Remembering Today 30/8/40 Pilot Officer: Kenneth Richard Killey Smettem,41877,Royal Air Force 50 Sqd

SMETTEM, KENNETH RICHARD KILLEY
Rank:
Pilot Officer
Trade:
Pilot
Service No:
41877
Date of Death:
30/08/1940
Regiment/Service:
Royal Air Force
50 Sqdn.
Grave Reference:
XII. H. 12.
Cemetery:
GROESBEEK CANADIAN WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information:
Son of Richard Augustus and Annie Isobel Smettem, of Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire, Englandhttp://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2232701/SMETTEM,%20KENNETH%20RICHARD%20KILLEY

 

Details of the above loss....

30 August 1940

50 Squadron
Hampden I L4079 VN-N
Op. Munchengladbach

Took off from Lindholm at 2057 hours. Shot down at 0032 hours by Oblt. Wener Streib. 2./NJG1 and crashed at Angerio, 14 km east of Arnhem.

Crew.

P/O. K R K. Smettem +
Sgt. A A. Horsfall +
Sgt H H. Best +
Sgt. E W J. Skinner +

Source - RAF Bomber Command Lposses Vol.I - W R. Chorley

During the course of 1940 RAF Bomber Command visited Munchengladbach on just one occasion, 46 aircraft attacked the target which consisted of industry and transport. Fifty tons of HE were dropped along with two tons of incendiaries

 

HORSFALL, ALAN ALBERT
Rank:
Sergeant
Trade:
Observer
Service No:
580957
Date of Death:
30/08/1940
Age:
19
Regiment/Service:
Royal Air Force
50 Sqdn.
Grave Reference:
Coll. grave XII. H. 9-11.
Cemetery:
GROESBEEK CANADIAN WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information:
Son of Robinson and Emma Horsfall, of Hove, Sussex. His brother David Taylor Horsfall also fell.

 

BEST, HERBERT HENRY
Rank:
Sergeant
Trade:
Wireless Op./Air Gunner
Service No:
626342
Date of Death:
30/08/1940
Age:
22
Regiment/Service:
Royal Air Force
50 Sqdn.
Grave Reference:
Coll. grave XII. H. 9-11.
Cemetery:
GROESBEEK CANADIAN WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information:
Son of Walter Fredrick and Rosetta Best.

 

SKINNER, ERIC WILLIAM JOSEPH
Rank:
Sergeant
Trade:
Air Gunner
Service No:
743057
Date of Death:
30/08/1940
Age:
21
Regiment/Service:
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
50 Sqdn.
Grave Reference:
Coll. grave XII. H. 9-11.
Cemetery:
GROESBEEK CANADIAN WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information:
Son of Robert Arthur and Mary Anne Skinner, of Brighton, Sussex, England.

 

*
Some further information on:

PO KRK Smettem here: The Wartime Memories Project

Sgt AA Horsfall here: Barnsley Grammar School Interestingly, his brother David T Horsfall was in 617 Squadron (The Dambusters) and was actually killed during Operation Chastise - the Dambusters Raid - on 17 May 1943.

 

Hampton casualties but to be fair a night operation.

Three regulars and one RAFVR..... most likely joined up from 3 September 1939....would have very few ops under his belt.

Problem of crew multi responsibilities of bomber aircraft we went to war with until resolved finally by the introduction of the 4 engined heavies.

Observer acted as standby pilot with a tandem seat awkward changeover....main responsibility for navigation from work station behind pilot then had to assume a position in the lower nose for bomb aiming.

Wireless Op/Gunner...principally wireless op duties but had responsibility also to compliment air gunnery.....would occupy the upper rear facing gun at midships.

Gunner would occupy the lower rear facing station at the bottom of the fuselage....apparently Guy Gibson had a unofficial mod introduced for this station, converting the single gun into a twin.I would think that this would have happened during his time on No 83 Squadron while at Scampton.

Per Ardua ad Astra