Whilst writing ‘Tangible reminders’, I realised that I have not covered the story of the final flight of Wellington Z1410 in any detail. (See ‘VE Day – Patrick’s perspective’ for a brief summary.) On 29th May 1942, as a demonstration of its growing strength, RAF Bomber Command launched the first of the ‘Thousand Bomber Raids’.…
All posts in Military
Waltham or Grimsby
I covered the journeys of Patrick’s son-in-law Les Dunn in “More heartbreak for Patrick”. The journeys of Patrick’s son William, known as Bill, have some similarities and almost as many differences. Bill enlisted on 19th July 1940. His entire time in the RAF was spent in England, apart from one month spent at a Gunnery…
Tangible reminders
The human memory is both wonderful and fragile. We can recall distant events in remarkable detail. We can also forget where we put the house keys the day before. A tangible reminder of an event or a person can be a powerful aid to memory. When family history research reveals a connection to RAF service…
Time in the Reserves
As a Section B reserve, Patrick received a retainer of 3 shillings and 6 pence (3s 6d) per week. This is roughly equivalent to £25 in today’s terms. He could only be called upon in the event of a general mobilisation. He was required to attend an annual training camp of three to four weeks.…
Shells
Some, perhaps most, of the statistics in WW1 are difficult to comprehend. With the wisdom of hindsight, it is easy to say that things should have been done differently. Of course they should. In the words of the Spanish American philosopher George Santayana, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”. Politicians…
We will remember them
I recently visited the International Bomber Command Centre in Lincoln. The site is spectacular, being on a hill with a clear view across to Lincoln Cathedral. Surrounding the Memorial Spire, there are 271 panels containing the names of all the Bomber Command casualties from the Second World War (pictured below). That is nearly 58,000…
The quick and the dead (and the living)
I have been unable to find any evidence that there was a formal training scheme to help disabled ex-servicemen become hairdressers. The most usual route into the profession was to be trained by a skilled man. I have a picture of Patrick standing outside his place of work. The Gloster Toilet Saloon was situated at…
A tale of two squadrons
Patrick’s eldest son, William, served on 142 Squadron in the first five months of 1942. In that period, the Squadron launched 256 sorties and lost 10 aircraft, a loss rate of 4%. This loss rate gives a crew a 50% chance of surviving beyond their 17th mission. From accounts that I have read, the majority…
More heartbreak for Patrick
I have already made a brief reference to Patrick’s son-in-law Ernest Leslie Dunn. (see VE Day: Patrick’s perspective) The days leading up to Remembrance Sunday made me investigate his story in more detail. The service records always refer to him as Leslie Dunn. There is no one left that can tell me whether he was…
What to believe (2)
In the first article titled “What to believe” I looked at the difficulty in verifying some of the facts of history. The claims made during the Battle of Britain were a useful vehicle for making the point. The theme began development somewhat earlier when I picked up a second-hand book. “Dambusters Away” written by Jack…