info wanted 101 Squadron LM508 22-6-1944

any info most welcome

 

101 Sqn Lancaster III LM508 SR-P Op: Wesseling

P/0 G Hingley pow
Sgt S D Rogerson pow
F/0 T W Ball pow
F/S T H Duff +
Sgt L V H Horrigan pow
Sgt F Sheard pow
Sgt J Gascoigne pow
Sgt J E Keogh +

T/o 2317 Ludford Magna similarly tasked. On the home leg, shot down by a night-fighter and crashed in the Biesbosch estuary near Werkendam (Noord-Brabant), 20 km NNE of Oosterhout. Of the two who died, F/S Duff rests in WerkendamProtestantCemetery but Sgt Keogh has no known grave. P/0 Hingley landed on a bridge and was admitted to hospital with a broken thigh bone.


Source: BCL Vol 5 1944 W R Chorley


Philip


Hope this helps.


Nick

 

Hi Philip, the following is taken from BCL Vol.5 - W R. Chorley

21-22 June 1944.

No.101 squadron

Lancaster III LM508 SR-p.
Op: Wesseling.

Crew.

P/O. G. Hingley pow.
Sgt. S D. Rogerson pow.
F/O. T W. Ball pow.
F/S. T H. Duff +
Sgt. L V H. Horrigan pow.
Sgt. F. Sheard pow.
Sgt. J. Gascoigne pow.
Sgt. J E. Keogh +

Took off RAF Ludford at 2317 hrs. On the home leg shot down by a night-fighter and crashed in the Biesbosch estuary near Werkendam (Noord-Brabant) 20 km NNE of Oosterhout. Of the two who died,F/S. Duff rests in werkendam Protestant Cemetery but Sgt. Keogh has no known grave. P/O. Hingley landed on a bridge and was admitted to hospital with a broken thigh bone.

 

Just beat me to it Nick. I stopped to watch Coronation Street....

Regards
Peter.

 

thanks guys,will see if I can find out the exact crash location

 

Just beat me to it Nick. I stopped to watch Coronation Street....

Regards
Peter.

Well, if you will let yourself be distracted.

Nick

 

From 101 Squadron ORBS Date 21/6/44 LancasterIII LM508 "P"
Crew is as recorded from other members
Target: Union Rheinische Braunkahlen Kraftskoff Take off 23.17 hours
Load: 8x500lb UAS.GP 8x500lb MC 1x500lb G.P. LD
Comments: MISSING Nothing heard since takeoff.

 

Again from Theo Boiten / Roderick Mckenzie's Nachtjagd - Operational war Diaries Vol.2"

The authors view is that LM508 may have been shot down by Lt.Hans Schafer of 7/NJG2.
Thye possible localtion of the action is given as 20km e-SE of Dordrecht at approx. 02.17.

55 aircraft claimed on this night.

 

"Serial Range LM301 - LM756 This aircraft was one of 350 Lancasters ordered from A.V.Roe (Yeadon) as Mk.111s except for the first ten as Mk.1s (LM301- LM310), delivered from Oct42 to Oct44. The Mk.1s had Merlin 20 engines and the Mk.111s Merlin 38 engines initially installed. LM508 was delivered to No.101 Sqdn ex-32MU ABC equipped 25Mar44. LM508 also took part in the Key Operation against Duisburg 20/21May44 When lost this aircraft had a total of 118 hours. LM508 was one of two No.101 Sqdn Lancasters lost on this operation. See: ME613. Airborne 2317 21Jun44 from Ludford Magna on ABC duties. Homebound, shot down by a night-fighter and crashed in the Biesbosch estuary near Werkendam (Noord-Brabant, 20 km NNE of Oosterhout. F/S Duff is buried in Werkendam Protestant Cemetery but Sgt Keogh has no known grave. P/O Hingley landed on a bridge and was admitted to Hospital with a broken thigh bone. F/O G.Hingley Inj Sgt S.D.Rogerson PoW F/O T.W.Ball PoW F/S T.H.Duff KIA Sgt L.V.H.Horrigan PoW Sgt F.Sheard (ABC) PoW Sgt J.Gascoigne PoW Sgt J.E.Keogh KIA F/O T.W.Ball was interned in Camp L3. PoW No.6385. Sgt J.Gascoigne initially evaded until captured in Antwerp 24Jul44 and interned in Camp L7, PoW No.453 with Sgt L.V.H.Horrigan, PoW No.223, Sgt F.Sheard, PoW No.237 and Sgt S.D.Rogerson, PoW No.234. F/O G.Hingley was confined in Hospital due injuries until Liberation. No PoW No. "


Source once again the excellent Lost Bombers - World War II Lost Bombers


Verrieres

 

Hello,
The above info on the Lancaster III of Hingley is very helpful. I have been to the exact location where the plane crashed with one of the sons who lived 10 meters from it. He would like to have a picture published in the local/regional newspaper I write for, so I am trying to help him. Is there a picture that you know of or can you direct me to a site?
Thanks so much,
Corine

 

101 Sqn Lancaster III LM508 SR-P Op: Wesseling

P/0 G Hingley pow
Sgt S D Rogerson pow
F/0 T W Ball pow
F/S T H Duff +
Sgt L V H Horrigan pow
Sgt F Sheard pow
Sgt J Gascoigne pow
Sgt J E Keogh +

T/o 2317 Ludford Magna similarly tasked. On the home leg, shot down by a night-fighter and crashed in the Biesbosch estuary near Werkendam (Noord-Brabant), 20 km NNE of Oosterhout. Of the two who died, F/S Duff rests in WerkendamProtestantCemetery but Sgt Keogh has no known grave. P/0 Hingley landed on a bridge and was admitted to hospital with a broken thigh bone.


Source: BCL Vol 5 1944 W R Chorley


Philip


Hope this helps.


Nick

Know Jeff Gascoine quite well he lives in Mansfield.
Jeff evaded for awhile but tells me it was just by good luck. When 7 crew members had been found the Germans stopped looking for any more.
He has his Evasion report that was copied for him a few years ago.

 

101 Squadron were used to try and jam or confuse German night fighters and usually had a German speaking additional crew member (8) to the normal 7 man crew. It's not clear who was the communications countermeasures member of this crew, but they did a tremendous job in reducing the number of aircraft lost.

 

Hello,
Very interested in this posting, because my father was LVH Horrigan, the wireless operator on LM508 when it was shot down. There is an article published in a dutch newspaper by Korine Loek last month about the crash from the perspective of someone who lived 10 metres from the crash site. I have a translation of the article and can email it to anyone interested.

I would be very interested in any other information about the crew. My father died 40 years ago and spoke rarely about the war anyway. I have a copy of his RAF record but some of it is difficult to understand unless you know the acronyms and the significance of some of the places he was posted to before joining an active squadron (101 in April 1944). I will do another posting to see if anyone can help in interpreting some parts of his RAF history.

My father joined the RAF in July 1941 but did not join an active squadron for almost 3 years. Is that normal?

I would appreciate any information anyone can provide.

 

Hello John,

Welcome to the forum. Please post the service record details, someone might be able to help.

Regards
Peter

 

The Commanding Officer of RAF No 101 Squadron from July 1944 to January 1945 at Ludford was Wing Commander M H de L. Everest

 

The Commanding Officer of RAF No 101 Squadron from July 1944 to January 1945 at Ludford was Wing Commander M H de L. Everest

You beat me to it Harry Photo here.......

s/l | royal review | v-m | 1953 | 0945 | Flight Archive

 

You beat me to it Harry Photo here.......

s/l | royal review | v-m | 1953 | 0945 | Flight Archive

Thanks Peter for your reference back in this discussion.

Looking at the photograph and seeing John Crampton instantly reminded me of the secret operations carried out by the RAF in overflying the Soviet Union at a time when the US were politically sensitive to the role.They had been threatened by the S.U. and did not want to raise the political tension and the role was sub contracted to the RAF.Attlee gave permission for the establishing of a SDF and later Churchill when he came into power, gave permission for the overflights to be undertaken by the RAF from the UK.I think the detail of the operations have been in the public domain since about 1996/7

In the very early 1950s, S/Lr John Crampton DFC, a wartime Halifax captain, was the C.O of 97 Squadron equipped with Lincoln B2s at Hemswell.He was approached to lead a Special Duties Flight to be based at Sculthorpe and his detachment would have to convert to the RB-45C Tornado which involved training in the US.The aircraft would have their USAAF identification removed and replaced by RAF identifications,a job, I believe,which was carried out at West Raynham.

The night operations were carried out in April 1952 and April 1954 and were intended to gain radar photographic intelligence on Soviet defences and rocket development which the US thought was being undertaken by former German scientists.Apparently,night operations were chosen because of the successful performance record of the MIG 15 against the RB -45C daylight operations in Korea.While the S.U were aware of the penitration of their air space from their ground radar,the S.U MIG 15s were not equipped with AI Radar but were vectored on to the intruders but could not "see" them as the intruders were several thousand feet higher and the MIGs were on the point of stalling.So presumably when John Crampton left 101 Squadron in July 1953 for "a staff appointment at No 1 Group - his first non flying job for over 13 years",covered his return to the reformed SDF for the April 1954 overflight.

The other point is that later, RAF crewed Canberras performed daylight overflights to Kappustin Yar in southern Russia.The Canberras at this time were capable of a ceiling height of over 60.000 feet and the S.U Air Force using MIG 15s were incapable of intercepting..Events such as this led to the SU developing ground to air missiles such as the type which downed Gary Power in his U2 in 1960.

At a reunion last week,I was talking to an aquaintance of mine who was John Crampton's F.E on Lincolns.We had discussed the overflight operations before, but before I showed him the archive copy,he said that John Crampton's passions in lfe was modelling and driving Maseratis,which is bourne out as regards his motoring pastime.Apparently John Crampton was a modest reserved type who he thought should have gone further.Certainly I thought the same but there were quite a number of cases where people held the same rank as they held 10 years previously.He said, typical of him,he choose the southern route over Russia,one of three routes taken but it was the longer.

The other interesting point in the news is that there is a reference to Binder,Paddy Finucane's dog.I remember passing through Hornchurch,almost 10 years after Paddy Finucane's death and the dog "billetted" with the RAF Police at the guardhouse was allowed the freedom of the station.It was continually barking and snapping at the heels of every human it set eyes on, but could do no harm.As the article states Binder had no master.

 

Hello,
Very interested in this posting, because my father was LVH Horrigan, the wireless operator on LM508 when it was shot down. There is an article published in a dutch newspaper by Korine Loek last month about the crash from the perspective of someone who lived 10 metres from the crash site. I have a translation of the article and can email it to anyone interested.

I would be very interested in any other information about the crew. My father died 40 years ago and spoke rarely about the war anyway. I have a copy of his RAF record but some of it is difficult to understand unless you know the acronyms and the significance of some of the places he was posted to before joining an active squadron (101 in April 1944). I will do another posting to see if anyone can help in interpreting some parts of his RAF history.

My father joined the RAF in July 1941 but did not join an active squadron for almost 3 years. Is that normal?

I would appreciate any information anyone can provide.

Hello John, I was really interested to hear about this, as I have been trying to find out more about this Lanc for years. My father was S.D. Rogerson, the Flight Engineer. I have his RAF log book and also his POW log book, in which he wrote the full description of the last mission of LM508, and the combat which brought them down. Like most airmen he rarely talked about his experiences, but before he died 25yrs ago, he confirmed it was a Ju 88 which hit them, about 35miles from the coast, on their way home. They had bombed on 3 engines, as they had been hit by flak some way from the target, but after feathering the port outer, which had been hit, they decided to carry on. They were at about 4000ft on the way home when the fighter hit them, and set on fire near the no.1 port tank.The tail gunner (Sgt Keogh I think) was killed in the first attack, and Gerry Hingley (pilot) ordered the bale out. The fighter hit them again and seriously wounded the bomb aimer. My father told me he had to pull the bomb aimer's chute open in the aircraft and push him out the nose hatch, as he was unconcious by this point, and followed him out. The rest as they say, is history, the Lanc crashed about 1 mile from where he came down, and he was captured the next day. Prior to being picked up he found the bomb aimer's body in a field, having died from his wounds, as his chute appeared to have brought him down ok.
I would be very interested in seeing a copy of the article regarding the crash, as I have been trying to pinpoint the crash site for a long time, to try and visit the area.
Incidentally I am a member of Dumfries & Galloway Aviation Museum, and I'm sure they would be very interested in this.
If I can provide you with any more information on this please let me know.

Mike Rogerson

 

Schäfer from III./NJG 2 was flying a Ju 88G-1 and used his forward firing 2cm cannons to engage the A/C if this add anything.