RAF Service Number needed for Alf Wood, served 1930-1938

Discussion in 'Service Records' started by malcwayland, Jan 30, 2021.

  1. malcwayland

    malcwayland Active Member

    My mother’s cousin, Peter Wood, has requested I assist him in getting the Service Record for his father, Alfred Wood, b1910 Warmfield Nr. Wakefield, Yorks; d 1981, Guiseley, Yorks.

    I have the required documents but am lacking a Service Number, despite having done a fairly rigorous internet ‘trawl’. We have a picture of Alf taken 10 Oct 1930 in front of a barracks building with ‘Struma’ incised into the lintel above the barrack block door – suspect this was taken on completion of Alf’s basic training. (I believe this block may well have been situated at RAF Uxbridge, as I have found a reference to a 'Struma' block at Uxbridge being isolated in Jan 1931 because of spinal meningitis. Can anyone confirm Uxbridge as the location, please?)

    Peter thinks his dad was stationed at numerous bases including Dishforth, Finningley, Upper Heyford, Mildenhall, Worthy Down, Donibristle, and Cranwell, finishing up as a Flt Sgt Navigator/Bomb aimer in 1938. He believes that at one time he flew in Heyford biplane bombers.

    Peter still has some of his father’s RAF shoe cleaning brushes with his service number stamped on, but we cannot read the numbersI! A contributor from another forum has suggested it might be 513205? I am aware that as we have a dob a Service Number is not an essential for the application, but I am interested in finding out anyway.
    upload_2021-1-30_12-44-31.png
    If the number IS 513205; can anyone suggest an enlistment date and any other avenues we could explore to tray and trace his service while we wait for the record itself, please?

    As always, any help will be most gratefully received.

    Malcolm
     
  2. Tricky Dicky

    Tricky Dicky Don'tre member

    If you are using the MOD forms then they state

    "Service Number and/or date of birth must be included *"

    If you have his death certificate then its usual that his full date of birth is included

    TD
     

    Attached Files:

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  3. malcwayland

    malcwayland Active Member

    Thanks Tricky Dickey - I did say in the OP that "I am aware that as we have a dob a Service Number is not an essential..." Sorry, shouldn't have abbreviated Date of Birth to 'dob'!

    And for Admin I have just realised this post perhaps belongs in the 'Pre War' section - sorry, and please move if you think it needs doing.
    Malcolm
     
  4. AB64

    AB64 Senior Member

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  5. malcwayland

    malcwayland Active Member

    Thank you, AB64 - very useful to know about the existence of that post! So as I understand it, 505001 was issued in October 1925 to a civilian recruit and 550000 (The first number in the next block) was issued in Sep 1934 to a Boy Entrant. Your help is much appreciated.
     
  6. Harry Ree

    Harry Ree Very Senior Member

    The refreshed service number,513205 is still in the 505001-549999 block which was issued to airmen joining as civilians from October 1925 which does not give an exact date that Alfred wood joined the service.

    Knowing the name and service number it should be relatively easy to obtain his service record from RAF Cranwell Disclosures unit.

    RAF Disclosures
    Room 221b
    Trenchard Hall
    RAF Cranwell
    Sleaford
    Lincolnshire
    NG34 8HB

    Incidentally RAF Finningley stands out as a base for the Heyford (as does other airfields) when it opened in August 1936.The Heyford,a lumbering beast of a bomber which remained in service as a front line bomber aircraft until January 1939...open cockpit and gunnery stations, it was a design that had been left behind from the Great War.

    At the time No 102 Squadron was reformed at Finningley with the Heyford and No 7 Squadron moved up from Worthy Down to Finningley with Heyfords.

    They was a disastrous flight of No 102 Squadron Heyfords in late 1936 from Aldergrove in NI returning to base where many of the aircraft crashed on route after being lost due to bad weather and navigational difficulties....one crashed at nearby Blyborough off the A15 in Lincolnshire, way off course.

    Handley Page Heyford - Wikipedia

    The Heyford is remembered by the present owners of the now Doncaster/Sheffield Airport with a road named after the Heyford.

    Post being compiled at the same time as # 5
     
    Last edited: Jan 30, 2021
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  7. malcwayland

    malcwayland Active Member

    Many thanks, Harry Ree.

    Forms are already completed and I'm just waiting on a death certificate and I will be posting same to Cranwell for Alf's Record.

    I'm informed by Peter that at one point his dad's CO was a man called Francis John Linnell, who eventually became Air Vice-Marshall Sir Francis Linnell.

    Linnell took a liking to Alf because of his abilities and used him on his own crew.

    My own research suggests this was possibly with 99 Sqdn. Based at RAF Mildenhall sometime between 1934 and 1938. Linnell became the first Station Commander there in October 1934.

    Of the other Squadrons that operated the Heyford at one of the bases in the list given me by Peter, 7 Sqdn was based at Finningley in Sep 1936; 102 Sqdn was formed at Worthy Down 1935; and 99 Sqdn. was based at Mildenhall in 1934.

    Thanks again for your help, it's much appreciated.
    Malcolm
     
    Last edited: Jan 31, 2021

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