airfield with one airscrew feathered. The aircraft burst into flames on impact.
LZ228 crash-landed 28 October 1943 due to hydraulic failure, seriously damaged, with but slight injury to F/O Bovier and F/Sgt Seeley.
LZ243 crashed on low-flying exercise, Madaripur, 1 November 1943, 1331765 F/Sgt AG Oliver and 131887 Sgt RL Small both killed. Buried in Allahabad, today they rest in Delhi War Cemetery.
January and February 1944
For the period from January 1944 the Squadron Operations Record Book pages were allotted a fresh item number by Archival staff, becoming AIR 27/1303, with Sortie Reports (OpReps) lodged in running sequence from AIR 27/1305 (from January to February 1944) to AIR 27/1310 (March 1945 to May 1945). Of the aircraft on Squadron charge at their resumption of operations in early January 1944, 17 Beaufighter Xs have been identified from the various Squadron records and Cpl Goodinson’s loss table:
LX938 ‘B’, LZ113 ‘V’, LZ116 ‘H’, LZ136 ‘S’, LZ137 ‘N’, LZ152 ‘D’, LZ157 ‘M’, LZ229 ‘E’, LZ230 ‘A’, LZ263 ‘P’, LZ270 ‘L’, LZ360 ‘T’
LZ114 ‘P’
Lost in action 13 January with F/O Bovier and Sgt Anderson.
LZ122 ‘R’
15 February 1944: 128590 F/O AJ Sharpe and 1381981 F/Sgt Pottinger PoW baled out, taken prisoner and later released from Rangoon Gaol.
LZ130 ‘S’
Missing from operations 22 January (F/Sgt Seely and Sgt Short last seen S of Mandalay. Thought to have hit a hill in following a blind valley).
LZ227 ‘K’,
R1076969 W/O Thomson RCAF wounded by ground fire 16 February 1944.
LZ363 ‘R’
24 Feb 1944 778767 F/Sgt Donaldson & 1042107 F/Sgt Bewsher hit by ground fire and crashed. The Squadron record incorrectly recorded LZ122 for this event, but Cpl Goodinson noted both correctly.
March to June 1944
No less than 23 of the Squadron’s aircraft in this busy period are now identified from the ORB & Sortie Reports and confirmed by Cpl Goodinson’s data. In those four months, 14 crews were lost on operations.
LZ116 ‘H’, LZ131 ‘W’, LZ229 ‘E’, LZ483 ‘M’, NE298 ‘V’, NE713 ‘Z”
LZ113 ‘V’
Missing from operations 27 March 1944 with J16291 F/O Waddell RCAF and F/O Woodall.
LZ136 ‘O’
Missing from operations 24 March 1944 with Canadian pilot W/O Bill Adamson and F/Sgt John Moss.
LZ153 ‘K’
Missing from operations 28 May 1944, shot down by P51s with loss of A401785 W/O Goddard RAAF and 1233069 W/O Boon.
LZ227 ‘K’
Missing from operations 6 March 1944 apparently after A404741 F/O K Fuller RAAF shot down an enemy fighter. Fuller and his navigator 1396062 Sgt Cook were never seen again.
LZ237 ‘S’
Lost in action 14 March 1944, J12883 F/O DI Cruickshank RCAF and 134713 F/O D McKenzie.
LZ248 ‘G’
Missing, J14842 F/O Jackson RCAF and F/Sgt Jones believed killed 11 June 1944.
LZ263 ‘P’
Missing from operations 11 March 1944 with J86437 P/O Depew RACF and 1198789 F/Sgt Woolley.
LZ270 (possibly) ‘L’
Lost on operations 3 June 1944. F/Lt Lockyer (Pilot), F/Sgt McCormick (Nav/W), F/O Bishop (Squadron IO) passenger. Sortie abandoned in bad weather. Attempted to land at Chittagong airfield but crashed in sea at 22.15 North 91.47 East at 4.35 hours. McCormick subsequently picked up, Lockyer and Bishop missing, Lockyer's body recovered a few days later. Bishop remains missing on the personal recall of Squadron members, though his loss was not recorded by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
LZ360 ‘T’
On 9 June, while seeking the target area, F/Sgt PS Reavill and F/Sgt NS Heywood unintentionally overflew Shwebo airfield. Their aircraft was hit by light AA fire wounding the pilot, Reavill, and damaging the hydraulics. Reavill nevertheless managed to take evasive action and ultimately bring the damaged aircraft back to base, where he made a good landing without flaps or brakes.
LZ364 ‘R’
Lost in action 8 March with F/Lt Luing and F/O White taken PoW. Both died in captivity in Rangoon Gaol.
LZ381’P’
Undershot landing and tore off undercarriage, Bhatpara 24 March 1943, Sgt Lowcock and F/Sgt Carruthers uninjured.
LZ383 ‘X’
On 17 April 1944 Sgt Chambers and Sgt Lovell were, with three other Beaufighters, to attack beach defences from Mazin to Andrew Bay and return via Ramree Is. They were last seen at 10:28hrs, having attacked a jetty at Lontha, heading North between Ramree and Chebuba at very low level. The Operations Record Book lists this aircraft as ‘N’.
LZ479 ‘O’
Missing from operations 6 May 1944 with 1369740 F/Sgt Bell and 1497952 F/Sgt Nash
LZ528
Lost in a flying accident at SLAIS Ranchi on 18 April 1944. 1048291 F/Sgt Carr and 1078671 F/Sgt Clelland killed.
NE300 ‘N’
Lost in action 29 April with F/Sgt GP Davies and F/Sgt I Gilmore.
NE516 ‘Y’
During the night of 12/13 June two aircraft set out to attack communications in central Burma, including the Mandalay—Rangoon railway. The aircraft sent a VHF distress call at 0610 hours and bearings were sent by Feni, Chittagong and Cox’s Bazaar but nothing further was heard. J12845 F/Lt MJC Haakenson RCAF and his Nav/W 1321315 F/Sgt AO Ferguson were taken PoW and held at Rangoon Gaol. Both survived.
NE539 ‘Z’
Lost in action 7 May 1944. J86974 P/O Hall RCAF shot dead on capture, 176397 P/O Parker taken PoW but died of dysentery in captivity at Rangoon Gaol.
July and August 1944
From the logbooks of DA Spencer and EL Wood, Cpl Goodinson’s diary loss table, and Squadron records including sortie reports:
LX938 ‘D’ later LX938 ‘W’, LZ229, LZ323 ‘D’, LZ343, LZ483 ‘M’.
NE321 ‘L’, NE414 ‘A’, NE646 ‘V’, NE713 ‘E’, NE736 ‘E’.
All these NE series aircraft were part of the batch of 500 Mark X Beaufighters built by Bristols Weston-super-Mare, delivered to the RAF between November 1943 and April 1944.
LX953 ‘G’
Lost in action 1 August 1944 with J88656 W/O Vaughan RCAF and F/Sgt Lightfoot. So recorded in OpRep 224 Sortie Report No 1. RAF Aircraft LA100–LZ999 record that aircraft as struck off 177 Squadron charge 29 March 1945. No other serial variations seem valid.
LZ232 ‘D’
On the morning of 27 August, four aircraft set out on a six hour operation to attack railway targets on the Moulmein—Thanbyuzayat—Anaukwin line as far South as possible. The weather was difficult with rain and low cloud. J16295 P/O Cuddy RCAF and 133807 W/O Tomlinson RAF were seen leaving the target area with port engine smoking. Although the CO (M-R in ‘X’) made VHF contact and attempted to offer escort, he was unable to find Cuddy. Seven minutes after their attack, Cuddy reported he was about to ditch. Both men were taken captive, they too survived Rangoon Gaol.
NE298 ‘V’
Damaged by ground fire 7 July 1944 near Letpadan, forced-landed without flaps or undercart. F/O GV Vardigans, F/Sgt D Spencer safe.
NE488 ‘W’
On 27 July 1235518 F/Sgt WA Williams, 23, and his navigator 1522557 F/Sgt Gollop, aged 29, were on an afternoon sortie to attack communications target. Their aircraft did not return. Both are buried in Taukkyan War Cemetery.
NE719 ‘Z’
One of six aircraft to attack Pyinmana railway station with rockets on the afternoon of 12 August in a successful strike before proceeding on solo patrols, P/O F Gamlin and his Nav/W W/O BB Mearns did not return. They were taken captive, held at Rangoon Gaol, and survived.
‘B’
On the night of 5/6 August two Beaufighters attacked Thazi railway station despite intense flak. Pilot 990198 F/Sgt J Leach was wounded in shoulder and chest by light machine gun fire. With the help of Navigator F/O Callaghan he flew back to base and landed safely. Leach was admitted to 31 West African Casualty Clearing Station.
September to December 1944
From Cpl Goodinson’s loss table and Squadron records:
LZ343
Lost in a flying accident 17 December 1944 with 1334151 F/Sgt Bell and 574199 Sgt Lawrence.
NE288 ‘O’
On their first operation together, F/Sgt HH Hipperson and his Navigator F/Sgt JHC Harvey took off with two other aircraft around 13:30hrs on 14 October to attack road and rail targets in the Thazi—Pyinmana area. On the homeward leg, near the Irrawaddy, P/O Thompson RCAF with W/O Butcher observed a column of smoke to the rear. Returning to investigate, they observed Hipperson’s aircraft burning furiously.
NE540 ‘Z’
On 18 October 1944, six aircraft led by S/Ldr Martineau attacked Mingaladon airfield. Five miles out, they observed aircraft above the target but pressed their attack home. 41553 F/Lt RM Coles and F/O 152568 RS Painter were last seen breaking off to the South-East having completed a run over the airfield, by F/Sgt A Begg and F/Sgt JD Rowan flying as their No 2 in ‘W’. Japanese Oscars gave chase to all the Beaufighters but failed to make contact. However, Coles and Painter did not return. They were posted missing and were not found by the postwar RAFMES search parties. Their loss is commemorated on the Singapore Memorial, Kranji.
NV368 ‘F’
Operating alone in the third of the morning’s sorties on 11 December, J26409 F/O Barlow RCAF with 1418377 F/Sgt Quaintance were to attack targets of opportunity from Sittang Bridge to Martaban. They did not return. A later sortie in the area saw the still burning remains of an aircraft near Paung railway station.
NV384
Crashed on take-off after the starboard engine cut on 9 November 1944. No casualties, but the aircraft damage was recorded as Cat B (beyond repair on site, repairable at a Maintenance Unit or at a contractor's works).
NV808 ‘T’
Four aircraft sortied on the afternoon of 24 September to attack railway targets Mandalay—Rangoon—Prome. W/O AE England and W/O AW Blaxall, posted missing in action, were never found.
‘E’
Following up on earlier rail attacks, on 27 September F/O Shippin and Sgt JH Oblein suffered engine failure after attacking Chaukpadang railhead. They forced-landed, both being taken PoW and surviving to be released from Rangoon Gaol in May 1945.
January to March 1945
The NT and NV series were part of a further batch of 500 Mark X Beaufighters built by Bristols Weston-super-Mare and delivered to the RAF between April 1944 and September 1944. From the ORB & Sortie Reports, logbook of T Taylor, ms of DA Spencer, Cpl Goodinson’s list and RAF Aircraft LA100—LZ999, RAF Aircraft NA—LZ999:
KW398 ‘S’, KW413 ‘W’, NE455, NE811 ‘Z’, NV562
NE603 ‘O’
On Saturday 13 January, S/Ldr RN Dagnall and F/O Stenning took off at 1010 hours, tasked to take over the earlier patrolling of the rail line from Taikkyi to Iniwa and attack any targets of opportunity. The aircraft failed to return and no signals were heard. A later aircraft searched without result. The remains of the missing crew were recovered in 1953 and are buried in Taukkyan War Cemetery.
LZ399 ‘V’
Lost in action 8 February 1945 R168763 W/O JE Fitzpatrick RCAF (pilot) and 1549317 F/Sgt S Lock (navigator). Took off at 0215 hours to attack communications between Taunouf and Frowein southern Burma. They did not return. Best evidence later was that it was strafing a Japanese car on the main road but hit a tree. Their remains were buried by local villagers.
LZ372 ‘W’
Lost in action 9 February 1945 with F/Sgt Purnell and F/Sgt Grimsdell, attacking rail targets between Prome and Taikkyi.
NV553 ‘G’
Missing from operations 12 February 1945: Pilot 990198 W/O Leach and Nav/W 138079 F/O Callaghan taken PoW and later released from Rangoon Gaol.
April 1945
Matching the log of JS Mitchell DFC with the ORB shows the following Beaufighters on charge: KW413, of the mixed batch of 500 Mark VIF and Mark X aircraft built by Rootes Securities and ordered in February 1942.
NV376 ‘V’, NT984 ‘R’.
NV526 ‘M’ Flown by AB Whythe DFM. Frequently illustrated, yet all too often erroneously described with a completely spurious serial no.
NT984 ‘R’
Hit by groundfire over Schwelaung 11 April 1945 and returned to Chiringa where the navigator P/O Palmer and then the pilot F/O JS Mitchell parachuted to safety within a few miles of the airstrip.
NV 607 ‘K’
Patrolling the Tavoy-Ye road on the morning of 5 April, hit by accurate groundfire over Kaleinaung Bridge in the port engine and wing. F/Sgt Walters and his Nav/W F/Sgt Kemp returned safely after 7hrs 15min in the air.
May 1945
NV603 ‘G’
Missing from operations 7 May 1945. Pilot 187554 F/O Anderson and navigator 187915 F/O Davies failed to return from attacking river craft near Bassein, in the Squadron’s last operational loss of the war. Here, too the boys were long missing in action, but in 1954 their remains were recovered by one of the British war grave search parties and they lie at rest with other comrades of the Squadron in Taukkyan War Cemetery.
Other damaged aircraft
Form 540 monthly summary sheets for the Squadron sometimes identify damaged aircraft. For example, these Beaufighters were recorded as damaged in May:
NE688 (flew through blast from own RPs: Cat II)
NV202 (0.5” fire through rudder, port aileron and radio transmitter: Cat I)
[This terse note suggests another friendly fire incident]
Summary
On 13 May 1945, 211 Squadron stood down from operational readiness to withdraw to Yelahanka and conversion to the de Havilland Mosquito.
From October 1943 to May 1945, the Squadron had borne the loss of 35 Beaufighters on operations and a further 6 in accidents resulting in casualties. In the 17 months from January 1944 they had flown 1790 operational sorties for a total of 7425 flying hours, for the loss on operations of 76 aircrew: 58 killed or missing in action and 18 taken PoW (12 surviving). In fatal flying accidents over the period from mid-October 1943, a further 14 aircrew and other personnel died.
Sources
211 Squadron Operations Record Book TNA AIR 27/1302, AIR 27/1303
211 Squadron Operations Reports/Sortie Reports TNA AIR 27/1305 to AIR 27/1310
Australian War Memorial Photograph Collection
Carruthers (Nav/BW) Observer’s and Air Gunner’s Flying Log Book 1944–45;
Goodinson Personal Diary
Marsh-Collis Photograph Collection
Mitchell DFC Pilot’s Flying Logbook 1945;
Spencer DFC Observer’s and Air Gunner’s Flying Log Book 1944
Taylor Pilot’s Flying Logbook 1945–46;
Wood Pilot’s Flying Logbook 1944–45
J Halley RAF Aircraft LA100-LZ999 (Air Britain 1991)
J Halley RAF Aircraft NA100-NZ999 (Air Britain 1992)
Air Ministry Pilot’s Notes Beaufighter TFX AP 1721N (AM 1946)
Bowyer Beaufighter at War (Ian Allan 1976)
Bowyer Beaufighter (Kimber 1987)
Bowyer Flying Elephants: History of No 27 Squadron RAF 1915–1969 (Macdonald 1972)
HMSO Wings Of the Phoenix (1949)
Innes Beaufighters Over Burma: No 27 Squadron RAF 1942–1945 (Blandford 1985)
Sutherland Brown Silently Into the Midst of Things: 177 Squadron RAF 1943–1945 (Trafford 2001)
Thomas Beaufighter Aces of World War 2 (Osprey 2005)
www.211squadron.org © DR Clark & others 1998–2008
Site created 15 Apr 2001, last updated 31 Jul 2008. Page created 28 Feb 2005, last updated 31 Jul 2008
Home | Site Summary | Next | Previous | Enquiries | Site Search
|
