Hi All Looking for additional information on this man - checked the Hut Six website to see if he was part of bomber crew, but only three names come up, only him from the RAF. I guess he could be ground crew but can't be sur. Bernard Moody – 1675342 – Corporal – RAFVR – Died 29 November 1944, aged 21. Buried Schoonselhof Cemetery, Belgium, Plot I, Row B, Grave 20. Son of Henry and Nora Moody of Edenthorpe. Thanks John
http://deantiquate.blog.yorku.ca/ On the night of May 4th or 5th 1943, during his seventh sortie in a Halifax bomber with other allied bombers targeting Dortmund in the Ruhr valley, Lennox and his crew were shot down along the German-Dutch border. John Lennox and his air gunner, Bernard Moody were killed, but the remaining crew survived. Lennox was one month short of his twenty-third birthday. Edited: Just noticed after posting that the above does not tie in with the date of death for your man - so probably need to forget this posting
The only Bernard Moody recorded with the GRO for 1944, is noted as with 85sqdn, and, as a Corporal, most probably ground crew.
Thank you Gentlemen for your help, once again the information is much appreciated. Apart from the date, the Bernard Moody who was shot down over the German/Dutch border, so in the right(ish) area for where Bernard is buried. 85 Squadron was based in Swannington, Norfolk, flying Mosquitoes. Would they have had a base in Belgium? but ground crew makes sense. Local press has yielded nothing (so far...) but, I am moving forward, so thanks again John
Thought I would check out CWGC and there are 2 Bernard Moody's - one as I mistakenly put above, he's a Sergeant (and I think therefore aircrew) killed in 1943 and yours a corporal (probably in RAF Regiment) killed in 1944. MOODY, BERNARD Rank: Sergeant Trade: Air Gnr. Service No: 1087282 Date of Death: 05/05/1943 Age: 31 Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve 405 (R.C.A.F.) Sqdn Grave Reference 15. F. 16. Cemetery REICHSWALD FOREST WAR CEMETERY Additional Information: Son of Bernard and Annie Rebecca Moody, of Pontefract, Yorkshire; husband of Winifred Louisa Gough Moody, of Pontefract. MOODY, BERNARD Rank: Corporal Service No: 1675342 Date of Death: 29/11/1944 Age: 21 Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve Grave Reference I. B. 20. Cemetery SCHOONSELHOF CEMETERY Additional Information: Son of Henry and Nora Moody, of Edenthorpe, Yorkshire. The one immediately above would also tie in with the Edenthorpe reference
Many of the Schooselhof burials of non aircrew RAF personnel may relate to V2 activities against Antwerp area facilities. The Germans almost had line of sight and could monitor where the explosions occurred to shift to another target. For example, on there was the V2 at Teniers Square On November 27, a terrible incident occurred at a major road junction near the Central Station. Teniers Plaats (Square) was the busiest intersection in town (as it still is today). Military policemen were always regulating the heavy traffic for an Allied convoy passing through the square. It was on the main north-south axis for the supply columns. From the docks, American troops were heading south to the US supply bases near Liege and British columns were heading north to the front lines in Holland. There were four tram lines crossing the square in both directions, plus there were many autos and pedestrians moving throughout the busy intersection. "I often went there after lunch to watch the military activity..." said Charles Ostyn. "and the British MP, right there in the middle, regulating and directing both military and civilian traffic. On very busy days there were two MP's." A V-2 came down at ten minutes past noon and exploded in the middle of all this activity. A British convoy was moving through the intersection and was caught in the blast. This particular rocket was believed to have exploded just above ground possibly having struck the overhead tram lines just where the traffic policemen stood. A city water main burst, water bubbling up from the ground. Soon, the whole square was filled with water. "I heard and saw this explosion from a short distance away while riding in the back of an open truck and approached the scene about 2 hours later," Ostyn remembered. "There was water running everywhere and the whole place was cordoned off and guarded by U.S. soldiers. There was a massive crowd of onlookers and many people with bandages on their heads walking around. It must have hit something above ground first because no crater was ever found." The result was total devastation. The water began to pool on the street. Floating on the water were dismembered corpses, various body parts, clothing and large amounts of debris. Several of the vehicles in the convoy exploded or caught on fire, their occupants lay burning. The glass windows of the passing trams near the intersection were all shattered causing injuries to those riding on the trams. One of the MP's was completely disintegrated and the charred body of another was found sometime later on the roof of a nearby hotel, about 60 meters away. Soon, the story of the unfortunate MP who was blown to bits was [preading among the locals. In all, the dead were 126 (26 were American & British soldiers) and another 309 injured. Bernard could have been caught in the blast and died 2 days later from his wounds. Just conjecture for the moment but V1's and V2's did cause a lot of deaths and damage that winter in Antwerp.
Thanks TD another confirmed name for the Edenthorpe and Kirk Sandall Memorial. The possible story of Bernard's death is fascinating - where did this information come from - many thanks...... One thing I haven't stated which was very lax of me, is that these villages do not have a War Memorial as yet and the Friends os St Oswald's Church are hoping to rectify this, along with stories for the men who died. If successful which they will be....photos will be posted...... Thanks again to all John
