Operation: Bremen, Germany

Date: 10th/11th September 1940 (Tuesday/Wednesday)

Unit No: 58 Squadron, 4 Group, Bomber Command

Type: Whitley V

Serial: T4134

Code: GE:T

Base: RAF Linton-on-Ouse, Yorkshire, England

Location: Schönhagen beach, Germany

Pilot: Plt Off. James Edwin Thompson 78536 RAF Age? PoW * (1)

2nd Pilot: Plt Off. Trevor Harold Hadley 79512 RAFVR Age 20 PoW No. 245 * (2)

WOp/Air Gnr: Sgt. Kenneth Douglas Hall 759194 RAF Age 21. PoW No 274 ** (3)

WOp/Air Gnr: Sgt. William Hughes 633463 RAF Age 19. PoW No. 278 *** (4)

Air Gnr: Sgt. William John Bull 701084 RAF Age 21. PoW No. 265 **(5)

* Stalag Luft 3, Sagan-Silesia, Germany, now Żagań in Poland.

** Stalag 357, Kopernikus at Thorn (Toruń) in Poland.

*** Stalag Luft 6, Heydekrug, Memelland (now Šilutė in Lithuania)

REASON FOR LOSS:

Taking off from RAF Linton-on-Ouse at 23:25 hrs to bomb the inland port at Bremen.

It is thought that the aircraft suffered damage from Flak and came down near Lübeck. The following series of photographs show the aircraft after the forced landing and its recovery by the Germans. No apparent Flak damage can be seen in any of the photographs.

(1) Plt Off. Thompson’s; first main PoW camp was Stalag 357. He was promoted to Fg Off. on the 17th April 1941 as a Flt Lt. he was transferred to Stalag Luft 3.

He was recommended for a 'Notation on his Records" for his continuous and valuable work which he rendered in the Intelligence organisation (for the Great Escape) at Stalag Luft 3.

He was awarded the MBE (M) on the 10th December 1946: The citation reads as follows:

“Flight Lieutenant Thompson was a member of the crew of an aircraft which failed to return from an operational sortie over Germany on the 11th September, 1940. He was captured by the Germans when he landed on the shores of the Baltic near Lubeck. A few weeks after capture, Flight Lieutenant Thompson escaped from a tram at Stralsund station, while being transferred from Oberursel to Barth. He climbed out of the window, while the guard's attention was distracted, and crawled along the railway track. His absence was discovered however and he was recaptured after a very short time. In January, 1942, whilst at Stalag Luft I at Barth, thus officer made his second attempt to escape, after studying the movements of the guards and the general layout of the camp for a period of months. He gained admission to the non-commissioned officers' compound to take part in a football match and remained in hiding in the barracks when the other officers left. Later that night lie crawled under the double gate leading to the football field and climbed over the perimeter fence. The whole operation took nine hours, and, when he was eventually free, he made has way towards Stralsund. There he was recaptured three days later while waiting for a boat to Sweden. Subsequently, Flight Lieutenant Thompson took an active part in several tunnel digging operations, but all of these were discovered before completion. He was eventually repatriated in September, 1944. Throughout his captivity, this officer showed great determination in has efforts to escape and his enthusiasm was never shaken by his failure”s.

Note - we are unable to find details as to why he had been repatriated, normally through serious injury or illness”.

He retired from the RAF as a Sqn Ldr. retaining the rank of Flt Lt. on the 7th December 1949.

(2) Plt Off. Hadley was flying as a co-pilot on Whitley V P5002 GE:T from RAF Lintin-on-Ouse on an operation to Berlin on the 30/31st August 1940 . During their return when very low on fuel the crew abandoned the aircraft over Hornsea. The pilot, Flt Lt. Clements survived, as did Plt Off. Trevor Harold Hadley, Sgt. Zamek and Sgt. R.F. Williams. Sgt. Matthew Hill 567598 RAFVR from Whitby, Yorkshire, England, baled out with all the crew but sadly his parachute drifted over the sea and it is assumed he drowned as his body was never recovered.

Flt Lt. Neville Oxynham Clements 42194 RAFVR, then with 24 Squadron, was killed flying Dakota III FL588 NQ:Z on the 5th December 1944whilst transporting some of the most experienced glider pilots to the Far East. 18 people lost their live, 5 others survived when it is understood that the aircraft hit a mountain in France. The family were from Durban, Natal, South Africa.

Sgt. Ian Alexander Zamek 749523 RAFVR was killed with all crew on the 3rd October with 58 Squadron also on a Whitley. N1434 GE:E on an operation to Frankfurt. His family suffered the loss of his brother on the 16th July 1942. 20 year old, Sgt. Norman Henry Zamek 1196372 RAFVR flying a Hurricane with 135 Squadron over India. The family were from Bournemouth, Hampshire, England.

His brother 20 year old, Plt Off. Ronald Arnold Hadley 79511 was killed the following month. See Whitley V T4137 GE-K 08/09th October 1940 for full story.

The rear of their photo is written: New Zealanders at Oflag 9A - Plt Off. Hadley is shown far right kneeling. Others not named - are you able to assist?

German officers and other PoW's watching the boxing.

Boxing within the PoW camp Plt Off. Hadley is shown in front row extreme right. Others not named - are you able to assist?

Trevor Hadley on right - chap on the left unknown - can you assist?

Pre-war days - Trevor Hadley shown front in black blazer, his brother, Ronald Hadley at rear 2nd left. Others not named - are you able to assist? Understood to be the Taranaki New Plymouth Aero Club

His journey prior to arriving at Stalag Luft 3 on the 11th April 1943 is listed below:

20th February.1941 - Oflag IX-A/H - Spangenberg Castle, Hesse, Germany;
4th March 1941 - Stalag 21A - Thorn Podgorz, Poland;
7th June 1941 - Oflag IX-A/H - Spangenberg Castle, Hesse, Germany;
8th October 1941 - Oblag VIB Dössel, Germany;
4th September 1942 - Oflag XXIB, Szubin, Pomorze, Poland

At Stalag Luft 3 on the night of the 27th January 1945, with Soviet troops only 26 km (16 mls) away, orders were received to evacuate the PoWs to Spremberg which is to the West in Germany. The PoW’s were informed of the evacuation, which was on foot, at about 22:00 hrs the same night and were given 30 mins to pack and prepare everything for the March. The weather conditions were very difficult, with freezing temperatures, and it was snowing accompanied by strong winds. There was 15 cm (6 in) of snow and 2000 PoWs were assigned to clear the road ahead of the main groups.

After a 55 km (34 mls) march, the PoWs arrived in Bad Muskau where they rested for 30 hours. The PoWs were then marched the remaining 26 km (16 mls) to Spremberg where they were housed in empty garages, storerooms and in military barracks. There they were provided with warm soup and bread.

He was amongst the column of men that were force marched to the Marlag-Milag Nord PoW camp arriving there on the 4th/5th February 1945.

Malag = Marinelager (naval prisoner of war camp) and Milag = Marine-Internierten-Lager (naval internment camp), Nord (North). Located at a former Luftwaffe (German Air Force) barracks near Westertimke NE of Bremen in Germany.

On the 2nd April 1945 the camp commandant ordered that the PoWs were to leave the camp with most of the guards. However, that afternoon a detachment of more than 100 SS-Feldgendarmerie entered the camp and gathered some 3000 of the PoWs and marched them out heading east.

The column was attacked RAF aircraft resulting in the deaths of two PoWs and injuries to several others. The Senior British Naval Officer (SBNO), Capt. J. Thornton was one of the two who were killed.

Records show that he was part of this column. The column finally arrived at Lübeck, on the Baltic coast, on the 28th April 1945. They were liberated by a Spearhead of the 11th Armoured Division around noon of the 1st May 1945.

At the Marlag-Milag Nord camp the guards fled on 9th April 1945 and were replaced by elderly civilian guards. Those remaining at the camp were liberated by the British Guards Armoured Division on the 27th April 1945.

(3) Sgt. Hall was captured near was captured north of Kiel on the 11th September 1940 and transferred to Dulag Luft, Oberursel near Frankfurt.

He arrived at Stalag Luft 1 on the 16th September 1940 and remained there until April 1942 when he was transferred Stalag Luft 3. He remained here until June 1943 when he was transferred to transfer to Stalag Luft 6.

This was probably as a result of his promotion to Warrant Officer (WO)

He remained at Stalag Luft 6 until June 1944 when in the face of Russian advances the camp was evacuated. This was the "northern route" of the force-marches. He was in the column that headed to Stalag 357 at Thorn (Toruń).

On the 1st September 1944 the PoWs were force-marched from Thorn (Toruń) in Poland to the site of the former Stalag 11D, with construction being carried out by the Italian PoW from XI-B. The camp was commonly known as Stalag 357, Fallingbostal but officially the designation was Stalag 357, Oerbke.

Fallingbostel (Oerbke) was liberated on the 16th April 1945 by British troops from B Squadron 11th Hussars and the Reconnaissance Troop of the 8th Hussars. They were met at the main gate of Stalag 357 by a guard of Airborne troops, impeccably attired and led by RSM Lord. He was interviewed on the 20th April 1945.

Kenneth Douglas Hall was born on the 19th August 1919 in West Ham, Essex. He was employed as a Audit Clerk in Southall in Middlesex prior to enlisting in the RAF on the 22nd August 1939.

(4) Sgt. Hughes was captured on the 11th September 1940 and transferred to Dulag Luft, Oberursel near Frankfurt arriving there the next day.

On the 18th September he was transferred to Stalag Luft 1, Barth-Vogelsang and remained there until April 1942 when he was transferred Stalag Luft 3, Sagan-Silesia. In April 1942, all 800 inmates were transferred to the newly constructed Stalag Luft 3 in Sagan, Silesia.

He remained there until October 1942 when he was transferred back to Stalag Luft 1. From October 1942 to November 1943, Stalag Luft 1 received only non-commissioned officers. Probably as a result of his promotion to Warrant Officer (WO) he was amongst the PoWs who were transferred to Stalag Luft 6 at Heydekrug in East Prussia in October/November 1943.

In June 1944 he was transferred to Stalag Luft 4, Groß-Tychow, Pomerania. In late January 1945 the PoWs could see the distant flash of artillery fire from the east. On the 28th January the evacuation was ordered, and a train loaded with mostly sick and wounded were transported to Stalag Luft 1 at Barth, Germany. On the 2nd February another train load was transported to Stalag 13D at Nürnberg, Germany. Over a period of 3 days from the 6th February some 6,000 prisoners were ordered to leave the camp on foot with little notice. The PoWs in groups of 250 to 300 were marched, heading west, covering long daily distances on starvation rations.

On the 28th March the column arrived at Ebbsdorf where a large number of the men were jammed into railway box cars and sealed in for some 33 hours until the train arrived at Stalag 11B, near Fallingbostel on the 30th March. Many camps on the eastern edge of Germany were combined into one large camp here. The treatment was a repetition of that at previous camps, with the exception of food, of which there was virtually none. There were no beds or bedding in the buildings.

On the 6th April after only being in this camp for a week, Lagers A and B from Stalag Luft 4 were forced on their final march, this time heading east, doubling back on the route they took to arrive. This last march only lasted approximately three weeks but was just as harsh as the previous march except for the treatment by the Germans, which was somewhat better. There was still little or no food available, and the pace was much slower, advancing 4 to 5 miles a day.

On the morning of the 2nd May 1945 the main column was resting in a ditch next to the River Elbe near Lauenburg, Germany, when British troops arrived and liberated the camp. The now liberated PoWs were given virtually nothing and told to march west. The march from beginning to end, spanned 86 days over an estimated 600 miles. He was interviewed on the 28th June 1945.

William Hughes was born in 21st January 1921. He enlisted in the RAF on the 6th February 1939.

(5) Sgt. Bull was captured north of Kiel on the 11th September 1940 and transferred to Dulag Luft, Oberursel near Frankfurt.

On the train journey to Stalag Luft 1 from Frankfurt he and Plt Off. Thompson attempted to escape but were recaptured almost immediately.

From here on his PoW story is the same as that of Sgt Hall as described above at Ser 3.

William John Bull was born on the 6th August 1918. He was a Radio Engineer in Harrow, Middlesex prior o enlisting in the RAF on the 16th July 1938.

Burial details:

None

Researched by Michel Beckers for Aircrew Remembered August 2016. Further research by Webmaster. Photographs of the aircraft from the Michel Beckers collection. The photographs of Plt Off. Trevor Harold Hadley sent to us and used with permission from Julia Hadley, New Zealand (Aug 2016). Thanks to Julia Hadley, for the correction to the position of Plt Off. Hadley in the Oflag 9A photograph. (Mar 2024). Reviewed and updated by Aircrew Remembered with PoW questionnaire information and update to crew details. (Mar 2024). Many thanks to Tim Hughes the date of birth for his father, Sgt. William Hughes, which has been included in the updated narrative for his father (Jun 2025).

Other sources listed below:

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