Warrant Officer (Wireless Operator) GRUBB, JAMES HAROLD Service Number 414563 Died 02/02/1945 Aged 22 189 (R.A.F.) Sqdn. Royal New Zealand Air Force Son of Harold George Grubb, and of Annie Evans Grubb (nee Blyth), of Wanganui, Wellington, New Zealand; husband of Annie Grubb, of Walesby, Nottinghamshire, England. Casualty Buried at DURNBACH WAR CEMETERY Location: Bayern, Germany Number of casualties: 2879 Cemetery/memorial reference: Coll. grave 1. F. 12-15.
From The Dover War Memorial: James Grubb was Wop/AG of Lancaster Mk1 PB840 CA-K, which took off 20.18 from Fulbeck and subsequently crashed at Unteröwisheim, 15 miles northeast of Karlsruhe. The crew were all killed except the rear gunner, Sgt Richard Frederick Dyson GM, who was made PoW. The Kelly crew were: F/O WD 'Ned' Kelly Aus. Sgt J Howarth Brit. F/O RJ Webb Can. F/Sgt AL James Brit. W/O JH Grubb NZ F/Sgt FA Fox Brit. F/Sgt RS 'Ricky' Dyson Brit. From WW2aircraft.net, quoting a 'Bomber Command diary': 'Karlsruhe. 250 Lancasters and 11 Mosquitos of No 5 Group. 14 Lancasters lost. No 189 Squadron, from Fulbeck, lost 4 of its 19 aircraft on the raid. Cloud cover over the target caused this raid to be a complete failure. Karlsruhe reports no casualties and only a few bombs. The report mentions 'dive bombers', presumably the Mosquito marker aircraft trying to establish their position. This was a lucky escape for Karlsruhe in its last major RAF raid of the war.' From Martin Bowman's Bomber Command Reflections of War: 'It is believed that PB840 was shot down by Oberfeldwebel Heinrich Schmidt of 2/NJG6 at 23.21 hrs: it was Schmidt's 9th Abscess. Bowman says the a/c crashed in a wood, one of 5 Lancasters (3 from 189 Sqdn) to crash near the town of Bruchsal that night.' In his book German Night Fighters Versus Bomber Command Bowman says PB840 fell into a wood near Oberöwisheim, the sister hamlet to Unteröwisheim, some 3km NE of Bruchsal. Cheers, Pat.
Parents: Name: Harold George Grubb Birth Date: Oct-Nov-Dec 1890 Registration Place: Christchurch, New Zealand Name: Harold George Grubb Marriage Year: 1922 Marriage Place: New Zealand Spouse: Annie Evans Blyth New Zealand, Electoral Rolls, 1853-1981 Electoral Year: 1935 District: Wanganui Name: Harold George Grubb Birth Date: abt 1890 Death Age: 67 Death Date: 21 Dec 1957 Death Place: Wanganui Burial Place: Wanganui, Rangitikei, New Zealand Cemetery: Aramoho New Zealand, World War II Ballot Lists, 1940-1945 Inferred Residence Year: 1941
From the work of Alan Storr as held in the AWM The pilot was Flying Officer KELLY, WILLIAM DESMOND 426438 RAAF - none of the files regarding this officer held by the NAA have been digitised